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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Elder-Basilisk" data-source="post: 1566158" data-attributes="member: 3146">Exactly. The effect of a public trial and execution is to instill respect for the law, confidence in its ability to exact justice, and fear in those who would break it. All of those are good things. The effect of a secret execution is to instill fear in all (who knows what actually happened; two men went into the back and one came out with blood on his sword), to reduce confidence in the ability of the law to exact justice (after all, this had to be taken care of privately), to promote disrespect for the law (especially the notion of due process which is important for preventing injustice in many cases that look obvious but aren't), and emboldens those who might break the law (for good or bad reasons).I think the law and chaos alignments are incoherent so I won't say it's Chaotic or that it's not Lawful. This particular action would be expected more of a Holy Liberator than a Paladin, and more of a Ghostwalker than either a paladin or a Holy Liberator. It is not unjust but it will have bad effects unless it is isolated. The paladin's god may be able to ignore it for now. The society in which it occurred should not. And neither should the paladin.A paladin needs to do more than simply act justly. A paladin needs to act in a manner that will promote justice in a community as well.And, on the Paladins as defense attorneys for monsters vs. SHARK paladins, sign me up for neither. (Though if I had to choose, I'd take SHARK paladins in a heartbeat. Given the choice between foolish weakness and perhaps overzealous strength, I'll take strength any day). The defense attorneys for monsters are aiding and abbetting evil. SHARK style paladins have it seems overly inquisitorial tendencies. However, in this case, even the SHARK paladins would act differently. After beheading the guy, they'd drag his corpse out into the town square, announce his crime, pronounce a judgement, and burn him at the stake posthumously thus effecting the public's edification.</blockquote>

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