Dragonlance Does Black Robe Life Channel work with Wratful Smite and Searing Smite?

[James Gasik]

It's complicated. When Dragonlance was originally published there was no prohibition on paladins, but no official pregen paladins. Then, when Dragonlance Adventures was published (still 1st edition) it re-tooled the paladin class into a Solamnic Knight class, as well as re-tooling the Magic User class into a Wizard of high sorcery class. So at that time, the setting didn't have Paladins (or Magic Users). It had characters who walked like paladins and quacked like paladins, but were called Solamnic Knights.

I took a closer look at Dragonlance Adventures, and it doesn't say you can't be a Paladin. What it says is:

So you have to worship a local god, and you may join the Knights of Solamnia, but you do not have to. Otherwise, you are a knight operating under the direction of another organization.

 

[bedir than]

I took a closer look at Dragonlance Adventures, and it doesn't say you can't be a Paladin. What it says is:

View attachment 268125
So you have to worship a local god, and you may join the Knights of Solamnia, but you do not have to. Otherwise, you are a knight operating under the direction of another organization.

Notable that the gods have nothing to do with the modern Paladin

 

[GMforPowergamers]

Notable that the gods have nothing to do with the modern Paladin

yes it seems they get there power more from their oath... like I could swear on a god or a king or even just on my own honor.

So "I swear an oath on magic" sounds very resnoble.

 

[James Gasik]

Notable that the gods have nothing to do with the modern Paladin

Yes, that's been true for awhile. Careful reading of the 2e Paladin reveals that they don't need a deity to get their powers (unlike the Cleric, where this association is called out), though it does say that to atone for misdeeds they have to seek out a Cleric of Lawful Good alignment.

And it wasn't long after that Clerics could worship ideals and philosophies instead of actual Gods in 2e.

 

[Redwizard007]

Yes, that's been true for awhile. Careful reading of the 2e Paladin reveals that they don't need a deity to get their powers (unlike the Cleric, where this association is called out), though it does say that to atone for misdeeds they have to seek out a Cleric of Lawful Good alignment.

And it wasn't long after that Clerics could worship ideals and philosophies instead of actual Gods in 2e.

Get outta here with your "reading." That's not how I remember 2e. It was all, death by kitten, 1 spell a day, and alignment, Alignment, ALIGNMENT!

 

[James Gasik]

Get outta here with your "reading." That's not how I remember 2e. It was all, death by kitten, 1 spell a day, and alignment, Alignment, ALIGNMENT!

Hey it is my fault that what the books actually say differs from how the game was played?

 

[Paul Farquhar]

I took a closer look at Dragonlance Adventures, and it doesn't say you can't be a Paladin. What it says is:

View attachment 268125
So you have to worship a local god, and you may join the Knights of Solamnia, but you do not have to. Otherwise, you are a knight operating under the direction of another organization.

I think that section is more aimed at existing characters imported into Dragonlance.

But there are a lot of completely rules legal options that just feel wrong for the setting, such as a Psi Warrior Solamnic Knight. Personally, I don't see the point in using a setting if you aren't going to buy into it with the character you create.

 

[James Gasik]

I think that section is more aimed at existing characters imported into Dragonlance.

But there are a lot of completely rules legal options that just feel wrong for the setting, such as a Psi Warrior Solamnic Knight. Personally, I don't see the point in using a setting if you aren't going to buy into it with the character you create.

There was a half-kender in the Cloakmaster cycle who was a Psion. Even though the Complete Psionics Handbook said that psionics were foreign to the setting, and only the most widely-read sages and wizards will have heard about them.

 

[Redwizard007]

But there are a lot of completely rules legal options that just feel wrong for the setting, such as a Psi Warrior Solamnic Knight. Personally, I don't see the point in using a setting if you aren't going to buy into it with the character you create.

I would guess that 99% of us are in agreement with that, but it is very rare to find a character idea that can't be re-fluffed into something setting appropriate. Most character rules are fairly setting agnostic if you strip out the flavor text, of say, the Samurai Fighter. Flavor wise, it has no place in Krynn, but could the rules not fit any fighter? Casters are largely the same. If I tell you that my Arcane Domain Cleric, who never casts a healing spell or wears armor, is a wizard, who is going to notice the difference.

 

[ECMO3]

But there are a lot of completely rules legal options that just feel wrong for the setting, such as a Psi Warrior Solamnic Knight. Personally, I don't see the point in using a setting if you aren't going to buy into it with the character you create.

In the modern rules I think Paladins are expected to be common in 5E as it says in SODQ "Fighters and Paladins make up the bulk of the Knighthood's forces" (speaking about the Knights of Solamnia)

I am buying into the setting and while my character may be a bit of an oddball in terms of race-class-background, she is making maximum use of the options presented in the new book (taking both Krynn-specific race and feat options). She also has quite a few thematic elements and a connection to several characters in the War of the Lance (Tasselehoff Burrfoot who is a relative, Sturm Brightblade who she does not know but idolizes and Fistandantilus who is trying to corrupt/exploit her).