History Main / CharacterAlignment

** After the debate that provoked, he declared it "Alignment chart week" and made[[http://mightygodking.com/index.php/2010/12/07/alignment-chart-week-star-trek-ds9/#comments another one]], this time for ''StarTrekDeepSpaceNine''.

* '''[[color:maroon:[[AC:LawfulEvil]]:]]''' The most competent evil. The kind of Evil that winds up in charge. Can be a lot like Lawful Neutral, but ''nastier''. Well-structured, large-scale and often scarily successful evil. May believe in keeping order ''[[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans at all costs]]'', or may simply believe that a well-ordered system is ''so'' much [[AmoralAttorney easier to exploit]]. Whether an ObstructiveBureaucrat is Lawful Evil or Lawful Neutral is basically a function of whether he ''enjoys'' what he's doing (see above example of kicking the family out of the house.) If GodIsEvil, he's almost always Lawful Evil. On the "bright" side, the WorthyOpponent and NobleDemon are often Lawful Evil (if they're evil at all), as they tend to develop a "Code of Honor" to guide their actions, and can in fact be dependable allies in an EnemyMine situation where other alignments might fizzle out. In circumstances where you are not a threat to their intentions, Lawful Evil might well be the "lesser of the three evils". [[BigBad BB]][[EvilGenius EGs]] in general tend towards Lawful Evil - mostly since they plan to construct their very own empire that you'd better fall in line with - as do many {{Magnificent Bastard}}s. A mercenary who always keeps his contract (good or evil), but enjoys a job where he gets to hurt people, is LawfulEvil and more likely to end up working for the bad guys. The baatezu (devils) of D&D rule the plane of Baator with a Lawful Evil fist, and some of of these were originally KnightTemplar angels. As a good reference point, Big Brother (or [[spoiler:O'Brien]]) from ''1984'' would be LawfulEvil.

** ''ShinMegamiTenseiI'' is the earliest known videogame to have an alignment system that directly affects the direction of the storyline and which of the MultipleEndings the player is given, through the choices and actions the player makes that alter the player character's alignment. ''ShinMegamiTenseiII'' uses the same kind of alignment system.

* Alignment plays a huge role in the ''ShinMegamiTensei'' series of games. Each monster is classed on the [[OrderVersusChaos Law-Neutral-Chaos]] axis and the Light-Neutral-Dark axis. The former is the important one: monsters that are Chaotic will refuse to join you if the main character is Lawful and vice-versa. The alignment of the main character is determined by the type of monsters he summons (eg: Lawful creatures will move your alignment towards Law), by his responses to philosophical questions asked at key points of the game and by whose dirty work (The Messians or the Gaians) he carries out. The ending of the game is determined by the final alignment of the main character. Interestingly, Neutrality is presented neither as the uncaring or balancing alignment, but rather one that focuses on individual choice and inner strength, as opposed to relying on outside power. In ''[[ShinMegamiTensei Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne]]'' the previous system of alignment is discarded in favour of three specific philosophies: Shijima (which is closest to Law but without the KnightTemplar tendencies), Musabi (Neutral, focusing on individuality and freedom of choice) and Yosuga (Chaos with a heavy dose of the elitism that Law was previously known for).
** And then there's [[spoiler: True Demon, in which you say "fuck that noise," give up your leftover humanity and join Lucifer's army in order to take out God and keep this stuff from happening over and over again]]

* '''[[color:blue:[[AC:LawfulGood:]]]]''' Basically, they believe Law is Good, and that you do good by upholding the law. The alignment of TheCape, [[KnightInShiningArmor Paladins]] and just about any character who is [[{{IncorruptiblePurePureness}} uncompromising in his morality]]. Believes in Truth, Justice, and the (insert country here) Way, but may potentially believe in them a little [[WideEyedIdealist too much]]. Poorly portrayed, he tends to be LawfulStupid, largely depending on your interpretation of "good". In D&D canon up to the most recent edition, archons, celestials who inhabit the Seven Heavens, are Lawful Good. From a non-D&D more realistic perspective however, [=LGs=] are likely altruists who believe in an orderly lifestyle for the benefit of their species. The alignment is also relative (and not in the sense that the [=PCs=] are always the good guys).

* '''[[color:blue:[[AC:LawfulGood:]]]]''' Basically, they believe Law is Good, and that you do good by upholding the law. The alignment of TheCape, [[KnightInShiningArmor Paladins]] and [[{{Utopia}} suspiciously ideal states]]. Believes in Truth, Justice, and the (insert country here) Way, but may potentially believe in them a little [[WideEyedIdealist too much]]. May also be LawfulStupid, largely depending on your interpretation of "good". In D&D canon up to the most recent edition, archons, celestials who inhabit the Seven Heavens, are Lawful Good. From a non-D&D more realistic perspective however, [=LGs=] are likely altruists who believe in an orderly lifestyle for the benefit of their species. The alignment is also relative (and not in the sense that the [=PCs=] are always the good guys).

