In Labyrinth Lord, all beings, whether characters or monsters, adhere to one of three philosophies or spheres of behavior. These spheres are Law, Neutrality, and Chaos. A player must choose one of these paths when his character is created. The different alignments are described below. Note that although players should do their best to adhere to one of these spheres, the Labyrinth Lord will take note when behavior deviates too much from their chosen alignment and he may assign a new alignment more appropriate to actual character actions. All alignments have alignment languages. In addition to the common tongue and other languages known, as indicated by class, adherents of a particular alignment share an alignment language that only they understand.

Law: Lawful beings believe in truth and justice. To this end, they will follow laws and believe all things must adhere to order. Lawful beings also believe in sacrifice to a greater good, and will choose the good of a larger group over the good of an individual.

Neutrality: Neutral beings are more self-centered. They believe in a balance between the ideas of law and chaos, and in their actions they tend to do what will serve themselves. They might commit good or evil acts in order to further their own ends, and generally will not put others’ needs ahead of their own.

Chaos: Chaotic beings are in direct opposition to law. These beings should be seldom trusted, for they tend to act in “evil” ways and will be much more selfish than a neutral being. Chaotic characters believe in chance and that there should be no innate order to life.

Labyrinth Lord Complete

Not even a little bit true.

Alignments are not elective philosophies, that if you fail to choose you inherit “neutral/selfish”. They are Faiths. They determine the values you hold in life, what you believe the role of mankind is upon the world, and they very much are directly relevant to what happens when you die. If you stray too far from your Alignment, the Labyrinth Lord will not assign a new Alignment. You will be ostracized by those of your current Alignment, those with the ability to detect Alignment will be able to tell that you have lapsed, and those of opposing Alignments will target you for conversion (or sacrifice, as it happens).

The good news is that in addition to Law, Chaos, and the Balance; characters may elect to simply be Un-aligned, and leave all that drama behind them. The souls of Un-aligned characters are very much at the mercy of the actions of those who have Alignment, however.

Law: Characters aligned with Law are aligned with the Pantheon of Civilized Gods, and the Holy Empire of Byzantium (whose royal lineages serve their will). Civilization, Reputation, Commitment, Security, and Community Power are the virtues of Lawful Alignment. The correct path for a person has already been determined by the gods. There are good people and evil people of Lawful Alignment. Regardless, they are at war with the forces of Chaos; standards of conduct that apply to civilized behaviour to not apply to those of Chaos. Those who can employ the miracles of the Pantheon of Civilized Gods are known as clerics.

Chaos: Characters aligned with Law are aligned with the Blood of Tiamat, and the Cthonic forces from beyond space and time that seek to unmake the world and render a paradise. Freedom, Independence, Flexibility, Pragmatism, and Personal Power are the virtues of Chaotic Alignment. The correct path for a person depends on their goals and strength, the gods be damned. There are good people and evil people of Chaotic Alignment, although there are very few good organizations devoted to Chaos. Regardless, the forces of Law are at war with Chaos, and will seek to enslave and exploit the followers of Tiamat at every step; courtesy and honesty are meant for those who don’t seek to exterminate you. Those who can employ the miracles of the Cthonic Powers are known as cultists or necromancers. Those who can employ the roiling spell-energies of Chaos to their own ends are know as magic-users.

The Balance: Characters aligned with the Balance are aligned with the powers of nature (which includes things that might be reckoned supernatural as well as natural), and the balance between law and chaos that allows the world to thrive. Curiosity, Fellowship, Stewardship, Compromise, and Personal Responsibility are the virtues of the Balance. There are good and evil people of Balanced Alignment; the easiest way to spot the difference is whether they are sacrificing for the greater good or getting other people to sacrifice for the greater good. There are no miracles of the Neutral Powers, but there are Druids: magic-users whose source of magic is not the powers of Chaos that lie beyond space and time, but rather the energies of the world and those who live upon it.