D&D 5E What Alignment Am I?

[dmnqwk]

I would suggest you decide what is "good" to your character.

I definitely do not agree your character is Chaotic, because of the strict adherence to a code (punish the wicked) you are clearly bent towards Lawful. Your character will not bend or sway because something feels "off" when carrying out your dogged pursuit of criminals.

As for the second axis, you can choose whether you begin as Lawful Good or Lawful Neutral, and see where you end up after playing. Lawful Good is an option because your character can have the ideology to try and be this way, without actually succeeding. Or perhaps too much lawbreaking will see your character surrounded by emotional turmoil. If you read up on the Paladin - Oath of Vengeance, your character's ideology fits nicely alongside this.
However, If you feel your character is willing to do this and not feel remorse for his actions, you are also capable of fitting into the Lawful Neutral category - following your code to the letter, as opposed to the spirit.

All in all don't let alignment dictate your character's actions, let your character's actions dictate your alignment.

 

[iserith]

The character you describe has the same alignment as Batman.

 

[vostyg]

I would suggest you decide what is "good" to your character.

I definitely do not agree your character is Chaotic, because of the strict adherence to a code (punish the wicked) you are clearly bent towards Lawful. Your character will not bend or sway because something feels "off" when carrying out your dogged pursuit of criminals.

As for the second axis, you can choose whether you begin as Lawful Good or Lawful Neutral, and see where you end up after playing. Lawful Good is an option because your character can have the ideology to try and be this way, without actually succeeding. Or perhaps too much lawbreaking will see your character surrounded by emotional turmoil. If you read up on the Paladin - Oath of Vengeance, your character's ideology fits nicely alongside this.
However, If you feel your character is willing to do this and not feel remorse for his actions, you are also capable of fitting into the Lawful Neutral category - following your code to the letter, as opposed to the spirit.

All in all don't let alignment dictate your character's actions, let your character's actions dictate your alignment.

You suggest that strict adherence to a personal code makes a character lawful. I can totally understand this point of view, but I find it hard to reconcile with the fact that the character in question has little or no regard for lawful authority, which is something that I generally associate with chaotic characters. Does that not therefore mean that he is straying into neutral territory on the law-chaos axis?

 

[vostyg]

The character you describe has the same alignment as Batman.

By this statement, I assume you mean that I should not worry about his alignment. Point taken, but I'm still curious to hear people's thoughts.

 

[lowkey13]

*Deleted by user*

 

[Diamabel]

Your character is middling angry vengeful apathetic. Good?

People worry too much about complicated and deep characters fitting into simple and shallow alignment boxes. But since you need to, I would think of the following-

1. You say he follows his own internal compass. Do you really mean that in terms of a code? I mean, is it a set of value and traditions and rules that just happens to be orthogonal to the prevailing law of the country that he is in? Then he is lawful. But I don't think you do mean that. If he is just acting on his own internal beliefs, without regard to any external set of laws, or a code, or a tradition, then he is likely chaotic (or, perhaps, neutral).

2. The "ruthless measures," suggests that he isn't "good." But he isn't evil, either. I would suggest neutral.

I would lean toward LN (if there is some external code, rules, or standards) or (and I hate this) CN*/N if not. That doesn't mean that he might not shade toward CG/NG, but I suppose it depends on what you mean by "ruthless measures."

*The reason I dislike suggesting CN as an alignment as it has an unfortunate association, IME, with people who want to roleplay, "Ima do what I want," characters.

Very much agree.. the alignment system is too shallow to allow for nuance. Am I lawful for following a strict personal code, or chaotic for not caring about the prevailing external laws? Good for wanting to protect the innocent, or evil/neutral for ruthlessly punishing "wrongdoers" (Subjective!)

If I had to pick an alignment, I would say the most likely is Lawful Neutral. Depending on how ruthless, maybe even Evil.

 

[vostyg]

Your character is middling angry vengeful apathetic. Good?

People worry too much about complicated and deep characters fitting into simple and shallow alignment boxes. But since you need to, I would think of the following-

1. You say he follows his own internal compass. Do you really mean that in terms of a code? I mean, is it a set of value and traditions and rules that just happens to be orthogonal to the prevailing law of the country that he is in? Then he is lawful. But I don't think you do mean that. If he is just acting on his own internal beliefs, without regard to any external set of laws, or a code, or a tradition, then he is likely chaotic (or, perhaps, neutral).

2. The "ruthless measures," suggests that he isn't "good." But he isn't evil, either. I would suggest neutral.

I would lean toward LN (if there is some external code, rules, or standards) or (and I hate this) CN*/N if not. That doesn't mean that he might not shade toward CG/NG, but I suppose it depends on what you mean by "ruthless measures."

*The reason I dislike suggesting CN as an alignment as it has an unfortunate association, IME, with people who want to roleplay, "Ima do what I want," characters.

As I'm thinking about it, he doesn't really follow an external code at all, just his own simple sense of right and wrong. This generally involves protecting the helpless and innocent from those who would prey on them. He tends to categorize people as either villains, victims, or neither, based on their behavior. He is not above roughing someone up whom he categorizes as a villain in order to get information, and he has no compunctions about killing a serious villain outright if only to prevent that person from victimizing others in the future. He takes no particular joy in this. To him, it's just an unsavory but necessary part of his job. He evaluates each person on his or her own merits, and he doesn't waste his time on petty wrongdoers, focusing instead on serious villains.

 

[lowkey13]

*Deleted by user*

 

[vostyg]

Sounds like Frank Castle. But with less of a code.

Based on your previous answer, I'm assuming you would classify Frank Castle as LN. Would you place my character as Neutral on the Good-Evil axis based on the additional exposition I provided?

 

[Satyrn]

As I'm thinking about it, he doesn't really follow an external code at all, just his own simple sense of right and wrong. This generally involves protecting the helpless and innocent from those who would prey on them. He tends to categorize people as either villains, victims, or neither, based on their behavior. He is not above roughing someone up whom he categorizes as a villain in order to get information, and he has no compunctions about killing a serious villain outright if only to prevent that person from victimizing others in the future. He takes no particular joy in this. To him, it's just an unsavory but necessary part of his job. He evaluates each person on his or her own merits, and he doesn't waste his time on petty wrongdoers, focusing instead on serious villains.

That simple sense of right and wrong is a code (a very basic one, obviously), but if he attempts to follow it rigorously, then I'd classify him as Lawful. And you've actually made him more Lawful by giving him a tendency to categorizing people, and creating a sort of hierarchy of villainy that he places evil doers on. And their placement on that scale helps him determine how he interacts with him. He is building order and structure into his actions. That is a Lawful sort of thing, the way I look at alignment.

As for good/evil, he is neither. It's that "it's his job" bit that you mention. He's just doing what his code tells him to. A good person will have room in his heart to consider mercy, an evil one will bend his code for his own pleasure or gain.

Your character has created a code and aims to follow it above all else. That to me is LN.