* '''[[color:orange:[[AC:ChaoticGood]]:]]''' [[RebelliousSpirit Rebels]] and [[WildCard free spirits]], but all around nice people. When they're doing good, they would rather do it without getting pushed around by authority. Or they may be outright {{Well Intentioned Extremist}}s who believe too much order is bad for ''everyone''. Whatever their stance is, they act on their ideals before they let laws get in the way, and sometimes they ''dare'' the laws to get in the way. Whether they're portrayed as BigDamnHeroes, [[WideEyedIdealist too damn idealistic]], a ManicPixieDreamGirl or just a damn problem depends on the views of the author, and ultimately the readers. It should also be noted that [=CGs=] value individual merit over the 'greater good' but aren't willing themselves to amoral action to see that through.

* One ''{{Castlevania}}'' character has been given a canonical alignment: according to the ''Portrait of Ruin'' manual, Death is LawfulEvil. This is common for incarnations of Death -- in most settings, Death follows strict rules (e.g. DiscWorld, ForgottenRealms, IncarnationsOfImmortality). It also works for this particular Death, who's a and servant to Count Dracula, and follows rules.

** A traditional superhero (like Superman) or a beneficent political leader (George Washington, Abraham Lincoln) are examples of Lawful Good people.

** Characters like Robin Hood (stealing to do good) are Chaotic Good.

** An evil politician (Hitler) or a mob boss (Tony Soprano) would be examples of Lawful Evil. They work within a system and use it to their advantage, even if they manipulate that system and violate it in some cases.

** ChaoticNeutral: Captain Jack Sparrow, Al Swearengen from the TV series Deadwood, and Snake Plissken from EscapefromNewYork.

** ChaoticNeutral: Captain Jack Sparrow, Al Swearengen from the TV series Deadwood, and SnakePlisskenfromEscapefromNewYork-

* '''[[color:green:[[AC:LawfulNeutral]]:]]''' The rule-abiding sort. Law and order is more important than whether you're good or evil. Believes in keeping order, though not necessarily in Justice as a universal constant (though they may - this can get complicated). Probably a better alignment for the KnightTemplar than Lawful Good (or Lawful Evil, depending on how degrading), and one of the natural alignments of {{Police State}}s. They'll arrest a robber or rapist, but may also kick a poor family out of their home for failing to pay rent. May also believe in a Cosmic Order that transcends laws - many monks are Lawful Neutral. Just as often the bad guys as the good guys in an OrderVersusChaos situation. Modrons, D&D beings of geometrically perfect precision and order who inhabit the plane of Mechanus, are Lawful Neutral. Mercenaries who obey their contracts without question, and take either side of the moral spectrum, are Lawful Neutral. TheStoic can make a good lawful neutral.

* '''[[color:gray:[[AC:ChaoticNeutral]]:]]''' The ultimate free spirits, or just [[{{Cloudcuckoolander}} lunatics]]? It can go either way. Chaotic Neutral characters are all about freedom, and don't care so much about morality. Sometimes they're just amoral nutjobs, and sometimes they're generally good people with a wild streak that sometimes leads them into bad things. Often used by players in TabletopGames to excuse doing anything they feel like (in the case of a GameMaster who disables evil alignments - see Neutral Evil, below), and often prohibited by the sort of GameMaster who also prohibits outright evil characters. Like Lawful Neutral, however, how "good" they ultimately end up seeming depends on which side of OrderVersusChaos the plot tends toward. The toadlike slaad, inhabitants of Limbo, are ChaoticNeutral. Also, Chaotic Neutrals can, in fact, have some degree of care for morality however they are more flexible in their moral algorithms, willing to risk more to accomplish whatever they believe is 'right' - under this interpretation, V from V for Vendetta is ChaoticNeutral.

http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/alignment_graph_9564.jpg
[[caption-width:350:Isn't that what it all boils down to?]]

** It should be noted that, in earlier editions of the game, only player characters were able to freely choose their alignment; monsters (that is, any non-human or demihuman creature) were born with their specific alignment and could never change. This was due to the influence of the Outer Planes (which were arranged precisely according to the alignment axis) and the gods of the campaign. A goblin, for example, was born evil, and no amount of counseling would ever change it (though magic might.) The fact all creatures (including PCs) had invisible "alignment auras" that could be "read" was proof of this. The reason for this was, of course, so that good-aligned characters would be justified in killing or stealing from most monsters. There were, however, occasional variations- you might meet the rare non-evil goblin, for example, but it would be the result of crossbreeding, magic, etc.- never willing change.

