For all those who hate the DnD alignment system:
The Relativists
While the Revolutionary League would like to overthrow mundane authorities, the Relativists wants to overthrow the structure of the Multiverse. For too long has the average blood been tied to the chains of alignment, his behavior restricted to the arbitrary ethical lines drawn by powers and cultures long dead. Not exhibiting neutrality, the Relativists want to get rid of the alignment system period, no law nor chaos and no good nor evil. There is no such thing as a perfect exemplar of a chosen alignment, not even planars themselves, every action and element is impure and immeasurably so.
Philosophy: There's no good nor evil, nor law or chaos. There's never only one element in anything, particularly when viewed from different perspectives. Everything is essentially relative.
Nicknames: Grays, Non-aligned.
Headquarters: Carax Research Center on the prime world of Eberron, Community Publishing House in Sigil.
Major Races: Human, Elf, Githzerai
Favored Classes: Strong Hero, Charismatic Hero, Smart Hero.
Faction Prestige Classes: Broken Mystic, Muckraker, Soldier of Freedom
Factol: Seari Hadrak (Non-Aligned Male Tuladhara, Charismatic Hero 5/Smart Hero 5/Broken Mystic 5)
Prominent Member: Charlotte Bailor (N Female Gnome, Charismatic Hero 3/Investigator 5/Muckraker 3), Winston (Non-Aligned Male Zenythri, Smart Hero 10/Broken Mystic 5)
Alignment: Any. Also, some Relativists actually have transcended the Great Wheel's chains of alignment, actually having no alignment whatsoever, not even neutrality. These rare individuals are known as the "non-aligned".
Symbol: An eye with the night sky reflected in the pupil, with rays of gold radiating from the eye.
Philosophy
If you've been listening to the news, cutter, you'll see the Harmonium have been passing out these strange batons that look like metal detectors. Of course, the Harmonium, with their penchant for "ethical cleansing", perverted it and made it detect evil and chaos instead. Your inner desires and secrets are open to anyone carrying around a silly bleeping baton.
That may sound reasonable to most Harmonium, but it's absurd, because so-called good and evil are in fact arbitrary lines of distinction: there's no such thing as good and evil. You'll find, if you look deep in your heart, that there is an element of selfishness in every good act and an element of selflessness in every evil one, even if it's not recognized by the doer. Does not someone give charity for a sense of his own personal satisfaction? Likewise, you may war and fight and kill, but you're also risking your life protecting what you believe.
You see, things can be good or evil (or lawful and chaotic) depending on the point of view of all those involved. Is whipping a masochist really evil? A strutting paladin may say yes, but the masochist wouldn't! Is the whipping then a "good" act or an evil one? It's hard to say, and this is exactly the scenario Relativists relish.
And take corporeal punishment for an example, is it better to torture, to kill, or to imprison? Torturing might stop other people from breaking the laws, thus making an example of them. On the other hand, killing them might be more merciful, and still make and example of them, but some would argue it's too easy on hardened criminals. And imprisonment, while the least overtly harmful, can seem like a slap on the wrist or a terrible punishment depending on whose the perpetrator. Is any way wrong? Not really, it depends on the situation and the perspectives.
So basically everything is relative, especially opinions and ethics. But the Multiverse disagrees. As soon as you show tendencies toward one side or another, the Multiverse stamps a brand on you that forces your behavior! Not only that, but any two-bit acolyte or mage can know what that brand is, and know intimate secrets and desires of your soul. It's not only wrong, it's an awful breach in privacy as well.
The Relativists aren't against distinctions between good and evil, law and chaos, but these should be personal and abstract. Neither are they for neutrality, people should make decisions on their own, no matter how extreme or mild. But they're all against a universal classification of ethos, which doesn't really reflect anyone's reality except the archaic and obstinate views of the masses. As they Relativists say, there is an exception to every rule, and by god, they will prove it.
Part 1:
Brief History
When the portals to Eberron opened, Seari Hadrak was among the first to go through. He made a long expedition throughout the entire world, and with the help of many natives, he managed to garner a rather large profile on the world, in particular the psychology of the inhabitants and the local cosmology.
Seari found that the although "alignments" existed on Eberron, they didn't dictate behavior as nearly as much on other planes. Seari compared notes from other prime worlds and found that the strength of ethical convictions varied tremendously: while Eberron's was looser and flexible, those of other realms were tremendously strict. To further measure the matter, Seari developed the Alignment Conviction Index, or the ACI.
The ACI is a very sophisticated and well-designed test, and took Seari centuries to develop. From a scale of 0 (No alignment convictions) to 1.0 (Perfect alignment conviction), Seari could measure the strength of a subject's preconceptions about the ethos of the universe. He noticed that worlds with low ACI scores had more sophisticated cultures and more intelligent populace, and while conflict was pervasive it was more limited to the inter-personal level. Worlds with high ACI scores, however, were embroiled in conflict, continually swept in a battle between Good versus Evil and Law versus Chaos. When the matter of what was good and evil and law and chaos was confused and not immediately obvious, rates of crusading and persecution dropped, as members of all different moral systems were forced to live together and tolerate one another if merely cordially.
Seari found himself finally concluding that the cosmology of Eberron and other similarly estranged prime worlds are in fact based on ancient cosmological models from times when alignment was less of a concern. Seari's hypothesized that the newer cosmic powers promoted the idea of a strong difference between good and evil for their own inscrutable purposes, perhaps to dethrone an entrenched cosmic philosophy. Seari compiled all of his studies and published the work, "The Relative Cosmos", a practical bible for all Relativists.
Seari's last contribution involved his own mystical insights into his own neutrality. By this time, Seari was thoroughly convinced that alignment systems were a burden on the multiverse. After all, alignment distinctions are the entire cause behind the Blood War and numerous holy wars, if anything would decrease the amount of senseless violence and bigotry it would be the abolishment of such distinctions. Seari discovered by admitting to himself the impurity of his spirit and the multi-faceted nature of each action, he could transcend and shed the stamp the multiverse has put on him since birth. No long was Seari "neutral", he was simply nothing, and Seari saw that it was natural.
It was difficult to do, of course. To crush his inner alignment took much introspection even for a Tuladhara. It was an insurmountable task for someone with less discipline or inclination, and even Seari recognized that to abolish the whole idea would be a tremendous task, one that would stretch beyond his own lifetime.