D&D 5E Can a Paladin Cure Addiction?

[Iry]

Sure, it varies. But it’s objectively canon that they are less common in Eberron than FR, and that they aren’t common in any published setting with the possible exception of Ravnica.

I disagree. The very nature of "Wide, not High" means a greater number of low level people capable of magic than the norm. Paladins can provide the service at Level 1, if they are so inclined. And while Level 3 is considerably more rare... you can add everyone from House Jorasco on top of the usual casters with such spells.

Availability is not the problem. Persuading/Paying is.

 

[Son of the Serpent]

Nobody decides to use crack because of their genetics. The root causes of crack addiction are things that would require talking about politics to discuss, because the root cause it whatever causes them to use crack in the first place.

No one drinks because of genetics, either. One drinks for social reasons, usually, other times due to depression or trauma, etc.

wrong. at least in so much as it is more so the case than by environmental effect. The initial stupid decision included.

Also wrong. Youd be surprised just how influential genes are in initial decision making. I mean. I wouldnt be surprised. But quite aparently most people would.

Both environment and genes are a factor both in initial abuse and in addition. Genes are just far moreso influential for both in the aggregate. For literally all drugs. Probably hard to accept but that just doesnt matter. Of course its always a mix.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

I disagree. The very nature of "Wide, not High" means a greater number of low level people capable of magic than the norm. Paladins can provide the service at Level 1, if they are so inclined. And while Level 3 is considerably more rare... you can add everyone from House Jorasco on top of the usual casters with such spells.
Availability is not the problem. Persuading/Paying is.

Wide magic is not broadly available PC class individuals. It means that lots of NPCs have a little bit of magic, and magic items aren’t rare.

The vast majority of religious knights aren’t Paladins. The vast majority of priests aren’t clerics. The vast majority of magic users don’t have PC class levels.

That’s canon.

 

[Son of the Serpent]

Wide magic is not broadly available PC class individuals. It means that lots of NPCs have a little bit of magic, and magic items aren’t rare.

The vast majority of religious knights aren’t Paladins. The vast majority of priests aren’t clerics. The vast majority of magic users don’t have PC class levels.

That’s canon.

In reality the vast majority of clerics rank below a priest actually.

But of course i see what you mean. The vast majority of clerics (even IF they are ranked as high as a priest) are not clerics (the class) as those are literal conduits of a god.

 

[Umbran]

Not mixing it at all.

Saying, that both genetics and environment are really strong mixes the message. If genetics is "most of" the thing, then environment cannot be all that strong - if one thing is over 50% of the issue, the other, perforce, is a lesser issue.

The stupid initial decision is itself effected more strongly by genetics (in the aggregate) than by environmental context.

You will have to provide way more reasoning than that for anyone to accept it.

 

[Son of the Serpent]

Saying, that both genetics and environment are really strong mixes the message. If genetics is "most of" the thing, then environment cannot be all that strong - if one thing is over 50% of the issue, the other, perforce, is a lesser issue.



You will have to provide way more reasoning than that for anyone to accept it.

It would be an error to say that a lesser of two causal elements is "weak" (especially when there are factors that dont clearly fall into one of the two groupings either due to being a grey combination area or other issues. Genes and environment arent actually a true dichotomy). That is what im saying. It may be the "lesser" of two factors but its not "weak". Further the two can act at the same time. They arent even exclusive as both to a degree can effect eachother (and do).

Not really. Its pretty simple. Like novice simple. That said, it would probably be helpful to give some examples and reasoning nonetheless. Genes can effect initial choice in the presence or absence of environmental effects and are well known to do so. There are countless examples. Ill give you three really good ones. Good because they are both well known, apply to a broad set of contexts, and are very strong.

1. Many genes strongly correlate to capacity for willfully delayed gratification.

2. Many genes strongly correlate to capacity for risk assessment.

3. Many genes strongly correlate to specific as well as generalized preferences for new and old experiences (even in things not yet tried).

These and many others are good examples of how genes massively effect both propensity/tendancy for initial use/abuse of drugs (general and specific) as well as propensity/tendancy for addiction. All of these are also well known, apply to a broad set of contexts, and are very strong with and without environmental factors. Before or after initial use.

 

[Iry]

Wide magic is not broadly available PC class individuals. It means that lots of NPCs have a little bit of magic, and magic items aren’t rare. The vast majority of religious knights aren’t Paladins. The vast majority of priests aren’t clerics. The vast majority of magic users don’t have PC class levels.

Not a problem! You don't even need PC classes to cure diseases. House Jorasco is happy to help.
A bog standard healing magewright can cure disease.

 

[pemerton]

@doctorbadwolf

Just a short reply from a different system context - when the issue of magically healing addiction arose in an old RM game two spells were required (as best I recall) - Cure Mind Disease to cure the mental/habitual/dependency aspect of the addiction, and Organ Healing to physically restore the changes to the addicted person's physiology that had resulted from use of the highly addictive drug.

In D&D, at least traditionally (I'm thinking AD&D and am less competent in the 5e context; and I'm putting 4e to one side), paladin laying on of hands was closer to the physical healing aspect of things, while spells like Heal or Restoration were used for curing mental illness ("insanity" in the vernacular of that edition).

Can any of that be refracted through a 5e lens?

 

[doctorbadwolf]

@doctorbadwolf

Just a short reply from a different system context - when the issue of magically healing addiction arose in an old RM game two spells were required (as best I recall) - Cure Mind Disease to cure the mental/habitual/dependency aspect of the addiction, and Organ Healing to physically restore the changes to the addicted person's physiology that had resulted from use of the highly addictive drug.

In D&D, at least traditionally (I'm thinking AD&D and am less competent in the 5e context; and I'm putting 4e to one side), paladin laying on of hands was closer to the physical healing aspect of things, while spells like Heal or Restoration were used for curing mental illness ("insanity" in the vernacular of that edition).

Can any of that be refracted through a 5e lens?

absolutely. If you interpret addiction as essentially a “spiritual” malady in dnd terms, then restoration spells would heal the person of their psychological addiction, while disease stuff would be what cures the physical addiction and effects.