I Need Advice On How To Roleplay A Good Character The Right Way

[Bartmanhomer]

Hey everyone. It has been a while. I'm thinking of playing one of the three good characters that come to my mind:

Character #1: A Lawful Good Male Human Paladin

Character #2: A Neutral Good Female Human Healer

Character #3: A Chaotic Good Female Human Bard

I know it is easier said than done but the good characters have a very bad reputation (especially the paladin) to roleplay horribly. So I just need some advice on how to roleplay a good character the right way without messing it up. Any advice anyone? 🤔🙂😈👍🏿💪🏿

[Kurald Galain]

A good place to start is to find a character in fiction that responds to a moral dilemma, and act like that. For instance, https://i.stack.imgur.com/ziT4b.gif

[theNater]

Indeed, taking inspiration from other characters can be really handy. Kurald Galain mentions Hinjo, but just from OotS you've also got Roy, Durkon, Haley, and Elan. The vast majority of superheroes also make good examples, as do modern tellings of fantasy, folklore, and myths(Aragorn, Robin Hood, King Arthur's knights, etc.)

The pitfall that gives Good characters a bad reputation is when they are played inflexibly. Sometimes a player will try to force the rest of the party into also playing their characters as Good, arguing that a Good character wouldn't spend time with people who do non-Good things. Paladins have this reputation most severely because rules in older editions indicated they could lose their paladin powers based on what other party members did.

So the key to avoiding that is to be flexible. One of your best friends here is the phrase "I don't approve, but I don't have a better idea". It's basically the maneuver Roy does here (https://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0840.html). It lets your character still affirm their own alignment without wrecking the rest of the party's plans. And if you feel like you're in that mode too much, you can ask the DM for a moral choice that only affects your character, or a situation that lets your party be unambiguous good guys for a while.

[Bartmanhomer]

Indeed, taking inspiration from other characters can be really handy. Kurald Galain mentions Hinjo, but just from OotS you've also got Roy, Durkon, Haley, and Elan. The vast majority of superheroes also make good examples, as do modern tellings of fantasy, folklore, and myths(Aragorn, Robin Hood, King Arthur's knights, etc.)

The pitfall that gives Good characters a bad reputation is when they are played inflexibly. Sometimes a player will try to force the rest of the party into also playing their characters as Good, arguing that a Good character wouldn't spend time with people who do non-Good things. Paladins have this reputation most severely because rules in older editions indicated they could lose their paladin powers based on what other party members did.

So the key to avoiding that is to be flexible. One of your best friends here is the phrase "I don't approve, but I don't have a better idea". It's basically the maneuver Roy does here (https://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0840.html). It lets your character still affirm their own alignment without wrecking the rest of the party's plans. And if you feel like you're in that mode too much, you can ask the DM for a moral choice that only affects your character, or a situation that lets your party be unambiguous good guys for a while.
Thank you for the advice. Also, another reason to add here is that paladins are known to act lawfully stupid. That is another reason why paladins get a bad reputation.

[Jay R]

The biggest mistake people make playing a paladin is assuming a paladin requires the rest of the party to follow her code. She should assume that, as a paladin, she is of course held to a higher standard than others. That is the same thing as assuming that the others are not held to as high a standard as she is.

Play the paladin as somebody who tries to be as good as she can, but knows other people are not held to the same standard. She will still step in to stop straightforwardly evil actions, like torture and slaying helpless prisoners without a trial*, but she is not required to be insulting and tyrannical to the rest of the party. Patience and understanding are included in the virtues a paladin should hold to.


*Note the crucial exception. If the party captures murderers or raiders, the paladin won't allow them to be slain on a whim. But if their guilt is absolutely known, then holding a trial and executing them might be acceptable, depending on the local laws. Play her as Lawful Good, not Lawful Dumb.

[pabelfly]

Good characters can have flaws that you can play up, whether it's arrogance, naivety, ruthlessness, stupidity, mischeviousness, and so forth. You can make jokes about your character too. Like, the Paladin character is extremely boring and does random random things like not have spices or butter because they're too exciting. Or he glosses over the story where he fought a Dragon and instead spends time talking about a cloud he saw that looked like a dog.

The other thing to do is know your table and what sort of behaviour they accept, and read the room and adjust as required. If you see that people aren't enjoying your behaviour, or laughing about things you've done that you think are funny, you might need to drop it and ease back a bit. If you find that difficult, make your behaviours non-disruptuve, so shy away from pranks and don't interrupt other characters when they do what they were built around.

