BoP - Priests of Ruornil

[fhilbrandt]

I've been playing AD&D for over seventeen years, and I have a question I
hope others can answer.

In the BR Rulebook, priests of Ruornil are listed as "any neutral" for
available alignments. Going back to the original PH and DMG, this was
always interpreted as meaning LN, N, CN, NG, and NE. In the BoP, the
available alignments are listed as LN, N, and CN.

Why the difference, and why are NG and NE not acceptable for these
characters?

Fredrick Hilbrandt
fredrick.hilbrandt@worldnet.att.net

[Daniel McSorley]

From: Fredrick Hilbrandt

>In the BR Rulebook, priests of Ruornil are listed as "any neutral" for
>available alignments. Going back to the original PH and DMG, this was
>always interpreted as meaning LN, N, CN, NG, and NE. In the BoP, the
>available alignments are listed as LN, N, and CN.
>
>Why the difference, and why are NG and NE not acceptable for these
>characters?
>
it could just be a poorly worded line in the rulebook that they sought
to clarify in the BoP. Depending on how it was meant, "any neutral" could
have been intended to be "any" -ethical orientation and "neutral" -moral
orientation. I'd take the newer material as being more correct. I'm not
sure why the outruling of good and evil, but it could have to do with the
nature of the moon, which is neither good nor evil, but can be interpreted
many ways with regard to law and chaos. It follows a orderly path and
cycle, thus the law, but is associated with destructive forces, insanity
("luna"tics), crime rates, and lycanthropy, and so could be chaotic.

Daniel McSorley
mcsorley.1@osu.edu

[Ed Stark]

At 05:46 PM 12/3/97 -0500, you wrote:
>I've been playing AD&D for over seventeen years, and I have a question I
>hope others can answer.
>
>In the BR Rulebook, priests of Ruornil are listed as "any neutral" for
>available alignments. Going back to the original PH and DMG, this was
>always interpreted as meaning LN, N, CN, NG, and NE. In the BoP, the
>available alignments are listed as LN, N, and CN.
>
>Why the difference, and why are NG and NE not acceptable for these
>characters?
>
It was always my opinion that, on Cerilia, Good and Evil are a little more
important than Law and Chaos. Now, this is open for debate (especially to
make sure everything is in tune with your own game), but it seems someone
who is NG will place a stronger emphasis on Good than on true Neutrality
(and the same goes for NE and Evil). "I can do anything as long as it's
Good/Evil."

Ruornil values Neutrality as an alignment above all others. Law and Chaos
can be parts of Neutrality for Ruornil, but he stands firmly between Good
and Evil. He fights against the Shadow World not because it is Evil or
Good, but because of the disruption it causes to the world as a
whole--tipping the scales too far one way or the other.

That's my opinion, not to be confused with the right answer ;-)


-- ->-- ->-- ->--@
Ed Stark
Game Designer, Wizards of the Coast/TSR Division
Asst. Brand Manager, BIRTHRIGHT/GREYHAWK/MARVEL Group
TSR Website: http://www.tsrinc.com
(soon to be http://www.tsr.com)

[Tripp Elliott]

Fredrick Hilbrandt wrote:
>
> I've been playing AD&D for over seventeen years, and I have a question I
> hope others can answer.
>
> In the BR Rulebook, priests of Ruornil are listed as "any neutral" for
> available alignments. Going back to the original PH and DMG, this was
> always interpreted as meaning LN, N, CN, NG, and NE. In the BoP, the
> available alignments are listed as LN, N, and CN.
>
> Why the difference, and why are NG and NE not acceptable for these
> characters?
>
> Fredrick Hilbrandt
> fredrick.hilbrandt@worldnet.att.net

That's a good question, and not only that, but based on Medoere's
Sourcebook, I'd even be willing to allow a NG Paladin of Ruornil under
the right circumstances.

Tripp

[hobbychest@pcsia.co]

BI>That's a good question, and not only that, but based on Medoere's
BI>Sourcebook, I'd even be willing to allow a NG Paladin of Ruornil under
BI>the right circumstances.

I also looked at it this way. After reading Eds response though, I am
thinking maybe a paladin of Ruornil should be true N.

Robert Thomson
rthomson@geocities.com