Alternative to Alignment  
                                                        by  "Array 50"

For:   All editions

A new take on the old Alignment

The standard 2e AD&D alignment system has many faults. While the many
denizens of the net have attempted over the years to adapt of rework
the system into something more usable, these have always remained
true to the same fault's. The basic system must be replaced.

Lets first look at what went wrong with the original system.

The original intent of the alignment system in the A/D&D system was
to give a simple definition to the complex rational and motives of
peoples actions. This interplay was defined in terms of Law and chaos,
then later on expanded to include good and evil. The basic definitions
of these terms remain vague through the various books. Many attempts
to define the various alignments have remained equally vague, merely
rewording the same problem without adding anything to the definition.

While the system seems upon first look to work, any experienced player
or DM will know that this system dose not free the players, but often
limits them in many ways. Anyone who spends a great deal of time on
the various chat boards that are dedicated to this game system will
recognize the constant pain that many DM's feel when talking about
the alignment system. The books themselves seem to admit this often,
and at times seem to come close to dealing with the problem, but never
do.

Many attempts to correct the problem have been attempted, but I hope
that my take on the system will be more useful. This system is a bit
more complex than the standard system. However only by completely
replacing the original system, can we hope to solve the many problems
that is presented by the system.

The system is represented by three different aspects. Moral code,
priorities, Character. These aspects will be examined individually.

Moral Code

The moral code is represented by one of two possible choices: Societal
or Individualistic.

Societal people believe that a set of laws are more important than
the individual rights.They follow the laws of there society for the
most part, though this doesn't mean that they will follow an obliviously
unjust law if they can get away with breaking it. A good example of
a societal person is a Paladin, a King, or a Merchant. They will often
actively work to support there society in many ways. Paladins must take
this aspect.

Individualistic people believe that a persons individual rights are
more important than the laws of a civilization.This does not mean
that they will idly break the law of a society, only that if given
a choice between following a law that he or she believes is wrong,
or leaving town, they would most likely leave town. These people work
better in small groups rather than in large ones. Good examples include
frontiersman, thieves, or Rangers.

Priorities:

The Priorities of a character are in fact the 3 of 5 possible choices,
and the order in witch they are chosen. They are listed in the order
of the most importance. These choices are.

Religion (R): The religion of the character. (Note that while it is
assumed that in a fantasy world with several different god's and goddesses,
and in fact one with priests that regularly show there gods power,
most people will put there trust in one or another god. However even
so, this does not mean that religion will even be on the list of priories.
It may be little more than lip service to appease the family.) Paladins
or Clerics must have this as there first choice on priorities.

Country (C): The society the character grows up in is important to
this character. While this means that the character will work to protect
and support his country, it does not mean that they will gladly die
for it. Paladins must take this as there second priority.

Friends and Family (F): The immediate family and the close friends
of this character takes an importance in there personality. These
people will often be very close to those they travel with, and become
a tight group. Many of these people get close to a specific set of
people, and are loyal to them throughout. Clerics or Rangers will
often have this as one of there top priorities.

Self (S): This priority describes how important, relative to the others,
they are to themselves. That the characters own physical happiness
or safety is one of the priorities of this character. Most people
have this priority as one of the top two, though some more altruistic
people will not even think of it.

Possessions (P) : The characters possessions are of utmost importance
to them, they will spend a great deal of time cleaning and caring form
them, and may spend great amounts to get the "best"available. Note
that while everyone cares to have good equipment, it is not nessarrly
a priority, as they may care more for another set of three. Paladins
can NOT take this as one of there three.


Character

This aspect is a variable that could cover anything that is missed
by the other two. The player will pick two or three personality traits
that are important aspects of the character. These traits can be almost
anything imaginable. However, a listing of possible traits is given
below; with number listings for random generation. These traits must
be chosen carefully, so not to conflict with the previous aspects
of the character, or with each other, after all, a character cant
be a coward and brave at the same time. As will all other aspects
of the character, these choices must be cleared with the DM.

Roll	Trait	Roll	Trait
1	Argumentative	40	Charitable
2	Hot -Tempered	41	Moody
3	Overbearing	42	Gloomy
4	Arrogant	43	Compulsive
5	Proud	44	Naive
6	Rude	45	Honest
7	Aloof	46	Truthful
8	Mischievous	47	Gullible
9	Impulsive	48	Opinionated
10	Madcap	49	Narrow-minded
11	Careless	50	Optimistic
12	Thoughtless	51	Happy
13	Absent-minded	52	Cheerful
14	Dreamy	53	Diplomatic
15	Insensitive	54	Pleasant
16	Courage	55	Pessimistic
17	Brave	56	Cynical
18	Craven	57	Sarcastic
19	Shy	58	Realistic
20	Fearless	59	Quiet
21	Curious	60	Soft-spoken
22	Inquisitive	61	Secretive
23	Prying	62	Sober
24	Perceptive	63	Practical
25	Perfectionist	64	Dull
26	Stern	65	Suspicious
27	Harsh	66	Scheming
28	Punctual	67	Paranoid
29	Driven	68	Cautious
30	Friendly	69	Boorish
31	Trusting	70	Graceless
32	Kind	71	Crude
33	Easy going	72	Violent
34	Compassionate	73	Cruel
35	Greedy	74	Sadistic
36	Hardhearted	75	Jealous
37	Thrifty	76	Kind
38	Generous	77-90	Roll Again
39	Spendthrift	91-100	Roll twice more

For comments, complaints, or death threats, Contact me at

Array50@hotmail.com