[Batcathat]

Good characters can have flaws that you can play up, whether it's arrogance, naivety, ruthlessness, stupidity, mischeviousness, and so forth. You can make jokes about your character too. Like, the Paladin character is extremely boring and does random random things like not have spices or butter because they're too exciting. Or he glosses over the story where he fought a Dragon and instead spends time talking about a cloud he saw that looked like a dog.

Yeah, I think this is key. Part of the reason good characters are sometimes stereotyped as boring is that some of them seem to have "Good and Heroic" as their sole personality traits, which obviously can get old pretty fast.

[Gullintanni]

Also worth keeping in mind is that nothing about being "Good" requires you to be "Nice". Good characters, especially in the context of life or death stakes, can be ruthless, brutal, devious and deceptive. What they're not is malicious. In the face of high stakes, a good character does not let propriety diminish their effectiveness.

That means that a paladin can be violent, and intimidating, but must be judicious and never cruel. Their actions should always protect and uphold peace and good order, but they need not let themselves be victimized by villains who would manipulate their code against them. And as already pointed out above, the party need not hold themselves to the lofty standards of the paladin's code.

Geralt of Rivia is Neutral Good. A violent, brutish mercenary who is never indifferent to the suffering of those around him.

[Bartmanhomer]

Also worth keeping in mind is that nothing about being "Good" requires you to be "Nice". Good characters, especially in the context of life or death stakes, can be ruthless, brutal, devious, and deceptive. What they're not is malicious. In the face of high stakes, a good character does not let propriety diminish its effectiveness.

That means that a paladin can be violent, and intimidating, but must be judicious and never cruel. Their actions should always protect and uphold peace and good order, but they need not let themselves be victimized by villains who would manipulate their code against them. And as already pointed out above, the party need not hold themselves to the lofty standards of the paladin's code.

Geralt of Rivia is Neutral Good. A violent, brutish mercenary who is never indifferent to the suffering of those around him.

That's true as well about the good but not nice rule. :smile:

[King of Nowhere]

The pitfall that gives Good characters a bad reputation is when they are played inflexibly.

i wasn't aware that good characters had bad reputations. i figured evil characters should have, since they go around murderhoboing and think everyone else should be ok with it as long as it doesn't touch them personally. "i killed three people during a bar brawl, and the paladin is mad at me. the paladin is such a problem!"

yes, yes, i am aware that good characters can be roleplayed badly, but then every character can be roleplayed badly and make problems for the party. i hear it a lot more often for evil characters

[Eldonauran]

I find that most issues with roleplaying 'good' characters originate from a misunderstanding of what differentiates Good from Neutrality on that Good/Evil spectrum. So many people default to thinking they are Good and use that as a measure of their own characters in the game, rather than properly slotting themselves in the Neutral realm where most of us actually are, and seeing that Good is more of an ideal we strive towards and must actively sacrifice our own wants and desires to attain. Also, remembering that alignment is not a straightjacket and you can be of a particular alignment with a few odd twists that fall outside of it.

Character #1: A Lawful Good Male Human Paladin: This character cannot commit an Evil act, and must not engage in a lot of chaotic actions that fly in the face of their Lawful alignment, or they risk losing their powers. An interesting Paladin to play is one that is constantly fighting against their own nature, feeling certain ways that fly in the face of his stated beliefs, and yet recognizes that his beliefs are true (and are backed up by the powers he receives). Does that murderer deserve swift and painful death for this actions? Well, yes, he does. And you are really going to enjoy giving it to him, except ... you shouldn't FEEL glee and anticipation in delivering the justice he is owed. You have to temper yourself, put yourself in the position of the murderer and still treat them like a sentient being despite them having proven themselves a monster. You must show compassion and empathy even when seething with rage and demanding justice. It will rip and tear at you, but Good requires that sacrifice of your own nature to bring about its purposes. And you grow ever stronger for doing it. Life is duty and through it, fulfillment.

Character #2: A Neutral Good Female Human Healer: This character is not tethered to Law nor Chaos (or Order/Chaos) but values the aspects of both when they are needed. They recognize that individual freedoms as needed for the greatest Good to prosper but knows that rugged discipline will stifle the creativity and expression of those less bound by structure. An interesting Healer to play is one that does not simply heal someone in the body, but also in the soul and mind. They can be insightful and caring, withholding comfort when needed to allow others to grow through struggle and some pain, but always there to make sure they pull through and grow through it all. An interesting quirk would be to withhold full healing to those that take unnecessary risks (putting themselves and others at risk) until they have learned their lesson, and properly apologized for their careless deeds. Life is growth, and through it, peace.

