Alignment Question - Chaotic Neutral or Chaotic Evil?

[Bedrockgames]

@bill

I seriously have no power over the guy, I am a newb myself. The DM is the final authority in the game unless I appeal to the higher officers in the club. That and the guy in question hates me, I kept trying to stop him from stealing the entire module and hand the loot out evenly to all party members.

I just hadn't figured he would go so low.

Are you certain the guy hates you, or is he playing a character that dislikes your character? I only ask because you say you are new to the game and sometimes new players miss this distinction. If he genuinely dislikes you, and is letting that impact his behavior in game, then there is an issue and you should probably speak with him privately or find another group. To me this just sounds like a lot of new people learning the game and having a little trouble distinguishing between in- and out of-game issues.

Something like this actually happened to me with my first gaming group in the 3rd or 4th grade. Whatever system we were using (I think the GM might have tweaked an existing one but not sure) called HP "Power" and you had a separate score for strength. One of the players got angry because my "power" increased above his own when we leveled at one point (and his character was supposed to be powerful), he ended up body slamming me over the issue and shouting "now that is power!" (and I myself wasn't innocent of bad behavior either)

This was our first real campaign and we just took everything too personally.

 

[Umbran]

My now former DM says that the character was playing by his alignment and had done nothing wrong.

If that's exactly what he said, well, he's incorrect. He may have acted in accord with his character's alignment, but that doesn't mean he "did nothing wrong". I mean, evil characters are evil *because* they do things that are wrong. Being in-line with your character's alignment doesn't mean there should be no consequences for being a jerk.

In-game, stealing is generally "wrong". And meta-game, stealing from other PCs is usually bad form, and in a club setting, really jerkish.

I'd report the behavior - while the folks who run the club are unlikely to act upon one incident, if you don't speak up, then the next time will also look like just one incident. Folks must report bad behavior for a pattern of behavior to be established with the folks who run things.

However, is it that you believe that this is the act of someone that is Chaotic Neutral?

Stealing from others things that are not their due? Yeah, that sounds pretty CN to me.

 

[Dausuul]

1. Jump into game after the ending boss is defeated, without having seen him.

2. Steal, by sleight of hand, the "key" to the final chest from a fellow player.

3. Take pick of best loot.

The player the "key" was stolen from was me and before I could do anything the loot had been distributed. The DM threatened me with a Chaotic Evil Alignmnet if i attacked the barbarian but he is green behind the ears so I was hoping to ask if anyone here could give input. If there is a consensus that he was in the right as a chaotic neutral character I will drop the issue. Otherwise I will bring complaint to the club officers concerning this.

Thank you for your time.

The barbarian's behavior was certainly consistent with Chaotic Neutral alignment. To know whether your proposed response (murder the barbarian) qualifies as Chaotic Evil, I'd have to know more about the situation. Did your character know the barbarian? Where did he come from? Why was he getting a share of the loot if he hadn't been in the party up to then? If a random NPC came up behind you, in a dungeon, and picked your pocket, and you turned around and tried to whack him, it might qualify as "intemperate" but it seems a stretch to call it evil.

I will also add that, regardless of alignment, the player of the barbarian was acting like a jerk. I've run into a number of folks who do this--play their characters obnoxiously, then say "I'm just playing my character!" when called on it. Since the player was the one who created the character, this does not excuse him IMO. I think the situation is best resolved between players/DMs rather than between characters. Definitely talk to the club officers.

 

[ahayford]

In game alignment or "I'm just rping my character" is never an excuse to grief another player. I specifically outlaw evil alignments at my table to avoid that hassle (unless I'm running that type of game) for just that reason. If a person has a legitimate reason to pick an evil alignment, and I trust them to play it without effing up the experience for others I might consider it.

This is just someone who is failing to see DnD as a collaborative activity and is just interested in themselves. I would not invite that person back to my table, or at the very least strongly warn them if the behavior persisted they would not be welcome back.

