With season four of Game of Thrones coming to a close, we’re doing all we can to savor the time until the finale is here. It’s weird that we’ll miss watching beloved characters die every week, but that’s what Game of Thrones does to you. With all of the excitement that happened in Westeros and Meereen in the past few months, it’s easy to get confused about who did what. Some characters have taken a darker turn this season while others still retain a glimmer of hope. Let’s take a look at where some of the large cast of characters stand in regards to Dungeons & Dragons alignments.
Warning: spoilers through “The Watchers on the Wall.â€
Tyrion Lannister – Neutral
The youngest child of Tywin Lannister is a mixed bag. He used to care about the overall kingdom, but no one listened to him. He’s incredibly smart, but I think even he was surprised to see how careless his sister was with the throne. He generally thinks good is better than evil, but he doesn’t devote himself to upholding what is right. Not anymore. He acts naturally and does whatever he thinks to be a good idea.
Daenerys Targaryen – Neutral Good
Daenerys Targaryen hasn’t had an easy path. She’s gone from a naïve girl to a queen in a few years. She’s conquered cities and freed slaves and had to mete out punishment to slavers. She tries to do the best good that she can do because she ultimately wants to help others. Sometimes her ideas of justice are extreme and cruel, but she wants to do what is best for those that are in need. She’s wavered into Chaotic Good territory, but we’ve seen Jorah pull her back. She may develop more in that direction now that he’s gone.
Jon Snow – Chaotic Good
Jon Snow is a difficult character to read. He’s honorable, but he doesn’t blindly follow those in charge. He isn’t afraid to question people like Alliser Thorne, and he’s stepped in when Thorne has bullied his brothers. He also broke the rules of the Night’s Watch by being with Ygritte. He follows his own moral compass even if it doesn’t necessarily agree with the Watch, and I think we’ll see more that now that he’s more or less in charge at Castle Black.
Cersei Lannister – Neutral Evil
Say what you will about Cersei Lannister, she loves her children. Tyrion called that her one redeeming quality. Everything she does is motivated by looking out for herself and her family. Well, not Tyrion. She doesn’t weep over those she has killed, and she knows what she is. She isn’t full on Chaotic Evil because she does keep politics in mind. For example, she wouldn’t have beheaded Ned Stark in order to keep the peace.
Brienne of Tarth – Lawful Good
Brienne of Tarth is one of few people I’d consider to be Lawful Good in the entire realm (Ser Barristan Selmy is another). She is honorable and opposed to evil, and she doesn’t give up on her missions. She’s committed to finding Sansa Stark even though the person who gave her that task – Catelyn Stark – is dead. While she hates to see the guilty go unpunished, she does have room for understanding and forgiveness.
Arya Stark – Lawful Neutral
The middle Stark has walked a darker path this season as she’s traveled with the Hound. Killing others is becoming easier for her, but she only uses Needle when she feels like the victim deserves it. She sees it as bringing justice to those who have wronged her and her family. She might kill in self-defense but other than that, she follows her own personal code and it’s important to her. She hasn’t reached a point where she’ll kill anyone like the Hound.
Joffrey Baratheon – Chaotic Evil
When I picture the worst of the worst in Game of Thrones, I think of Joffrey Baratheon. Tywin and Cersei Lannister are twisted and bad, but Joffrey was unstable and cruel. He did whatever his emotions demanded, and that usually ended horribly. He pumped Ros full of crossbow bolts, tormented his uncle, and had Ned Stark beheaded all because that’s what he wanted. He never cared how his actions affected his family or his kingdom.
Agree or disagree with these alignments? Jump to the comments and share your opinions.
I think like Travis Marcum
I disagree with Tyrion and Arya. I would think that Tyrion enbodies Neutral Good to a tee and as for Ayra, I’d have to go with True Neutral.
I Agree with the tyrion statement but i dont believe Arya is at true neutral just yet, she still carries needle, meaning she still cares for Jon and weve seen her act kindly to those who act kindly to her
I disagree with nearly all these alignment assignments.
Tyrion is the definition of Neutral Good. He genuinely wants what is best for the greater good of the people in general, and he’ll follow the law to get there if he can, but he isn’t afraid to bend the rules to make the good work.
