@
steeldragons - So, you wouldn't think it's evil of someone to steal, say, a check written out to you that you'd endorsed and cash it? That's not just unlawful, it's plain wrong.
It's an evil action (and a mean-spirited one--it's definitely awful behavior and, yeah, not good etiquette--not etiquette at all).
And here we go with "real world" situations applied to a fantasy world system of 9 ethical/moral structures.
By my fantasy definitions of alignment that I use in my game, then no. That is not, necessarily, an evil act.
Theft itself, is against-the-Law, non-Lawful...which is generally defined in the game as "Chaotic". In a system where the ethos of Lawful, Neutral and Chaotic each have a mores component, Good, Neutral, Evil, the theft being Chaotic does not automatically make it an "evil" act.
What would make it an "evil" act depends on the motivation of the thief...the reason
why they stole it. Were they intentionally out to get/maligning
me? Were they motivated by simple greed and it wouldn't matter whose check it was? Was it because the thief was penniless and needed to get bread to feed her family?
Do any of those things mitigate the fact that the theft is not Lawful? No.
They do effect the underlying intent of the situation, which again,
by my definitions of Alignment in a fantasy world, would be the latter indicator of "good, neutral or evil."
You are correct, it is "wrong" in a fantasy world that upholds "Lawful" and "Good" to be the "right" thing. Stealing is "wrong"...it is against the Order of Law. Anything that is against Lawful or against Good is going to be viewed as "wrong" in that society...but being "wrong" may not necessarily be viewed as "Evil."
--SD