She’s leaning more towards True Neutral with that one
Josh
There is no way she is True Neutral, she wouldn’t really care about the sign and certainly wouldn’t be a vigilante.
Aydr
Yeah, not even close. That one’s probably a chaotic neutral action.
Hoop
This is what we call Chaotic Asshole.
djaevlenselv
Honestly, I’m going back to Aizat and calling for chaotic good. She’s clearly doing this out out good intentions; she’s trying to prevent those guys from vandalising the sign. She’s just being very unorthodox about it, hence chaotic good. She probably intends to put the sign up again later, though whether she’ll actually get around to it is anyone’s guess.
Io
I fully support Chaotic Good in this discussion.
Because honestly, neutral and chaotic neutral would have given no shits about this vandalism, unless they lived near the sign and appreciated its function in their lives.
John
Alignment is the single worst concept ever introduced to RPGs.
Flushmaster
djaevlenselv makes some excellent points. I also endorse chaotic good.
@John: Untrue. It produces great conversations like this one.
Wixvhen
It’s only Chaotic Neutral/Good until somebody dies from flying off a cliff. Then it becomes chaotic evil. But hey, even Batman screwed up a few innocent lives, am I right?
John
If you consider disputes about which of nine ill-defined boxes a character must be crammed into to be “great” and not “pointless, limiting, and hostile to realistic characterization”, sure.
Personally, I’ve never seen any role-playing situation that an alignment debate couldn’t make worse.
Stephen
It’s only chaotic good if she leaves the sign at a campus security office.
Neospector
@John I fail to see why defining how good or evil your character is (with a lot higher variation than most video games, I might add) at all limits your creativity. Besides, alignments can change over time, so it’s not some constricting mechanism.
If I had a character that’s defined as chaotic good, how is that hostile to realistic character creation? I happens all the time in TV shows and anime:
Ichigo Kurosaki (Bleach) is pretty much Chaotic Good, does this mean he’s unrealistic as a character?
Roy Greenhilt (Order of the Stick) would be a solid Chaotic Good, is he also unrealistic?
And there’s Rhea Snaketail (Slightly Damned) who’s alternating between Chaotic Neutral and Neutral Good, as she tends to be somewhat mean, but caring at some times.
Really though, I just think that if you believe that classification is a limitation, you’re probably actually limiting yourself by believing that. It’s only a system to determine how you appear to people (like judging appearances. I wouldn’t sell to or party up with a Chaotic Evil character, would you?).
I also wanted to write something long, because I’m bored, so very, very bored…
miyto
@Neospecter: I wouldn’t call the first two good examples of your point. Rhea had been given the alignment chaotic neutral at the beginning, whereas if the other two were introduced by their alignment’s being stated, we would judge them by it thereafter.
For Rhea, you simply proved the other side of the argument, Rhea will be considered something close to chaotic neutral well after she has grown beyond it, simply because she was sentenced to the ‘ring of the slightly damned’ for being just barely not true neutral. I don’t think she is anything close to that initial definition now but I still think of her as ‘chaotic good’ because of that slight damnation.
The main reason ‘alignments’ are annoying is they add the stigma of definition, I personally would prefer D&D had adopted a ‘personality’ section instead of the black vs. white vs. grey [times] contrast ‘alignment’ section. Six options doesn’t give proper stereotyping, even with the ‘true ___’ options nine sets of stereotyping doesn’t give an accurate definition of any character, too many people will still assume that ‘their’ definition of ‘good’, ‘evil’, ‘neutral’, ‘chaotic’, and/or ‘lawful’ is the one that defines most of the character.
It makes it quite difficult for character growth to happen, because stereotypes stick for far longer than they are true.
Neospector
@miyto
To other characters they stick because that’s just how we are, we label things and we’re reluctant to change them. If you’re looking at the story from third-person view, you can see their change. That’s what causes all the “bullying” conflicts in movies about teenage angst. Since I’ve never played D&D, I can’t say personally for that, but for movies, books, and comics/manga/graphic novels, it’s a good plot device that drives the story along.
