What makes a man turn neutral? Why would he devote himself a balance between good and evil?
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What makes a man turn neutral? Why would he devote himself a balance between good and evil?
Druid
The real answer is that he wouldn't. A philosophical dedication to neutrality (as an alignment) is really a dedication to the balance between acting forces (i.e. "True Neutral" rather than Neutral as a transitory alignment or merely being Unaligned). It doesn't concern "good" or "evil" specifically, but rather the forces involved.
The reason for this will inevitably vary, but generally it likely concerns the recognition that any one force getting the upper hand being somehow detrimental to the interests of the concerned party. It could, for example, be a philosophical dedication to an understanding of the multiverse and the planes "as is", and arguing that everything exists in an eco-system in which all the individual parts are necessary components in the overall gestalt construct, such as "no Good without Evil", etc.
Druids are traditionally Neutral simply becajse their dedication and ideals aren't speckfkcally alogned with any one "side", and they will always favor "nature" over specific aligned principles.
Also, this.
Ethically, all people are neutral. Freewill governs that your actions are based on your own perception of good or evil. The real battle is being stupid or wise.
Willful ignorance of the evil your actions cause is evil. And prioritizing what's good for you is called selfishness, which is the root of most evil. And wisdom is just "intelligence used well for good" so your "real battle" is just neutral & evil vs good again
Your ideas are not moronic, but you have expressed them in a moronic way
can't be arsed to deal with the battle between good and evil
Most people are neutral. We don't really do much good or evil, we mostly just hang around.
This. Most people are just bothered about self interest, for themselves and a small group of chosen allies or family members. The truely Good, people who go out of their way to help complete strangers (charity workers, Aid volunteers, etc) are pretty rare, along with the truly Evil, those who go out of their way to inflict pain and misery on others. (psychopaths, mass shooters, rapists, Ganker users, etc
Same with law and chaos, most are neutral, with only a few sticking to strongly held principles and rules (lawful) or only ever doing everything entirely by the whim or inclination of the moment. (chaos).
Most people tend to sit in the middle ground, only occasionally dipping into Good/Evil/Chaos/Law as extreme situations present themselves.
Deep philosophical knowledge of the underpinnings of reality reveals to him that all mortal existence arises from the intersection of cosmic forces, and it will collapse if basically any of them lose the "great games".
Supremely rare is the one who seeks to alter the balance by dragging everything toward the center so the crusades and demonic cults stock wrecking the place.
Realistically, because he wants to be chill to his friends and a dick to his enemies.
Philosophically, because any force or philosophy taken in extreme is bad, even raw elemental Good. Often relies on the above impulses at some level (without evil we can't punish crime), but can also assert some kind of metaphysical balance without any particular mechanisms (without evil the universe collapses, because it needs evil to function, because stop asking questions).
Cynically, because even the good guys are dickheads and so need to be kept in check just as much as the evil dickheads. Generally relies on the above reasoning (paladins are too paladiny and that's a problem), but also usually asserts that the gods/paladins/the plane of happiness and life aren't actually objectively good, just fluffier or more immediately convenient.
I have no strong feelings one way or the other
Screw D&D!
I'm makin' my own TTRPG!
With blackjack!
And hookers!
1.Be good and live long enough to be the villain.
2.Survive being the villain long enough to resignate into neutrality.
3. stay neutral or start again at no. 1
the desire to grill
For every npc I save, I slaughter that many. This is my commitment to maintain balance and neutrality.
I volunteer for a charity and on my way driving there I frick with other drivers intentionally (slowing down for no reason, pretending to turn/change lanes but then flicking off my indicator without doing it, not letting someone into my lane, tailgating).
I volunteer because I want to contribute to helping the needy.
I'm a prick on the road because I'm sadistic (not sexually, I just derive this weird enjoyment out of making someone miss their turn).
I am similarly good/c**t throughout other things too, but that is the most clear example I can think of because of the contrast.
