Are the Dopplegangers really that evil ?

Aasimar069

If I am right, in the 3rd Edition, Dopplegangers are depicted as "neutral" alignment.

When we see their deeds in the game, they seems both cruel, devious and evil ...

I'm not very good at AD&D lore, are they that evil, or have they been made evil only for this game (or in the 2nd Ed) ?

moody_mage

Provided they are being paid well they are happy to behave in an evil fashion - they are generally neutral though.

http://www.dotd.com/mm/MM00051.htm

Calmar

A good doppelganger would not work for Sarevok.

Chow

Humans also average as neutral, yet basically everyone working for Sarevok was evil.

kilroy_was_here

In other words, it's all in how they were raised.

valky

..and a doppleganger wouldn't just easily expose himself as it is shown in BG; he(it) would do nearly anything to throw off any suspicion towards him.

Despite the edition, I think they are always neutral, and don't necessary adapt to evil acts. They are 'just' spies and to the lesser assassins (an assa does not need to be evil to kill some1^^) and eventually are used to infiltrate higher political circles.

Haven't tried 'detect evil' in BG(whatever game) though, if they are being shown as 'evil'....at least they are worthy quite some XP

rdarken

kilroy_was_here said:

In other words, it's all in how they were raised.

Are you suggesting it's nurture, not nature, and they chose to be evil?!

ZanathKariashi

They're neutral in 2nd edition as well. Always neutral in fact. They care NOTHING for the good or evil of their client as long as they're paid and the job is interesting. They do it almost exclusively for kicks, but because they know their services are in high demand, charge for them even though they don't REALLY need money at all. Though they are extremely arrogant about their ability to become anyone they wish to be, and look down on the other humanoids because of it.

Cheesebelly

I wonder who had interest in hiring the dopplegangers that

attacked Durlag's Tower. I mean, Illithids are mentioned as the true source of problems, but I don't think they were related to the Dopples, might be wrong though. Or might be that it was mentioned, only that Beta Testing made me forget half the game's lore D;

reedmilfam

Maybe the doppels are neutral in Baldur's Gate, but they've neutrally decided that working with Sarevok is in their best interests. This puts them at odds with CHARNAME and, as such, they are 'evil'. Even if CHARNAME is 'evil', they're opposed to CHARNAME's evilness and, as such, are a different kind of evil.

Penalty in both cases is death. Also, at 420XP each, there's no way you can leave them alive!

Aasimar069

4000 for the great ones

Calmar

Humanoid ddventurers sell their blades to every guy with enough money to pay for their services, why shouldn't a doppelgänger do the same?

VoidSorcerer

Either way, they're fun to kill, have some great death screams and initiation speeches and all in all give good experience - so it doesn't matter to me if they're good or bad. I do have to admit being disappointed when I did The Merchant League and slaughtered them all in about 3.5 seconds. I'm not sure if they were weakened in BG:EE - but I sure thought they had been.

ajwz

Dont they eat human flesh though?

I mean, I'm not a big fan of D&Ds tendency to say thet x or y race is normally good or evil aligned, but surely eating sentient beings is an evil act?

ZanathKariashi

Actually, they require no sustenance at all in their base form. They can eat food while shapeshifted to blend in, but don't actually require it. They're an innately psionic race and sustain themselves through force of will (kind of like Elans).

Dee

I submit that the doppelgangers who worked with Sarevok were part of a single clan that had unusually strong ambitions for power and influence, which allowed Sarevok to manipulate them.

Other doppelganger clans might be more beneficent.