Good Aligned DM Faction

[The Beggar]

Every time a paladin is killed a unicorn cries.

[Caddies]

The factions were designed from the outset not be be inherently tied to any alignment. Nobody is interested in one-dimensional boring 'LG' or 'CE' factions. Rather than alignment, the factions are based on ideologies and philosophies, and it left up to the players how they will pursue such things, whether as a Good PC or Evil PC, Lawful PC or Chaotic PC.

[DangerousDan]

Caddies has it.

[kanrath]

Put it short as I can. The reason factions with a good philosophy are rare can greatly be attributed to the basic rule of video games. RvR or risk verses reward though in this case we can use a sub rule Cost vs reward. Evil or neutral factions resort to actions of their alignment to gain wealth/fame and same goes for good aligned. While an evil character may rob people and in return gain gold/infamy a good aligned faction will instead donate gold to the hungry. In both cases the desired result is the same, though only one achieves such goal resulting in a good feeling for the player of the evil character. As for the good character they find themselves often burdened with restrictions or expectations of others and continue to stretch their resources in hopes of reaching that oft thought of result but in the good aligned factions I have been part of or seen, none have ever actually gained more then a nod of the head. The order as a faction has no demands placed on it by a greater power while on the other hand the Pallid Masks dissolved because burdens were placed on them by means of the duke/armada at a time their player count was low and such was unlikely to occur. They had been fighting the risers for months before they disbanded and months before I even got involved and I never saw them benefit, none of them received recognition for their work, their attempts to grow often never resulted in anything, and yet more expectations were placed on them.

This is an issue with the current setting. It is extremely difficult for a good aligned faction to flourish in a situation where they are bound by the overseeing presence of a heavily neutral force.

Pvp has somewhat to do with a groups longevity when you speak of a good or evil aligned group. In the good aligned ones I've been part of pvp was extremely rare compared to say the sons and generally only as a reaction to another faction's previous actions. On the other hand  it seems often that evil factions are PvP heavy, openly getting involved in or starting  conflict with the odd exception. Now if you took a faction that was evil, and then took away pvp I think you may have some of the same problems as a good aligned faction because without pvp its very hard to profit and gain fame/infamy.

This isn't to say I am for or against pvp heavy factions but that there's a definite reason ones that are seem to last.

[Spiffy Has]

The Sons of Sabuth make an excellent "Good" faction. I once asked Caddies if a CG Fighter of lathander would fit. He said perfectly.

I've -played- an NG bard in the Sons of Sabuth and conflicted with the largely evil presence in the Sons. I rocked out.

The Order is amazing for the sheer fact it can rock out and burn a LG paladin of Lathander and still think they are good guys. I love them for it and if you don't, go kiss a Donkey's arse.

We don't need another DM faction, people need to start creating egocentric pathological lying and backstabbing good guys and get dirty with evil.

I say, BRING IT

[kanrath]

Lets keep this on topic and non confrontational.

Yes, good aligned characters can flourish in non good factions, though to be honest I think we as players tend to bend the rules on alignments quite a bit. I mean just look at their last 3 people to lead the sons? You have Red, Jim, Monsoon was also sort of the head for a while and neither of the three could be described as anything but evil I mean murderer, murderer, drug dealer. And the leaders before them have tended to lean to evil. Blowing up libraries, murdering people, drug dealing and so forth. And yet most describe it as intended to be sort of a neutral peacekeeping force in the docks, even though most of the conflict in the docks is generally linked to the Sons as a cause. After all if the head of a faction is evil it often occurs characters that were created for the faction are made with an alignment suited to the head of the faction at the time .That's why the sons have tended to lean to evil because the rare good aligned character ends up dead because having gotten involved with the sons outside factions see him as evil as well and likely will kill him just as the would any evil aligned murdering son

[Spiffy Has]

You're basing much of what you see about factions from the fact that players play mostly evil in factions. A good guy can be in the Stygian Armada. It won't be easy, but it can happen.

Edit: A faction devoted entirely to good is a bad thing. That was the Pallid Mask. Frankly, it was fairly boring as a faction, and all the goals required to be in it could of been done independently. You joined for a snazzy suit of armor and a sweet weapon.

[petey512]

Black Steel Pin Assassins should return ASAP IMHO.

Also there seems to be some kind of misconception that misguided good or misguided evil is always a good thing. This isn't necessarilly true. Sometimes I think it's more fun for a character to realize what they're doing -is- wrong but ultimately good for the big picture. Ignoring some blatant evil you committed because you think it's right is just too out there sometimes. Be realistic about some things.

[Yalta]

Glad I read the thread through fully, because Caddies summed up what I was about to write, he just did it better and with less words.
 
Caddies does indeed have it.

[TheImpossibleDream]

Being good has always been harder than being evil. Just makes people who actually manage to pull off good all the more impressive.

Factions are neutral. They have no alignment. Paladins aren't exactly suited to factions in efu or FR in general. They are usually members of paladin orders or churchs, which you could count as factions I suppose, but other than that they aren't big on them.

On the other hand, lawful good characters fit perfectly into a good chunk of them.

[Caddies]

FYI Kanrath, Genteel Jim was not a Son of Sabuth and in fact regularly clashed with their Good and Neutral members.

[derfo]

"everything must have an identifiable alignment!!"

[Dr Dragon]

Really at this point any alignment can fit in any faction. In the underdark factions were may more restrictive. The only faction that was the exception was the watch. Good people can fit into virtually any faction even the armada. Having been in both I can see no reason a good guy couldn't fit in any of them. The factions are very neutral. The armada being more lawful while the sons being more chaotic.

[Dr Dragon]

I see the battle between the docks and dominion as law vs chaos it clearly isn't good versus evil. The problem is that oocly a lot of people see it as a evil dominion against a good docks. The dominion being the home of necromancers, slavers. It is also the home of paladin,s holymen and your everyday laborers and freelance merchants and adventurers. As well as loyalists who view the docks as a place of terrorists who are a threat to order and stability

The docks are a haven of drug pushers, cutthroats and all manner of filth while at the same time charity workers, holymen, and freedom fighters who view the dominion as an extension of the tyranny of old port. As well as your merchants and laborers just trying to get by.

Any alignment fits with the docks and dominion and anyone who hasn't discovered this by now is missing the point of the docks and dominion and I feel sorry for you.

[Porkolt]

FYI Kanrath, Genteel Jim was not a Son of Sabuth and in fact regularly clashed with their Good and Neutral members.

Even though they didn't really have any good members at the time.