Alignment (Beyond Good And Evil)
Oct 8, 2015 3:06:21 GMT -5
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Post by Von on Oct 8, 2015 3:06:21 GMT -5
A character in my games is likely to have an alignment that looks a bit like this: Lawful Schismatic 6
The first term is of course the standard Lawful/Neutral/Chaotic axis. In mechanical terms it governs who can be affected by various spells and abilities. It also indicates something about a character's proximity to one of the few genuine 'divinities' influencing affairs on Titan, Urizen (Lawful) or Orc (Chaotic). Practical religion is more often concerned with spirits, totems and ancestors than direct appeals to the divine powers (one of whom is the quintessential absentee father and the other of which is more of a force than an entity), but the interactions between these powers are subtle and grand and heavily influential upon the doing of magic (for instance).
The second term is allegiance. This can be political or religious or professional but is generally directed toward some sort of institution. One might have an allegiance to the Schismatic Church, the County Palatine, Assassin Households or the King of Sinlap, to give four examples plucked out of my earhole.
The number which follows it is loyalty (which will follow similar rules to the wrangling of henchmen). This indicates a character's overall place in society, the extent to which they are trusted by their superiors and respected by their peers. Loyalty rises and falls depending on behaviour. Out and out treason is indicated not by a negative loyalty score but by the allegiance being kept secret (if I am a spy for the Schismatic Church, then I have a loyalty score tied to my allegiance to that Church; if I am a double agent then I have a loyalty score tied to my allegiance to my own sweet self). Loyalty has an impact on the behaviour of NPCs toward the character and also on the character's income and the calibre of adventures that are presented to them (i.e. if you have a low loyalty score you'll be stuck with the crappy or dangerous jobs).
The point of it all is to give characters a stake in the universal and social orders and to track it in a way that means something beyond "you lose your class functions because you just did an unlawful deed", which always felt a bit arbitrary to me. Law and Chaos exist on a cosmic scale. What's more significant in the world is where your loyalty lies.
The first term is of course the standard Lawful/Neutral/Chaotic axis. In mechanical terms it governs who can be affected by various spells and abilities. It also indicates something about a character's proximity to one of the few genuine 'divinities' influencing affairs on Titan, Urizen (Lawful) or Orc (Chaotic). Practical religion is more often concerned with spirits, totems and ancestors than direct appeals to the divine powers (one of whom is the quintessential absentee father and the other of which is more of a force than an entity), but the interactions between these powers are subtle and grand and heavily influential upon the doing of magic (for instance).
The second term is allegiance. This can be political or religious or professional but is generally directed toward some sort of institution. One might have an allegiance to the Schismatic Church, the County Palatine, Assassin Households or the King of Sinlap, to give four examples plucked out of my earhole.
The number which follows it is loyalty (which will follow similar rules to the wrangling of henchmen). This indicates a character's overall place in society, the extent to which they are trusted by their superiors and respected by their peers. Loyalty rises and falls depending on behaviour. Out and out treason is indicated not by a negative loyalty score but by the allegiance being kept secret (if I am a spy for the Schismatic Church, then I have a loyalty score tied to my allegiance to that Church; if I am a double agent then I have a loyalty score tied to my allegiance to my own sweet self). Loyalty has an impact on the behaviour of NPCs toward the character and also on the character's income and the calibre of adventures that are presented to them (i.e. if you have a low loyalty score you'll be stuck with the crappy or dangerous jobs).
The point of it all is to give characters a stake in the universal and social orders and to track it in a way that means something beyond "you lose your class functions because you just did an unlawful deed", which always felt a bit arbitrary to me. Law and Chaos exist on a cosmic scale. What's more significant in the world is where your loyalty lies.