Why were character alignments such a big deal in 3.5 edition?
Surely this thread was made with the honest intention of starting an intellectual discussion about how alignment is presented in D&D 3.5e, and not for any other purpose.
>>98014773That's literally the pointWhy did the alignment chart as a phenomenon gain traction in the mid 2000s while 3.5E was the most recent edition of D&D?
>>98014760Partly it's that the clearer systematization compared to the TSR days consolidated a lot more of the "hooks" of importance, partly just that it's when Eternal September (that is, the perpetual normification of the Internet) finally came for TTRPGs.
>>98014760People, especially nerds, just like categorizing things
>>98014760Because 3.X had some Prestige classes or other options that were tied to alignment. It had mechanical relevance. As it no longer does, well... it no longer needs to be in the game.
>>98014799It didn't have anything to do with game systems. People back then just had a more defined vision of what good and evil actually are, making it simple to define the grey areas inbetween. Since then we've been fooled into thinking things only exist in shades of grey to the advantage of truly evil people, when its objectively untrue. You can on a case by case basis determine what is truly evil or truly good, this is why court systems came to be. To determine whether a thief was justified in stealing, or if it was purely criminal greed and sentence accordingly. Context and circumstance matter. Painting things in broad strokes of grey is what a simpleton does, on either side of the fence.
>>98014760What an excellent compilation of quotes.
>>98014760Because alignment is a good mechanic. But not like that image. It is really good as a faction chart of sorts. Factions and characters of similar alignment are more likely to work with each other and vice versa. Cosmic alignment is a thing in mythology everywhere with entities tied to certain factions of evil good chaos law etc in some way or fashion. Yeah it clashes with materialist philosophy maybe somewhat but it's a stupid elf game.
>>98014995It's an autism symptom.
>>98014760Because it had actual mechanical effects. Do you really do no research whatsoever before you make a thread?
>>98015867Second edition had magical effects tied to alignment like Protection from Evil
>>98015613This is possibly the dumbest post I have seen in my entire life.
>>98016206>Second editionRetard
>>98014760Because alignments were tied into the rules for a large number of effects. Spells, damage, damage reduction, and magic items all had variations that involved alignments.>>98016206But not to the extent 3.X did. While earlier editions did have spells like Protection from Evil (Good) and Holy (Unholy) Word which did involve alignments, these focused on Good/Evil. 3.X added Lawful and Chaotic versions of those spells. In addition good and evil variations like Holy Word and Blasphemy (formerly Unholy Word), lawful (Dictum) and chaotic (Word of Chaos) versions were added.
>>98014799Because the entire identity of 3.X was "if you are autistic, we've got a product just for you". The game actively engaged with autism and marketed itself for all kinds of neurodivergent, anti-social weirdos. On top of that, there was the endless wankery around "muh tradition" (tm), and alignments were early edition mainstay due to Gygax being retarded (while all they actually did was affecting what items you could use).Combine it with early internet and it became the easiest fodder for bait.And the only reason you don't know the answer is being underage.
>>98016262Its my personal belief that evil and stupidity are philosophically one in the same thing. Hence its abject denialism of it being exactly is what it simply is. If you disagree, feel free to provide atleast some semblance of an argument. You won't though, because I am objectively correct and my points as inarguable as life itself.
>>98016435Contributing factors were probably that the new edition brought a bunch of new players into the game who then had to grapple with this arcane system, as well as it coinciding with the rise of the modern internet and meme culture
>>98016532>Die Dummheit ist meist der Bosheit Schwester.
It's unrelated to the game system. It's related to internet culture.OP sounds like a bot, probing peoples brain to fill information gaps.
>>98016673It's not entirely unrelated to the game system, and that seems to be the point of OPs question, really. Why did this element from a roleplaying game end up becoming part of internet culture at large, even among people who never touched DnD?
>>98016673>It's unrelated to the game system*bops you with my axiomatic spork* shut up chaotic faggot
>>98015613>this is why court systems came to be. To determine whether a thief was justified in stealingNo, the purpose of the court is to determine whether theft actually occurred. It is explicitly not to let people off for something just because the court likes the reason they did it.
>>98017240Not in Common Law, no matter the protestations of legal experts. Though the role tends to be filled more by political activist prosecutors than juries checking the system with popular consent these days.
>>98014760>literal animal in neutral evilI'm not entirely sure about that
>>98015797Yet we have no Lawful Autist, Neutral Autist, or Chaotic Autist
>>98014760They weren't. Just another facet of characters, mostly for adjudicating mechanical effects and cosmic relations.
>>98017240This is objectively untrue. The ideas of impartiality and objective evidence are modern concepts, and we still have vestiges of this in many countries with jury systems today.Why do you think it is "jury of your peers"? The original intent was that you'd be judged by locals that knew you, preferably of your own standing and profession, because the idea was that only they could understand the situation - and also, likely, because they had the power to shame you when your crimes were laid bare, which was a huge part of pre-modern justice.This also meant that people that were unpopular were judged harsher than pillars of the community. Exile was a big thing.
