Near-blind aggression and being good?

[Jon_Dahl]

How does extreme aggression and good alignment go together?

For instance: According to MM, giant eagles attack anyone who appears threatening. Actual threats and generally nothing substantial aren't needed, only the fact that someone appears to be a possible threat. No parlaying, they just go straight to combat. This kind of attitude easily leads to racist killings of other good-aligned creatures who "don't look right".

How do you feel about this?

[Lightlawbliss]

What you call good isn't necessarily what a giant bird calls good.

[Psyren]

They have Int 10 and can speak. Presumably, if they attack, they're going off more information than your facial expression or something. "Appear threatening" can refer to your actions, such as sticking your hand in their nest.

Also, "attack" is not "kill."

[Fyermind]

Now I want a Giant Eagle Justicar in my next campaign....

[Slipperychicken]

You are tasked to defend your homeland. Everything which has come to the gates so far has tried to destroy you. Some you thwarted, some tricked their way past you. Some knock down houses, a few are content to make off with some silverware or a child, while others will run amok and kill a half dozen of your neighbors before you can scramble to take them down. You still hear the screams at night. You see the scared, pain-wracked faces of the dead every time you close your eyes. They weren't at peace, and neither are you. The sobbing and the nightmares and the constant funerals made that clear. No more chances, no more risks. From now on, nothing gets past the gate.

That's how the eagles feel.

[Hand_of_Vecna]

Also the word "threat" is open to a lot of interpretation.

As Birds-Anything that isn't flying or climbing to their nest clearly isn't a personal threat.

As Large creatures- Small and Medium creatures probably aren't much of a threat unless they are caring for chicks.

As Intelligent creatures- They can override either or both of these instincts. They probably know that flying humanoids have disproportionate power, they may scout people going through their territory and judge them based on their actions, they could respond to large threats to their territory like clear cutting or threats to the world in general like evil rings.

Alternatively, multiple writers or incomplete thoughts. They're Lawful Good with 10 int so they can converse with Gandalf and they have flavor text for an animal because they're Giant Eagles.

[Jon_Dahl]

You are tasked to defend your homeland. Everything which has come to the gates so far has tried to destroy you. Some you thwarted, some tricked their way past you. Some knock down houses, a few are content to make off with some silverware or a child, while others will run amok and kill a half dozen of your neighbors before you can scramble to take them down. You still hear the screams at night. You see the scared, pain-wracked faces of the dead every time you close your eyes. They weren't at peace, and neither are you. The sobbing and the nightmares and the constant funerals made that clear. No more chances, no more risks. From now on, nothing gets past the gate.

That's how the eagles feel.

Every thread should have great posts like this one, thank you Slipperychicken for the mental image.

[Big Fau]

You are tasked to defend your homeland. Everything which has come to the gates so far has tried to destroy you. Some you thwarted, some tricked their way past you. Some knock down houses, a few are content to make off with some silverware or a child, while others will run amok and kill a half dozen of your neighbors before you can scramble to take them down. You still hear the screams at night. You see the scared, pain-wracked faces of the dead every time you close your eyes. They weren't at peace, and neither are you. The sobbing and the nightmares and the constant funerals made that clear. No more chances, no more risks. From now on, nothing gets past the gate.

That's how the eagles feel.

That's textbook Lawful Neutral...

[PersonMan]

It also doesn't make any sense in most settings. Unless your Giant Eagles are all driven to extremes by the loss of their family/friends/allies, the default bit of 'attack attack attack' doesn't work very well.

[Jon_Dahl]

They have Int 10 and can speak. Presumably, if they attack, they're going off more information than your facial expression or something. "Appear threatening" can refer to your actions, such as sticking your hand in their nest.

Also, "attack" is not "kill."

Yes, actions can appear threatening, but appearance alone can make someone appear threatening. It's fair to say that a creature whose standard alingment is evil always appears threatening, especially if they are known to steal eggs and one is walking in your neighborhood where normally no intelligent creature walks. There is nothing there except you and your eggs.

And I agree that attacking is not killing, but often it comes to that if the attacking escalates into a pitched battle. And after all, kobolds are ok food for your fledglings (small, soft bones).

[Nightgaun7]

Giant eagles are pimps. They don't take no back-chat.

[Slipperychicken]

That's textbook Lawful Neutral...

There are a few alignments which could fit that. It depends on how far he wants to go. If scaring everything out is sufficient, I could see that as Good. If the character needs to kill everything that comes close, that's more Neutral. If he goes out of his way to inflict needless suffering on others, then that's more likely Evil.

[Psyren]

Yes, actions can appear threatening, but appearance alone can make someone appear threatening.

Indeed it can, but there are some factors here that aren't clear:

- What exactly appears threatening to a Giant Eagle?
- If they do launch an attack, do they fight to the death in all cases? Are they incapable of realizing a mistake and pulling back? Do they use lethal damage exclusively? (Their intelligence suggests to me that the answer to all of these can easily be "no.")

When faced with an incongruous situation, I often start from "what could the designer have been intending by this?" or "how could this actually be reconciled?" rather than immediately assuming it's a typo or oversight.

And finally, note that they are "usually NG" which isn't all of them.