A Crap Guide to D&D [5th Edition] – Alignment
A Crap Guide to D&D [5th Edition] – Alignment
I personally identify as alignment fluid
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my real thoughts on using alignment: don’t
just play your character to whatever their personality is and don’t worry about alignment!
@Logan Offley the only person who has to agree is the DM. Do we as individuals get to decide everything about the laws we follow, nope. And in D&D the DM is the Judge, Jury, and occasionally, Executioner.
I love alignments and use them as rough guidelines in all RPGs of how I plan on playing my characters. In a Pokemon RPG I was playing I was chaotic neutral, cause I didn’t go out of my way to hurt anyone, but if theft, blackmail, manipulation, or threats could get me what I wanted, I didn’t hesitate to use them. Then one session I through the bad guy out the window cause it was pretty obvious to me that killing him would end a lot of problems quickly. The DM didn’t like that and said the cops were arriving and I didn’t go to jail but I was kicked out of the official party for turning evil. After session we talked and basically he was like actively killing someone without remorse forced his hand, and I can see that. I was told my mistake and my character will have to play nice to undo it. If the DM is fair and you trust them, there doesn’t need to be a deep debate and alignments can still play a good role in the story.
In the our game the DM made up a roll for anytime I met a new person to see if they could sense the darkness, it was hilarious trying to help a little kid get his wallet back and him just stating that he could sense a dark presence. Later in the game the DM rewarded me, I was chosen by Darkrai (it was a Pokemon RPG and we all teamed up with a legendary near the end, I hoped I’d get to meet Darkrai, but actually battling with them, I am a happy coordinator/mystic)
@DragonSlayer Keegan check “protection from evil and good” the spell does not refer to alignment. Use that as reference.
@Jessica Raven I would not say my guy had good or bad experiences, he just grew up a normal full orc. And after a life changing year, decided to do something different…he wanted to give orcs a bigger choice in who they were XD.
This did lead to some arkward moment as he is brutally honest. Such as admitting he has tasted what everyone in the party was like roasted, and admitting honeyed gnomes used to be his favorite dish. He also didn’t have a traditional knight upbringing, so orcish mannerisms XD. Despite his past he choose to become a better person, being a pladin was part of that choice.
I’m always Chaotic Neutral, not because I want to be a prick, it’s the only alignment name I can remember when I make characters
@ZeRedSpy This is actually a valid point that myself (not liking alignment and not using it most of the times) came across so I’m sharing my toughts on the whole:
1)you REALLY need alignment managing only if you have a paladin or a cleric in the group. Otherwise you can ignore it
2)What is good by your standards might not be good for mine, If you’re a traveled guy/girl/apache elicopter, just think about the small differences in what various culture consider polite or rude in everyday life
3)If alignment is a source of conflict, the problem is not the alignment.
The list would be longer and more convoluted but this is the very basic concept and I didn’t wantet to write an essay on YT, feel free to ask/discuss
I love how the little Barbarian Girl is Neutral Evil.
The fact that Jocat has to explain that it’s a joke despite having a LITERAL DISCLAIMER IN EVERY VIDEO upsets me.
The valid points in the video may confuse people.
It upsets you? You’re such a lawful neutral.
People don’t read or have a sense of humor these days 😂
AND it’s on top of the fact that the series is titled “a CRAP guide…” which you’d think would be enough to tell people “hey this isn’t serious in the least.”
@Morgan Kortlander Our world is just a big flaming dumpster fire these days man.
Twitter was aflame earlier about RDJ in Tropic Thunder because they didn’t see the movie and didn’t know why he had on black face, assuming he was doing a racist bit.
People just WANT to be offended. They crave it, seek it out, thirst for it. The less real offense in the world, the more people want to make up their own problems to justify feeling angry all the time.
Gasp, Jocat is telling us that a video series known as “crap guides” aren’t meant to be taken seriously? Oh my god, next thing you’ll tell me he’s not a buff light skinned wiggler headed herculoid!
P.S. one rule that should be for all alignments is don’t use them as an excuse to be “that guy”. We all aren’t gonna think you’re cool if your paladin kills the warlock and rogue because they are evil and you just smite them because your lawful good daddies told you to. We’re just gonna ask you to leave.
Last time my character did stuff because “my daddy” told me too I was a warlock and that’s how I get spells. Also I was a tiefling and my characters patron was his daddy and it made things super awkward because the DM made him a total boomer. Such as demanding why I need more spells when he gave me a spell just last week
@Job Hunter *clap* *clap* *clap* *clap* *clap*
I love this. I spend most of my time as a DM and honestly, i don’t feel all that confident in my story structure skillset. So if I drop a hint that sends the party into a back and forth or tease the rogue with an opportunity to do something that may not set right with the fighter or the paladin or even a cleric, I feel like I hage to encourage infighting. Not in the burn it all to the ground and start over sense, but at the very least enough to embrace the idea that these characters aren’t just in some imagination simulation with the goal of reaching the end of the predetermined story because my greatest secret is they make it up. I build around them! Whatever they give me, I rearrange on a new plate and serve back to them.
