D&D Alignment Chart: The 9 Alignments With Examples
The D&D alignment chart is a 3x3 grid that crosses two axes: law versus chaos (respect for rules and order) and good versus evil (care for others). That gives nine alignments, from lawful good to chaotic evil, with true neutral in the center. Alignment describes a character's outlook; it does not force their choices.
What is the D&D alignment chart?
Alignment is a two-word shorthand for a character's moral and ethical outlook. The first word answers "how do you feel about rules, tradition and order?" (lawful, neutral or chaotic). The second answers "how much do you care about other people?" (good, neutral or evil). Put the two axes on a grid and you get the famous 3x3 alignment chart.
| Lawful | Neutral | Chaotic | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good | Lawful good Does the right thing through duty and honor. Examples: a paladin of justice, a fair town guard captain, Superman. | Neutral good Helps people, uses or ignores rules as needed. Examples: a village healer, a cleric of mercy, Samwise Gamgee. | Chaotic good Follows their conscience, distrusts authority. Examples: a rebel archer, a freedom-fighting rogue, Robin Hood. |
| Neutral | Lawful neutral Order, codes and loyalty come first. Examples: an incorruptible judge, a monk bound by tradition, a by-the-book soldier. | True neutral Avoids taking sides or values balance. Examples: a druid protecting the natural order, a hired guide, most farmers. | Chaotic neutral Personal freedom above all, follows whims. Examples: a wandering bard, a free-spirited sellsword, Jack Sparrow. |
| Evil | Lawful evil Takes what it wants within a code or hierarchy. Examples: a tyrant king, a devil keeping a contract to the letter, Darth Vader. | Neutral evil Purely selfish, loyal to no one. Examples: an assassin for hire, a poisoner, a scheming advisor. | Chaotic evil Cruelty and destruction on impulse. Examples: a demon, a bandit warlord who burns villages, the Joker. |
A tenth option, unaligned, covers creatures with no capacity for moral choice: most beasts, oozes and constructs. A wolf hunting deer isn't evil; it's hungry.
What does each alignment mean?
The good alignments
- Lawful good (LG): believes society works best with fair rules, and keeps their word even when it costs them. Risk at the table: becoming the party's scold. Play it as principled, not preachy.
- Neutral good (NG): the "just help people" alignment. Will work with a lord or against one, depending on who's doing the most good.
- Chaotic good (CG): kind-hearted but allergic to authority. Breaks unjust laws, frees prisoners, ignores orders that hurt innocents.
The neutral alignments
- Lawful neutral (LN): the law, the guild charter or the order's code is the point, whether it helps or harms. Great for NPC officials and inquisitors.
- True neutral (N): either uninterested in moral questions or actively working to keep good and evil in balance.
- Chaotic neutral (CN): does what they want when they want, without malice. The hardest to play well; "chaotic neutral" is not permission to derail the session.
The evil alignments
- Lawful evil (LE): methodical and self-serving, but bound by rules, contracts or rank. Devils are the textbook case.
- Neutral evil (NE): does whatever benefits them and feels nothing about it. No code, no rage, just self-interest.
- Chaotic evil (CE): violent, unpredictable and hateful. Demons, raiders who burn villages for sport, and the cultists your party fights at level 3.
Does alignment do anything in the 2024 rules?
Very little, by design. The 2024 Player's Handbook still includes the nine alignments as part of filling in your character's details, but treats them as a roleplaying aid. A few concrete differences between editions:
- Species: the 2014 race descriptions suggested typical alignments ("most dwarves are lawful"). The 2024 species have none.
- Spells: spells such as Protection from Evil and Good target creature types like fiends and undead, not alignment, in both editions.
- Magic items: a handful of older items, such as the Talisman of Pure Good from the 2014 Dungeon Master's Guide, care about alignment. They are the exception.
So alignment is mostly a conversation tool: it tells the DM and the other players roughly how your character will react when the party finds a chest of stolen gold.
How do you choose an alignment for your character?
- Start with the concept, not the label. Decide what your character wants and what they would never do. Then find the box that fits.
- Check your background and class story. A Soldier who served loyally leans lawful; a Criminal who fled their gang might be chaotic good or neutral.
- Ask about the table's limits. Many DMs ban evil alignments, and almost all of them ban "evil and refuses to cooperate."
- Pick the one that creates good scenes. A lawful good paladin in a party of chaotic rogues is a fun source of conflict, as long as everyone still wants to adventure together.
If you're stuck, the character generator can roll a concept, and the full creation steps are in how to make a D&D character.
How should a DM use alignment?
For a DM, alignment is fastest as an NPC prompt. When the players suddenly question a shopkeeper you invented ten seconds ago, "lawful neutral" tells you he'll stick to the posted price and call the guard if threatened. "Neutral evil" tells you he'll sell them out to the thieves' guild by sundown. The NPC generator gives you a ready-made personality to pair with an alignment.
Don't use alignment as a penalty. Telling a player "that's not what a lawful good character would do" usually ends a scene badly. A better approach is to show consequences in the world: the temple stops offering healing, the paladin's order sends a letter. Let the character's alignment change if their actions keep pointing somewhere new.
Is chaotic neutral evil?
No, and this is the most argued-over box on the chart. A chaotic neutral character puts their own freedom first, but has no drive to hurt others. Stealing from a rich merchant because they felt like it fits; murdering the merchant for fun is chaotic evil. If a chaotic neutral character keeps making the party's life worse, the problem is usually the player's choices, not the alignment.
FAQ
What are the 9 alignments in D&D?
Lawful good, neutral good, chaotic good, lawful neutral, true neutral, chaotic neutral, lawful evil, neutral evil and chaotic evil. Creatures with no moral sense, such as most animals, are unaligned.
What is the most common alignment for D&D characters?
Most player characters are some flavor of good, and chaotic good and neutral good are popular choices because they allow heroism without strict codes. Many tables ban evil alignments to keep the party working together.
Does alignment matter in D&D 2024?
Very little mechanically. The 2024 Player's Handbook still lists the nine alignments as a roleplaying aid, but species no longer suggest typical alignments, and almost no class features or spells depend on them.
What is the difference between chaotic neutral and chaotic evil?
A chaotic neutral character values personal freedom and follows whims, but does not set out to hurt people. A chaotic evil character acts on selfish or violent impulses with no concern for who gets hurt.
Can your alignment change in D&D?
Yes. Alignment describes how a character tends to act, so if their behavior changes over a campaign, the player and DM can update it. A paladin's oath or a cleric's deity may make the change matter more at some tables.
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Contains content from the System Reference Document 5.1 and 5.2 by Wizards of the Coast LLC, used under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.