The 4 Ways of Being Chaotic Neutral: Second Edition

Over the decade I have spent hosting RPG's games, I have discovered that one of my biggest pet peeves is when people misuse the Chaotic Neutral Alignment in Dungeons and Dragons. So many players use this alignment as an excuse to do whatever they want in game and I wanted to take some time to see if the definition given in the Player's Handbook can support this point of view.

This is our base line.

Last week I took a look at the definition in the 1st Edition AD&D Player's Handbook, and concluded that the Chaotic Neutral Alignment as defined there requires you to intentionally be an agent of chaos. All of your actions must serve to preserve the balance of good and evil, without tipping the scales. Thus It did not support the "I can do whatever I want" reading of the alignment, as it requires conscious action to spread chaos. But what about 2nd Edition AD&D? Does the definition change enough between editions?

Well, the definition sure does change... But I am not sure it let's you do whatever you want.

The reprints are just so nice.

The Lunatic

It always seemed to me that 2nd Edition's definition was a direct challenge of 1st Edition's. Where in 1st you must deliberately spread chaos, 2nd argues that if you do it intentionally it is not chaotic, and that your actions in and of themselves must be random. Take a look:  

"Chaotic Neutral characters believe that there is no order to anything including their own actions. With this as a guiding principle, they tend to follow whatever whim strikes them at the moment. Good and evil are irrelevant when making a decision Chaotic Neutral characters are extremely difficult to deal with. Such characters have been known to cheerfully and for no apparent reason gamble away everything they have on a single roll of die. They are almost totally unreliable. In fact the only reliable thing about them is that they cannot be relied upon! This alignment is perhaps the most difficult to play. Lunatics and madmen tend towards chaotic neutral behaviour."

This definition comes pretty close to being able to do whatever you want as a character. However, your actions almost need to make no sense. So any sort of scheming with a 2nd Edition Chaotic Neutral Character is out character. Essentially you can do whatever you want, as long it is nonsensical or at least seems random.

I think for a lot of Chaotic Neutral player's this definition suits them the best. But of course, as the definition mentions, it is a difficult alignment to play. This sort of character can easily get themselves and others killed, reveal secrets, etc. And while yes it does give you license to follow your whims, it comes with a less controllable side that needs to be properly played if the alignment is to be true to form. A Lunatic, or a Madman do indeed fit this role flawless, while something like a Jester or a cruel unpredictable thief are better suited to Chaotic Good, or Chaotic Evil.

What do you think? Does 2nd Edition's definition let you do what you want? Or must you play a madman who's action make almost to sense? Let us know in the comments and check back next Wednesday where we look at 3r Edition D&D's definition of Chaotic Neutral.


Written by: Andrew Gregory

15mm Twistneed on Horse Back

At the end of his first run in Ivershill, Twistneed the Frigid came away with a horse. For a long time I looked for a suitable mini, and let me tell you: there is not a lot of selection in the 15mm "Barbarian on Horse" category.

There are knights in shining armour, samurai, Mongolian horsemen, even goblin wolf riders, but I could not find a single barbarian riding a horse with a sword. It seemed hopeless.

Until I found this guy from Splintered Light Miniatures. He is part of their cave men collection and is usually wielding a stone axe. However, a bit of patch work and the sword from a lesser mini severed to give this guy the kit he needed. there was only one problem... Twistneed didn't have a bear skin cloak... So how was he going to get one?

To remedy this and to give him a proper introduction to the world, I have planned a small introduction to the world of Hymns of a Vagabond. There he will help a village being plagued by a monstrous bear.

I assume that is a challenge worthy of the lone barbarian, and who knows... He meet even get a bear skin riding cloak as a thank you.


Written by: Andrew Gregory

The 4 Ways of Being Chaotic Neurtal: 1st Edition

Around JADE Chaotic Neutral is the most popular alignment. Jeff, Dave and Elijah all claimed it as their favourite, and it pops up among our active and deceased characters with regularity.

And it is true that while it is not my favourite alignment to play; being Chaotic Neutral can shake up the party's norm, and make for some fun and good role play. That is if the player is actually being Chaotic Neutral and not just using it for this excuse:

I have seen this around the internet for a while now, and I know it is a joke. I really do. But for some reason it has always bothered me, and I think the fact that I have basically heard this justification in game for a player character's outrageous actions compounds that. I have found many players use the Chaotic Neutral alignment to justify selfish behaviour, or even to try and excuse actions that are down right evil. Despite many players seeming to feel so, Chaotic Neutral does not mean you get to do whatever you want. And I would like to take some time and clear up this misconception.

To show you that, I want to look at the four definitions presented in the Players Handbook across the editions (Excluding 4th edition as it changed how alignments work.) From there we can get a better sense about what it means to play Chaotic Neutral, and also see an interesting debate across editions.  I think it is best to start at the beginning with 1st ed AD&D to give us our base line.

