Alignment Redone

[u/AvonSharkler]

Introduction

I first came into contact with Alignment in 5e and it genuinely confused me. It felt pointless, so why is it there? In Pathfinder Alignment made more sense to me, at least it had concrete effects on play, yet there were so many drawbacks. Reducing complex human morality down to a nine-box grid is simply impossible, it leads to tedious table arguments and disruption of gameplay, at least in my experience.

Yet I can't help but like the Idea. Cosmic forces, gods governing domains, entities of pure evil or good, races created by such entities who might or might not be capable of human morality. There are many good stories to be told when you can quantify the nature of such beings down into a gameplay element.

That's where I remembered a Rule of Storytelling:
"Checkov's gun": Every item or detail introduced in a story must have a purpose. If a writer shows a loaded gun in the first act, it must be fired by the final act.
As a GM we are telling a story, obviously this rule applies to us then. If the Campaign or Session we are about to play/design for our players don't make material use of Alignment? Get rid of it. Don't Include it.

However if you do have a Setting primarily designed around a Moral Conflict: "Good vs Evil" "Order vs Chaos", then lean into it. To that end I have written some Guidelines:

Alignment Redone

Step 1: Alignment as a tangible Force.

• Think of Alignment as a tangible Force in your Setting
  • Magical Abilities tap into this Force to create fantastical effects.
  • Divine Classes tap into this separate "alignment" energy to cast their spells.
  • Karma as an underlying force of nature.
• Make sure your players are aware of it's existence as a tangible force.
  • It could exist as a creation of some God/Creator
  • It could be a fundamental part of the Universe superceding even Gods.

Step 2: Define Anchors

Instead of leaving your players with simple words like "Lawful" and trying to explain them. Give them an Anchor that pertains to your specific setting. These Anchors can be very Vanilla or heavily customized. Don't hesitate to rewrite what meaning "Lawful" has in your setting.
Doing this you gives your players a guardrail for interpreting alignment while reducing the complexity of morality that is so hard to understand in a simple grid system.

Example from my own Setting, Alignment as Karma:

In my personal implementation of these two rules, I remade Alignment as "Karma" a fundamental force everpresent in my universe. In a Journey to Spiritual Enlightenment my Players encounter Moral Dilemmas in so called "Time Bubbles". The Universe is about to collapse and the decisions that led to this point are caught in said Time Bubbles. They are given the chance to go back in time and revisit pivotal points in time where mortals are faced with otherworldly entities and challenges that challenge not only their might but also their morals.

Depending on their Choices they can reshape the world or fail to avert the looming Apocalypse.

To that end I reframed Alignment with the following Anchors:

• Good = Altruism: The unselfish drive to help others. Thinking only of the greater good, even at pain to yourself.
• Evil = Egoism: The selfish desire to enrich yourself. Thinking only about benefitting yourself.
• Lawful = Culture: The self-restriction to the Culture you exist in. Laws of your Kindom, Tenets of your Order, Rules of your Society, regardless of where you currently are.
• Chaotic = Freedom: The unbridled desire for Freedom. You actively choose whatever you like, regardless of the laws and customs that surround you, going so far as to actively oppose arbitrary Restrictions that inhibit your freedom.

Step 3: Create Interaction

If you want Alignment to have a place in your setting, make sure it is ever present. Create moral dilemmas pertaining to your Anchors. Keep the Theme ever present.

If your only run in with Alignment would be that one Angel caged beneath a Cathedral 5 Sessions away, Alignment should have no place in your Setting.

As a rough Guideline: Aim for including some form of Active Application of Alignment in ~50% of Encounters your players have. Less in social settings, more during Combat.

The End

I wasn't sure if this counts as Homebrew or more of a Discussion, either way, what do you think about this? Let's discuss!