D&D 5E Why is animate dead considered inherently evil?

[Tolerable Tyrant]

I'm having a troublesome time understanding why the animate dead spell is considered evil. When I read the manual it states that the spall imbues the targeted corpse with a foul mimicry of life, implying that the soul is not a sentient being who is trapped in a decaying corpse. Rather, the spell does exactly what its title suggests, it only animates the corps. Now of course one could use the spell to create zombies that would hunt and kill humans, but by that same coin, they could create a labor force that needs no form of sustenance (other than for the spell to be recast of course). There have also been those who have said "the spell is associated with the negative realm which is evil", however when you ask someone why the negative realm is bad that will say "because it is used for necromancy", I'm sure you can see the fallacy in this argument.

However, I must take into account that I have only looked into the DnD magic system since yesterday so there are likely large gaps in my knowledge. PS(Apon further reflection I've decided that the animate dead spell doesn't fall into the school of necromancy, as life is not truly given to the corps, instead I believe this would most likely fall into the school of transmutation.) PPS(I apologize for my sloppy writing, I've decided I'm feeling too lazy to correct it.)

 

[James Gasik]

Or, this is an editorial comment on Chaotic Neutral player characters.

 

[Maxperson]

A Red Slaad is Chaotic Neutral.

It doesn't matter. The evil portion is that you know it's going to run around killing innocent people and do it anyway. If I let a polar bear loose at the mall and it kills some people, I get to go to prison for the rest of my life for the heinous act. It doesn't matter that the bear itself isn't evil.

 

[James Gasik]

I'm just saying there is a difference between the -potential- for evil and -actual- evil. The debate is if animate dead is inherently evil, regardless for how the spell is used. But just about anything (including Orc Barbarians) can be misused- that does not make them inherently evil.

 

[Maxperson]

No it's not. Alignment says that they're neutral, and as alignment is an useful mechanic, we should trust it.

As alignment ALSO says, it's not a straightjacket. CN beings can do evil acts, just like good ones can.

 

[Maxperson]

I'm just saying there is a difference between the -potential- for evil and -actual- evil. The debate is if animate dead is inherently evil, regardless for how the spell is used. But just about anything (including Orc Barbarians) can be misused- that does not make them inherently evil.

The fact that the undead are by default inherently evil and WILL murder people when(not if) an error is eventually made, is what makes Animate Dead evil.

 

[Vaalingrade]

Alignment is the reason this thread and the stupid 'kill everything' line exists in corpse robots.

Therefore it is evil and it is okay to kill it.

 

[James Gasik]

I guess, I just feel that is a fairly fine line to walk. I mean, take a spell like Weird. It torments it's victims with visions of their deepest fears, not only causing them mental trauma and PTSD, but actually inflicting 4d10 psychic damage to them.

On it's face, this is a horrible, nasty spell, but I'm sure if I asked "how is using this spell ever not an evil act?" I'd get an answer straight away (likely, using it to kill evil monsters).

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

Okay, let's see. Here's 10 (I only needed 10) quotes from the PHB. Read them together and see what you think.

1. School of Necromancy (PHB 118)
"Most people see necromancers as menacing, or even villainous, due to the close association with death. Not all necromancers are evil, but the forces they manipulate are considered taboo by many societies."

2. School of Magic (PHB 203)
"Creating the undead through the use of necromancy spells such as animate dead is not a good act, and only evil casters use such spells frequently."

3. Animate Dead Spell (PHB 212-13)
"Your spell imbues the target with a foul mimicry of life, raising it as an undead creature. ... The creature is under your control for 24 hours, after which it stops obeying any command you’ve given it."

(note that if you are creating zombies and skeletons, you are creating evil creatures where there were none ... you are not summoning or binding already existing critters)

4. Druids (PHB 65)
"Druids accept that which is cruel in nature, and they hate that which is unnatural, including aberrations (such as beholders and mind flayers) and undead (such as zombies and vampires)."

5. Paladins (PHB 82, 84, 86)
"Even so, their martial skills are secondary to the magical power they wield: power to heal the sick and injured, to smite the wicked and the undead ... The presence of strong evil registers on your senses like a noxious odor, and powerful good rings like heavenly music in your ears. As an action, you can open your awareness to detect such forces. Until the end of your next turn, you know the location of any celestial, fiend, or undead ... As an action, you present your holy symbol and speak a prayer censuring fiends and undead ..."

6. Detect Evil and Good (PHB 231)
"For the duration, you know if there is an aberration, celestial, elemental, fey, fiend, or undead within 30 feet of you ..."

7. Hallow (PHB 249)
"Everlasting Rest. Dead bodies interred in the area can’t be turned into undead."

8. Raise Dead (PHB 270)
"The spell can’t return an undead creature to life."

9. Resurrection (PHB 272)
"You touch a dead creature that has been dead for no more than a century, that didn’t die of old age, and that isn’t undead."

10. Negative Plane (PHB 300)
"Like a dome above the other planes, the Positive Plane is the source of radiant energy and the raw life force that suffuses all living beings, from the puny to the sublime. Its dark reflection is the Negative Plane, the source of necrotic energy that destroys the living and animates the undead."


So, does a necromancer absolutely have to be evil? No. It's says so. But ... repeatedly animating the dead is evil, because:
A. It's taboo in most societies; and
B. It violated the bodily autonomy of the individual (in a world where there is certainly an afterlife); and
C. It prevents the person from being raised; and
D. It creates an evil being where none existed before; and
E. It uses the energy of the Negative Material Plane, which is NOT GOOD BOB; and
F. Read in its entirety (including the existence of spells to prevent people from coming in and raising the dead) it's clear that the base rules strongly mean that animating the dead ... aka, creating evil creatures to serve your bidding and keeping those people from ever having the chance to live again, not to mention not getting their consent, is an evil act.

You are welcome to modify your campaign world so that this isn't the case, and you're welcome to ignore ideas like what constitutes "good" or "evil" (or even having those ideas), but that's the base rules.

 

[Vaalingrade]

Again D&D has very little grasp on morality.

Enslaving people, destroying their agency, causing mass anguish and torture are completely okay as far as the game cares. But by god, they will write paragraphs to change skeletons and zombies into something evil.

 

[James Gasik]

Some of those points aren't really valid. I mean, in D&D, alignments are cosmic forces. A society doesn't get to decide what is cosmically Good or Evil.

Also, and this is a big one. Just because something is undead and can be detected by a Paladin doesn't mean it is evil. GHOSTS CAN BE GOOD.