Why did they not slay the Chaotic Evil Sacred Cow?

[Amphimir Míriel]

The D&D alignment system possesses a heritage and brand identity we did not want to lose. If we could overcome a couple of issues associated with the traditional alignment system without introducing new problems, we knew that we absolutely had to preserve the system so players could still talk about their lawful good paladin or the chaotic evil demon they vanquished.

So, basically they cooked up a kludgy aligment scale and put it back in the game because people hear "Chaotic Evil" or "Lawful Good" and they think "D&D"?

I don't think thats a good reason... Now, since no effects depend on aligment in 4e, it is easier to ignore. But still it feels like "Two steps forward, one step back"

 

[LEHaskell]

Mearls would lose his moral compass.

 

[Silverblade The Ench]

I, like many players, like alignment...you know, easy 2 letter abbreviation for DMs ot have rough guide to NPCs typicla actions is efficient...it's a fantasy so morals/ethics are important (Planescape!), etc

It's a GOOD scred cow! or N, even.

 

[rhm001]

Because it was a Chaotic Evil cow (actually, probably a minotaur...), so it wasn't interested in allowing itself to be sacrificed to the gods for the greater good. They tried to sacrifice it, but then somebody got gored, and that was the end of that.

 

[Saitou]

I think the real sacred cow isn't alignment, but the view of Good and Evil as moral absolutes when they are merely opinions. I'd much rather Selfless and Selfish.

 

[Korgoth]

"Slaying the sacred cow" and "sacred cow burger" have become the sacred cows of a certain reactionary clique.

If you slew every sacred cow, you'd be left with some 2-page indy game where you dicelessly bid on scene control while pretending to be a sentient bowl of vegetable soup (alphabet soup... that's how you communicate) dealing with some kind of angsty existential crisis. Which would not be a game, but it would not be D&D.

Sorry, but LG and CE are perfectly serviceable for the D&D game. You might as well ask why they didn't slay the sacred cow of having swords as melee weapons or the sacred cow of fighting monsters. That's just what the game is about. And the cosmic clash of moral extremes is also in the game, as well as the literature that inspired it.

 

[2eBladeSinger]

Eversoup: The Fasting

 

[GoodKingJayIII]

I've never liked alignment. It's just too easy for my tastes. It encourages some players to not really think about their characters. At worst, it becomes an irritating sort of thing, used either to justify incredibly asinine actions I don't like this alignment system much more than the last, but it does have one major advantage of 3rd edition's: it is not entrenched in the mechanical aspects of the game in any significant way.

One could insert NG-CG-TN-CN-LE-NE into the mix as easily as I could rip the entire alignment concept out of the system.

 

[Alkiera]

I think the real sacred cow isn't alignment, but the view of Good and Evil as moral absolutes when they are merely opinions.

Most settings for D&D are pretty black and white. The next kingdom over where the emperor sacrifices people in rituals to keep his castle afloat on a dark cloud, is evil. Most of the people there are probably unaligned, just as in this kingdom where the king is a devout follower of Pelor. Most humanoids, regardless of society, are unaligned. Just like in the modern era, people who are truly Good or Evil are rare.

Systems like the new Storyteller from WhiteWolf have whole complex systems for managing shades of grey and all the angst of dealing with being forced to do bad things by your situation. D&D doesn't, as that's not what D&D is about.

I'd much rather Selfless and Selfish.

If you read the descriptions, that's basically what the new system is. 'Unaligned' is benevelent self-interest... like the Wiccan rule about doing what you want, but doing no harm. 'Good' is a step in the selfless direction... you believe that there is a greater good, and you work toward it. 'Lawful Good' is like 'Good', but believes that the greater good is law/society/government/The System, and works toward that with no thought of self. On the converse, 'Evil' is where your self-interest stops being benevelent... you start stepping on people who are in your way, but you do so because you seek money, power, prestige; you have a goal in mind. 'Chaotic Evil' is almost off the chart into 'crazy'. CE things don't seem to reason at the same level as humanity, they destroy and kill because it's fun, not because it gets them something. They are Evil only for the sake of being Evil.

 

[JuJutsu]

I think the real sacred cow isn't alignment, but the view of Good and Evil as moral absolutes when they are merely opinions. I'd much rather Selfless and Selfish.

Somehow Orcus the Selfish doesn't seem as worthy an opponent. I also prefer not to have debates in the party over whether the npc who's been kidnapping children and using them for ritual mutilation and sacrifice to Orcus the Selfish is a threat to be neutralized or just engaging in legitimate religious rituals.