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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Gez" data-source="post: 1916006" data-attributes="member: 1328">As far as I know, the problem with that example is that A'Kin is a complete mystery. He behaves nicely and friendily. So the good means are there. But to which ends? Nobody knows what A'Kin's goals, outside of being a successful merchant, are. Nor even if he has any, in fact. He could be a well-disguised sinister evil, or a sincerely redeemed fiend. It's left up for DMs to decide -- if they want to decide.But now that I think about it, here are a couple of examples:<ol> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">Propagating the cult of an evil, oppressive deity through charitable deeds. You give food to the starving, telling them that Hextorites (to take a PHB example) care about the well-being of the people. You create schools where people can put their children for free, so even the poor peasant can have his sons and daughters learn how to write, count, and where they can get moral guidance. You propagate a kinder, gentler approach to Hextor's faith, claiming it is all about a strong, voluntarist leader able to protect his country and his people's interests thanks to the disciplined efforts and trust of the population. The Might Makes Right part of his dogma is presented as being a meritocracy -- anyone, regardless of birth and station, can raise to the top if he's "meritant" enough. You do not do anything evil yourself, to the contrary. But you help an evil religion gains prominance, and slyly propagate evil ideals. Eventually, you'll have devout Hextorites in every position of power, and then you'll be able to gradually turn the country into a ruthless dictature without anyone noticing it. As the saying goes, if you put a frog in near-boiling water, the poor critter will leap out of it as fast as possible. But if you put it in normal water and raise the temperature slowly, it won't discover the danger until it's too late.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">You generously give wonderful and previously unkknown-to-them goods to people from a faraway place. Good wine and fine spirits, sugars and candies, efficient medical remedies, and all that sort of things. They are very happy with these gifts, but do not know the dangers of abuse. Soon, they've ruined their culture and are totally dependant of you. Now, you can stop acting friendly and enslave them to your heart's content -- you have reached your evil end through good means.</li> </ol></blockquote>

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