That’s how I see DMing. Every gets a turn with the spoon to stir the pot. We all have access to the ingredients and we all want to taste this gumbo, but the only rule is dont stop cooking and when people choose to stay vanilla – not to say they shouldn’t try to amicably resolve a conflict, but to outright choose not to react at all for the sake of the party – is just something I really think is a disservice to players.
In a one shot, it’s one thing, but if you’re in a spanning campaign, these characters need depth and to be a boring people-pleaser without your own contributions be they positive or negative isn’t an honest or legitimate experience.
It’s just as bad as taking Chaotic Neutral to mean “I’m so wild and random, it’s crazy :P”.
I know I took the long way to say that, but your comment really sparks something in me, so thank you.
@Andrea Massa it’s also bad which is why very few people like characters that act like ‘murder hobos’. It isn’t fun to have players who willfully ruin the game for other people by killing beloved/important NPCs, or who try to PvP at every opportunity. DnD is a collaborative effort. Anyone who doesn’t get that should just boot up their copy of Skyrim and go back to murdering civilians.
In a campaign I’m in we basically are a purely chaotic group, even the DM is pretty chaotic. Such as allowing me to steel ankles. Not the feet. Just the ankles. She homebrewed an entire subclass called rogue ankle stealer. She let’s me seduce like a maniac. She even allowed me to curse a single father and steal his late wife’s greats word from his basement after scarring him for life.
The party was joking that since I’m insane, neither wants to meet me. So I was like “can I be a serial killer going after yall’s ankles?”
And they agreed they didn’t care
If you’re going to be a chaotic maniac and try to kill your party, agree upon it, and ask the dm to make it part of the plot. Make it so that there’s fairness to it and the party considers you a fun person to play with. We play sandbox so we’re basically like “what’s really the difference between the dm making monsters to hurl at us and one of us stalking and trying to kill the others”
It can be a fun plot point if you at least are a decent person about it. Don’t just smite people without permission. Make it so they can fight back and such
There are ways to be a likeable chaotic maniac. I log into sessions early, joke around with everyone, and we talk about funny stuff going on in the game
Your character is trying to kill the others
You as a person are not trying to do it
The group as a whole tends to fudge dice rolls to help each other
My character was forced to interact last campaign and I’m thinking has decided on mercy now after a close encounter
At the end of a fight I rolled badly on harvesting venom so my party member tried and succeeded. Then my party member gave me the Flask. After that, my party member wanted to get in a chest but it was locked, so I took two seconds to pick the lock and let her have it. She then proceeded to give me some loot she thought I’d need.
In other words I’m a chaotic ankle stealing maniac who deliberately cursed a single father and is in possession of ten ankles rn and my party and I still get along
I’ll pick locks and let people take loot first however, they think I’m only in possession of eight spider ankles 🙂 they know nothing about the other two ankles in my bag and they know nothing about my deciding to let them live
@Andrea Massa “I really can’t get why the rogue, that robs the benefactor or kills him after the party has struggled to gain his support, is not considered being acting in a destructive way”
Same thing applies. As I mentioned, if you’re the rogue, that doesn’t give you the right to be an asshole. If your party (or somebody in your party) made allies with an NPC, the rogue killing that NPC or endangering the relationship between that NPC and the other character is *also* a d**k move.
” Why they can’t just start arguing about what is right and what is not?”
That is perfectly fine. Roleplaying conflict is fine (i.e.: no mechanics involved), like in all collaborative games, “negotiation” is a fundamental part. But, at the end of the day, you have to respect what the other players want to do, and there’s room for almost anything given the right time and circumstances. One thing that can very rapidly ruin the fun of another player is telling them what they can and they can’t do. Discussing it is the game, bossing them around (e.g.: my paladin will stab his rogue if he steals anything, and I want to roll perception every time he tries anything sketchy) is most definitely not.
I always see Lawful Evil as “Everyone has to obey the rules, except me”
@O. M. Yes please if you play an evil character never ever screw your party for any reason. Either say that your party is unknowingly furthering whatever goal you, your master/god/empire has or that they will eventually willingly join you and your cronies. I play a character who is part of an evil empire and sees the party (and most civilians)as future taxpaying citizens so it would be a waste to kill them and the more heroic/”noble” he is the more followers he gains for when his empire invades. Because of this he does screw with the kingdoms nobility as they would not benefit from the empires rule
Lawful evil is more aptly described as a viewpoint that systems are to be exploited for personal gain
@Job Hunter Also this.
