so, can i ask you about how a prince can be good? i know classpects dont automatically determine a character's morality, but im definitely scratching my head on how destroyer classes of a "positively associated" aspect can be a great addition to a session. all of the canon princes end up working or contributing for the antagonist in some way or form. its confusing to me. like say, if a prince of breath ends up in playing the game, all i can think of is that they'd be a tyrant to their friends or that they'd a ticking bomb in their session, i just have no idea how they could be a good teammate.
sorry if this sounds harsh, i really didnt mean it, im just confused since me and my friends might be making a homestuck thing and the classpect topic comes up.
Oh, no worries about sounding harsh. You didn't, but even if you did, I understand where the question is coming from. It's a pretty hotly contested one, and due to the title of "Active Destroyer," it is a bit difficult to read it as anything positive. That is, until you take a step back and look at it from the perspective of it being a magic system, rather than a personal condemnation.
Aspects are inherently neutral but variable concepts, not definitively good ones. Which means that depending on how they present + define themselves in any given situation, their presence can genuinely be a negative force. In situations where the Aspect of a Prince is one that is proving itself to be a detriment to a particular Player, Team, or the whole Session, the Prince can be a force for good by destroying it.
Though a Prince is an Active Class- meaning they tend to utilize their relationship with their Aspect that mostly benefits and/or affects them- it is extremely possible that one can do good, as "Active" does not mean "Bad". This is because "Personal Benefit" is a pretty loose term- sometimes people are nice because it makes them feel nice, and no other reason. This does not make the niceness tainted, and it does not make them a bad person. If someone does good things for what can be defined as selfish reasons- sans expecting it to be transactional, especially with regards to Kindness for Sex- it is still a net positive. It's like how donating to charity to get that feel-good effect for yourself is still, ultimately... Donating to charity. Just because you're donating for your own personal benefit doesn't mean others aren't benefiting from your actions.
A Prince of Breath can do good by cutting out excess Breath- mitigating the distance between Players and the aimlessness of their Team. They can very, very easily be a grounding force for those around them. It's pretty likely, though, that they suffer from an inability to give themselves any kind of break- or, to put it in other words, Freedom from their Obligations. They're working overtime on being the Session's group therapist and constantly working to keep everyone on track. Yes, they could be a tyrant, but that's only one interpretation of the title. There's many things you could do with a Prince- good, neutral, and bad- if you get a little creative with it.