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QuantumSteve
2010-07-22, 07:03 PM
A particular Thieves' Guild has an expansive set of rules (or laws, if you will) governing the expected behavior of its members. Covering everything from where and how to apply their trade, to the settling of disputes between members. The penalties for breaking these laws are quite stiff, and the laws are generally followed by nearly all members.

Question: Would the members of this guild (for the most part) be considered Lawful Evil despite the fact that every member routinely breaks the laws of the city in which they reside and work?
Kaiyanwang
2010-07-22, 07:05 PM
You just described Mafia that in my book, is LE.

So yeah, definitively.
Snake-Aes
2010-07-22, 07:06 PM
"Lawful" doesn't mean "obeys laws", that is just a natural consequence. (Frankly, "Orderly" is a better word for the alignment)

Lawful implies an empathy with order, and orderly behavior. If the thieves obey the guild's rules through oppression, they aren't necessarily lawful. If they obey "because it's the rules of the place I am part of", then they're more likely to be lawful.
ScionoftheVoid
2010-07-22, 07:09 PM
A particular Thieves' Guild has an expansive set of rules (or laws, if you will) governing the expected behavior of its members. Covering everything from where and how to apply their trade, to the settling of disputes between members. The penalties for breaking these laws are quite stiff, and the laws are generally followed by nearly all members.

Question: Would the members of this guild (for the most part) be considered Lawful Evil despite the fact that every member routinely breaks the laws of the city in which they reside and work?

Lawful characters don't need to follow the laws of wherever they happen to be. You don't change in alignment by moving town, so the laws where you are should have minimal, if any, effect on your alignment.

From the SRD:
Lawful characters tell the truth, keep their word, respect authority, honor tradition, and judge those who fall short of their duties.

This Guild's members seem to "respect authority, honor tradition and judge those who fall short of their duties", so they would generally be more Lawful than any other alignment on that scale.

So in answer to your question: yes, they probably would.