Editing Alignment (section)

===Palladium Good===
It bears mentioning that in Palladium's terminology, "Good" characters are ''not'' '''flawless'''. They can be and often are full of the same foibles, quirks, prejudices and tendencies to being obnoxious, irritating and arrogant as anyone else. But a character with a Good alignment will strongly tend towards doing the right thing and wanting others to be happy.

'''Principled:''' Morality is the definitive characteristic of a Principled character. These guys believe not only in good, but also the importance of law and order; they're team-players, whether as leaders or followers, and defined by their strong respect for not just a personal code of right and wrong, but the legal authorities of wherever they happen to be (unless, y'know, they're blatantly corrupt or evil). Basically, this is Palladium's Lawful Good alignment; the "boy scout", the "do gooder". Compassion, mercy, cooperation and sincerity are the watchwords of the Principled alignment, and these are their defining traits:
::1. Always keep his word.
::2. Avoid lies.
::3. Never kill or attack an unarmed foe.
::4. Never harm an innocent.
::5. Never torture for any reason.
::6. Never kill for pleasure.
::7. Always help others.
::8. Always work within the law whenever possible.
::9. Never break the law unless conditions are desperate. This means no breaking and entering, theft, torture, unprovoked assaults, etc.
::10. Respect authority, law, self-discipline and honor.
::11. Work well in a group.
::12. Never take “dirty” money, or ill-gotten valuables or goods. This means any property that belongs to criminals or villains. It matters not how the bad guys got that property themselves; the hero will not touch it even if destitute.
::13. Never betray a friend.

'''Scrupulous:''' Good is the end-all, be-all for Scrupulous characters; they're not inherently ''opposed'' to law and order, but if the choice comes down to between doing what's morally right and following the rules, then the rulebook can go hang. Life, freedom, and justice; these are the virtues that define a Scrupulous character, and in this they can be seen as the Chaotic Good to Principled's Lawful Good - though they come off as more the Neutral Good when compared to the Taoist, some would argue. A Scrupulous character will usually try to:
::1. Keep his word to any other good person.
::2. Lie only to people of selfish or evil alignments.
::3. Never attack or kill an unarmed foe.
::4. Never harm an innocent.
::5. Never torture for pleasure but may use muscle to extract information from criminals or evil characters.
::6. Never kill for pleasure, will always attempt to bring the villain to justice alive, no matter how vile he may find him.
::7. Always try to help others.
::8. Attempt to work within the law whenever possible.
::9. Bend and, occasionally, break the law when deemed necessary. This means he may use strong-arm techniques, harass, break and enter, steal, and so on (but only against the bad guys).
::10. Distrust authority; fears the law and government may not be an effective weapon against injustice and crime. However, he will try not to flagrantly disregard the law.
::11. Work with groups, but dislike confining laws and bureaucracy (red tape).
::12. Never take “dirty” money or items.
::13. Never betray a friend

'''Taoist:''' This is the forgotten one of the Palladium alignments, as it was introduced in the [[Ninjas & Superspies]] [[splatbook]] ''Mystic China'' and is intended to recapture the "benevolent but anarchic/disreputable" good-guys popular in wuxia films and their chop-sockey adaptations. Taoists aren't ''selfish'' in their alignment, but they're irresponsible, hedonistic even; the crux of their description is that they're torn between doing what's good and doing what's good for ''them''. Like the Scrupulous character, they're basically the Chaotic Good of Palladium, though with a bit more emphasis on the Chaotic side. The defining traits of a Taoist character are:
::1. Intend to keep their word of honor, when they give it. However, if things change, well...
::2. Avoid Lies (except in fun).
::3. Cheat whenever necessary.
::4. Will not kill an unarmed foe (but will take advantage of the situation).
::5. Never harm an innocent.
::6. Not use torture unless absolutely necessary.
::7. Never kill for pleasure.
::8. Usually help those in need.
::9. Refuse to take any position of leadership or authority, except in a short-term emergency.
::10. Ignore the law and the rules, whenever they feel they can get away with it. However, they will never violate the law for personal gain.
::11. Usually make fun of authority.
::12. Usually, but not always, stick by a friend.