Exploiting Culture and Lycanthropy

[dspeyer]

I noticed something interesting reading the Lycanthrope entry in the SRD. Lycanthropes have "always" alignments, and newly infected weres "must make a Will save each time they change to the animal form (DC 15 + number of times they have been in animal form) or permanently assume the alignment of the animal form in all shapes". But which animals produce which alignments "is a reflection of how these animals are perceived, not any innate quality of the animal itself".

Now suppose you're a king. You want a bodyguard that won't betray you (history suggests this is difficult).

First, you hire a bunch of 1st level bards. This should be pretty cheap. You tell them to sing songs and tell stories about wolves. Specifically how wolves are absolutely loyal, trustworthy and honorable. How the pack is all. Get the public excited to hear the next episode of serial tales of wolf heroes. Make sure to include plenty for the children. Soon your entire country perceives wolves as Lawful Neutral.

Now hire some adventurers to bring you a live werewolf. Make it (with magic if necessary) bite the captain of your guard. Have him transform back and forth a bunch. He is now permanently and reliably lawful neutral. Have him swear to protect you. He will now fulfill that promise.

Do the same with the rest of your personal guard, and with any other positions that require it.

The added power for these people is just a handy bonus.

You could do this for other alignments too, but rulers are most likely to want LN, and rulers are in the best position to saturate the media.

Does this seem like a thing all D&D kings should do?

[Uncle Pine]

Or you could be a good king and just turn all your guards into werebears (LG). For Great Goodness.

[5ColouredWalker]

How people perceive them outside your kingdom probably counts... A very planescapy plan though, I love it.

[tropical_punch]

Just because they're LN and they swore an oath doesn't mean they'll be unthinkingly loyal though.

In addition, I don't think that having any particular alignment actually forces you to act in accordance with that alignment - it'll change based on what you do, hence this theoretical LN werewolf could just act chaotically, eventually become TN, then fail their save, become LN, continue being chaotic, become TN, etc.

[Shoat]

It's not as simple as that I'm afraid, though it is a funny idea (I suggest you repurpose it, a castle filled with lycanthrope guards and a paranoid and ethics-less king might make an interesting setting).

They're not meant to actually be bound to the in-game world's folklore (unless your DM decides otherwise), but are instead arbitrary assignments based on real-world folklore (which your DM can, and should, change where he sees fit).


There is an infinite amount of better and more reliable ways to produce loyal bodyguards (especially if you're willing to stoop as low as brainwashing your populace with your personal propaganda and then forcing the curse of lycanthropy upon all of your guard servants to brainwash them), so you're better off choosing some less-evil ways (such as being a competent king).

[Uncle Pine]

There is an infinite amount of better and more reliable ways to produce loyal bodyguards (especially if you're willing to stoop as low as brainwashing your populace with your personal propaganda and then forcing the curse of lycanthropy upon all of your guard servants to brainwash them), so you're better off choosing some less-evil ways (such as being a competent king).

Note that inflicting lycanthropy isn't actually defined as an Evil action per se. If anything, turning Evil people (or say, giants) into Lawful Good werebears en masse or something like that is probably an exalted action.

[sleepyphoenixx]

Just because they're LN and they swore an oath doesn't mean they'll be unthinkingly loyal though.

In addition, I don't think that having any particular alignment actually forces you to act in accordance with that alignment - it'll change based on what you do, hence this theoretical LN werewolf could just act chaotically, eventually become TN, then fail their save, become LN, continue being chaotic, become TN, etc.
You're mixing up metagame concerns with ingame alignment.

If you play your character in a way that doesn't fit the alignment you wrote on your sheet that alignment can change, but NPCs generally act according to their alignment.
A significant event can shake up someones worldview and thus change his alignment, but it takes something deeply personal to affect someone like that - like contracting lycanthropy.

I find it believable (and even likely) that the instincts and thought patterns of the animal influence someones way of thinking if they get infected, which is reflected by a change in alignment.
Since the curse itself is supernatural being influenced by the public perception of the animal isn't that farfetched either - it's magic, not just biology.


There is an infinite amount of better and more reliable ways to produce loyal bodyguards (especially if you're willing to stoop as low as brainwashing your populace with your personal propaganda and then forcing the curse of lycanthropy upon all of your guard servants to brainwash them), so you're better off choosing some less-evil ways (such as being a competent king).

Propaganda is older than dirt, and every organized government has used it in one way or another. Managing public opinion is a basic fact of governance. It's certainly not evil.
And "forcing the curse of lycanthropy" is entirely based on your (negative) perception. It could just as well be "rewarding your most loyal elite with the gift of lycanthropy", with both your guards and the general populace regarding it as a tremendous honor to join the royal Order of the Wolf (or whatever you name it).

[Gavinfoxx]

You might wanna read this:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Z9NJIs751Af3i0IEIJwCkIp9H9YFiZYZ7u-wmYVaheI/edit