Alignment Drift Mechanic

[bycrom]

This was nicked from WEG StarWars D6 system while intraplanar adventuring, by Crom! EDIT : This is a thought experiment on having Alignment have more player control and consideration. Their actions will have consequences!

Alignment - PC's start out first level as Lawful.

If during an adventure the PC pulls a DickMove (tm), he gains a Shadow point. Call the points whatever fits your campaign for flavor (Shadow Points, in middle-earth for example).

After earning his first point, his alignment becomes Neutral. The player earns another point during any adventure where he pulls a DickMove.

After the adventure, the players rolls 1d6. If he rolls under his DickMove points, the character has become Chaotic. The character is retired and becomes an NPC under the ownership of the DM. Perhaps he has taken up banditry, piracy, become a cultist anti-cleric, or sworn fealty to the BBEG of Mordor. If he succeeds, his alignment stays neutral. As an effect, no roll is needed for the first point, it's a freebie.

Paladins: if using Greyhawk supplement paladins, the Fighter must remain Lawful until reaching 9th level. At that point he donates all worldly goods (excepting the items listed in Greyhawk)to the Church of Law and is inducted as their champion. This would make them a rarity, the 17 Cha requirement can be dropped as unnecessary.

Clerics: What happens if he becomes Neutral? The Lords of Law are displeased, no spell levels granted above 2nd level, Turns Undead as two levels lower. Alternatively, may abandon the One True Church and take up the Old Ways, becoming a druid.

Removing DickMove poitns: Unsure if this should be possible once 'innocence lost'? Alternatively, redemption through confession can be found at the Church of Law but requires a Dispel Evil (?). Of course, they will demand a quest as payment!

Thoughts/Comments?

[tetramorph]

That is really hilarious -- and fun. I like it.

I think I would allow more "DP" before forced neutrality. Perhaps the old "three strikes your out" move? And, if so, then perhaps rolling 2d6 would be more apropos.

Anyway, thanks!

[bycrom]

Sept 29, 2015 8:59:57 GMT -6 tetramorph said:

That is really hilarious -- and fun. I like it.

I think I would allow more "DP" before forced neutrality. Perhaps the old "three strikes your out" move? And, if so, then perhaps rolling 2d6 would be more apropos.

Anyway, thanks!

Glad you like Tetra! I like random over static points, as the player will have to consider whether his newest DickMove will cost him the character or not. As you reap, so shall ye sow but the hour of Doom can't be predicted! For gonzo factor have Victor appear when it does

[scottenkainen]

I admire your worldview that Lawful is default!

~Scott "-enkainen" Casper

[Deleted]

I had a discussion about a similar thing WRT the new Star Wars RPG. The basic outcome wasn't to simply move the PC to NPC status, but rather that as the player builds up these Shadow Points, it becomes more and more likely that he will be compelled (i.e. forced by the DM) to perform some sort of evil act.

So, using your system, roll the d6 when the PC is confronted with a difficult choice. Say he has captured a prisoner who refuses to talk. A failed roll could result in the PC murdering the prisoner. Likewise, if the PC finds some sort of valuable object, a failed roll has him stealing it.

This turns Evil into an addiction. The player might try and reform or make sure that he avoids temptation like putting away his weapons when dealing with prisoners or not being alone with any treasure.

[bycrom]

Sept 29, 2015 10:51:38 GMT -6 scottenkainen said:

I admire your worldview that Lawful is default!

~Scott "-enkainen" Casper

No comment, by Crom! I think it may be more Poul Anderson's influence (3Hearts3Lions, Broken Sword)regarding Man and civilization than my own worldview, haha!

EDIT: Though you may be correct after all, considering this guy was my first DM

originaleditionfantasy.blogspot.ca/2015/09/happy-friday.html

[bycrom]

Sept 29, 2015 10:58:42 GMT -6 @hedgehobbit said:

I had a discussion about a similar thing WRT the new Star Wars RPG. The basic outcome wasn't to simply move the PC to NPC status, but rather that as the player builds up these Shadow Points, it becomes more and more likely that he will be compelled (i.e. forced by the DM) to perform some sort of evil act.

So, using your system, roll the d6 when the PC is confronted with a difficult choice. Say he has captured a prisoner who refuses to talk. A failed roll could result in the PC murdering the prisoner. Likewise, if the PC finds some sort of valuable object, a failed roll has him stealing it.

This turns Evil into an addiction. The player might try and reform or make sure that he avoids temptation like putting away his weapons when dealing with prisoners or not being alone with any treasure.

Thanks, hedghehobbit! It looks like a chance for more roleplaying that way, always a good thing! What happens when the character reaches a score of 6 or more? Would he use another d6 roll to determine if his attempt to avoid temptation reduces the points?

[Deleted]

Sept 30, 2015 7:07:02 GMT -6 bycrom said:

Thanks, hedghehobbit! It looks like a chance for more roleplaying that way, always a good thing! What happens when the character reaches a score of 6 or more? Would he use another d6 roll to determine if his attempt to avoid temptation reduces the points?

If it were me, I'd use a die roll. So after the session, of the player did a "bad thing", you'd roll a d6 and if your roll exceeded the PC's Shadow Points, he'd gain another one. So your Shadow Point value will grow more slowly.

I figure that before a character got a Shadow of 6, he'd be killed, kicked out, or in prison.

You might need some sort of mechanic to reduce your Shadow Point (otherwise, the player is just plain evil which defeats the purpose of tracking numbers). So, if the player spends a session being really nice, you'd make a d6 roll and reduce his Shadow Point by 1 if you roll less than or equal to his current total. Magic spells might grant a roll as well.

With these die rolls added, gaining the first Shadow Point is much easier than losing it.

[Stormcrow]

Easier to just use the "alignment adders" in the Judges Guild Ready Ref Sheets and in some modules. They're based on the article by Gygax in The Strategic Review #1, "The Meaning of Law and Chaos in Dungeons & Dragons." Basically, each grade of Law/Chaos and Good/Evil is labeled descriptively, and you just pick the combination of the two that best describes the overall behavior of the character. The Judges Guild system moves you one or two steps for any given act, but I think it's easier to simply evaluate a character at the end of every session.

For instance, suppose your paladin is "ruled" (which I take to mean being controlled by the rules; and only one step away from actually BEING perfectly ordered) and "beneficial" (which means he always does good to those around him, but is not quite completely pure). After an adventure in which your paladin decided to break a bunch of laws to achieve the greater good, the judge may deem him no longer quite living according to those strict rules, but he's still very "methodical" in following those rules, carefully judging whether the need to break the rules was great enough. "Methodical" is still under Law, so he hasn't changed alignment, but he has drifted slightly toward Chaos.

This is the alignment graph that Gygax describes in the Players Handbook, for which he gives no useful calibration. Break each axis into twenty lines, label each with one of the descriptors from the Ready Ref Sheets or The Strategic Review (you'll have to make up two extras for Good/Evil to make twenty), and just reevaluate the character's behavior once in a while to see if he's drifted.

The grades are:

LAW
------
Ordered
Ruled
Predictable
Uniform
Methodical
Regular
Righteous
Principled
Proper
Reliable
Unruly
Turmoiled
Unrestrained
Random
Irregular
Unmethodical
Unpredictable
Disordered
Lawless
Anarchistic
------
CHAOS

GOOD
------
Pure
Beneficial
Helpful
Sincere
Honest
Kind
Friendly
Useful
Harmless
Innocent
Unfit
Surly
Mischievous
Unpleasant
Dishonest
Oppressive
Bad
Injurious
Wicked
Corrupt
------
EVIL