Character #3: A Chaotic Good Female Human Bard: And this one, well... Rules!? Rules are for the bad guys! No real good person needs rules to govern their behavior, because they already know how to act, and that guides their behavior in every possible situation. And if there is one that doesn't quite fit well, no matter, our good nature will pull us through with the least possible damage! Chaotic Good characters are idealists with a utopia in mind, eagerly rushing for it on the horizon and leaping over the chasms and pitfalls that await them along the way, giving them very little mind. These characters derive inspiration from within themselves, and from within others that they meet through the interplay of shared experiences. Life is excitement and the next great thing!

That's just my take on these particular characters. Hope that helps.

[Bartmanhomer]

I find that most issues with roleplaying 'good' characters originate from a misunderstanding of what differentiates Good from Neutrality on that Good/Evil spectrum. So many people default to thinking they are Good and use that as a measure of their own characters in the game, rather than properly slotting themselves in the Neutral realm where most of us actually are, and seeing that Good is more of an ideal we strive towards and must actively sacrifice our own wants and desires to attain. Also, remembering that alignment is not a straightjacket and you can be of a particular alignment with a few odd twists that fall outside of it.

Character #1: A Lawful Good Male Human Paladin: This character cannot commit an Evil act, and must not engage in a lot of chaotic actions that fly in the face of their Lawful alignment, or they risk losing their powers. An interesting Paladin to play is one that is constantly fighting against their own nature, feeling certain ways that fly in the face of his stated beliefs, and yet recognizes that his beliefs are true (and are backed up by the powers he receives). Does that murderer deserve swift and painful death for this actions? Well, yes, he does. And you are really going to enjoy giving it to him, except ... you shouldn't FEEL glee and anticipation in delivering the justice he is owed. You have to temper yourself, put yourself in the position of the murderer and still treat them like a sentient being despite them having proven themselves a monster. You must show compassion and empathy even when seething with rage and demanding justice. It will rip and tear at you, but Good requires that sacrifice of your own nature to bring about its purposes. And you grow ever stronger for doing it. Life is duty and through it, fulfillment.

Character #2: A Neutral Good Female Human Healer: This character is not tethered to Law nor Chaos (or Order/Chaos) but values the aspects of both when they are needed. They recognize that individual freedoms as needed for the greatest Good to prosper but knows that rugged discipline will stifle the creativity and expression of those less bound by structure. An interesting Healer to play is one that does not simply heal someone in the body, but also in the soul and mind. They can be insightful and caring, withholding comfort when needed to allow others to grow through struggle and some pain, but always there to make sure they pull through and grow through it all. An interesting quirk would be to withhold full healing to those that take unnecessary risks (putting themselves and others at risk) until they have learned their lesson, and properly apologized for their careless deeds. Life is growth, and through it, peace.

Character #3: A Chaotic Good Female Human Bard: And this one, well... Rules!? Rules are for the bad guys! No real good person needs rules to govern their behavior, because they already know how to act, and that guides their behavior in every possible situation. And if there is one that doesn't quite fit well, no matter, our good nature will pull us through with the least possible damage! Chaotic Good characters are idealists with a utopia in mind, eagerly rushing for it on the horizon and leaping over the chasms and pitfalls that await them along the way, giving them very little mind. These characters derive inspiration from within themselves, and from within others that they meet through the interplay of shared experiences. Life is excitement and the next great thing!

That's just my take on these particular characters. Hope that helps.
Thank you. That helps a lot. :biggrin:

[Elkad]

Lawful Dumb Paladin is a trope, but I've never actually played with a paladin who played like that.

It's fun when someone at the table is playing a paladin of something that just doesn't fit. Like a fertility goddess.
It was his sacred duty to help women everywhere get pregnant. This was way back in 1st edition, so no book of erotica stuff, but he was getting more action than a bard.

Or when the paladin of a justice god and the paladin of a mercy god are arguing about what to do with the baby monsters. Sword or orphanage? (and if it's baby trolls, the "sword" has to be a bonfire - not exactly humane)
That one came to blows.

Point is, you can be "good" and still have conflict, even within the all-good party. And "good" doesn't mean everyone follows the same code, you can each have different ones.

[KillianHawkeye]

It's true, people of the same alignment don't always get along. They often have differences of opinion in how their goals should be met, or what their goals even are! This is not a flaw, alignments are SUPPOSED to be broad! It's human nature to have different ideas.

[vasilidor]

Make sure you ask your DM how evil monsters would work.
Are the goblins like in Goblin slayer and the Daleks like in Doctor Who?
If so you can generally go full ham sword swinging on sight.
Or are they evil due to circumstance? Like over competition for resources needed for survival?
In those games mercy and a greater level of thought need to be in place.
Of course it is possible to have a game with a mix of both. Like the created minions of an evil god being always evil due to how the god made them with other races being able to choose.