Alignment change - Playing Evil

[Ave Rage]

So my group is walking through the forest when an orc shows up (one of the players was new/entering the game) and on him he had a deck of cards. Yes, these turned out to be the deck of many things.

After all is said and one (3 imprisonments! which were followed with 3 wishes and a huge sigh of relief from me and the other two who drew the ace of spades) we went on our way. One of the cards I got though turned my Lawful Nuetral Wizard into Chaotic Evil.

Instead of just trashing the character I wan't to try and play it. Is there any way to productivly play CE? Does he 'have' to be evil or just selfish?

I like the fact that my guy was already an enchanter (forcing people's minds to bend to his will) so that still works out and it's probably a really good thing I have zero acess to the necromancy spells. But, if it's going to hurt the group I'd rather stop now than just try to keep it going.

So finally the question: Have any of you guys successfully played a CE character in a group that wasnt evil orientated? And what are the different 'ways' to play CE.

Thanks for any input guys.

 

[Dimwhit]

That can be a little tough, but doable. The first thing to realize that a CE person doesn't have to be overtly, overly evil. He can be quite insidious and subtle, and that's how I would suggest playing him. He's CE, not stupid, so he not going to suddenly turn on his party and try to kill them all. But in a more subtle way, he may very well try to sow seeds of Chaos and maybe try to lead the group down some wrong paths.

I think you have an opportunity for some good fun.

 

[shilsen]

I'm with Dimwhit (don't get to say that much ). It sounds like a good roleplaying opportunity. CE does not necessarily translate as "homicidal, psychopathic, uncontrollable maniac". You can use your PC's attitude so far and stats to reflect the new character. For example, a high Int and low Wis character would probably be smart enough to realize that revealing his alignment and personal agenda to others would be counter-productive, but might lack self-control and slip into a little unnecessary violence during combat.

 

[Ave Rage]

Str 11
Dex 11
Con 13 +1
Int 21 +5
Wis 13 +1
Cha 12 +1


He's a sun elf who I'm going to be taking down the 'shadow adept' prc. This actually bleeds perfectly into the shadow weave due to it being created/controlled by that one evil god. But yeah, high int, low wisdom. I had to remind the party that their characters did infact, NOT know about my change in alignemnt. Some of them are new but luckily none of them are paladins! XD

 

[Ranillon]

Instead of just trashing the character I wan't to try and play it. Is there any way to productivly play CE? Does he 'have' to be evil or just selfish?
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As long as you are willing to play something more sophisticated than merely the "chaotic dumb" descriptions that tend to predominate when it comes to explanations of Chaotic Evil it is possible, but it'll likely take some tag-team effort between yourself and the GM.

A merely selfish character would be Chaotic Neutral. Someone who is Chaotic Evil would tend to actively promote the cause of evil. However, that doesn't mean he necessarily has no impulse control and merely acts out his aggressions whenever and wherever he likes. Even a Chaotic Evil character will play along or otherwise work with even a good aligned group >IF< he sees it as in his best interest. For instance, if the group is a renowned for its adventuring prowess he is liable "play nice" with the rest of the group in order to not threatened his meal ticket. Instead, his evil impulses would be acted out against others he encounters.

Likewise, he can be as crafty and discreet as he likes even while committing evil acts. He may betray others or manipulate them into ruinous mistakes all behind closed doors -- or at least in a way that doesn't easily lead back to him. A truly gifted manipulator could act in "clear sight" of every one, but rely on the emotions and foolishness of others to produce the evil ends he seeks. In such a scenario those who are observant would realize that the character is morally to blame for any resulting disasters, but not legally -- thus potentially placing any good aligned characters in a bind as to what to do about him (another sort of situation the evil character would likely enjoy).

Of course, eventually there would be some sort of confrontation between the evil character and the rest of an good aligned group, but skilled gaming and some aid from the DM can turn this into an excellent chance for a great role-playing experience.

Remember that even Evil people can still love someone (although usually in a selfish manner), still have friends, still keep agreements, and so forth, he just won't do so for moral reasons. A Chaotic Evil character in particular will not see himself bound by any law or agreement he makes -- only fools do that without self-benefit -- but he will do so as long as he sees it as being in his best interest. He can also favor some people over others -- thus, he may be "fond" enough of the other characters to not take undue advantage of them when he can, although he may very well "make up" for the lost opportunity with some convenient stranger.

Basically, if you really want to play an evil character then put a lot of time and effort into figuring out what makes him tick. Just playing a stereotype is liable to get you into trouble very quickly and make the character unplayable.

 

[Garnet Schist]

I suggest a large amount of burnination on the peasants.

Oh, and on the country-side.

 

[Ave Rage]

Thanks for the quick and great responses. I don't know why I thought of CE as different from 'normal' people. That there can just be selfish/devious people without them being homicidal maniacs. Thanks again.

 

[thegreatbuddha]

If you have $30 laying around somewhere, I'd suggest picking up the Villain Design handbook, by Kenzer. It has 2chapters devoted to breaking away from villain stereotypes andic archetypes for villains, and a chapter called "Inside the Mind of a Killer," which helps flesh out a villain's thought processes. With a little interpretation, all of this could be useful to your character.

Other than that, I would definitely go with not falling into the stereotypical Chaotic Dumb. It makes about as much sense as the time-honored Lawful Stupid.

Personally, I would play him as putting his own self-interests above EVERYTHING else. he will do whatever it takes to ensure his survival.

 

[Geoff Watson]

Sounds like a lot of the suggestions are Neutral. Putting yourself 'number one' isn't evil, it's neutral.
Evil means you are out to hurt people, and be a nasty bastard.
He can be subtle about this, but after each session think about "What did he do that's really Evil, not just selfish?"

Magical alignment changes usually put the character to extreme alignments anyway. Playing Evil as Neutral with a tiny little bit of evil seems to be bad roleplaying.

Geoff.

 

[shilsen]

One more suggestion - talk to your DM and find out exactly what he thinks CE is and what options you have with it. Without that information, none of the advice that we give (wonderful as it is ) is any good to you. If he thinks CE means that you must sacrifice 13 kittens at an altar made of human fat every evening, you probably cannot run the PC in this campaign. If he thinks (hopefully) that it is possible to run CE without being chaotic dumb, you're fine.