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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Elder-Basilisk" data-source="post: 376177" data-attributes="member: 3146">Now that has always seemed like an unplayable philosophic idea that could really only even be conceived of apart from reality.OTOH at least in 3e (which at least partially jetissoned that hideous interpretation), true neutral doesn't necessarily mean that you're a fence sitter who can't decide whether good is better than evil or who doesn't care about good and evil (people completely unconcerned about the moral qualities of their actions are usually Neutral Evil in D&D). Instead, true neutral usually represents a willingness to compromise. A true neutral character believes in doing the right thing and prefers good to evil but doesn't have the consistency of conviction to make too much sacrifice for those beliefs. If it would be advantageous to steal and they wouldn't get caught, they might steal (as long as they could convince themselves it didn't hurt anyone or they were remedying some real or imagined injustice). If they hear someone screaming for help but think it might be a trap, they won't help. (After all, they'd probably just get there too late--it's not as if they could really make a difference anyway). If they are in a party and someone needs to sacrifice themselves to save the rest of the party, they'll probably wait for someone else to volunteer. And if they have the choice between the slim hope of taking the One Ring to Mount Doom and destroying it, or the risking corruption by using the ring's power against its master, they'll use the ring. After all, they could probably stop before it corrupted them completely. And they didn't really have a choice anyway--I mean what other hope was there?In that sense, 3e true neutral is a pragmatic alignment. It is like good but not as committed. It is also often a transitional alignment because circumstances often present choices (such as whether or not to use the One Ring) which demand firm commitment and sacrifice or lead inevitably to corruption.</blockquote>

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