So in terms of plot, if you’re playing a game, it’s a good thing, as it generates internal (character struggle) and external (resentment held by NPCs or other characters) conflict. If you’re just playing around and you’re unconcerned of any plotline, well, I suppose then that’s when the limitations start popping up. Still, it’s incorrect to say that it limits “realistic characterization”; just because people see you as one alignment doesn’t make you that one alignment within the plot.
Well, would you look at that, 9th grade English actually was useful!
Funny thing it’s not really legal self-defense if you goaded them into attacking you. They might have thrown the first punch, but your actions weren’t “as necessary to dispel the immediate threat of violence” – in fact, they were “as necessary to cause an immediate threat of violence”.
And when (if) the police arrive, they will usually determine the defender/victim by looking at who lost. That’s if they don’t summarily arrest everyone, because everyone was fighting …
Did she actually give him back his can? I figured a blast of spray paint to the face was in his future. But I guess there’s a limit to how far she’ll bend the law.
Yup, pretty much the comment thread I have learned to love from you people.
John
Yeah, that’s the chief thing you can expect from DoA comment threads: dumb pun chains and perving on teenage girls. Two chief things: dumb pun chains, perving on teenage girls, and repetition of tired memes. Three chief things: dumb pun chains, perving on teenage girls, repetition of tired memes, and an almost fanatical dedication to referencing pop culture. Amongst the things… I’ll come in again.
You definitely shouldn’t expect the Spanish Inquisition, though.
Got a Yield sign on the inside of my bedroom door. Was actually stolen by one of my uncles when he was a teenager, so it’s officially a family heirloom.
Sharing time! Who else has state property adorning their living spaces?
Actually, I have several shields and armor pieces made out of road signs… it’s a good supply of cheap or free metal plate; DoT will often just give retired signs away to anyone willing to haul them off rather than going to the hassle and expense of scrapping them. And I’m keeper of the shire loaner gear, so everyone’s crappy first armor ends up in my garage.
But usually they’re cut up and shaped and used so that the sign side is on the inside, for appearances’ sake. The yield shield is just an unmodified yield sign, face-out, with edging and straps attached.
Don’t know if I got any of them left (I would have to check in the basement), but we did “find” the odd sign or other during my time in the boyscouts. Some of which at least temporary made it to my house.
208 thoughts on “Nonviolent”
Jen Aside
HAXX0RZ
timemonkey
Amazi-Girl has turned to the Dark Side, flee while you can!
Aizat
How can you cross the Dark Side when your action is Chaotic Good?
Resne
She’s leaning more towards True Neutral with that one
Josh
There is no way she is True Neutral, she wouldn’t really care about the sign and certainly wouldn’t be a vigilante.
Aydr
Yeah, not even close. That one’s probably a chaotic neutral action.
Hoop
This is what we call Chaotic Asshole.
djaevlenselv
Honestly, I’m going back to Aizat and calling for chaotic good. She’s clearly doing this out out good intentions; she’s trying to prevent those guys from vandalising the sign. She’s just being very unorthodox about it, hence chaotic good. She probably intends to put the sign up again later, though whether she’ll actually get around to it is anyone’s guess.
Io
I fully support Chaotic Good in this discussion.
Because honestly, neutral and chaotic neutral would have given no shits about this vandalism, unless they lived near the sign and appreciated its function in their lives.
John
Alignment is the single worst concept ever introduced to RPGs.
Flushmaster
djaevlenselv makes some excellent points. I also endorse chaotic good.
DCHorror
@John: Untrue. It produces great conversations like this one.
Wixvhen
It’s only Chaotic Neutral/Good until somebody dies from flying off a cliff. Then it becomes chaotic evil. But hey, even Batman screwed up a few innocent lives, am I right?
John
If you consider disputes about which of nine ill-defined boxes a character must be crammed into to be “great” and not “pointless, limiting, and hostile to realistic characterization”, sure.
Personally, I’ve never seen any role-playing situation that an alignment debate couldn’t make worse.
Stephen
It’s only chaotic good if she leaves the sign at a campus security office.
Neospector
@John I fail to see why defining how good or evil your character is (with a lot higher variation than most video games, I might add) at all limits your creativity. Besides, alignments can change over time, so it’s not some constricting mechanism.
