Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Celebrim" data-source="post: 430509" data-attributes="member: 4937">"You see, attacking unannounced would be unchivalrous..."This is one of those things that always makes me wonder.   Is your Paladin saying that the Kobolds are worthy and honorable opponents and therefore deserving of a fair combat?  Why?Does he assume that every Villain is a worthy and honorable foe?I might perhaps understand if the Paladin pitied the Kobolds and devised a cunning plan for minimizing the number of 'poor villains' that he had to kill depending on how Kobolds and other sentient species had been introduced in your world.   If the Paladin doesn't believe that they are unremmittingly evil, then sure, show mercy.   But to show chivalry to a Kobold is just.... strange.  Are there Kobold knights running around with some sort of honorable chivilric code of thier own?I think alot of the confusion occurs because in literature and the movies and stuff, the 'Paladin' (be he a gun fighter or a swordsman or whatever) agrees to an honorable combat with the arch villian.   Invariably the arch villian cheats but the 'Paladin' wins anyway.   The point is that the fair and honorable combat occurs by _agreement_ with someone who is usually the 'Paladins' social peer (another knight, another gun fighter, etc.)   Once the agreement is asked for, and once it is accepted (which in some cases the Paladin is honor bound to do), the Paladin can't cheat while the agreement lasts - nor can he enter the agreement in bad faith.   But, if no terms are asked for, or if the Paladin is in a situation where he has no reason to believe that the foe is honorable enough to even consider an honorable duel, then the Paladin is under no compulsion to be chivalrous.Paladins can 'shoot' first.If the Paladin rings the bell, and the First Kobold comes out and says, "Who has challenged me!  Come forth and state your greivance, and if it is mortal, engage me in honorable single combat!", then well, the Paladin has to be chivalrous.   But since the Paladin hasn't even the slightest reason to suspect such will happen, he doesn't even have to ring the bell.</blockquote>

Verification