Mouseferatu
Hero
SSquirrel has saved me the trouble of actually having to reply to this. thread 
The Misalignment of the Gods
- Thread starter Andor
- Start date
SSquirrel has saved me the trouble of actually having to reply to this. thread
Thanks Ari! Just a quick look at each god's write up.
Rel
Liquid Awesome
Thanks for bringing the funny to your threadcrap, Snoweel. I appreciate it so I'm only going to ban you for one day. Also, out of respect, I'm posting this in green.
It's you.
So? Lawful good requires, or at least implies, civilization. Civilization itself neither implies nor requires lawful good.
Because agriculture is associated with the basic acts of feeding and nurturing people. Basic good things.
Really, if you put enough effort into making the new deity alignments look dumb, you'll at least half-way succeed. But it's easier and more beneficial to put a little effort into making them make sense.
ephemeron
Explorer
The idea of "unaligned" gods doesn't sit right with me -- replacing Neutral with Unaligned for PC's is fine, but having an alignment that means the "I'm just living my own life" version of Neutral for PC's but the "maintain the balance of whatever" version of Neutral for deities irks me.
Plus, an Unaligned paladin sounds really wrong.
Plus, an Unaligned paladin sounds really wrong.
Mouseferatu
Hero
An "unaligned god" isn't necessarily one who's all about balance. It's just a god who's more concerned about the specifics of his portfolio and areas of influence than he is about morality.
Honestly, by that definition, I'd say most gods from myth and legend would qualify as "unaligned."
I think the "WTF is that god doing there?" comes less out of developers trying to cram gods into whatever they can find and more to do with the completely arbitrary and unneccisary changes to alignment. Note that I refer to cutting out several spots on the grid, not to the lack of mechanical benefits or punishments, which I'm all for.
Particle_Man
Explorer
I like the Erathis/Melora battle being open, alignment-wise. Allows for some Princess Mononoke stuff where you don't auto get who is the good guy and who is the bad guy (maybe they are both good guys, yet are opposed).
I see the CE gods as being evil and careless of consequences (even if they destroy the universe!).
The E gods want consequences...their way.
The G gods want to help the mortals, as do the LG gods, but they have different ideas on how to help the mortals. I don't actually see much need to distinguish LG and G gods, myself.
The Unaligned Gods have their own ideas that don't fit into the other 4 categories, but could be real for all that.
In fact, I think alignment is really deemphasized in 4e. I mean, take away all alignments, and have the clerics/paladins of gods required to obey the particular gods "3 rules of conduct" and what do you really lose?
I think alignment is there as a bit of a guide to point out who the bad guys are (and then who the REALLY bad guys are) and a metagame construct way of telling players not to be dicks, or pretend to be dicks (which pretense is another way of being a dick).
I see the CE gods as being evil and careless of consequences (even if they destroy the universe!).
The E gods want consequences...their way.
The G gods want to help the mortals, as do the LG gods, but they have different ideas on how to help the mortals. I don't actually see much need to distinguish LG and G gods, myself.
The Unaligned Gods have their own ideas that don't fit into the other 4 categories, but could be real for all that.
In fact, I think alignment is really deemphasized in 4e. I mean, take away all alignments, and have the clerics/paladins of gods required to obey the particular gods "3 rules of conduct" and what do you really lose?
I think alignment is there as a bit of a guide to point out who the bad guys are (and then who the REALLY bad guys are) and a metagame construct way of telling players not to be dicks, or pretend to be dicks (which pretense is another way of being a dick).
Andor
First Post
I agree that's exactly why they left them both unaligned, but it's still a poor match. They could have made Erathis LG and left Melora Unaligned.
I am not a huge fan of alignment as done in 4e, but if you're going to insist on doing it at least be consistant with your own definitions. If you are going to define LG as 'order and civilization' then the God of those ideals ought to be LG. For what other reason is Moradin LG?
Ycore Rixle
First Post
Well, I'm not a big alignment fan either, but for what it's worth, I agree with you, Andor. If your subheading for Lawful Good is "An ordered society protects us from evil," and you say that "codes of conduct, laws, and leaders... are the best way of achieving" Lawful Good ideals, then the goddess of "civilization," "founder of cities and author of laws," she who is revered by "rulers, judges... and devoted citizens," had darned well better be Lawful Good.
If, that is, consistency is a goal.
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