Rolzup
First Post
Idle musings, occasioned by a long walk on a very hot day....
Is it really necessary to have alignment restrictions on character classes? At all? I find it difficult to see that any of the current restrictions are really called for, and that they do anything more than eliminate some interesting character concepts.
The Bard? Least defensible here, I think. Especially if you use the bard as a military leader, inspiring his men and driving them into battle. Or a religious bard, who gives his companions strength by preaching to them.
The Barbarian? Probably the best case, but even so.... The barbarian's rage is a controlled fury; he determines when it begins and (generally) when it stops. I've always liked the idea of playing a multiclassed monk/barbarian, who's mastered and tamed his own inner anger. (I'd drop the illiteracy as well, by the way.)
The Druid? I've never understood this one. Ou can be Neutral Good, or Chaotic Neutral, but not Chaotic Good? Not much of a restriction in any case, but I still don't see the point.
The Monk? The Drunken Master PrC is an obviously chaotic archetype, but even leaving that aside I can think of a number of chaotic martial artists from fiction. Hell, Jackie Chan roles alone!
The Paladin. There's been plenty of debate about paladins of non LG faiths; I hardly need to rehash them. But considering the matter has me liking the idea of playing a truly Neutral palasin, devoted to maintaining the "balance" of the world.
To throw a non-core class out there, how about the Warlock? Saw a great idea here a while back about playing a lawful good Warlock in Eberron, with his powers manifesting in a manner similar to that of the Silver Flame.
And as a PrC I suppose that it doesn't really count, but not even the assassin really has to be evil. I've played an assassin who, in a campaign that used alignments, would likely have been classified as chaotic good. Yes, he used poison, and yes, he was a killer...but he killed rats, by god! Assassin was the best possible class choice for a ratcatcher, I think.
(Edouard Finké, in the CITY campaign referenced in my sig. And yes, I really need to get back to working on that Story Hour....)
Obviously, opinions may vary. But, outside of setting specific reasons, do you think that the alignment restrictions are necessary to the game somehow?
Is it really necessary to have alignment restrictions on character classes? At all? I find it difficult to see that any of the current restrictions are really called for, and that they do anything more than eliminate some interesting character concepts.
The Bard? Least defensible here, I think. Especially if you use the bard as a military leader, inspiring his men and driving them into battle. Or a religious bard, who gives his companions strength by preaching to them.
The Barbarian? Probably the best case, but even so.... The barbarian's rage is a controlled fury; he determines when it begins and (generally) when it stops. I've always liked the idea of playing a multiclassed monk/barbarian, who's mastered and tamed his own inner anger. (I'd drop the illiteracy as well, by the way.)
The Druid? I've never understood this one. Ou can be Neutral Good, or Chaotic Neutral, but not Chaotic Good? Not much of a restriction in any case, but I still don't see the point.
The Monk? The Drunken Master PrC is an obviously chaotic archetype, but even leaving that aside I can think of a number of chaotic martial artists from fiction. Hell, Jackie Chan roles alone!
The Paladin. There's been plenty of debate about paladins of non LG faiths; I hardly need to rehash them. But considering the matter has me liking the idea of playing a truly Neutral palasin, devoted to maintaining the "balance" of the world.
To throw a non-core class out there, how about the Warlock? Saw a great idea here a while back about playing a lawful good Warlock in Eberron, with his powers manifesting in a manner similar to that of the Silver Flame.
And as a PrC I suppose that it doesn't really count, but not even the assassin really has to be evil. I've played an assassin who, in a campaign that used alignments, would likely have been classified as chaotic good. Yes, he used poison, and yes, he was a killer...but he killed rats, by god! Assassin was the best possible class choice for a ratcatcher, I think.
(Edouard Finké, in the CITY campaign referenced in my sig. And yes, I really need to get back to working on that Story Hour....)
Obviously, opinions may vary. But, outside of setting specific reasons, do you think that the alignment restrictions are necessary to the game somehow?
