D&D General A paladin just joined the group. I'm a necromancer.

[Chaosmancer]

Genocide. Give me a context whereby Genocide is a 'good' act.

The Shy'liek are a race of intelligent beings that can only survive by constantly consuming all types of matter, especially the brain matter of sentient species, but any matter will suffice. If they do not consume matter, they die. If they do consume matter they grow larger, and need to consume more matter, in an endless cycle that eventually leaves nothing behind but a vaccuum, whereupon they will consume and kill themselves.

If not all of them are killed, either by starving them or killing them directly, then all life in the galaxy is destroyed, including themselves.

It takes some extremes for something like Genocide, but when dealing with fiction, you can find it eventually.

 

[Chaosmancer]

For the 24 hours, obviously.

What isn't made clear is what happens next. Does the monster become free-roaming as per the MM, or does it stay put and only defend itself, or - a third option - does it stay put until-unless attacked which triggers it to become free-roaming?

My answer would be that it becomes free-roaming once the 24 hours is up.

So, again, you as a DM are making the choice, but all three choices are valid answers

 

[Iry]

Genocide. Give me a context whereby Genocide is a 'good' act.

Eliminating Covid-19?

 

[Maxperson]

Evil because evil. Surprised it took us so long to get back here.

Nyet! Evil, because RAW.

There is a pointless exercise. Osiris and Anubis don't have 5e write-up, so I'd have to go to a different edition. Which you will claim invalidates any information I find. And since they would be from a section of Faerun, you'll just call it homebrew and say it doesn't count.

And it would be homebrew. We are discussing 5e here. Once again, though. Homebrew isn't bad.

Objective and Absolute Good cannot approve of Objective and Absolute Evil. Otherwise, it is not objective and absolute.

That's false. The gods are beings just like humans. They can be absolutely good, yet still bend and commit an evil act once in a while, just like humans. They can also approve of an evil act if that act is A) rare, and B) resulting in more good than evil.

Good and evil are multiversal truths in D&D, not godly ones. Even gods can change alignment.

 

[Maxperson]

The Shy'liek are a race of intelligent beings that can only survive by constantly consuming all types of matter, especially the brain matter of sentient species, but any matter will suffice. If they do not consume matter, they die. If they do consume matter they grow larger, and need to consume more matter, in an endless cycle that eventually leaves nothing behind but a vaccuum, whereupon they will consume and kill themselves.

If not all of them are killed, either by starving them or killing them directly, then all life in the galaxy is destroyed, including themselves.

It takes some extremes for something like Genocide, but when dealing with fiction, you can find it eventually.

Still wouldn't be a good act. Neutral maybe, but genocide is never a good act.

 

[Maxperson]

Eliminating Covid-19?

Are viruses people now?

 

[Eric V]

"Genocide" is a word that combines action and context. The context is present in the word. The actual action in genocide is killing.

 

[Iry]

Are viruses people now?

Are myconids? Are elementals? Are modrons? Are super-intelligent shades of the color blue? Do androids dream of electronic sheep?

 

[Helldritch]

One good point was raised in all this discussions. What does happen to undead that are not getting back under their creator's control after the fated 24h...

From a standing point, seeing how the spell works and how the stats blocks are written, I'd say that they will initially follow the last order they were given to the best of their abilities. This would explained a lot of the undeads crypt guardians that we see in modules, stories and fictions. It would be a suitable fate, both RAW and RAI. But unless the set of order is precise, the same undead would clearly try to pursue and kill grave robbers.

That was for created undead. But what about spontaneous ones? These are created when the shadow stuff from the shadow fell comes in contact with the prime material plane. These undead are clearly uncontrolled and they will behave as the killers of the living that the stat blocks are describing.

If both premises are right, then yes, creating undead is an evil act. Controlling them is also an evil act.

Then by all means, the new comer, the Paladin, would either try to redeem the necromancer into not using undead or he would slay the necromancer so that this evil heart does not grow into an uncontrollable evil. The last paragraph is only my opinion and as a DM, I would strongly recommend that one the players do some other character concept. Infighting in gaming group is never a good thing.

 

[Weiley31]

I can imagine a Raven Queen Patron Warlock creating two zombies from Animate Dead and siccing em on a bandit that, was about to kill a child, as a spur the moment kind of deal.