Skallagrimm says:
OOC:
I'm not sure I agree. I think Belaros knows this the right thing to do, that must be done, and Helm would approve. On the other hand, I didn't consider the law. He is a lawman after all. Would he know if this is 'legal' or not where they are?
I know alignment can be one of those touchy things that different ppl have a lot of different feelings on. But as DM I'm telling you I'm ruling this is a CN action.
I'm not telling you whether it's "right" or "wrong", in telling you in game mechanical terms it's chaotic and it's neutral.
There's no procedure to what you guys are doing. No record, no actual investigation (you're just taking his word/perception that what he has told you he is experiencing is reality). None of you are law enforcement representatives. It's definitely 100% Chaotic territory. While it's justice, it's vigilante justice. Or a "frontier-style justice".
For some of that same reason - you don't actually know what's really going on here, you've taken everything you've been told as the whole truth - it's also Neutral. There could be more. There could be other ways to stop him besides summary execution. This guy is a known benevolent presence in the region, has helped/saved an order of magnitude more ppl than he's killed, and would probably go on to help/save an order of magnitude more if you saved him instead of killed him. Is it a Good thing to execute someone who murdered someone while they were under mind control? No. Absolutely not. It's just a cold carrying out of justice. It's 100% Neutral territory. Neither good nor evil - just "what must be done" to resolve a situation expediently.
Again, not talking about immediate alignment change or anything, so I don't want to blow this out of proportion. You're definitely doing A good (taking out a threat to others), but also an evil (taking out a benevolent presence). Neutral. And you're doing it without procedure, nor prescribed lawful right. Chaotic.
It's complex. Particularly if Belarus isn't carrying out the execution, that puts him once removed from it all too. What's his obligation in that position?
It's meant - nay,
designed - to be complex.
But that's the reality of the choice that's in front of you all.