Well met Greyhawkers! Today I was reminded that way back in 2000, at the turn of 2nd Edition to 3rd Edition, before the internet became an everyday means of communication, I wrote a letter to the Forum page that was published in Dragon #273. This was in response to the Question of the Month” in issue #270: “Does your campaign have a particular theme? Is it
swashbuckling, epic, gritty, or wahoo? Tell us all about your campaign style!”
Here is my response. Enjoy!
Dark Greyhawk
I wrote this in response to the “Question of the
Month” and also to add to the discussion in #264 through #270 about evil
characters. The campaign I run is set in the northwest of the Greyhawk campaign
setting and uses heavy Al-Qadim sources. The Arabic feel is very refreshing.
All the characters are foreigners and have had a wonderful time trying to blend
in by learning new customs, dress, and especially language. They have adopted
new names and even acquired their hirelings from this area. New and exotic
locales always liven a static campaign. The land is full of mystery and
intrigue, but the PCs fit in perfectly because they are all schemers and shady
fellows as well. They always parlay or even deal with villains rather than just
outright slay them. Every monster or encounter is assessed for its benefit, not
just used as a stepping stone for the next encounter. Their motto is, dealing
with evil is better than a pat on the back. Then, if necessary, you can always
turn on evil and side with good in the end.
I do not rigidly control alignments, except in the
case of priests. All the characters are decidedly shady but not evil. As long
as the PCs can at least trust one another, then it doesn’t matter what their alignments are. The lawful evil fighter in my group has shown many instances of
paladinlike behavior toward the common man and even his foes. You don’t wear
alignment like a badge; your actions define your character.
In fantasy literature, the greatest heroes are what I
term “shady.” Elric, Conan, Fafhrd, and the Grey Mouser are all shady
characters. Alignment never stopped any of them from doing the right thing in
the end. The only recent characters from literature I can imagine fitting this
description are Raistlin or Drizzt. Why are the shady ones the favorites? They
have more fun.
It seems to me the only classes purely concerned with
their alignment are the religious ones (cleric, druid, and paladin). They are
the ones who have their beliefs dictated by a higher power. I am not saying you
shouldn’t play good guys, but some campaigns could use a change in locale and
attitude.