When I speak to autistic people I'm mindful of the difficulty we have communicating with each other and try to bridge that gap as best I can.
Sometimes when shopping I'll pick out a bunch of stuff just so that when I get to the counter, I can tell the lady "I don't want that one. Oh, I changed my mind. Etc." just to make her job more of a pain.
I don't know why I'm like this but I hope it gives you insight, OP.
You're an arbitrary c**t and your example has no reflection on neutrality, or "karma" as you're trying to portray it. Whimsically you help some people for self gratification to tick a box you're not sure has a description, and shit on other people for the hell of it with no consideration.
This is a prime example of chaotic evil.
>"karma" as you're trying to portray it
>you help some people for self gratification
Goku finally used a giant form technique like King Piccolo? Based.
lack of commitment
being good is hard work
being evil is hard work
being neutral is easy
Free Will as an area of philosophical debate is older than and will long outlive Judaism and the disastrous fallout of it.
In 1e alignments were strictly codified forces above even the gods. Law is close minded order, Chaos is progress but also selfishness and destruction, Good is self sacrifice and fairness, and Evil is oppression. Thus the combinations.
LG) Law must be obeyed and used for good. It is a chain that binds all. Any infringement should be punished as appropriate to the crime. Jaywalking? Fined. Murder? Jail. Circumstances often don't matter. If you're starving and steal an apple then you are as guilty as if you weren't starving. But a murder in self defense is different. It's also powerless against LE.
NG) Good is above all. Law and chaos don't matter as long as good is done. It's the most Good alignment, but stupid selfless.
CG) Freedom is the ultimate good and laws can be used for evil. If laws are corrupt or restrictive they should, nay, MUST be removed. Aka what anarchism used to mean.
LN) The law is the law. Chaos cannot function.
TN) If good takes over it'll be LG or CG. Oppressive, where every minor sin is punished and allow LE to thrive and abuse, or chaotic where no true law can prosper and everyone is selfish. If evil takes over it'll be oppressive one way or another. Keep balance in all things.
CN) Personal freedom above all. This doesn't mean you go lolrandumb. If you murder someone you'll be on the run and in jail, thus not truly free.
LE) Use the law to spread evil, to oppress, and to gain power for yourself.
NE) Same as NG, but for evil.
CE) Chaos is the only true, pure state. Killing, destroying, and fighting to evolve and become more, only to do it all over again. A mound of corpses and the weak until only one stands on top. Pure natural and social Darwinism and evolution through. No one matters but you. Use everything you have. Brawn or mind or charisma. Use others and discard them.
Sadly this was forgotten after the OGs left TSR. And they're useful for character creation and shorthand to see how enemies act, even if not used mechanically.
I don't know but my gut says maybe.
>Christcucks
Ra Material is the last thing I'd pin as being popular with Christians and that is all about explaining Free Will, Good, and Evil in the most New Age atheistic and robotic manner possible.
typically gold, a lust for power, or just being born with a heart full of neutrality.
A tragic backstory.
Bad writing.
The typical motivation given to characters like Mordenkainen is a concern that if Good wins, it'll be just as oppressive as Evil. But of course, for that to be the case, Good would actually have to be evil, meaning the cosmic conflict would actually be two different flavours of Evil fighting each other. Then the real Good would have to come along to defeat both of them.
Another problem is the motivation itself. Why does Mordy want to preserve the balance between Good and Evil? Because it preserves the multiverse. Which would make him Good, unless he thinks the end of the world would come so quickly that it would affect him personally, making it about self-preservation. But a Good character wouldn't fight the side of Good, and...
...that's one of the reasons why I don't bother with alignment.
Active commitment to neutral sounds like #SigmaMaleGrindset
>Give an impoverished child a mansion
>Slit his father's throat in front of him
>Leave, refusing to elaborate
The never ending conflict within one's self.
Have you never been a situation where for example, two guys you know get in a fight and you just want to shut down the fight and give no fricks about who is actually right or wrong?