Good vs. Evil

A word about alignment.

If you ask five people about the difference between good and evil you might get seven different answers. With so many different beliefs and ways of life, there is no one consensus that everybody shares. When asked about the difference between good and evil, some responses from some different people might be...

• Sandro of Treefall, mother of two, elven farmer: That’s easy. Our Lady Chantrel teaches use what good and evil are in her holy scriptures. Love, kindness, forgiveness, belief... These are what makes for a good life. Follow her word and you will know.
  
• Lord Snallick, Baron of House Bering, drawven noble: A good man is one who protects his family and his house. Family, duty, honour, these are what matter most.
  
• Shecknar the Stealer of Cragmar Clan, goblin thief: Good? Evil? Why always smelly humans and elves call goblin evil? Always they take goblin hunting lands for their herds. Then they angry when we hunt them on goblins' land. We no evil? They all evil!
  
• Zolormore, Lord of the Undead, Drow necromancer: There is no good. No evil. Only power and the will to use it. Those that have power do what they will and those without power suffer what they must. This is the way of things.

As you can see, getting agreement on what exactly is good and evil would be a challenging task.

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Gameplay

Thinking Beyond Alignment

The traditional Dungeons & Dragons alignment system presents a very clear cut view of good and evil. Metallic dragons are by their very nature good, while chromatic dragons are by their very nature cruel and evil. However, it is very rare in the world to find someone who says that they are motivated by a devotion to evil. The greatest atrocities have been committed by people who claimed that they were doing the greatest good in the world.
In our game, we will take a more nuanced view of good and evil. When you read the Monster Manual, think of the alignments listed as being from the point of view of an “ordinary” human or elf. Most humans or elves would consider a Mind Flayer that enslaves people by mind wiping them and turning them into empty shells, unambiguously evil. Even a human who owns slaves herself would say so. But, a red dragon that protects a village as part of a deal with the village’s wizard, might be seen by the villagers as its savior and the dragon may come to see the villagers as amusing pets. Things can be complicated.

Character Creation

You are not required to choose ahead of time an alignment for your character and have that determine your characters’ actions. Instead, think of what your character believes and what motivates her. How has her life experiences and her personality shaped how she sees the world and the kind of choices that she makes? Let your character’s actions determine her alignment.

Hear No Evil, See No Evil

But, be careful. Lot’s of players are tempted to play an “evil” character. Remember that the most important rule of roleplaying is to make the game fun for everybody. Playing a cruel, greedy, or self interested character that is planning to stab the party in the back, in a way that is fun for everybody, is a very difficulty thing to do. This is a pro move, and it is only advised for very experienced players. If you wish to play such a character, consult with your DM beforehand.

Magic Effects

Finally, in game effects like Detect Evil/Good and Protection from Evil/Good, define good and evil from the caster’s point of view. The DM will play this in a way that makes the game interesting and align’s with the caster ‘s view of the world. For example, imagine two Priestesses of Chantrel cast Detect Evil. One believes that Chantrel teaches that everyone (even nonbelievers) deserve love and compassion and the other believes that any means are justified in spreading Chantrel’s holy word and that nonbelievers are to be purged. Both would see the other as emanating waves of evil, even though both worship the same goddess.