How DO you play a LG character well?

[Lady Starhawk]

Last week we just started a new homebrew fantasy game. We were all given characters that we could customize, and we were given the backgrounds for the characters. The DM wanted a group of characters to have ligit. reasons to do what they do and to have everyone have their own different motivations and adgendas. We were encouraged to not share our characters pasts and adgendas with anybody else.

Here comes my first problem...I am playing a cleric (A god much like Pelor). A flaw I was given is "Servant of good" I asked the DM and he said think AD&D Paladin. I don't know how to play that well. The DM told me there's a difference between LAwful good and lawful stupid...but I'm not sure how to play this character well. If anyone could think of some GOOD characters from movies, literature, etc that fit the "servant of good" (hinted at by DM to be lawful good) I would be very appreciative.

The second problem is that I (player, not character) know one of the characters practices more "dark arts" like command undead, create undead, steal life, and such nasty things. I am not sure how I should deal with this. Should I ask the DM if I should be making perception rolls to notice, or if I should just try and have my character not notice, or do I confront him. The main thing that he did in the last game was take an orc (we had just fought a band of them) that wasn't dead yet and did some steal life spell to heal himself and kill the stunned orc. I'm not sure if that's an evil thing or not...

I know alignments can get kinda touchy and flamey and stuff...but I'm seriously in a bind. I'm out of my comfort zone and not sure what to do.

HELP!!!
Lady Starhawk

 

[jgbrowning]

Well, i'd talk to your DM. Instead of our opinions about alignment what you really need is his. Try to nail him down with several different questions.

like the one about the orc and the spell. honestly does he view killing a helpless/unconscious foe evil? even if that foe is evil?

you need to sit down and try to talk about it with him for a half hour or so. If nothing else it will help you understand how better to play your char AND informs you where you and your DM disagree preventing potential future problems.

joe b.

 

[Endur]

Lawful Good role models

Lawful Good Role Models.

There are lots, both on tv and elsewhere.

If you watch cowboy movies, John Wayne usually played a Lawful Good character.

Clint Eastwood usually did not portray lawful good.

I'm sure other people could give examples. King Arthur, etc.

Tom

 

[Jeremy Ackerman-Yost]

More LG role models-
Captain Jean-Luc Picard (my personal favorite Lawful Good TV character)
Samurai Jack
Li Mu Bai (Chow Yun Fat from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon)

But I agree with jgbrowning that you need to reach a consensus with your DM about what his campaign world defines as Good & Evil.

I can't believe a) he's making you play an alignment you're uncomfortable with and b) he labeled "Servant of Good" as a "flaw"

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

Superman.

 

[Jeremy Ackerman-Yost]

Wulf's got a point.

Supes is a walking cliche, but he's definitely Lawful Good

 

[mattcolville]

One of the things I always think of when I think of Lawful Good is Batman. Frank Miller's Batman from the Dark Knight Returns. Specifically the issue with Harvey Dent turning back into Two Face. Batman *believes* in Dent, believes Dent can be a good person, can defeat his personal demons. Tries to help, always thinks the best of Dent until he's absolutely, 100% sure that Dent's gone bad again, and then he's really upset by it.

Miller's Batman wants his girl Robin to stand up straight, behave well, have discipline, respect her elders.

Miller's Batman used to believe in the rule of Law but has become dissillusioned, but that's primarily because of the *failure* of the rule of law in Miller's setting. He still believes that law and justice *should* be the same thing. He breaks the law, but A: that's setting specific, his behavior in a medieval fuedal setting would be very paladin like, where knights *were* the law and B: he breaks the law but he *believes* in Law, believes that people need laws and those laws need to be enforced.

I'm about to start playing a Paladin in my buddy Jim's 3E Dragonquest game. I plan on using these traits. However, where Batman is a loner, I want to be someone who encourages others to follow his lead through reasoned expression of personal philosophy. I want thought-provoking reasons to do the right thing, to expect others to do the right thing. I want to provide compelling reasons to do good that shame others around me into doing the same thing.

Should be interesting.

 

[Iceman]

Lawful Good vs Lawful Stupid

I find the comment about lawful stupid interesting. I'm GUESSING it means he does not want you to ignore the actions of others, but at the same time, to not be heavy-handed. Re-read Matt's last big paragraph just above -- he's got the right idea...

Any 'servant of good' will defend the helpless and be justifiably (in their own eyes and rhetoric) upset by actions of an evil nature. But a smart one knows that evil exists and cannot be wiped out entirely. He also accepts that others may not see the world the same way he does -- yet. A good speech combines well with timely justice to convince others of your righteousness, and may even sway their hearts.

Basically, never give up on being good, doing the morally right thing. Try to avoid being divisive, however, and instead 'love' the sinner (or at least enter into some healthy debate about the reasons for his or her behavior).

And regarding how to 'become aware' of the other character, your best bet might be a biased interpretation of his actions. What does that mean? It means view what he says and does from the prospective of already being miffed about the orc. As an anaolgy, the rogue in our last campaign was always being eyed suspiciously when he reported how much good and stuff he found inside the chest or on the bad guy or whatever. The player was a bit peeved by this because he felt we were using player-knowledge. But I was always acting from the standpoint of our first encounter with the character -- we saved his butt from the town guard who were after him for theft. Since he always went straight for the goodies before anyone else, it kept that impression in my character's mind.

Oh, and I always thought Ep. IV & V Princess Leia was LG.

 

[Celebrim]

Do you think you know right from wrong? Most of the time is fine.

Is there anything about yourself you like? Is there anything about yourself you don't like? What would you be like if all the things you wished you did, you did? If you were perfect, what would _you_ be like? What do people you admire do to deserve your admiration?

Be that person as best as you can.

Some examples of Lawful Good from literature:

Sam Gamgee, Aragorn son of Arathorn, Faramir, Lord Shonto (from the Wa duology), Silk (from the Book of the Long Sun), King Arthur, Sir Galahad, Sir Kay, Donal Graeme (from the Childe Cycle), Master Yoda, F'Lar (from DragonFlight), Lan the Warder, Sturm Brightblade, Duncan Idaho (from Dune), Enoch Wallace (from Waystation)

From History:
George Washington, Eric Liddell

Take Your Pick:
Daniel (from the Bible), Joan of Arc, El Cid

Our modern mythology honors the rebel, so many of our more familiar heroes are probably Chaotic Good. But pay close attention when the rebel is rebelling against 'corruption' but upholding 'the system' even when no one else is. In those cases, he's probably Lawful Good. I would argue that 'Dirty' Harry Calahan is probably Lawful Good despite his reputation as a loner.

 

[Celebrim]

Blasted double posts.