I see it as the person who benifits from the rules, the capitalist, the king, the white nationalist etc.
@frking100 so the Jeff Beasos alignment.
Did someone throw your lego sets in the toilet? This seems awfully specific.
Not gonna ask about his mom (or dad)?
_after a night of chili_
Night of extra spicy curry. Lol
Or did he throw the LEGO set in the toilet
JoCat: “Or am I?”
_Vsauce music plays_
Jocrap’s alignment is Chaotic wiggler and no I’m not changing my mind no matter how hard he fireballs me
@The 8th Degree MeowWWWWWWWWWWWWW
Tiger Warrior As long as he doesn’t go for his sword and shield, everything should be fine.
Pretty bold words for someone in Fireball casting range.
only if he brings out his sword and sheild
BOOYAHG
>lawful is one of the most predictable alignments
Laughing in Judge Dredd
Judge Dredd IS predictable though…
@IceFire Downunder
Predictably awesome…
I like how he starts changing into Lawful Good but doesn’t go full paladin.
Jocat: softest bestest bean
Jocatherine: softest bestest bean but likely soon to be r34 material
The MechaGameZilla treatment
Too late!
Hang on where is Jocatherine?
No my proudest fap.
No regrets though.
@LezzerNet 12 seconds in “which jocat are you”
Me: My character is good alignment.
DM: Is he really? Shall we go over what your character has done so far in the campaign?
@kriss7352 deep role play. An evil character would not view themselves as evil.
@Christopher Johnston That is fair and i love that kind of PCs, but i know the guy and i am certain he do not play that deep. but if he did and i was wrong, it would be nice if he had run it by me or write it in his background , so i knew he could act like that.
@Job Hunter uh huh, but that’s a bit irrelevant given kriss’ context. Those circus goblins weren’t hurting anyone, at least there wasn’t proof of them doing so. What happened to them was pretty much murder
@Chaotic Note Now you would be right in our world, but a detect alignment spell would undoubtedly reveal them to be evil. Furthermore unlike in our world dnd is not a world of moral grey areas where good and bad exist on a scale of opinion, but instead a world where beings exist that are factually good and factually evil, with magic to reveal if something falls on either side of such super positions.
A demon as an example is a being made of chaos and retched existence. It doesn’t have to do something to be evil it is evil, the very true embodiment of it in fact and it actively seeks to outwit individuals and cause the greatest amount of evil possible. It isn’t up to the player to judge their actions and decide for themselves if it is evil, but instead the moral imparetive that they put it down before it can finish with its plan. If it had been a troupe of demons performing a circus would you have just as easily escorted them. It isn’t out of character for a character to compare goblins to demons. After all gnolls worship a demon lord and goblins often serve gnolls, no Better to silence the very provably evil now and stop their scheme for it can start.
Now i hear you ask what about laws and mercy you ask?, well those are the purview of the lawful good. Chaotic good exists to cut the middle man. To not let little things like personal privacy and liberty get in the way of the greater good.We chaotic goods take the fast road to doing the greatest good possible sincerely Poena Danda Nobis Horned Paladin of the fae
P.S. For the greater good.
/jk
There are a lot of interpretations of alignment in dnd, but the least rigid one that people adopt is that alignment is based on action and intent, and murder for the honest betterment of the world is a chaotic good action. It violates societal laws and social customs to reach a conclusion the user genuinely believes has made the world a better place. Now these kinds of actions can lead to falling when the character inevitably learns that there is a difference between a goblin and a gnoll and a demon. That even devils can redeem themselves or similar situations, but it isn’t outside of alignment to take on a more gruesome depiction of chaotic good and older systems described the chaotic alignment as merciless by its very nature. The entire first half of this is in fact written in the language of a chaotic good paladin i once played for humorous purposes. Good doesn’t mean right or nice, it just means they take actions to try and make the world a better place both right and wrong by moral sensibilities. Do note he was a paladin with a charlatan background, so his use of for the greater good left him teetering on alignment change very much and he may have even fallen by the end of the campaign if it hadn’t cut early. That being said he was firmly chaotic good due to the sheer amount of unambiguous good he did in his time.
(He had turned into a bronze dragon at that point and i was actively trying to get him to fall, so that he could become a Bronze Death Dragon (Bronze dragon+ death knight))
— I made a good character and ended up being the tard wrangler (quote literally In our barbarians case) by directing their murder hobo instincts towards the villains
The irony is, JoCrap’s intelligent ruse to be a Slytherin but he’s actually a Ravenclaw (*or is he???*) means that he strongly qualifies for Slytherin in the first place.
isnt the only real difference between ravenclaw and slytherin rc is smart and s is *sneaky* and smart?
