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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Psion" data-source="post: 1387526" data-attributes="member: 172">I wish to express my disagreeance with the take that "lawful" is merely "self-consistent". Lawful is usually self consistent, but that is not, at all, a very functional definition. The corrolary would be that chaotic characters are erratic, and that is the most troublesome way you could possibly define chaotic. (Do I need to relate tales of characters who roll dice for their actions?)I think the best way to define lawful in D&D is "having respect for the role of social order in life." That does not mean you immediately lock step with the local government. Heck, the social order you adhere to might not be a government at all, but (such as in monks) a monastic order, an organized crime syndicate, or what have you. Your character, as a lawful character, considers the impact of his action on the social order he identifies with, or in absence of it, strives to create or identify with one, as social order is viewed as a fundamental guiding principle in his life.Now the sort of behavior that Calico Jack here can be a good example of this behavior. But we need to consider the reasons why. Why would such a character tend to stick to plans? Well, for one, planning is a function of social cooperation and order. The character beleives that to deviate from a plan would be to defy their role in the social order; to jump into things in a hasty manner creates social disorder, which is veiwed as an undesirable, or even dangerous condition.Now lets say a character is travelling in a foreign land. The naively simple interperetation of lawful is that a character obeys laws, but it is easy to conceive situations where this leads to irrational behavior. But respect for social order works here. The character may not instantly subscribe to alien laws and customs, but a lawful character would also most likely seek to not "rock the boat." Offending members of a foreign nation can lead to conflict on a large scale, which is another brand of social disorder. At the same time, the character is likely to have a deep respect for the traditions they were raised with, and/or would be unwilling to do anything to jeopardize their home nation.In my time running D&D, I have found this to be the most functional definition to work from when defining lawful. "Personal codes" and "personal consistency" is something that a chaotic character can possess; it is just that the chaotic character does not respect any obligation to larger social units.</blockquote>

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