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Birthright-L
09-12-2003, 05:32 PM
The following material is from d20Modern. I have mentioned before that I

believe a lot of d20modern concepts and rules are more appropriate for

Birthright then D&D concepts and rules. The recent talks of alignment

prompted me to post this section on Allegiances. This material is Open Game

Content, and is licensed for public use under the terms of the Open Game

License v1.0a.



ALLEGIANCES



The allegiances system is optional.



A character may have up to three allegiances, listed in order from most

important to least important. These allegiances are indications of what the

character values in life, and may encompass people, organizations, or

ideals. A character may have no allegiances (being either a free spirit or a

lone wolf) or may change allegiances as he or she goes through life. Also,

just because the character fits into a certain category of people doesn’t

mean the character has to have that category as an allegiance.

If the character acts in a way that is detrimental to his or her allegiance,

the GM may choose to strip the character of that allegiance (and all its

benefits) and assign an allegiance more suitable to those actions.



Pledging Allegiance

A hero’s allegiance can take the form of loyalty to a person, to an

organization, to a belief system, to a nation, or to an ethical or moral

philosophy. In general, a character can discard an allegiance at any time,

but may only gain a new allegiance after attaining a new level.

Having an allegiance implies having sufficient intelligence and wisdom to

make a moral or ethical choice. As a result, a character must have

Intelligence and Wisdom scores of 3 or higher in order to select

allegiances.



Allegiances include, but are not limited to, the following examples.

Person or Group: This includes a leader or superior, a family, a group of

linked individuals (such as a band of adventurers or a cell of secret

agents), or a discrete unit within a larger organization (such as members of

the character’s squad or platoon, or individuals whose safety the character

is responsible for).

Organization: This may be a company or corporation, a gathering of

like-minded individuals, a fraternal brotherhood, a secret society, a branch

of the armed forces, a local, state, or national government, a university,

an employer, or an otherwise established authority.

Nation: This may or may not be the nation that the hero currently resides

in. It may be where the individual was born, or where the hero resides after

emigrating to a new home.

Belief System: This is usually a particular faith or religion, but can also

be a specific philosophy or school of thought. Belief systems could also

include political beliefs or philosophical outlooks.

Ethical Philosophy: This describes how one feels about order, as represented

by law and chaos. An individual with a lawful outlook tends to tell the

truth, keep his or her word, respect authority, and honor tradition, and he

or she expects others to do likewise. An individual with a chaotic outlook

tends to follow his or her instincts and whims, favor new ideas and

experiences, and behave in a subjective and open manner in dealings with

others.

Moral Philosophy: This describes one’s attitude toward others, as

represented by good and evil. An individual with a good allegiance tends to

protect innocent life. This belief implies altruism, respect for life, and a

concern for the dignity of other creatures. An evil allegiance shows a

willingness to hurt, oppress, and kill others, and to debase or destroy

innocent life.



Allegiances and Influence

An allegiance can create an empathic bond with others of the same

allegiance. With the GM’s permission, the character gains a +2 circumstance

bonus on Charisma-based skill checks when dealing with someone of the same

allegiance—as long as the character has had some interaction with the other

character to discover the connections and bring the bonus into play.



-Lord Rahvin