Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
Paladin, How Are You Righteous?
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="SMHWorlds" data-source="post: 7884828" data-attributes="member: 6853809"><p>I have a few thoughts about the Paladin.</p><p></p><p><strong>Lawful Stupid</strong></p><p></p><p>This trope has been played out, maybe for a few decades now. Yes some players took the original ideas of the paladin and used them to create havoc or have their own way. They were selfish, putting their play style, or more rarely personal beliefs, above the collective good of the table. But these were the exceptions. There are just as many bad paladin players as there are bad fighter players or bad wizard players. Just as many players who used the LG alignment as a weapon as those who use CN or N. More than a few people I have witnessed use this term, once queried, are forced to admit that they have never played a paladin and/or never seen "Lawful Stupid" in action. The days of the strict paladin are long gone as are the days where this term had any real meaning. At this point bringing it up is less than useful. </p><p></p><p><strong>Morality and Ethics</strong></p><p></p><p>The earliest game paladins did have to follow a very strict code, a code that was as much a stab or nod to game balance as it was a class ethos. And paladins had to adhere to following what was Lawful and Good for fear of losing their class abilities. This can explain some of the bad behavior exhibited by paladin players (though by no means, all). But that has not been true in several editions now. The restrictions were loosened in 3rd and 4th and are gone in 5th. And 5th edition is where we should focus our attention. What does a paladin look like now, not back then? Yes there are behaviors that a paladin should exhibit based on their order, but these are guidelines and open to interpretation. </p><p></p><p>Having said that, I do think there are some universal evils that most paladins would have no truck with. But that is not an issue, it is an opportunity for the party and players to engage in some group dynamics. </p><p></p><p><strong>Medieval-ism</strong></p><p></p><p>There is no doubt the D&D paladin relies heavily on European Medieval zeitgeist. Even today. But the grip of the medieval has given way ever more to the grip of high fantasy, even though that is still very much Euro power fantasy. And the paladin has loosed its association with the armored medieval knight. They are now closer to the idea of the original peers of Charlemagne, the original paladins. They are close to the ideas of champions of a cause, be it earthly or humanist or divine. The green knight subclass is one of my favorite things about D&D5E. There is nothing stopping a player from using the traditional model of the paladin from earlier editions, but no longer are they forced to. What might a Mayan paladin or a Kushite paladin look and act like? I'd be curious to see them.</p><p></p><p>I think the article provides one way to play a paladin, a bit old school and absolutely valid and fun. It is certainly not the only way, however. Which makes for a better game. A campaign with an old school and new school paladin trying to understand one another's ways would be fascinating.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="SMHWorlds, post: 7884828, member: 6853809"] I have a few thoughts about the Paladin. [B]Lawful Stupid[/B] This trope has been played out, maybe for a few decades now. Yes some players took the original ideas of the paladin and used them to create havoc or have their own way. They were selfish, putting their play style, or more rarely personal beliefs, above the collective good of the table. But these were the exceptions. There are just as many bad paladin players as there are bad fighter players or bad wizard players. Just as many players who used the LG alignment as a weapon as those who use CN or N. More than a few people I have witnessed use this term, once queried, are forced to admit that they have never played a paladin and/or never seen "Lawful Stupid" in action. The days of the strict paladin are long gone as are the days where this term had any real meaning. At this point bringing it up is less than useful. [B]Morality and Ethics[/B] The earliest game paladins did have to follow a very strict code, a code that was as much a stab or nod to game balance as it was a class ethos. And paladins had to adhere to following what was Lawful and Good for fear of losing their class abilities. This can explain some of the bad behavior exhibited by paladin players (though by no means, all). But that has not been true in several editions now. The restrictions were loosened in 3rd and 4th and are gone in 5th. And 5th edition is where we should focus our attention. What does a paladin look like now, not back then? Yes there are behaviors that a paladin should exhibit based on their order, but these are guidelines and open to interpretation. Having said that, I do think there are some universal evils that most paladins would have no truck with. But that is not an issue, it is an opportunity for the party and players to engage in some group dynamics. [B]Medieval-ism[/B] There is no doubt the D&D paladin relies heavily on European Medieval zeitgeist. Even today. But the grip of the medieval has given way ever more to the grip of high fantasy, even though that is still very much Euro power fantasy. And the paladin has loosed its association with the armored medieval knight. They are now closer to the idea of the original peers of Charlemagne, the original paladins. They are close to the ideas of champions of a cause, be it earthly or humanist or divine. The green knight subclass is one of my favorite things about D&D5E. There is nothing stopping a player from using the traditional model of the paladin from earlier editions, but no longer are they forced to. What might a Mayan paladin or a Kushite paladin look and act like? I'd be curious to see them. I think the article provides one way to play a paladin, a bit old school and absolutely valid and fun. It is certainly not the only way, however. Which makes for a better game. A campaign with an old school and new school paladin trying to understand one another's ways would be fascinating. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
Paladin, How Are You Righteous?
Top