Daenerys is a bit more debatable. Neutral Good or Chaotic Good. I lean Chaotic Good. She’s making her own rules, but even then, she bends them or breaks them more or less at her whim.
Jon Snow, I would say is Neutral Good. He has flashes of chaotic behavior, but his tendency is and goals are much like Tyrion’s — he’ll follow the rules if he can, he’ll bend them when he can’t. Even if his flashes of deepest rebellion, he’s pretty easily steered back on to the path of oath and law.
Cersei — I would love to make an argument otherwise, but I think she’s more or less exactly that, Neutral Evil. Spot on.
Brienne, Lawful Good all the way. Thumbs up.
Arya is /NOT/ Lawful. In fact, I would go so far as to say she’s one of the most Neutral (no addendums) characters in the series. Her whole shtick is that she patently violates the norms that society would set down for her. Her gender and status would have her be a pretty little lady, sewing and scheming like Sansa. She played knights with the butcher’s boy instead. And it only gets worse, the longer it goes.
Joffrey. Oh, Joffrey. While I could make a somewhat cogent argument for him actually being Chaotic Neutral, in my heart of hearts, I think you’re right. Chaotic Evil.
If you want to look at interesting alignment studies, there are a lot of really compelling characters in the second strong, Davos Seaworth and Mellisandre both, in my mind, would be Lawful Good. But both have very strange plans and paths heading toward that alignment.
Joffrey is lawful evil. He doesn’t break the law, the law is the word of the king, his word. He uses that fact to be an evil bastard.
Otherwise spot on with your reeval
Joffrey is not lawful. He has no code of anything he lives by. Again, as I said, lawful doesn’t just mean the laws of the land. Lawful can mean a set of ethics, of which, the character will not stray. Joffrey did what he wanted when he wanted for whatever reason he wanted and that is the almost the true definition of chaotic. Chaotic characters aren’t predictable. Lawful characters are predictable (even evil ones…for example, Two-Face was lawful evil because he set out the rule that he would flip the coin and follow through with the choice it gave him. He may have been psychotic, but he was predictable in this way and the coin was his ethical code). Joffrey had no such qualms. He could be nice one second and crazily evil the next. He had no code of ethics he followed which makes him choatic evil.
I would disagree with you about Arya not being Lawful Neutral. Lawful doesn’t, necessarily, mean the laws of the land. Lawful, more often than not, means a character’s moral code. For some characters (Brienne) their code is to follow the laws of the land. For others, it means they follow their own set of laws and do not stray from them. She’s not chaotic (does whatever she wants on a whim) and she’s not really just neutral either (she has given herself a purpose for which she strives). She’s looking for justice for those that wronged her, but she is going about it as straightforward as she can. She’s not killing people just because they are in her way. Her moral code is what keeps her on the lawful scale.
Theon *Reek* Greyjoy is Chaotic Neutral.
I can see where they’re going with Arya, but I’ve always seen Stannis as the poster boy for Lawful Neutral. Arya I see as more Neutral.
A couple gaps I’d have filled in the chart: Tywin as Lawful Evil, and Bronn as Chaotic Neutral.
I don’t know if I’d consider Tywin evil. Sure he’s manipulative but really, he’s just a battle commander doing what he does best. I’d consider him more lawful neutral than anything (although closer to the evil alignment than the good one). He has a code he lives by (lawful) and his acts aren’t particularly evil or good. Bronn is definitely chaotic neutral. I can totally see Arya as lawful neutral. She has a code she lives by and a purpose that suits her that’s neither good or evil in nature.
I view most of these as wrong.
Joffrey Baratheon isn’t chaotic, he’s sadistic and willing to use any pretext to harm others.
Arya Stark isn’t Lawful. She simply wants revenge and freedom. If anything she’s Chaotic Neutral.
Jon Snow isn’t Chaotic. He takes is vows as a Night’s Watchmen very seriously and follows damn near every order he’s given by his commanders. He also never acts against those in charge of the Night’s Watch even when they’re being idiots. He’s Lawful Good.
Dani is actually a weird one because her goal is to become queen, but damn near everything she’s done as queen has been to increase the freedom and equality of the slaves and smallfolk while decreasing the power of the former masters. So all three places on the Good spectrum.