* ''{{Dungeons and Dragons}}'': Not only did they come up with the best-known alignment system, but a number of their settings feature gods of different alignments competing for power. Many spells and items will only function on/for characters of a given alignment (moral, ethical, or both). In most settings, a god will accept clerics only of alignments no more than one "step" removed from its own (for example, a LawfulNeutral god, unless otherwise specified, would accept a LawfulGood or LawfulEvil cleric, but wouldn't accept a Chaotic Neutral cleric), though their lay worshippers can be of any alignment.

* '''[[color:blue:[[AC:LawfulGood:]]]]''' Basically, they believe Law is Good, and that you do good by upholding the law. The alignment of TheCape, [[KnightInShiningArmor Paladins]] and [[{{Utopia}} suspiciously ideal states]]. Believes in Truth, Justice, and the (insert country here) Way, but may potentially believe in them a little [[WildEyedIdealist too much]]. May also be LawfulStupid, largely depending on your interpretation of "good". In D&D canon up to the most recent edition, archons, celestials who inhabit the Seven Heavens, are Lawful Good. From a non-D&D more realistic perspective however, [=LGs=] are likely altruists who believe in an orderly lifestyle for the benefit of their species. The alignment is also relative (and not in the sense that the [=PCs=] are always the good guys).

* '''[[color:blue:[[AC:LawfulGood:]]]]''' Basically, they believe Law is Good, and that you do good by upholding the law. The alignment of TheCape, [[KnightInShiningArmor Paladins]] and [[{{Utopia}} suspiciously ideal states]]. Believes in Truth, Justice, and the (insert country here) Way, but may potentially believe in them a little [[WellIntentionedExtremist too much]]. May also be LawfulStupid, largely depending on your interpretation of "good". In D&D canon up to the most recent edition, archons, celestials who inhabit the Seven Heavens, are Lawful Good. From a non-D&D more realistic perspective however, [=LGs=] are likely altruists who believe in an orderly lifestyle for the benefit of their species. The alignment is also relative (and not in the sense that the [=PCs=] are always the good guys).

* '''[[color:red:[[AC:ChaoticEvil]]:]]''' If Chaotic Neutral indicates the truly free spirit, Chaotic Evil is the truly evil free spirit. Whereas the Chaotic Neutral is concerned only with his freedom but isn't a really horrible person, the same can't be said for the Chaotic Evil character. They will do whatever they want to (even if, and sometimes, especially, it hurts other people) and (to them) rules don't matter. Whereas a Neutral Evil character will sometimes follow the law if it is convenient, the same can't really be said for the Chaotic Evil character. So why are they evil? Perhaps it is because of profit. maybe they are narcisstic or egotistical egotistical. Or maybe they're simply insane; most but not all psychopaths and sociopaths fall under this designation. But contrary to what some believe, Chaotic Evil does not always mean the kind of wanton, meaningless slaughter and destruction associated with Stupid Evil. Indeed, it is often the more calculating and intelligent villains of this kind that are the most dangerous. Being Chaotic Evil doesn't mean a character HAS to slaughter an entire village just because he's passing through. But being Chaotic, he does whatever he feels like regardless of the rules, and being Evil, he doesn't mind if it hurts other people or is otherwise wrong, either. {{Serial Killer}}s are good examples of ChaoticEvil. It's the canonical alignment of tanar'ri (demons), beings who were created in and by an endless semisentient Abyss that itself is dedicated to entropy, in ''{{Dungeons and Dragons}}''. A great example of how ChaoticEvil can be done well and not be ChaoticStupid, see [[TheDarkKnightSaga the Joker]].

* '''[[color:maroon:[[AC:LawfulEvil]]:]]''' The most competent evil. The kind of Evil that winds up in charge. Can be a lot like Lawful Neutral, but ''nastier''. Well-structured, large-scale and often scarily successful evil. May believe in keeping order ''[[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans at all costs]]'', or may simply believe that a well-ordered system is ''so'' much [[AmoralAttorney easier to exploit]]. Whether an ObstructiveBureaucrat is Lawful Evil or Lawful Neutral is basically a function of whether he ''enjoys'' what he's doing (see above example of kicking the family out of the house.) If GodIsEvil, he's almost always Lawful Evil. On the "bright" side, the WorthyOpponent and NobleDemon are often Lawful Evil (if they're evil at all), as they tend to develop a "Code of Honor" to guide their actions, and can in fact be dependable allies in an EnemyMine situation where other alignments might fizzle out. In circumstances where you are not a threat to their intentions, Lawful Evil might well be the "lesser of the three evils". [[BigBad BBEGs]] in general tend towards Lawful Evil - mostly since they plan to construct their very own empire that you'd better fall in line with - as do many {{Magnificent Bastard}}s. A mercenary who always keeps his contract (good or evil), but enjoys a job where he gets to hurt people, is LawfulEvil and more likely to end up working for the bad guys. The baatezu (devils) of D&D rule the plane of Baator with a Lawful Evil fist, and some of of these were originally KnightTemplar angels. As a good reference point, Big Brother (or [[spoiler:O'Brien]]) from ''1984'' would be LawfulEvil.

