PC Good/Evil Dynamic?

[Azure Trance]

Curious on your valuable input here:

Two brothers, one is a human wizard diviner with a focus on ice/cold, and the other a half elf necromancer. The human is NG and the brother LE. Both first level, session going to be played tonight. How should it be played out?

I'm assuming it could go three ways, two viable. One is we're good brothers (somehow, someway?). The second is that we're neutral (best bet - we're tolerable since we don't accept each others views), and the last is we're antagonistic to each other. I know that evil can still mean he can have true friends or significant others, particuraly LE, but we're both not sure as to what extent his LE and my NG should clash in game.

 

[Umbran]

A diviner with a focus on ice and cold? I'd think that a diviner would focus on... divinations

How should it be played out? In whatever manner the players feel appropriate to the characters' personalities. Alignment alone is insufficient to decide what would happen.

For example - a pair of brothers can simply refuse to go into direct conflict, out of love of a family member, regardless of alignment. Neither LE nor NG says, "will eventually ignore family ties in pursuit of alignment related goals"

And, of course, the two could simply go straight for each other's throats whenever one does soething the other doesn't like.

The only thing I could suggest is that it whould be played out as if they were people rather than a class-alignment combination.

 

[Azure Trance]

His name is Elijah Snow ;D

He seeks to know all information; when he gets to the appropriate level he will take Elemental Savant with Ice, but until then he is a Diviner (prohib Necro)

 

[Henry]

Who is the younger brother? Are they twins?


Here's one way to see it: One is a couple or a few years younger (perhaps the good one). The evil, slightly older one has seen far more and made more sacrifices than the younger brother in his life, primarily for the younger brother. The younger brother was a bit more sheltered as a result, and sees the good in people - including his cold badass of a brother. The evil brother still loves his younger brother, but is very cold and cynical about the world, and sees power as a means to achieve safety and goals. If he had a rough life, then order and stability at all costs would be important to him. He still has a soft spot for "younger brother", but sees him as too naive and simple, and the two will only come head to head when really important issues are involved, or if the evil brother directly threatens the life or health of an innocent.



Another way: The two brothers (twins?) were split at birth - one was given away into servitude or slavery, and the other got the better life. The good brother feels pity, and a little guilty, and the evil brother acts like he has not ill will, secretly wants to make the younger one suffer some day, to repay him the the life he was denied.

Other thoughts: think the biblical Esau and Jacob, Cain and Abel, or Romulus and Remus (I sure wouldn't want to be Remus or Abel, though. )

 

[s/LaSH]

Caramon and Raistlin Majere, anyone?

Except these fellows have more in common, ie. magic. I could see them having mild antagonism, but mild antagonism is part and parcel of the whole role-playing experience, in my humble opinion. Just minor annoyances... "It's mine! Give it back, I need it!" or "You always spoil my fun, I was about to give him such a shock!" (of course, these probably involve wands of shocking grasp and large numbers of ravenous monsters, but hey).

The party I DM should never have worked together - the first almost refused to rescue the second from goblins, despite the fact that the prisoner was a priest of his religion. The third addition... well, they're still not sure why she's a trusted cohort. Go read my comic over the next week or so to find out why. The fourth... actually, the fourth was quite dedicated to the group. And that otter was very useful at times. There were no actual evil characters, but the PC personalities seemed almost perfectly set up to annoy each other. That's what made it so satisfying to see them buckle down and beat the bad guys.

 

[ninthcouncil]

Who is the younger brother? Are they twins?

I don't think they're going to be twins if one is human and the other half-elf Unless there's something way freaky going on in there....

Seriously though, is there any backstory that might affect their attitudes to each other. They've got different fathers (or mothers) - how does that affect their family dynamic?

 

[Joker[ZW]]

His name is Elijah Snow ;D

I think it heavily depends on how both of you play your character.
If he is one of those Necromancers who just search for a way to increase their lifespan and is willing to commit horrible acts of evil to achieve this you will have problems. If he is a Necromancer, who thinks of himself as a defender of the circle of life and death and is just so ruthless in his methods that he can be considered evil you may get along.

If you are playing a normal NG wizard focusing on ice/cold you will have problems with him.
If you want to play your wizard like Elijah Snow you will have to "freeze the water in his brain" the first time he does something really evil.

 

[Henry]

I don't think they're going to be twins if one is human and the other half-elf Unless there's something way freaky going on in there....

Sorry - I missed that when I saw "brother" instead of "half-brother." My mind was off to the races after that!

 

[hong]

Sorry - I missed that when I saw "brother" instead of "half-brother." My mind was off to the races after that!

In the second-ever 3E game I was in, I played a half-orc barbarian. Another guy played a half-elf rogue. We came up with the idea that we were half-brothers...




... sharing the same father.

Questions about our parentage were generally discouraged.