how to play alignment convincingly

[Jakathi]

i've noticed something. for the most part, people in real life tend to be fairly neutral with good tendencies. they really don't know how to play chaotics or lawfuls very well, because the concepts are really quite alien.

Neutral good: folks who have an aversion to hurting innocents, but lack real commitments to anything other than close family/friends. They typically won't sacrifice themselves for people they don't know or aren't related to them.

 

[dave_o]

i've noticed something. for the most part, people in real life tend to be fairly neutral with good tendencies. they really don't know how to play chaotics or lawfuls very well, because the concepts are really quite alien.

Neutral good: folks who have an aversion to hurting innocents, but lack real commitments to anything other than close family/friends. They typically won't sacrifice themselves for people they don't know or aren't related to them.

That's a really insightful view, actually. Most people are neutral good -- at least, I am. Though I've got some chaotic tendancies.

Lawful good- Mother Teresa, basically a person who does self-sacrifical good for complete strangers on a regular basis. Everyone is a friend, everyone is a loved one, no one is left out. But they stick rigidly within the confines of dogma, law, etc.

Chaotic good- Pancho Villa, he broke the laws but fought undyingly for a cause that he felt strongly for -- the liberation of the Mexican populace.

Just some thoughts.

 

[Wombat]

I was amused playing through Neverwinter Nights regarding alignment.

To remain Neutral in the game you more or less have to be schizophrenic -- if you do nice things you edge swiftly towards Good and the only way to counter that is to doing something like hit someone up for protection money... Essentially they only way to remain Neutral on the Good-Neutral-Evil continuum is to be Chaotic Neutral.

Of course the base game doesn't work with the Law-Neutral-Chaos continuum, so that will remain basically the same.

Just a crpg, of course

 

[Liminal Syzygy]

I was amused playing through Neverwinter Nights regarding alignment.

I thought that was fairly accurate, as doing good things for others constantly should move you towards *good*. The problem stemmed from the fact that it is a crpg and the scenario is on rails, so there wasn't really a neutral path available to choose.

 

[Victim]

i've noticed something. for the most part, people in real life tend to be fairly neutral with good tendencies. they really don't know how to play chaotics or lawfuls very well, because the concepts are really quite alien.

Neutral good: folks who have an aversion to hurting innocents, but lack real commitments to anything other than close family/friends. They typically won't sacrifice themselves for people they don't know or aren't related to them.

I don't think it's so much that most people are neutral good, as that most people would like to see themselves as neutral good.

I think you just described neutral anyway.

 

[Dragonblade]

i've noticed something. for the most part, people in real life tend to be fairly neutral with good tendencies. they really don't know how to play chaotics or lawfuls very well, because the concepts are really quite alien.

Neutral good: folks who have an aversion to hurting innocents, but lack real commitments to anything other than close family/friends. They typically won't sacrifice themselves for people they don't know or aren't related to them.

The problem is there is no agreeable standard on what alignment means. It can be completely different from one campaign to another.

And looking at the WotC books as some sort of official guideline is foolish. The PHB has all sorts of contradictions and philosophical flaws between the different alignments.

For example,the description of LG in the Book of Exalted Deeds is complete garbage even though I like the rest of the book.

The very notion that a paladin would find himself hamstrung in a kingdom with "evil" laws is the most absurd piece of rubbish I have ever read. This only proves that WotC themselves aren't even a good source of what an alignment means.

 

[Jakathi]

i agree. alignment has so many different meanings.

the only thing you can really do is get with your dm or gm and figure out a mutally acceptable way of playing the alignment of the character.

 

[Trickstergod]

And looking at the WotC books as some sort of official guideline is foolish. The PHB has all sorts of contradictions and
For example,the description of LG in the Book of Exalted Deeds is complete garbage even though I like the rest of the book

The very notion that a paladin would find himself hamstrung in a kingdom with "evil" laws is the most absurd piece of rubbish I have ever read. This only proves that WotC themselves aren't even a good source of what an alignment means.

Funny, that.

I find that to be more indicative of them being a good source for alignment because of things like that.

A Lawful individual who isn't, in some fashion, affected by laws, isn't really being lawful anymore. That's part of the point of being neutral in regards to Law and Chaos; laws have their purpose, but not all laws are good ones. A paladin who wasn't hindered, at least in part, by the laws of a Lawful Evil society wouldn't be particularly Lawful Good in my opinion, but Neutral Good. Just like a Chaotic Good individual would be hindered, at least in part, by the laws of a Lawful Good society, as at least one aspect or take on a Chaotic Good individual is one of being a vigilante.

A Lawful Good individual being hamstrung by a Lawful Evil society isn't absurd rubbish, it's common sense. A disregard for community laws over ones own personal sense of honor begins turning away from Lawfulness and into Neutrality and Chaos.

But, there's my take on that. Obviously, you disagree.

As for people, in regards to other parts of this thread, they are True Neutral, which right out says those of that alignment tend to prefer good over evil. Which isn't to say those are good tendencies, only common sense. We don't want others to cheat us, we don't (conceptually) want people to lie to us, we want people to share and be generous with us, and so on, and so on. For the most part, though, people are not Neutral Good. If I were to put some thought into it I could possibly name a few individuals who I thought fit the bill, but for the most part, everyone I know falls essentially into True Neutrality.

In regards to Law and Chaos, though....eh. I'm tempted to say more people fall into either of those categories than they do an ostensibly Good alignment. They're not alien per se. However, now that I think about it, I do believe most people only tend to be halfheartedly Lawful or Chaotic in their characters. I for one don't believe a Lawful Neutral individual, at least, could easily fit into an adventuring party, yet they often are, and seeing as how many DMs put up stipulations of, "No Evil, and no Chaotic Neutral, because that's just an excuse to get around not being Evil," also shows how badly the alignment is often played (It should be roughly as playable as Lawful Neutral).

Anyway, there's the thoughts that started kicking around in my head as I read this.

 

[Umbran]

Neutral good: folks who have an aversion to hurting innocents, but lack real commitments to anything other than close family/friends. They typically won't sacrifice themselves for people they don't know or aren't related to them.

By the book (meaning the PHB), what you are descibing is straight neutral. A truly Good person does stick his neck out for others, makes sacrifices, and generally makes active efforts to make the world as a whole a better place.

 

[shilsen]

Lawful good- Mother Teresa, basically a person who does self-sacrifical good for complete strangers on a regular basis. Everyone is a friend, everyone is a loved one, no one is left out. But they stick rigidly within the confines of dogma, law, etc.

Mother Teresa'd be LE according to some. Which is one of the problems with alignment - it depends on both perspective and application, and everybody doesn't do that the same way. For any D&D group to use alignment without trouble, I'd suggest what Jakathi said - have DM and players come to a consensus about how they view it.