Has anyone here built a custom alignment in Dungeon World? I remember that Ramshackle Crow was a good-aligned Thief with “steal for the determent of the wicked.”*
The alignment section of the source book** provides a general guideline, but I’m looking for personal experiences. In a way, this reminds me of aspects from Fate and Fate Accelerated. Until I’ve seen several well-crafted ones, I think that I’ll have a hard time coming up with ones on my own.
*(http://discernrealities.libsyn.com/episode-1, timestamp 37:00)
** Dungeon World v1.2, p30-33
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I always jokingly refer to the alignment: rational human.
I always jokingly refer to the alignment: rational human.
Engineer: use something you found earlier to do something otherwise impossible
Engineer: use something you found earlier to do something otherwise impossible
That is pretty close to one of Sigil’s flags: Convince the party to go along with one of my wild ideas.
That is pretty close to one of Sigil’s flags: Convince the party to go along with one of my wild ideas.
I feel like, as I read this, it seems like custom alignments could be, essentially, one flag (perhaps even from the list in the play aids) that you hit yourself, instead of waiting for another character to do so.
I had people at the table who were hitting their own flags (justly complaining, involving themselves in risky schemes, chastising another for a cowardly approach) But no xp happening because it wasn’t prompted by another player!
I know this isnt 100% in the spirit of your question but, I couldn’t help but notice/mention it.
I feel like, as I read this, it seems like custom alignments could be, essentially, one flag (perhaps even from the list in the play aids) that you hit yourself, instead of waiting for another character to do so.
I had people at the table who were hitting their own flags (justly complaining, involving themselves in risky schemes, chastising another for a cowardly approach) But no xp happening because it wasn’t prompted by another player!
I know this isnt 100% in the spirit of your question but, I couldn’t help but notice/mention it.
That’s a good point.
That’s a good point.
I’ve done it once or twice. The only one I remember was for a Star Mage that I was playing as a kind of adventurer-archaeologist; she had the Drive/Alignment of Moth to the Flame: “Put yourself at risk to solve a puzzle or mystery.” It worked reasonably well, so long as I kept on the lookout for things to be unfathomably curious about.
I think the main desired quality with alignments, and the main pitfall to look out for when writing a custom one, is that they should be actions you can repeatedly, reliably take, not big undertakings that you can only pull off once an arc or what have you. They’re there to inform your actions on a daily basis.
The flag comparison is a good one. I actually learned it the other way around; to me, Flags are like an extension of Alignments, mechanically speaking.
I’ve done it once or twice. The only one I remember was for a Star Mage that I was playing as a kind of adventurer-archaeologist; she had the Drive/Alignment of Moth to the Flame: “Put yourself at risk to solve a puzzle or mystery.” It worked reasonably well, so long as I kept on the lookout for things to be unfathomably curious about.
I think the main desired quality with alignments, and the main pitfall to look out for when writing a custom one, is that they should be actions you can repeatedly, reliably take, not big undertakings that you can only pull off once an arc or what have you. They’re there to inform your actions on a daily basis.
The flag comparison is a good one. I actually learned it the other way around; to me, Flags are like an extension of Alignments, mechanically speaking.
Reliable: eagerly join a risky plan (beyond just being on the adventure)
Reliable: eagerly join a risky plan (beyond just being on the adventure)
I kind of like alignments as negative/limiting cues. Never take what doesn’t belong to you. Never ask for a reward. Never take prisoners… where your character draws the line. Of course you shouldn’t get any xp just because the situation never came up. You should get xp when you say ” I could have done things the easy way but my conscience wouldn’t allow it. We just had a situation where the other players set up an opportunity for our heavy hitter to sneak attack only to realise she was on a quest and could not honorably do so. The player could have chosen to dump the inconvenience and strike but instead they challenged the boss openly and it was great.
I kind of like alignments as negative/limiting cues. Never take what doesn’t belong to you. Never ask for a reward. Never take prisoners… where your character draws the line. Of course you shouldn’t get any xp just because the situation never came up. You should get xp when you say ” I could have done things the easy way but my conscience wouldn’t allow it. We just had a situation where the other players set up an opportunity for our heavy hitter to sneak attack only to realise she was on a quest and could not honorably do so. The player could have chosen to dump the inconvenience and strike but instead they challenged the boss openly and it was great.
Codes can be cool, but I don’t think they work very well for non-good alignments. And in general, I much prefer proactive prompts that lead to actions instead of prohibitions that just discourage actions; the carrot over the stick.
That quest example is a great example of blending the two, since openly challenging the boss was a cool, proactive choice to make!
Codes can be cool, but I don’t think they work very well for non-good alignments. And in general, I much prefer proactive prompts that lead to actions instead of prohibitions that just discourage actions; the carrot over the stick.
That quest example is a great example of blending the two, since openly challenging the boss was a cool, proactive choice to make!
I wonder if you could use Keys from Lady Blackbird or its ilk in lieu of alignments.
I wonder if you could use Keys from Lady Blackbird or its ilk in lieu of alignments.