Alignment in 5e describes things but does not define them. A fallen paladin = breaking an oath, not alignment.
— Mike Mearls (@mikemearls) September 18, 2014
@tpvincent So at what point do we not need align grid anymore, then? At what point is it baggage from strict older versions and confusing? it's an easy way to break creatures, factions, and other parts of the world down along a couple of key conflicts in the world
— Mike Mearls (@mikemearls) September 18, 2014
@tpvincentFair enough. I may be thinking too small scale. Or too paranoid about GMs thinking Lawful Good is Honor Before Reason. Yeah, it was a big shift on my end. DMG talks about it and covers creating an alignment system for your own campaign.
— Mike Mearls (@mikemearls) September 18, 2014
@JustinDJacobson alignment is a keyword. It doesn’t do anything on its own but it interacts with other mechanics triggered off that keyword. we actually tried to avoid that in 5e – don't want personality to be a mechanic outside of roleplay
— Mike Mearls (@mikemearls) September 18, 2014