 

[ahayford]

P.S.

A Lawful Good character would feel compelled to ensure that barbarian character felt the blind hand of justice. Maybe he tips off the local magistrate or maybe he chooses to exact justice himself (might be more chaotic/beutral good there). Either way, exacting justice for a very obvious wrong is not chaotic evil.

 

[Zelda Themelin]

I think that was very Neutral Evil greedy jerky actions. CN maybe, unless his behavior constantly hits greedy me me meee, were NE applies. Murdering him for it would be evil as well. He was just stealing at this occasion. More consistant jerk behavior often gets attention of other people too. Be suspious of his character. Try to point out crimes you spot to other party members/DM.

I hope he is not just one of those people who is friends with dm and some other people. In that case they might act blindsighted. Try to get people interested in playing games where only good characters are welcome. I like CN alignment, but some people ruin it by using it as excuse to jerky behavior as "roleplaying my character".

 

[Arthur Redwyne]

I guess I'll talk to one of the club officers about it, although I am not expecting much. Maybe I overeacted, but the item in question was a Bag of Endless Holding so I was kinda pissed that he got it without earning it. In any event, an entire party took out the end boss but they left me and this other bard. to loot the final chamber The barbarian just sort of slipped in, I was to numb to argue against it and then he struck.

So whether or not I am blowing this out of proportions does not diminish what the barbarian has done and is. I simply wish to take steps to keep him out of my games.

Luckily, my new DM is my brother , he has already blacklisted the guy. But what I really wanted was a solid case to bring before the club officers. Guess I haven't one so oh well.

 

[Bedrockgames]

I guess I'll talk to one of the club officers about it, although I am not expecting much. Maybe I overeacted, but the item in question was a Bag of Endless Holding so I was kinda pissed that he got it without earning it. In any event, an entire party took out the end boss but they left me and this other bard. to loot the final chamber The barbarian just sort of slipped in, I was to numb to argue against it and then he struck.

So whether or not I am blowing this out of proportions does not diminish what the barbarian has done and is. I simply wish to take steps to keep him out of my games.

It is very hard without having been there to know how egregious his behavior was. But I would just stress again that this is a game, and these kinds of hijinx are acceptable to a good number of players out there (stealing other peoples' loot for example). It is largely a matter of expectations. In some groups Player V. Player behavior is find and even encouraged, in others it is frowned upon. As with anything the key is really whether he did it to deliberately provoke you as a player or simply because it is what his character would have done.

I think on both sides of the conflict here, the ones who remember it is only a game will have fun and stick with the hobby. I've seen too many people who take things personally in games explode and quit playing. My suggestion is not let it bother you, but if this guy's approach interferes with your enjoyment just seek out other players with a style similar to your own. Life is stressful enough. You don't want to stress-out over things that happen in a game.

Luckily, my new DM is my brother , he has already blacklisted the guy. But what I really wanted was a solid case to bring before the club officers. Guess I haven't one so oh well.

Sounds good. Is this a college club? You probably don't want to make a big issue out of it. If his style doesn't align with yours, play in different games than he does. If he is a jerk and doing this because he likes to mess with people, others in the club will pick up on that and he'll discover people don't want to play with him. But taking it to the officers could create blowback for yourself.

 

[Arthur Redwyne]

Sounds good. Is this a college club? You probably don't want to make a big issue out of it. If his style doesn't align with yours, play in different games than he does. If he is a jerk and doing this because he likes to mess with people, others in the club will pick up on that and he'll discover people don't want to play with him. But taking it to the officers could create blowback for yourself.

You are vey wise. It is a College Club and I will drop it, and thank you for your advice. May have saved me trouble down the line. As long as I can continue to play the game with friends I'll forget he exists. Though I will never forgive him I won't press the issue.

 

[S'mon]

It's well within what I'd regard as CN.

But killing the Elf would also fall within N (LN, N or CN depending on your motivation).