D&D General The Monsters Know What They're Doing ... Are Unsure on 5e24

[Scribe]

What is even going on in this thread.

I saw someone mention The Orc (Supposed) Problem, no thanks, now we are talking about I guess Alignment, and...eating babies?

Are they chicken babies? Are they cow or lamb babies? Are they eggs? Are they raised to be eaten?

Come on folks, there is zero chance this is an enlightening path to take.

 

[Maxperson]

What is even going on in this thread.

I saw someone mention The Orc (Supposed) Problem, no thanks, now we are talking about I guess Alignment, and...eating babies?

Are they chicken babies? Are they cow or lamb babies? Are they eggs? Are they raised to be eaten?

Come on folks, there is zero chance this is an enlightening path to take.

LOL I wasn't the one who brought up the baby tangent, but it seems to have caught on.

 

[mamba]

To be more precise, why sit in judgment of the choice?

To me being sad about a character death is not necessarily a judgment on the choice they made

 

[Remathilis]

Oh... I like spicy. What?.

The existence of "infant so tender and mild" implies the existence of chewy, spicy baby.

 

[TiQuinn]

To me being sad about a character death is not necessarily a judgment on the choice they made

Ideally.

 

[EzekielRaiden]

Dragonborn don't exist in my game so if someone wanted to play one I'd ask why. Is it cultural and identification with dragons? Then you come from a culture that reveres dragons. I'd probably also consider something about having a dragon patron, although the dragon may not have shown up for a century because dragons sometimes take really long naps in my world.

Mechanical benefits? Some individuals from that group are considered Dragon Blessed, and from a young age undergo supernatural rituals to gain all the benefits of a dragonborn. Perhaps they gain some some minor features or just use cosmetics but they are still identifiably as the same species as the rest of their group.

That to me is compromise. They aren't dragonborn because those don't exist. They're human (or whatever species you want from my list) but have been chosen to be imbued with the best features of a dragon. Of course they have to forego the normal benefits they normally would have received. There would be more details of course and we'd have to discuss lore but that's all campaign specific.

Certainly much more of a compromise than I have seen previously, so I accept it.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

No. But it's not just the act. Intent is primary. If I kill someone to save your life, it's not evil(or good). If I walk up to someone and shoot them in the back of the head because I didn't like what color shoes they had on, pretty darn evil. The act is the same. I killed someone. Intent is what made things different

If you punch someone, and they fall down, split their head open and die, then you have still committed an evil act, even if you did not intend to kill them.

But your example doesn’t illustrate intent, it illustrates motivation, which isn’t the same thing.

 

[Maxperson]

If you punch someone, and they fall down, split their head open and die, then you have still committed an evil act, even if you did not intend to kill them.

No. It's a neutral act, because intent matters. You will get punished for it, but there was no evil in your heart and it was an accident.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

No. It's a neutral act, because intent matters. You will get punished for it, but there was no evil in your heart and it was an accident.

We will just have to disagree about that, since it lets an awful lot of wrong-doers off the hook. If I skip safety checks because I think everyone will be fine, and someone dies as a result that is evil. What is “in my heart” is irrelevant, they are just as dead as if I killed that person because I didn’t like the their shoes.

And that’s before you get to the wars of religion, with horrors committed on all sides from people who sincerely believe they are doing the right thing in their heart.

 

[Maxperson]

We will just have to disagree about that, since it lets an awful lot of wrong-doers off the hook. If I skip safety checks because I think everyone will be fine, and someone dies as a result that is evil. What is “in my heart” is irrelevant, they are just as dead as if I killed that person because I didn’t like the their shoes.

And just as dead if you killed them to save another. If what is in your heart doesn't matter, killing to save another is just as bad as 1st degree murder.

Intent is what matter more than anything else.

Also, no one gets off the hook for a neutral illegal act like accidental death. It's just not an evil act. Like theft. Theft is generally not evil. Taking food from a grocery store to eat isn't evil. Not good. Not evil. Still illegal and punishable.