If I had a character that’s defined as chaotic good, how is that hostile to realistic character creation? I happens all the time in TV shows and anime:
Ichigo Kurosaki (Bleach) is pretty much Chaotic Good, does this mean he’s unrealistic as a character?
Roy Greenhilt (Order of the Stick) would be a solid Chaotic Good, is he also unrealistic?
And there’s Rhea Snaketail (Slightly Damned) who’s alternating between Chaotic Neutral and Neutral Good, as she tends to be somewhat mean, but caring at some times.
Really though, I just think that if you believe that classification is a limitation, you’re probably actually limiting yourself by believing that. It’s only a system to determine how you appear to people (like judging appearances. I wouldn’t sell to or party up with a Chaotic Evil character, would you?).
I also wanted to write something long, because I’m bored, so very, very bored…
miyto
@Neospecter: I wouldn’t call the first two good examples of your point. Rhea had been given the alignment chaotic neutral at the beginning, whereas if the other two were introduced by their alignment’s being stated, we would judge them by it thereafter.
For Rhea, you simply proved the other side of the argument, Rhea will be considered something close to chaotic neutral well after she has grown beyond it, simply because she was sentenced to the ‘ring of the slightly damned’ for being just barely not true neutral. I don’t think she is anything close to that initial definition now but I still think of her as ‘chaotic good’ because of that slight damnation.
The main reason ‘alignments’ are annoying is they add the stigma of definition, I personally would prefer D&D had adopted a ‘personality’ section instead of the black vs. white vs. grey [times] contrast ‘alignment’ section. Six options doesn’t give proper stereotyping, even with the ‘true ___’ options nine sets of stereotyping doesn’t give an accurate definition of any character, too many people will still assume that ‘their’ definition of ‘good’, ‘evil’, ‘neutral’, ‘chaotic’, and/or ‘lawful’ is the one that defines most of the character.
It makes it quite difficult for character growth to happen, because stereotypes stick for far longer than they are true.
Neospector
@miyto
To other characters they stick because that’s just how we are, we label things and we’re reluctant to change them. If you’re looking at the story from third-person view, you can see their change. That’s what causes all the “bullying” conflicts in movies about teenage angst. Since I’ve never played D&D, I can’t say personally for that, but for movies, books, and comics/manga/graphic novels, it’s a good plot device that drives the story along.
So in terms of plot, if you’re playing a game, it’s a good thing, as it generates internal (character struggle) and external (resentment held by NPCs or other characters) conflict. If you’re just playing around and you’re unconcerned of any plotline, well, I suppose then that’s when the limitations start popping up. Still, it’s incorrect to say that it limits “realistic characterization”; just because people see you as one alignment doesn’t make you that one alignment within the plot.
Well, would you look at that, 9th grade English actually was useful!
Jenny Creed
I’m going with Creative Good.
Kirt Dankmyer
Amazi-Girl is the gritty superhero of the 21st century.
Raibean
Amazi-Girl is nonviolent now?
Jon P
Violence in response to violent crime is one thing.
Violence in response to nonviolent crime is a little more frowned upon.
Robin
Tell that to Disproportionate Response Man.
John
aka The Punisher.
SUGauthor
She’s only violent in self defense.
xKiv
Funny thing it’s not really legal self-defense if you goaded them into attacking you. They might have thrown the first punch, but your actions weren’t “as necessary to dispel the immediate threat of violence” – in fact, they were “as necessary to cause an immediate threat of violence”.
And when (if) the police arrive, they will usually determine the defender/victim by looking at who lost. That’s if they don’t summarily arrest everyone, because everyone was fighting …
Plasma Mongoose
The crime they were doing was nonviolent in nature unlike what happened with Joyce and Ryan.
Yotomoe
Did Amazi-girl do anything violent to Ryan?
Aizat
No, he just looked that way.
TPman
Clumsy guy, tends to fall down the stairs a lot. Often lands on somebody’s fists.
Schmookie
…he fell down the stairs on somebody’s fists nine times.
Ren
HE HAD IT COMING! HE HAD IT COMING! HE ONLY HAD HIMSELF TO BLAAAAAME!
