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View Full Version : Everquest Alignment Idea: New AL Axis



CowardlyPaladin
2014-04-04, 11:14 AM
I've always been a fan of the Alignment System, and I like playing around with one how mind change it. Recently I was reading about Everquest which has their own "Unique" version of Alignment. Instead of Lawful Good and Chaotic Neutral, you have Orderly Good and Discordantly Neutral.
http://www.erollisimarr.com/forum/showthread.php?t=23960

So obviously this is just a palette swap of the original alignment system, but I was wondering...could you somehow add this to the system? The extra axis of Order and Discord? I have no idea how it would work, but if anybody has an ideas, this is a great chance to play around with the AL system.

Domriso
2014-04-04, 06:27 PM
The first question, of course, would be what Order and Discord represent. It would seem that Order follows pretty close to Law, and Discord to Chaos, so I'm not entirely sure how you would easily separate the two.

CowardlyPaladin
2014-04-04, 09:55 PM
The first question, of course, would be what Order and Discord represent. It would seem that Order follows pretty close to Law, and Discord to Chaos, so I'm not entirely sure how you would easily separate the two.

The way I always read it, Law and Chaos are far more personal than Order and Dischord. Law and Chaos to me always seems like a mind set, Law is about setting personal limitations to yourself and saying "This is the way I am going to be, and how I am going to approach the world" while Chaos is saying "I don't want to limit myself". Its always been about Freedom vs. a Code. Omar from The Wire is a criminal, homeless, robs drug dealers for money, lives by his shot gun, but he has a code on what he does and does not do. For example, he doesn't swear, and it is an almost universal rule that he never swears. This doesn't make him good, but this is a consistant choice he made which he sticks by and always follows it. He has deprived himself of something, swearing, not for any pratical purpose, but instead just because he feels it isn't right. That isn't a good evil thing again, its just a code he sticks to (among other things). I feel lawful is an internal choice you make of how you live your life, while chaotic is an internal choice on not being limited. From OOTS, Belkar isn't just CN (just kidding) because he doesn't follow the rules and breaks the laws, so does Roy in many ways. He is Chaotic because he doesn't see life as something to impose his will upon, but instead as something to react too. Xykon, Belkar, and Haley are reactionary, if life throws something at them, they will shift in response, providing it fits in their moral framework. Redcloak, Tarkin Durkon, and Roy are Proactive, have an interal code that they are forcing unto the world, at least to a degree

I think the difference could be Order and Dischord could instead be more about how you react to society rather than external world. If Good and Evil are your ethics, Law and Chaos are your mannerisms, Order and Discord could be your methods. Roy does not just have a personal code, he also has a very methotical manner about going about it. He loves lists, planning, and consistancy, same with Redcloak. Durkon does not however, he seems fairly chill, he has his own personal code but never struck me as organized. In contrast, Dischord could be about how much personal freedom your grant yourself. Elan is Chaotic, he sees the world as something that he will react too and shifts in reaction to it, however more importantly, he never fee....


Ok, I lost myself, let me try again

What are the 5 AL boiled down too.

Good- The idea that other people deserve a certain level of treatment

Evil- The idea that certain people have lost the right to said level of treatment for what ever reason.

Law- you will impose your will upon the world

Chaos- The idea that you will react and alter yoruself in resposne to the world

Neutral- None of hte above


so what I am thinking is that

Order- A consistant patten in how your act/personal code you live by

Discord- A lack of predicitablity in how your live yoruself.

CowardlyPaladin
2014-04-05, 12:58 AM
ugg i'm being really hard to understand, sorry I have been very sick. This idea has been with me for weeks now and I finally post it when I am too sick to speak.

Basically one of hte reasons I think that Law and Chaos don't get the love of good and evil is that law and chaos are a little hard to define.

Law and Chaos

A) Your relationship to society at large

B) The manner in which your live your life

C) The methods used to enforced your moral views


I think in the new system Law and Chaos would be B, with Order and Discord being A and C

Mith
2014-04-06, 10:24 AM
And with this alignment, I assume this would be another tag for the character, but not one that can be fundamentally effected (ex. Holy Word against Evil characters, Protection from Law works aginst Lawful people, etc.)

CowardlyPaladin
2014-04-06, 11:31 PM
And with this alignment, I assume this would be another tag for the character, but not one that can be fundamentally effected (ex. Holy Word against Evil characters, Protection from Law works aginst Lawful people, etc.)

Well right now mostly just a personality thing, though I could see this being an interesting alternative mechanical bit.