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What is an alignment chart?

An alignment chart is a grid that sorts characters, people or things on two axes at once. The classic version, from Dungeons & Dragons, crosses lawful, neutral and chaotic with good, neutral and evil to make nine boxes, from Lawful Good to Chaotic Evil. Online it became a meme format for sorting anything with a personality, including fictional characters, sandwiches and parking habits.

What is your alignment?

LawfulNeutralChaoticGoodLawful GoodNeutral GoodChaotic GoodNeutralLawful NeutralTrue NeutralChaotic NeutralEvilLawful EvilNeutral EvilChaotic Evil

The two axes

Every box answers two questions at once. The columns ask how someone treats rules. The rows ask whose interests they serve.

Lawful, neutral or chaotic

The law and chaos axis is about rules. Lawful characters follow them, even when it costs them. Neutral ones follow rules when it suits them. Chaotic ones trust their own judgment and ignore the rulebook.

LawfulNeutralChaoticDrives exactly the speed limitKeeps up with trafficDrives by vibes

Good, neutral or evil

The good and evil axis is about who benefits. Good characters act for others, even at a cost to themselves. Neutral ones look out for themselves without setting out to hurt anyone. Evil ones get what they want at someone else's expense.

GoodNeutralEvilLeaves the last slice for someone elseTakes the last sliceLicks the last slice so nobody else can have it

The nine alignments

Each name puts the two axes together, rules first and motive second. Neutral on both counts gets a name of its own, True Neutral.

  1. Lawful Good

    Helps others and follows the rules while doing it.

    Hands in a lost wallet at the front desk, cash untouched.

  2. Neutral Good

    Helps others, following or bending the rules, whichever does more good.

    Pays for the coffee of the person behind them in line.

  3. Chaotic Good

    Helps others and breaks any rule that gets in the way.

    Breaks the no-pets rule to take in a stray.

  4. Lawful Neutral

    Follows the rules because they are the rules, whoever it helps or hurts.

    Will not let you in one minute after closing.

  5. True Neutral

    Takes no strong side on rules or on morals and gets on with the day.

    Takes the first parking spot they see.

  6. Chaotic Neutral

    Follows the impulse of the moment, for better or worse.

    Changes the plan an hour before it starts.

  7. Lawful Evil

    Serves themselves at others' expense, strictly by the rules.

    Finds the loophole that lets them keep your deposit.

  8. Neutral Evil

    Serves themselves at others' expense, following rules only when it pays.

    Takes credit for the group project.

  9. Chaotic Evil

    Serves themselves at others' expense and breaks any rule to do it.

    Steals the parking spot you were waiting for.

How to read an alignment chart

Read it one column at a time to see the rules axis. The left column plays by the book and the right column ignores it. Then read it row by row. The top row means well, the bottom row does not, and the middle row just wants to get through the day.

The corners carry the biggest jokes, because they are extreme on both axes. Lawful Good and Chaotic Evil are the obvious ones. Lawful Evil and Chaotic Good are often funnier, because the method and the motive do not match: harm done strictly by the book, or rules broken to do the right thing. The center box, True Neutral, gets the most ordinary answer.

Custom charts read the same way with new axes. A pizza chart keeps lawful to chaotic and good to evil, but the boxes hold eating habits. Other charts swap the axes entirely, like brains against morals or effort against talent. Work out what each axis measures, and every box explains itself.

Where alignment charts come from

Alignment began as part of Dungeons & Dragons. The original 1974 game gave characters one of three alignments, lawful, neutral or chaotic. In the late 1970s, Advanced Dungeons & Dragons crossed law versus chaos with good versus evil, which gave the nine-box grid.

Online, fans started sorting fictional characters into the grid. The format spread through forums and fan blogs, then broke loose from characters entirely. People now use it for sandwiches, parking habits and ways to eat a snack.

Alignment chart examples

Each of these opens in the editor, filled in and ready to change.

Cereal alignment

LawfulNeutralChaoticGoodCereal first, then milkLeaves milk for the next personCereal for dinnerNeutralMeasures one servingEats it dryStraight from the boxEvilMilk firstPuts the empty box backUses orange juice
How you eat cereal

Meeting alignment

LawfulNeutralChaoticGoodSends the agenda the day beforeTakes notes and shares themEnds it ten minutes earlyNeutralReads the slides out loudCamera off, says "same"Joins from the carEvilBooks 4:45 p.m. on a Friday"Quick question" for an hourUnmutes to eat chips
Meeting behaviors

Texting alignment

LawfulNeutralChaoticGoodFull sentences. Perfect punctuation.Replies within a minuteVoice notes onlyNeutralReplies "Noted."lolSeventeen messages in a rowEvilRead receipts on, no replyk"We need to talk." Then nothing.
Texting styles

Big brain or no thoughts?

Big brainAverageNo thoughtsGoodThe wise mentorThe loyal sidekickGolden retrieverNeutralKnows everything, cares about nothingBackground extraHead empty, just vibesEvilEvil geniusThe henchmanFry-stealing seagull
Brains vs morals

Never judge a cinnamon roll

Could actually kill youIs actually a cinnamon rollLooks like they could kill youThe final bossBiker who fosters kittensLooks like a cinnamon rollLibrarian with a black beltGrandma with cookies
Could kill you / cinnamon roll

Who is the main character?

HeroNeutralVillainMain characterGives a speech, saves the dayNarrates their own walk homeHas a dramatic entrance songSide characterBest friend with a carComic reliefHenchman with a soft sideBackground extraHolds the doorSays "nice weather, huh"Stands in the doorway
Main character vs NPC

Questions

What are the nine alignments?
Lawful Good, Neutral Good, Chaotic Good, Lawful Neutral, True Neutral, Chaotic Neutral, Lawful Evil, Neutral Evil and Chaotic Evil. The first word says how someone treats rules. The second says whose interests they serve.
What does True Neutral mean?
True Neutral is the center box, neutral on both axes. A True Neutral character has no strong feelings about rules and is neither selfless nor cruel. On a meme chart it usually holds the most ordinary answer, like taking the first parking spot you see.
Where does the alignment chart come from?
From Dungeons & Dragons. The original 1974 game had three alignments, lawful, neutral and chaotic. In the late 1970s, Advanced Dungeons & Dragons crossed law versus chaos with good versus evil, which made the nine-box grid that fans later took online.
Can I make my own alignment chart?
Yes. Open the alignment chart maker, click a box to type, and click a label to rename an axis. Drop, paste or upload up to four pictures per box. Grids go from 2x2 to 5x5, and you can download the result as a PNG or JPG, in a square or portrait shape for social media.
Is it free?
Yes. There is no account and no sign-up, and your pictures stay in your browser. Every download carries a small "Made with ChartCreate.com" credit.

Make your own alignment chart

Start from an empty grid or one of the templates, fill in the boxes, and download it. It is free, with no sign-up.

Open the alignment chart makerBrowse the templates