Musings on the "Lawful Jerk" Paladin

[Oofta]

No. You're the second worst. As you already know-

That guy is the worst.

Hey, now! Sir McStabs-a-Lot, dual rapier wielding gnomish paladin of the order of the owl is my hero!

 

[lowkey13]

*Deleted by user*

 

[lowkey13]

*Deleted by user*

 

[Oofta]

I know. That's why you're the second worst.

Sir McStabs-a-Lot is the worst.

Oofta, his #1 fan, is the second-worst.

After that, we determine "worseness" by general proximity to Sir McStabs-a-Lot and/or Oofta, as the case may be. It's like Seven Degrees of Separation with Kevin Bacon, but .... much more pointless.

I dunno, I think you might have things off a little bit. I freely admit my fondness or Sir McStabs-a-Lot, but then again I was the one who did the image manipulation. On the other hand, someone was able to post that picture so quickly when they claim to hate dual-rapier-wielding-gnomish-paladins ... I'm just sayin' that perhaps lowkey13 doth protest too much.

 

[Oofta]

Does it make me a Lawful Jerk Paladin for typically enjoying playing my Paladins like they were being acted by Adam West?

Only if you force everyone at the table to join you in the Bat-Watusi every time you succeed on any kind of enchantment spell.

 

[TheCosmicKid]

But Paladin issues marinated in many editions of alignment garbage and the two are intertwined. Again, I point to the Lawful part of the thread title. A LG Fighter don't lose anything for not being lawful or good all the time. In previous editions, alignment mattered more to paladins than other classes.

Okay, that's a hypothesis which makes some predictions. If alignment is the cause of jerk paladin behavior because paladins lose their powers if they violate their alignment, then other classes which also lose their powers if they violate their alignment should also be prone to jerk behavior. But jerk clerics and jerk monks don't really seem to be a thing.

 

[Greenstone.Walker]

All the jerks I've gamed with have played fighter/mage/thief (1E) or straight mage, never paladin.

Like the 1E AD&D player who hated elves, so every time he cast magic missile, 3 missiles at the foe and 1 at the elf PC.

 

[jasper]

Oofta…..So if people don't have a lot of hesitance about killing goblins that are known to steal children in the middle of the night for a midnight snack, it's kind of understandable………
Get a freaking fridge dude. Signed Gary Goblin of the midnight wood.

Paladins were jerks because the whole table could be jerks to them and get away with it.

 

[Tanin Wulf]

Not at all. The only better way to play it is like the Tick.

"And so, may Evil beware and may Good dress warmly and eat lost of fresh vegetables."

High Charisma, Low Int at its finest.

 

[jayoungr]

So, I think this is probably, in my experience, where the best paladins are forged. The ones the players really, really remember. Because being the only one who is unabashedly trying to be the good guy and having to muse through, "What is right here?" can often be very fun and engaging.

It can work that way, but this isn't a magic formula for perfect paladins, even if the GM isn't out to get them. Sometimes it only leads to a frustrated or unsatisfied player.