Tyrion is not true neutral. He has shown that when his life isn’t on the line, and there are people suffering around him, he goes out of his way to protect and care for those who haven’t treated him like shit. He is probably the most empathetic and compassionate character on the show. He is basically the epitome of Neutral Good.
You left out Ned Stark. That was the true definition of lawful stupid, I mean good.
Jon is all lawful. Sure he bailed on his oath, but only to answer his father’s murder with justice, and even though, all it took was for him to be reminded of it. He never disobeys Thorne during his tenure. Also, I see where you’re coming from with Arya, but I feel like if she’s lawful, it would have to be Lawful Evil, her behavior is exclusively selfish. She doesn’t kill the hound in his sleep, and she knows him to be a murderer. LN would kill him. Maybe CN?
And Daenarys is CG, all the way, always has been. Targaryens care nothing for the laws of Gods or men. Just because she doesn’t behave in a chaotic manner doesn’t mean she isn’t chaotic. She overthrows Kingdoms, she topples social orders, she crucifies murderers. CG. She acts according to her own ideals of right and wrong, ignoring any notions of the greater good or mortal law to dispense the justice she sees fit.
Arya is NOT Lawful Neutral. I would call her Neutral or Chaotic Neutral. Her heart’s in the right place (usually) but she’ll do anything she has to do to get where she wants to get.
And I think Jon Snow is more Lawful Good. Honorable and dedicated to Night’s Watch. Just because chaos surrounds him doesn’t mean HE is chaotic.
Totally agree. ESPECIALLY about Joffery.
Jon Snow seems more Neutral Good than Chaotic good, he’s not Chaotic.
Hound = Chaotic NeutralTywin = Lawful Evil
That should be: Hound = Chaotic Neutral; Tywin = Lawful Evil
Nope. Completely mislabeled both Arya and Tyrion. Tyrion is clearly NG – he’s always trying to serve good, as best he can given his circumstances. And how on earth is Arya “lawful?” She stabs *everyone.* She’s absolutely CG.
I’d argue Jon Snow is NG. He’s not chaotic in any way. In fact, the only thing that keeps him from being LG is his stint beyond the wall. In fact, most of the “good guys” in GoT are NG, just as in the game itself.
And I think I’d place Dany in the LN or even LG realm – she’s got a rigid ideology that (we hope) bends toward good. That said, depending upon how she jumps (and how cagey the DM is about what “evil” means), you could even slide her into the LE column (tho, as a DM, I’d say she’s far from evil).
Arya follows a strict code which makes her lawful, her actions of following out her code make her not good but neutral.
I agree Jon is definitely not Chaotic good but Neutral Good.
What the heck is her code? “Kill people I don’t like?” I could see a case made for Book 5 Arya being lawful, but TV Arya definitely isn’t there yet; she’s just doing whatever she can to survive. A code needs to be much stronger than that to make someone lawful.
Jon, on the other hand, I would call Lawful Good. He has a really strong personal code, as well as being dedicated to the Night’s Watch. He stumbled a couple of times with his vows, but his tendency is still to respect them, and even that was part of his direct orders to fit in as well as he can.
She’s doing whatever she can to survive, really? Is that why she told The Hound he didn’t need to kill that farmer when they clearly could have benefited from doing so? She doesn’t kill willy-nilly. She kills those she perceives as having wronged her in some way. Just so happens to be a lot of people currently. She is completely lawful neutral. Neutral because her “mission” in life right now is more selfish than not. Lawful because she has a personal code she’s living by. If she wasn’t lawful she’d be more than willing to become a lawless bandit robbing the poor if they had something she needed or a means to an end for her but she doesn’t. She obeys her “I’ve been raised right” inner laws as best she can.
Mostly right. I’d place Tyrion as Chaotic Good since, even though he does mostly act out of self interest, he usually tries to do the ‘right’ thing. He may not be as heroic as Jon Snow, but he’s not so morally ambiguous as to be true Neutral.
Others I can think of… Ned Stark would (perhaps more obviously than any other character) be Lawful Good to the extreme. Little Finger is probably Neutral Evil since he will kill and manipulate anyone, but only if it serves his greater goal.