The Agent of Chaos

I think 1st AD&D has the most straight forward definition of Chaotic Neutral and it goes as follows:

"Above respect for life and good, or disregarded for life and promotion of evil, the chaotic neutral places randomness and disorder. Good and evil are complimentary balance arms. Neither are preferred nor must evil prevail, for ultimate chaos would suffer."

In 1st ed, you are an agent of Chaos, neither good nor evil. You challenge authority and the nature of society, in favour of the natural chaotic state of the universe. A less "spiritual" reading could also suggest your role is to promote chaos without tipping the balance of power. These actions are not malicious or self severing, But neither are they kind and generous. They are just enough of either that the natural order is offset.

While it may seem like this definition gives you license to act "however you want", I think it is important to note that a player needs to consider how their characters actions are chaotic without tipping the scales in favour of good or evil. So acting entirely selfishly to the detriment of those around you is clearly evil, and as a Dungeon Master this sort of activity is something that you can ask your player's to justify.

This is not to say that the character cannot be fun or silly, simply that their actions need to be reflective of the natural chaos they bring to any situation. Characters like a Klutz, a Taoist Monk, or a Trickster fit this role perfectly, while something like the Mad Emperor, The Eccentric Bard, and the Maniacal Plotter are better suited to Chaotic Good, and Chaotic Evil.

What do you think? Does the definition of Chaotic Neutral in First Edition AD&D give you licence to do what you want? Or is it more of a balancing act between the forces of good and evil? Let us know in the Comments and be sure to check next where we explore being Chaotic Neutral in 2nd ed AD&D.

Written by: Andrew Gregory

The Stick Throwing Goblin Crush-O-Matic

Last weekend we had the chance to finally use the 1st ed AD&D Gnomish Tinker Dragonlance rules in game. The class can be found in the Dragonlance Adventures book, and has got to be one of the coolest classes I know.

Gnomish Tinkers have the innate ability to create and build magical mechanical devices of any kind in game. At the top of the page is the sketch that Elijah's character came up with for a make shift goblin killing crossbow called: The Stick Throwing Goblin Crush-O-Matic. It was designed to be made out saplings and vines and could shoot a branch 20ft. With the assistance of a hydraulic hand its ability could be increased; but that idea was never realised.

The beauty of the Gnomish invention system is that the contraption only has to vaguely work. You see, essentially a magical force causes all gnomish inventions to function, so a simple and rough design that seems at least plausible in game is enough to meet the criteria for a workable invention. By simply looking up the effects you want your creation to have you can use a pre-made table to determine the complexity of the device. Which ever desired effect has the highest complexity, is the complexity of the invention: which determines build times, the number of parts required, and the likely hood that the device will function. From there it is up to the player to buy/find the components, and there is a helpful list of common components with their market price included in the class notes.

A great book for any RPG collection.

In the end Elijah's Stick Throwing Goblin Crush-O-Matic wasn't a very useful invention, and they didn't end up making it. However, I was able to run it through a very simple equation to figure out how it would work in game. It ended up with a complexity rating of 5 (thus needing 5 different components to create) and would take him 6 hours to make just the crossbow. We never calculated for the hand.

Once built, the bow would shoot with a -4 on the roll, needing no less than a natural 20 to succeed. So... Pretty useless. You can also see on his sketch in the bottom left hand corner an idea for an Angry-Goblin Stick of Fakery... which I believe was an idea for a fake staff... However that works.

The potential for creation with the Gnomish Tinker Class is pretty fantastic and I think worth adding into any edition! I will be sure to post more wacky inventions as the guys dream them up.

What other"Inventor Classes" have you guys played in game? Let me know in the comments, and tell me what you built.


Written by: Andrew Gregory

15mm Twistneed the Frigid

Twistneed the Frigid is quite a famous character around the JADE table. His reputations comes from be given the title of "Only Player Character to have Beaten Ivershill". He managed to defeat a superior, force, steal a bag of gold pieces, and acquire horse; all from the meagre start of owning only a crust piece of bread, his leather armour and sword. To continue his legacy I hope to have Dave join us for a few rounds of Hymns of a Vagabond, and for that he needed a 15mm mini.

This guy fit Twistneed's personality the best, and so his 15mm form was born. The figure is from Ral Partha Eurpoe's Demonworld line, and he turned out great. It took no less than 21 colours to get him just right, but I am really pleased with the result. And he really stands out on the table.

I will confess to some trepidation about including Twistneed in the party. My main concern is that Twistneed has a history of betraying parties members, but I will need his strength if I am to survive the next game. I have gotten myself into a bit of a pickle.


Written by: Andrew Gregory