Exiling an adversary to the Ethereal plane - an evil act?

[aaron Ellis]

Since the Plane Shift spell is capable of sending unwilling targets to other planes on a successful touch attack and a failed will save, this seems to be a viable in-combat option.

A few levels ago, I got grief when I declared that my chaotic good Barbarian 1/Oracle of Lore 14 was going to send a captured enemy to the Ethereal plane. The general consensus at the table was that it would be an evil act.

I didn't agree with the group, but retracted the action anyway. The character now keeps a demiplane in existence to use as a dumping ground for certain enemies, but I'm still curious about the morality of the originally planned action.

So what is your opinion of exiling an enemy to the Ethereal plane? Would your opinion of the act change depending on the destination plane?

[Shalafi2412]

I do not think it is evil. Exile is not killing.

I once had to do this to a member of the party that has gone off the deepend. He got turned to stone by a beholder. I told the party that making him smaller would help my magic better so they shrunk him. I plane shifted him to Celestia for a while.

[Cylyria]

Not sure how planeshifting some bad guy to the plane of fire is any different than hitting them with a slay living. Heck, in the Ethereal Plane they at least have a chance at survival.

[Kazred]

Superman does it all the time, so I'd say it's 100% paladin friendly.

[NeonParrot]

well, if CG means freedom of action, the most evil thing you could do was let them live in a cell.

mmm, I've had some CNs plane shift lower planar criters to one of the Seventh Heavans. I even got a 'traffic citation' for it.

I think it depends. Maybe you can rehabilitate the baddies.

I do think that someone lawful should maintain a demiplane as a prison and not your Oracle. Crime and punishment ideals come late to civilization. Mostly, you just kill your prisoner or work them to death. Or let them go free.

I vote for the etheral plane, or some other place they can't do any harm to anyone. Stare at your damn navel and maybe I will come by with a fruit basket and we can talk.

[Are]

aaron Ellis wrote:

Would your opinion of the act change depending on the destination plane?

Yes. Exiling someone to a plane where they'd have little to no chance of survival is equivalent to an execution. Exiling to a plane where the "prisoner" can survive without much in the way of problems would be the way to go, in my opinion. A private demiplane would be the optimal (but costliest) choice.