Baby Monster Dilemma
The Orc Baby Dilemma (more generally called the "baby monster dilemma") is a question used to challenge the alignment of Paladins (especially to distinguish the Lawful Good from the Lawful Stupid). It sometimes refers to a contrived situation concocted by That DM to force a Paladin to fall.
The dilemma is usually presented thus: during a raid on an Orc encampment (or some place of residence of evil creatures), the players come across an orc child. They are forced to make a choice of:
- Sparing the child, risking him or her growing up into an evil creature, or
- Killing the child, which is frowned upon because the child isn't evil yet.
A poor DM can use any choice to shoehorn the paladin into falling, while a good party can make a choice that isn't a strawman and has a fair chance of leading to a good outcome (or at least an interesting one).
See Also
- Lamia child, in which the character chooses option number 3: adopt the child.