Evil or not?

[Cor Azer]

I used to have a similar rule as OP, in that characters had to be non-evil, and while not necessarily heroic, at least had the capability to do heroic things.

I tried to expand that in my most recent campaigns though (they were intended to be short, so a good trial of how my players might handle such things), and just had the rules that characters couldn't be disruptive for the sake of being disruptive, and they had to have a reason for adventuring (I've no interest in running Bakers the RPG for station squatters as another recent thread coined). It worked pretty good.

That's pretty much how I plan to run games now.

 

[Lanefan]

As for player characters stealing a betraying each other? Well, in the groups I have played with through the years, it hasn't really happened. They generally have the standard policy--they don't care how much of a "scoundrel" or what kind of smooth, uber-rogue someone thinks they are;

First time anyone finds out that such a rogue or whoever stole from them--let alone other forms of betrayal--they are simply hunted down, and killed by the most convenient methods at hand. End of story. Time for the moron to roll up a new character--and one that understands loyalty to the party better. Otherwise, they'll just be rolling up yet another character for their stupidity; rinse and repeat until they get with the program.

Except in some games I've seen (including one I'm currently running) things such as in-party theft, bloodshed, etc. pretty much *are* the program, with actual pursuit of adventuring goals a sidelight at best, and mostly seen as an excuse to hang together and bicker...at least, till the money starts to run low; and they realize they'd better do something useful. That's the way it goes sometimes, in my current group almost right from day 1.

And it's just plain FUN!

Lanefan

p.s. the bickering group did just vote their Cleric (whose role often becomes that of a hockey linesman) as their Most Valuable Character for 2008, so there might be some hope yet...