Ned Stark would be Lawful Neutral. Beheading a deserter is not a good act. I
I agree with you on Littlefinger.
Except that the deserter could have saved a lot of lives if instead of deserting the Wall, he rushed back and told them what he found. Also, I see Littlefinger as Chaotic Evil because of how he states his view of Chaos and the fact that basically every act he’s done other than saving Sansa and returning Ned’s bones have been pure fucking evil.
Littlefinger is not chaotic. He is completely neutral evil. Self-serving, clearly has no qualms about committing evil acts but he’s not chaotic about his manipulations what so ever. He’d kill his own mother…but only if the price was right. Chaotic evil would kill her on a whim (Joffrey) and perhaps laugh maniacally while doing so. LOL!
I disagree that the beheading makes Ned Neutral. He was enforcing a law that he swore an oath to uphold. It wasn’t his law.
More !
I like this, interesting analysis.
)SPOILER-ISH)I’m always intrigued at how HBO decided to take the Cersei character–I find her utterly tame in the TV show and slightly boring. In the books, I do sense genuine love for her children, but I always believed that she viewed her children as a means to exercise control and power. Her POV chapters always describe a bitterness that she was born a woman and could not rule in her own right. To my recollection she rarely thinks about Myrcella being in Dorne and she treats Tommen rather cruelly. She fears the weakness of Tommen’s rule will impact her ability to exercise her power in the seven kingdoms. I found what makes her interesting (and fun to hate) is how she manipulates her children to address her own needs. Does she really love her children in the way Catelyn Stark loves her own? I think not–she is the daughter of Tywin Lannister after all. If show Cersei is actually this way I have not seen it develop on the screen–and I hope they do to have a more interesting and different character.
Baelish would be neutral evil, he wants power by any means including making and tossing allies when ever it seems right. the Spider would be true neutral, as his actions are for the betterment of the kingdom no matter what.
I have a hard time believing Daenerys is Neutral or Good. I see her as having begun as Lawful Neutral, and is now sliding to Lawful Evil, especially concerning Daario. I think that she’s been a product of what she’s experienced, but she’s now using “Justice” to assuage her perceived hurts, and I think she likes the adulation of those calling her “mother” than truly caring about the people. She feels that her way is better than the established order, and that she’s doing the best. Just like Vader, the personification of LE.
What about Jamie? In the beginning I would’ve said Neutral Evil but now I’m thinking Chaotic Good. Maybe? And I think Tyrion is better than just neutral but maybe that’s because he is just so damned great.
Frankly, I think he’s more Neutral/Chaotic Good. Not without his faults, but he’s hardly neutral.
We’ll just ignore that rape.
I know this is based off the show, but this is a point where the difference in the book is noticable. The “rape” scene between Cerci and Jamie was played out a lot different in the books.
who is chaotic neutral?
Baelish
Not Baelish, he is Neutral, not for or gainst order specifically, just after power by whatever means neccessary. Chaotic Nuetral would be more like Ygritte or any wildling really, opposed to established order, not good or evil.
That is exactly why I said Baelish, he is neutral yes, and he wants power yes, but it’s the way goes about getting his power that makes him Chaotic Neutral. He has no real alliances and sometimes he’ll do good things, sometimes bad, but they are all out for his own ends (Power in this case) and he will do what he feels to do be it killing or being nice to Sansa. And you never know quite which one he is going to do. The only think that you do know is that he wants power and will do anything to get it. The how is what is up in the air, not the why.
Bronn?
Neutral to neutral evil. He is more about himself and loyalty is in coin alone. He tends towards evil as he has no problem killing for said coin.
So does every D&D character ever. Killing is not an inherently evil act, especially when it comes to inherently violent media and the two-axis alignment system.
True Neutral. When he’s not getting payed to do something he’s content to just go drinking and whoring.
I would say Varys is Chaotic Neutral, or perhaps even Chaotic Good. Baelish is true Neutral or Neutral Evil (my opinion leans toward the latter).
Varys is Lawful Neutral. He always has the realm at heart.
The Hound is, in my eye. Maybe varys and Baelish too
Tormund, maybe?
Oberyn Martell?