Very good defense, very good damage (access to some of the best melee options in the game, and smites are a very powerful nova option!), very good exploring options (the Detect/Locate series of abilities are very helpful), and Charisma as a key ability, which "allows" a player to take social skills. They have gishy skills, but don't suffer from Concentration issues like other gish builds, nor AC / HP woes.Help me out on this. Why is the Paladin considered to be so darn good (as in the "effective" sense) by so many people?
In short, the paladin is a mix of good abilities that synergize really well on the field. Its a solid, well built, flexible class. Its the whole package taken together that really stands out. In many ways, its the warrior equivalent of the wizard in 5e.