In the Beginning There was the Word and the Word was an Underutilized Rule: Alignment Languages

I want to talk about alignment languages. You probably ignore them. I used to ignore them. Everyone you’ve ever played with probably mostly ignored them.

Alignment languages are cool now. Let me tell you how to use them.

I am going to assume that lawful and chaotic are the only alignment languages. In a Holmesian game you could have four or five alignment languages but adding more alignment languages really dilutes their power. To encourage their use you want 

1. Alignment Language as a Lingua Franca or Pidgin

Mechanically they provide a reason why a lawful guy would be adventuring with a chaotic guy. The chaotic guy can bargain with the monsters. Used like this they reinforce the idea that you can have more types of encounters than just fighting everything. Taken together alignment languages and reaction rolls provide the mechanical reasons why combat should not be the default encounter type. If you want to avoid developing an elaborate personality and backstory for every kobold limit the expressiveness of alignment languages (this will also make it so that alignment languages don't make learning other humanoid languages pointless). 

Bardak eyed Krogdor with suspicion. His instinct told him to beat their heads in but there were too many of them.

No one in the party spoke goblin. He was going to have to hear that sound.

They hung back at the edge of the torchlight, scampering and gesturing obscenely to no one in particular. One of them was gyrating. Bardak imagined that the goblin’s undulations were wafting the foul goblin stench directly into his nose. The situation was tense

Krogdor stepped forward and began to speak in foul guttural tones, then in high piercing tones. Krogdor’s voice then careened wildly from low to high. It was disgusting and absurd.

The Goblins spoke back. It was a cacophony.

Krogdor nodded and turned to Bardak, “they want thirty gold and for you to spit on your holy symbol. Then they’ll let us pass.” Bardak almost boiled over. “Also,” Krogdor continued, “they offered one of their number as you concubine.”

Krogdor pointed to the gyrating goblin.

This was too much to bear. Perhaps the language of chaos was useless after all. Why had he befriended Krogdor, a man who at the end of it all longed for the total destruction of the Universe. Where had the other one went? Mudfish. He was more nihilistic then even Krogdor; perhaps he had absconded or defected to the goblins.

“EEYYYAAGGGHGHGHGHGHGHGH!” A scream erupted from behind the goblins. Then another scream erupted - this time from a goblin.

Mudfish was covered in green blood, an expression of orgiastic glee on his face. Negotiations had failed. Chaos had won. Mudfish had decided for everyone that most of them would die today. The Universe was collapsing starting with this fetid underground tunnel. The goblins were elated even the dead one appeared to smile.

The goblins set upon Mudfish they were all going to die...

Ok, So maybe it doesn’t always work out, but the point is alignment languages can be used to widen the types of interactions that the party can have with monsters.

2. Alignment Language as Liturgical Language or Language with Inherent Spiritual Power

This is how I treat the languages of Law and chaos in my games. Lawful and Chaotic appear on scrolls and magic items. They send a chill down the spine creatures that come near the script. Creatures are hesitant to speak alignment languages because they impose ideology as much as they convey information. This makes alignment languages important but not omnipresent in a campaign. Player will know that something is special and important when they see or hear an alignment language.

“Would that our tongues were perfect enough to pronounce its profound consonance.” Thought Bardak. His pronunciation had gotten better and his faith had gotten stronger. He could command the wounds to heal and freeze a man in place with the power of The Word of Law. But, that was nothing compared to what he know held in his hands.

He was now with another quieter less impulsive group. They had made their way down into an antediluvian temple of law.

He was fondling a beautiful mace engraved with a prayer to The Justice Maker. Reading it his mind began to resonate with the item. The Word itself created discipline obedience and order. If only the words could be pronounced, the whole of everything could be brought to heel. Alas it was only through his devotion The Grand Architect that he could even hold the words in his head.

Mudfish couldn’t even bare to look at the weapon. He closed his remaining eye. The power of the Law and the Word was too bright. Yes, Mudfish had made it. Krogdor wasn’t there. He didn’t make it.

The Mace did not stop. The writing was singing inside Bardak and the writing commanded him to subjugate chaos. Mudfish ran but he could not out run justice. He was punished for his crimes and for his refusal to submit to the Universal Order. The mace was pleased. The Word was pleased. It had found a home in Bardak.

Please don’t take these examples to mean that alignment languages are only good for derailing the game and causing intra-party strife.