Favorite R.A Salvatore character?

[wooaa]

Drizzt is acording to here http://forgottenrealms.wikia.com/wiki/Drizzt Chaotic good, however, he has nevver seemed to have a " screw the rules i am doing this becuse this is right" sorta moment. i have only just finished passage to dawn 2 days ago, the book about SPOLER! the reamurgence of the cristal shard and the return of Wulfger, and he seems to act like a neutrel or lawfull good. END SPOLER.

and the reson why our fave assasen didint just snipe our blue skined hero is because he is lawfull eviel, at least acording to the site i linked, wich meens that he has a set of rulles, as mest up as they are, and has a twisted sence of honer, wich is why he could not live without knowing who was better. he had given up evryithing to become one of the most skilled swodsmen on eastern farun, and yet Drizzt seems to have somthing that he can not stand, frends. Drizzt can have his cake and eat it too. Entrei could not aforde to have freinds in his profetion, and he was okay with it, but when he saw Drizzt, he had to destory him in order to prove to himself that he had not mad the wrong choses in life.

[torikamal]

Well, it's been a very long time since I have read any Drizzt stuff, but, his Chaotic Goodness could be argued to be correct simply for the fact that he completely threw out the ideals of Drow culture. Even though they were all evil, they still had laws, so he in fact committed a very chaotic act and has continued that act every day of his life.

Rebelling against evil law is still rebelling against law.

[wooaa]

hmmm, i never thought about it like that. it works.

[JSMany]

DeathKnight, I don't have the books with me but I have a vague memory of the magic masters in the academy mentioning something about Drizzt's gift in arcane arts. Then I think Drizzt said something about how he preferred the sure thing of the blades to the heart over uncertainty of magic on drows... but it could be that I'm trippin' again.

Also I could understand the importance of being the best blade in the world to Entreri, but I would have preferred him desiring to be the best assassin since that seems to fit his personality better. That's just my opinion though and I'm sure others disagree.

[DeathKnight1728]

Being the best assassin according to logic means almost nothing. An assassin can be anyone, fighter...mage...rogue..priest, you name it. Assassins are most always known to be stealthy people. Entreri is, but he is more of get in someone's face and say: what are you gonna do type of guy. He does use the shadows when he can, but not as much with drizzt. Artemis does have a code of honor like you say, but he doesn't always follow it. *SPOILER*-He still has that evil streak as i remember him losing a fight with a mage (as they all do). And then he uses his dagger to kill two homeless people to rejuvenate himself.
END SPOILERS

In reality these alignments mean almost nothing to me. I mean it's cool that they define a character, but where are you gonna find a guy in real life that says: "I'm not going to kill you, your unarmed, pick up a weapon and we'll see." Everyone knows that he will blow your head off in a second and then laugh about it or go to church....which makes no sense to me either. They just dont care.

Let's discuss this. Lawful evil from what i think, means they obey the laws out of fear of them. But doesnt everybody? The only thing that differentiates them is that they love when they can get away with something because of an inadequacy in laws. They thrive on that. This would be someone like Bernie Madoff. He used the loopholes and fault of the system to make money even though people were getting screwed.

Neutral Evil is the trickiest in my opinion. They will only break a law if they can get away with it. Which is why they are the sneakiest in my opinion. Chaotic evil are simple, they are the brute that beats someone down until they pass out. They will fight the cops when they arrive and hurt as many as neccessary. These type generally never last too long in my book. The reason being is that as i always say: He who makes the most noise, digs the first grave. I would like to say that the lawful evil and neutral evil are the tricky ones cause you dont know what to make of them.

[JSMany]

Yeah like you, I'm not too big on labeling a character with certain alignments either, since in reality, no one is ever so clearly defined. People are complicated and that means they don't always follow their principles, no matter what they may profess.

That's one reason political parties have such difficult time forcing their members to vote according to party lines because people aren't made of one idea and that idea alone. There are hardcore liberal democratic senators who do not believe in abortion while there are diehard republicans who believe in gay rights.

By labeling a character as a certain alignment and always have that character follow that alignment makes it boring and one dimensional. Best storytellers can create complex characters with conflicting principles while struggling to create a realistic resolution to such conflicts. This is where I have beef with Entreri.

Salvatore made it so that Entreri values being the best Swordsman more than being the best Assassin. There is a difference. The best swordsman will always win in sword fights while the best assassin will always get the kill. Entreri didn't get the kill with Drizzt and that drastically lowered his value as an assassin for a good period of time. Who would hire an assassin that places more importance on personal glory than getting the job done, especially when Entreri could have gotten that kill if he chose to forgo his personal need to validate himself through one on one battle with Drizzt?

[Maslow]

what does any of this have to do with the topic? can a mod clean this up or something?

[wooaa]

lets face it, Entreri is a little messed up in the head. at first he seemed to me like just a cold, calculateing criminal, he gets the job done and lets nothing distract him, and has nothing agenst killing. this comes along quite well when he took Catti-Brie hostage. however, once he met Drizzt, he began to fall apart and began to behave eraticly. but after he and Drizzt parted ways at the end of Starless Night he seemed to have returnned to normal, sorta.

and by the way, this is the forgoten rellm wiki defaniton of Lawful evil.

Lawful evil is the methodical, intentional, and frequently successful devotion to a cruel organized system. In 4th edition mechanics for Dungeons & Dragons lawful evil is found under the umbrella of the "evil" alignment.
A lawful evil character methodically takes what he wants within the limits of his personal code of conduct without regard for whom it hurts. He cares about tradition, loyalty, and order but not about freedom, dignity, or life. He plays by the rules but without mercy or compassion. He's comfortable in a hierarchy and would like to rule, but is willing to serve. He is loath to break promises, and he is therefore very cautious about giving his word unless a bargain is clearly in his favour.
This reluctance comes partly from his nature and partly because he depends on order to protect himself from those who oppose him on moral grounds. Some lawful evil villains have particular taboos, such as not killing in cold blood (but having underlings do it) or not letting children come to harm (if it can be helped). They feel these personal morals put them above unprincipled villains.
Many lawful evil characters use society and its laws for selfish advantages, exploiting the letter of the law over its spirit whenever it best suits their interests.
Some lawful evil people and creatures commit themselves to evil with a zeal like that of a crusader committed to good. Beyond being willing to hurt others for their own ends, they take pleasure in spreading evil as an end unto itself. They may also see doing evil as part of a duty to an evil deity or master.
Lawful evil is sometimes called "diabolical", because devils are the personification of lawful evil.
A tyrannical ruler who drafts the rules to suit himself, a corrupt lawyer or judge who uses the law to mask his own misdeeds, and the ruthless bosses and minions of organized crime are all examples of lawful evil characters.

END

this fits Entreri prity well in my opinion, he worked in a thives guilld for meny years, and wass winning to blay the tissted game of the guilld.

[wooaa]

Originally Posted by Maslow

what does any of this have to do with the topic? can a mod clean this up or something?

ya, sorry, but could you blame us? Din was the name of Drizzt's brother.

[JSMany]

Originally Posted by wooaa

ya, sorry, but could you blame us? Din was the name of Drizzt's brother.

Be that as it may, we should still respect the OP's wishes and post further comments, ideas, and theories on Misc section of the forum.