It may not have been laid out as clearly as it could have been, but the rule has always been to RP your alignment.
First of all, let me thank the GM team for writing up the new alignment policy rules. Having them in black and white ensures that there will be no further mix ups.
First -- who is it that makes the determination of whether someone is playing within their stated alignment? Is this done on an individual GM basis? Is there a vote?
Second -- What is the criteria used to determine whether someone is acting within their alignment? I noticed that Hellblazer was using the documentation currently posted on the site (which is the classic AD&D definitions), but I also know that you are moving away from AD&D, and apparently turned him down for adhering to those. So how do we know what is, or is not, acting outside one's alignment?
Third -- What, specifically, are the sanctions that you apply? (Beyond restricting alignment change?)
Fourth -- As part of this policy, is there any warning given before the sanctions are applied? If, for example, a neutral PC has been determined by the Layonaran powers that be, to be simply acting too Good for their approved alignment, do you send them a PM, warning them to start being more Evil, before you launch into your retributions?
Fifth -- For PCs who are determined to play outside their alignment, are you going to have some form of explicit path of atonement to establish that they've come back under your good graces?
Sixth -- What is your grandfathering policy? Classic AD&D says that alignment changes with behavior: if a PC acts chaotic evil, then they get that alignment assigned to them, whether the player wants it or not. You have set up a system here where alignment is like a religion, and it requires huge character development (two CDQs), to alter a PCs allegiance to it. You have every right to do that, but what do you intend to do for players who have been, prior to the rollout of this new policy, playing their PCs using the default AD&D assumptions?
Specifically I want to know if my PC, Rottie, is on your blacklist because he has been trying to follow (what he sees as) the precepts of Az'atta, even though his approved alignment is Chaotic Neutral. (I would argue that Az'atta herself, who has become increasingly stringent with her continued definition, is not playing anywhere near her "approved CG" alignment, and really should be reclassified as a Lawful Good deity - which would explain why Rottie is having so much trouble with her rules, rules, rules.)
Similarly, Hellblazer's Brian (Njord) also seems to have been rejected for an alignment shift - because for at least the last half a year his playing classic AD&D has been in violation of rules that you just rolled out this week.
Any help you can give on these issues would be appreciated. How to get a PC off your blacklist is the most important one from my perspective.
A player may request to have their character slowly change alignment to LE or NE via RP if they have meet the nine month community member and at least one of their characters is at least level 14 or higher. This happens via RP and must be tracked in a Character Development Thread and must happen over time. Please be aware that it takes time for a character to change their alignment in game—and it must be done via RP that is approved and is acceptable to the community as a whole. It takes at least six real-life (RL) weeks for an alignment to change a single step via RP, and it usually takes at least two months.
LORE: Alignment Rules
A player may request to have their character slowly change alignment [strike]to LE or NE via RP[/strike]. For changes to LE and NE alignments, this will be approved only if they have meet the nine month community member and at least one of their characters is at least level 14 or higher.[strike]This[/strike] Once approved, any alignment change happens via RP and must be tracked in a Character Development Thread and must happen over time.Please be aware that it takes time for a character to change their alignment in game—and it must be done via RP that is approved and is acceptable to the community as a whole. It takes at least six real-life (RL) weeks for an alignment to change a single step via RP, and it usually takes at least two months.Until an alignment change is approved, players are not allowed to roleplay outside their approved alignment, and doing so will affect whether the PC is approved for the change. So do not just start roleplaying the new alignment, as this is not how Layonara works.
I have a quick question that's fairly related to this because I've never quite understood the system (I see it as a catch 22 but i won't get into that now).If the DM team has determined that a character has not been playing his alignment does the player get a chance to defend his characters actions, since it's motivations more then anything that determine if an act was good or evil.In other words, If my Evil character Tim saved a small child from certain death that would be considered a good act, but if he only did it because there was a reward for returning the kid then the act is really not that good any more.
May I suggest the following edits to bring the Alignment Rules into sync with your clarified policies? (Add the bold, delete the [strike]strike[/strike].)I hope this is taken as a constructive suggestion. It makes it clear that your rules do not apply merely to evil shifts, but to all types of alignment changes.
May I suggest the following edits to bring the Alignment Rules into sync with your clarified policies?
Second. Although I appreciate the desire for transpirancy that steve is trying to get here. I feel compeled to say that I didn't ask in anyway for him to do so.
Airing things out is always the best policy. It keeps people all on the same page, things running smoothly, and reduces any feelings of favoritism that might arise from having unwritten rules on the server.