Leadership alignment

[Agis]

SO in this group i am running I'm playing a very honor based lawful neutral Fighter (Phalanx archtype). We just hit lvl 6 and soon, at lvl 7 I will be taking the leadership feat. My GM has stated he will be playing the character (fine by me). The issue i have is he thinks that he can play it how he wants with the charcter possibly being Lawful Evil and that it would not care about following orders i give it because the only reason (in his thinking) i have a cohort is that it has something to learn or gain from being with me so that is why it has chosen to follow me. I have and issue with this as I do not want and evil character that I will have to take responsibility for, which causes the next issue why should i take responsibility for a character that won't even obey me? I would like to see input whether it be calling a me piece of crap of i should be on a altar I do not care I want input as too what yalls opinion should be on how my GM should play the cohort based on what the feat states.

[Are]

The point of the feat is to grant the character a cohort that will work with the character. If the DM creates and plays the cohort, it should certainly not be done in a way entirely opposed to the player's wishes.

The feat specifies "a loyal cohort" and "devout followers". Neither someone who is loyal to your character nor someone who is devoted to your character will actively work against the character's wishes. They might not always follow orders (especially dangerous ones), but they'll mostly do what their leader wants.

Also, by the feat's wording, your character attempts to attract those he wishes to have as cohorts or followers. It would make no sense for your character to try to attract someone he doesn't want to have as a cohort (and the feat even specifies a penalty to attempting to attract someone of a different alignment).

However, there's a chance your GM simply doesn't like the Leadership feat and will do everything he can to mess with you if you take it, making it more a liability than a strength. The GMs stated intentions indicate that this might be the case. If so, you should probably take another feat instead.

[Agis]

I will say he is for making the game more interesting and fun but I agree that it should be a companion that i would like and trust rather than something the GM can take and possilby f--- my character up with. But when i retaliated with stating it'll be a cohort that i Recurit and not one that i attract. Well problem with that that I know he'll bring up.."well if you don't choose now you won't get one." Now the reason I want to bring up this character is the ffact we have no rogue estienally no trap finder and also I'm the melee fighter (the only one out of a group of 7) So i wanted another melee to be able to support me on the front lines. But the other problem is is he likes ot play secretive and dark PCs so I jsut don't want him to bring out a evil char in addition with everything else.

[Lyle McMillen]

As a GM and player, I'm firmly of the opinion that feats should work to the character's benefit, not detriment. As far as Leadership goes, the player and GM should work together to set up a cohort that is both useful and a viable NPC the party will allow into their lives - it's not an excuse for the GM to work a mole into the party and screw them over. Your GM sounds a bit adversarial in an area that they really shouldn't be.

Remember, you can dismiss and recruit cohorts pretty much at will - there's no mechanical penalty for doing so. If the cohort is not working out, dismiss them and actively recruit someone more compatible with your character's goals and personality. Just do it in character - there's some great role-playing opportunities.

And remember, if Leadership is going to be more of a problem to your character than any other feat thanks to your GM, take another feat instead. I'd like to see your GM work your Power Attack against you....

[Xander Davis]

Leadership always leaves a bad taste in my mouth, and not just because of the cohort cannon. Your GM shouldn't be underhanded about it though. If he doesn't want Leadership, he should just say he doesn't want it. There's no reason to make up rules that allow him to make your feat a waste.

Cohort Cannon:

We had each member of our 17th level party with Leadership line up all 210 of our 1st-level cohorts in front of an enchanted door we wanted to bust down. Ordered each one to ready an action to pass any battering ram handed to them to the cohort directly in front of them, and ordered the last cohort to throw it forward when he receives it. Gave a battering ram to the cohort at the far end. They instantaneously moved it from the back to the front, so the battering ram traveled 1050 feet in that 6-second turn, or just under 120 miles per hour. The battering ram went through the door, several stone walls, and out the back of the tower. We never found it.

[jerry brown 141]

as the actual gm of the group he is talking about i have simply stated to him "watch out for what you wish for", and the that the feat does not grant him the ability to instantly overcome a party weakness that matches his every desire that will obey his every command. He/she will be a living person in my world with the ability to decide what is right and wrong for herself and that as an npc it will be under my control with a personality, quirks, and charms all its on. as far as the alignment the rule only states that it can not be of an oppossing alignment thus allowing me to bring in a dudly do right paladin of the same god you worship to bring you back to the path of honor you have so boldly put in the first post but have so sadly drifted far from hench the alignment crisis you and the some other party members are going through, hence the "watch out for what you wish for". So said i do not see any devation from the rule for the feat, the character will benifit the party in many ways and help guide you back to the state path of honor you claim to follow and guide you back into the good graces of your god, and present many roleplaying opportunities as this is a roleplaying game and the reason i state the moment you mentioned taking it that i loved the idea.

[Agis]

thank you for the clarification - the one worry that had me was i did not wish for an evil character to join the group through this feat in which is hte hint i have been apparently misunderstanding. To the "watch waht you wish for", I do not mind if it was anything else I just do not want an evil companion with me - which brings up the entire obey me and my wishes and desires/loyalty issue. I apologize for the misunderstanding on both parts and hope that we can work through this

[Knight Magenta]

Xander Davis wrote:

Leadership always leaves a bad taste in my mouth, and not just because of the cohort cannon. Your GM shouldn't be underhanded about it though. If he doesn't want Leadership, he should just say he doesn't want it. There's no reason to make up rules that allow him to make your feat a waste.

** spoiler omitted **

Does not actually work by RAW. Just like there are no rules forbidding readied action chains, there are also no rules for momentum in PF. All that would happen is the front cohort would throw the ram normally and you would look silly for trying to set all this up.

[Gauss]

I would just remind the GM that this is a lot like a job interview. If you do not like the personality of the cohort he gets fired. That doesn't mean you control him or his abilities. It just means if he is unsuitable he gets dismissed. If he doesn't like the job interview parallel remind him that friendship (which a Cohort is supposed to be) is just a long drawn out job interview with the job title being 'friend'.

- Gauss