*pop* *six* *squish* *uh-uh* *Cicero* *Lipschitz*
girly2k
It’s Amazi-Tits. They clarified that in the last strip (or two strips ago?)
timemonkey
No, but only because she couldn’t find him.
ProjectXa3
It’s like the Warners, or Bugs Bunny. Physicality is only permissible in retaliation or for the protection of another.
Andiemus
Bugs Bunny definitely instigated some violence in his day.
Notebooked
I always thought the Warners saw being annoying as being a crime. I might be misremembering — Slappy Squirrel definitely did, though.
Aizat
First, do not harm. Unless you mean to do harm, give them lots of harm.
T Campbell
Did she actually give him back his can? I figured a blast of spray paint to the face was in his future. But I guess there’s a limit to how far she’ll bend the law.
John
She never had the can.
Yotomoe
She has some nice cans.
John
Amazing, even.
ProjectXa3
AMAZI-CANS!!
Aizat
AMAZI-CAN-CANS!!
Plasma Mongoose
Can it! 😛
Roborat
Yup, pretty much the comment thread I have learned to love from you people.
John
Yeah, that’s the chief thing you can expect from DoA comment threads: dumb pun chains and perving on teenage girls. Two chief things: dumb pun chains, perving on teenage girls, and repetition of tired memes. Three chief things: dumb pun chains, perving on teenage girls, repetition of tired memes, and an almost fanatical dedication to referencing pop culture. Amongst the things… I’ll come in again.
You definitely shouldn’t expect the Spanish Inquisition, though.
Plasma Mongoose
You forgot the partridge in the pear tree. 😛
Prior Semblance
It kind of looked like she took it yesterday but that’s actually his hand
Plasma Mongoose
That is like preventing a purse snatching by kidnapping the owner of said purse.
Yotomoe
Or preventing a school fight by beating everyone up first.
Plasma Mongoose
or preventing a war by blitzkrieg.
Yotomoe
Preventing alcoholism by getting them addicted to crack.
Aizat
something something a something something
Yotomoe
Try to save a drowning person with a fire hose.
Aizat
Try to help a burn victim with leather.
Yotomoe
Trying to diet in a Cheese Cake Factory.
Aizat
Lighting a match in a dynamite room.
TPman
Curing a man’s arachnophobia by strangling him to death.
TPman
Launching a smear campaign against a much-beloved public figure so that no one feels sad when he gets kidnapped.
Campor
Stopping the robbery of a jewelry store by stealing the store.
Andrusi
Preventing someone from taking over the world by destroying the world.
Notebooked
Giving to charity by robbing a bank.
fatemaster1
Stopping child abuse by killing all the children.
Wonder Wig
I have a No Parking sign in my room. Amazi-Girl and I are best friends.
Deimir
Got a Yield sign on the inside of my bedroom door. Was actually stolen by one of my uncles when he was a teenager, so it’s officially a family heirloom.
Sharing time! Who else has state property adorning their living spaces?
Io
I have a 30mph speed limit sign that fell off in a storm on the wall over my bed.
Because road traffic innuendo is awesome.
Also we have a stop sign. This one is too darn big by about a half inch to actually fit on a bedroom door.
John
I have a shield I made out of a yield sign.
Actually, I have several shields and armor pieces made out of road signs… it’s a good supply of cheap or free metal plate; DoT will often just give retired signs away to anyone willing to haul them off rather than going to the hassle and expense of scrapping them. And I’m keeper of the shire loaner gear, so everyone’s crappy first armor ends up in my garage.
But usually they’re cut up and shaped and used so that the sign side is on the inside, for appearances’ sake. The yield shield is just an unmodified yield sign, face-out, with edging and straps attached.
Lukkai
Don’t know if I got any of them left (I would have to check in the basement), but we did “find” the odd sign or other during my time in the boyscouts. Some of which at least temporary made it to my house.
Axel Bordelon
My roommate gave me a traffic cone that his friend stole and snuck in his room once.
SUGauthor
Those guys were obnoxious.
Safgaftsa
I’d like to see where this is going.
General Tekno
Calling it now – the fact that there’s no “Dead End” sign at that juncture will come back down the road.
Yotomoe