* The standard Palladium system of most of its settings, such as ''{{Rifts}}'', ''{{Palladium}}'', ''Heroes Unlimited'' and ''{{Robotech}}'' has a different alignment system from ''{{Dungeons and Dragons}}''. In this system, there are three different types of alignments, broken down into Good, Selfish, and Evil. Palladium rulebooks state that there is no such thing as Neutral, and dismiss the term as misleading (though that doesn't stop them from including a "Taoist" alignment in the Ninjas and Superspies system). '''Good''' alignments include Principled, which is roughly equivalent to Lawful Good, and Scrupulous, which is roughly equivalent to Neutral Good. '''Selfish''' includes Unprincipled, which is often regarded as the Han Solo alignment, of the [[TheDogShotFirst Han Shot First]] variety; and Anarchist, which is roughly like Chaotic Neutral. '''Evil''' has Miscreant, the selfish but not demonic; Aberrant, who is basically the NobleDemon as an alignment; and Diabolic, a "cruel, brutal killer who trusts no one and has no value for anyone or anything that gets in his way." Palladium even includes a helpful list of behaviors associated with their alignments, which helps cut down on arguments on whether or not somebody is acting properly. Scrupulous folk never betray a friend. It says so right in the rule book.

* '''[[color:maroon:[[AC:LawfulEvil]]:]]''' The most competent evil. The kind of Evil that winds up in charge. Can be a lot like Lawful Neutral, but ''nastier''. Well-structured, large-scale and often scarily successful evil. May believe in keeping order ''[[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans at all costs]]'', or may simply believe that a well-ordered system is ''so'' much [[AmoralAttorney easier to exploit]]. Whether an ObstructiveBureaucrat is Lawful Evil or Lawful Neutral is basically a function of whether he ''enjoys'' what he's doing (see above example of kicking the family out of the house.) If GodIsEvil, he's almost always Lawful Evil. On the "bright" side, the WorthyOpponent and NobleDemon are often Lawful Evil (if they're evil at all), as they tend to develop a "Code of Honor" to guide their actions, and can in fact be dependable allies in an EnemyMine situation where other alignments might fizzle out. In circumstances where you are not a threat to their intentions, Lawful Evil might well be the "lesser of the three evils". [[BigBad BBEGs]] in general tend towards Lawful Evil - mostly since they plan to construct their very own empire that you'd better fall in line with - as do many {{Magnificent Bastard}}s. A mercenary who always keeps his contract (good or evil), but enjoys a job where he gets to hurt people, is LawfulEvil and more likely to end up working for the bad guys. The baatezu (devils) of D&D rule the plane of Baator with a Lawful Evil fist, and some of of these were originally KnightTemplar angels. As a good reference point, O'brien from 1984 would be LawfulEvil.

* '''[[color:blue:[[AC:LawfulGood:]]]]''' Basically, they believe Law is Good, and that you do good by upholding the law. The alignment of TheCape, [[KnightInShiningArmor Paladins]] and [[{{Utopia}} suspiciously ideal states]]. Believes in Truth, Justice, and the (insert country here) Way, but may believe in them a little [[WellIntentionedExtremist too much]]. May also be LawfulStupid, largely depending on your interpretation of "good". In D&D canon up to the most recent edition, archons, celestials who inhabit the Seven Heavens, are Lawful Good. From a non-D&D more realistic perspective however, [=LGs=] are likely altruists who believe in an orderly lifestyle for the benefit of their species. The alignment is also relative (and not in the sense that the [=PCs=] are always the good guys).

* Interestingly enough, the 4th Edition D&D has done away with the nine-point axis, and replaced it with an alignment line of five alignments: [[strike: Super]] Lawful Good, Good, Unaligned, Evil, and [[strike:More]] Chaotic Evil. Basically, Neutral Good was changed to just Good, Neutral Evil becomes just Evil. Lawful Evil, Lawful Neutral, True Neutral, Chaotic Neutral, and Chaotic Good no longer exist and are replace by the nondescript "Unaligned".
** This probably borrows a lot from the first edition of ''{{Warhammer}} FRP'', which also had five alignments: Law, Good, Neutral, Evil and Chaos.