@Draw a Pretzel almost, Ravenclaw is Intelligent in that they’ll solve a rubix cube, while Slytherins are Clever in that they’ll ‘solve’ the rubix cube by removing and re-applying the stickers
@kingofthemonkeypants taking off and re-applying the stickers is hufflepuff level of solving a cube, slytherin know that standard cubes can be taken apart and put back together easier than finding the correct glue, or for that matter taking the stickers off.
Or, a better way to put it, theyll look up a guide.
It clearly means he’s a Slytherclaw, the superior house.
Jocrap’s alignment is chaos. No secondary; just pure, unfiltered chaos
I’d like to believe he wiggles up and down the chaotic line
So he is the warp itself?
Chaos for the sake of chaos… still falls under Chaotic Neutral. Because it’s chaos un-influenced by morality.
JoCrap’s alignment is Sword and Shield
@Scanner Dorkly correction, its chaotic sword and shield, a new alignment only for those who are JoCat
Huh, it seems people get angry at JoCat for giving them JoCrap
who dare attacks the precious boy for his memey man persona
“Nobody will pick lawful evil.”
Me: *looks at pile of L.E. character sheets ive collected over the years*
“I have a problem….send help. Also souls.”
In some other video on the Youtubes I mentioned I love playing capitalist bards instead of horny bards. Is it a coincidence they’re almost always LE? I think not.
Favorite LE capitalist bard ever, total philanthropist, gave money to everyone who needed it in the party, helped out orphanages left and right, super nice and kind to everyone the party met. Also helped overthrow a national government and personally wrote the new one’s constitution so she could slip in a legal monopoly on trade rights for her fledgling trading company. Yes, she passed all the checks. Including the ones to remove opposition by “Final Destination levels of accidental death/murder”, because she happened to worship the god of accidental death so such an act was actually a form of worship.
Was the world ending so none of this actually mattered if the party failed in the long run? Yes. But I was still damn impressed.
Is Scar, Frodo and Cortez in there by any chance?
Lawful Evil is just the best kind. Not that I ever pick alignment, just drift that way in any game I play.
@The_Shadow_Who_Laughs I played a chaotic evil Gnol race Barbarian monk. (They weren’t dumb though and killed people off for the sake of it like my brethren kind. They where more out for power by any means so fruitless fights with the weak wouldn’t help my case. My character is on the verge of merging his soul with Yeenoguh he beat him in a 1v1 fight. At level 10. He got his soul. Soul trapped and now my dm said I can fight his soul with mine 1v1 and whoever wins basically the takes over. Mine as said is about to the next session. I’ll gain all his physically abilites and ac added onto mine. I have already control of a gnoll army if I can take his I’ll be able to take over the nine hells and gain more power. Then i can over the material plains with easy. I am already a demon prince basically. But in all this I have never harmed the part or whatnot he promised he wouldn’t harm them if they dont harm them and he has no reason to kill them. Unless they attack him or somehow get in his way. He did feed the party human meat without them noticing. Fun times. Chaotic evil dont mean murder hobo it can be many different things my player still checks out though as he only cares for his own goals but will play a part if it gets him what he wants.
lawful evil makes for great PC if done slightly well. if rules are set up they’ll never do something harmful, they just won’t not do it because it’s harmful but because there are rules.
then again i’m the type of person who thinks that CE doesn’t have to be a problem.
“A slutty weeping angel”
Jo what have you done to me, that image will be with me for the rest of time and it’s your fault
Well…I guess you’ll never see them…Cumming! *Lenny face with big smile*
And the image of an angel is an angel, have fun
LE character: we can’t chop off their leg
Minion: why not
LE: it’s immoral
Minion: so what do we do?
LE: *Rip out their organs and let them bleed to death*
LE character: we can’t chop off their leg
Minion: why not
LE: it’s illegal
Minion: so what do we do?
LE: make it legal
@Lord Malachi This.
chaotic evil is burning down an orphanage,
lawful evil is evicting an orphanage.
Everyone here is trying to determine JoCrap’s alignment but his alignment is in the description
“No one will pick lawful evil”
I see someone’s never sat down at a table of Vampire players.
There’s an entire vampire rpg called Vampire: The Masquerade. It’s too dark and brooding though, I prefer DnD.
I play Lawful Evil, but as a good character. I run an establishment that serves and helps the community but at night I usually blackmail cheat and kill my competitors.
“Cheating” shows a villager doing time travel.
I take that as a personal attack.