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Prickly moral situation for a Paladin - did I judge it correctly?
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<blockquote data-quote="Agback" data-source="post: 1207819" data-attributes="member: 5328"><p>I don't agree that there was any moral question involved (by D&D standards). The only quandary was a tactical one: "What is the most practical way to abate the threat of these insidious monsters?" I think on reflection that the best thing to do would have been to let them leave with the abbot (hoping that they would not split up and spread out so long as they thought their cover was intact), but keep in surreptitious contact so that you can call in Cardinal Airstrike. But the paladin was duty bound to try to keep them in the abbey, and besides, this option was long gone by the time the poo got into the punkah. Once the monsters know that their cover is blown there is a terrible risk that they will split up, spread out, and never get caught.</p><p></p><p>Remember that this encounter TPKed the party taking less than 25% losses. The paladin and his buddies had practically no chance of subduing all 24 of them, and once the party went down the subdued ones were as right as rain. So by the time the breakout occurred, the paladin's only Good choices were: (1) to try to take out as many as he could before he succumbed, and (2) to let them get away, hope that they were so stupid that they remained in a tight bunch, and to try to guide in his Cardinalosity. The second choice is not clearly better, and it is even further from what the cardinal implored the characters to do than what the paladin tried.</p><p></p><p>In fact, this was a no-win situation. The GM suckered the PCs into a certain defeat and then saved their characters by a humiliating rescue. In my experience that is a sure way to get players to leave your campaign. For instance, it got all the players to leave the first campaign I GMed.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>I agree that there ought to be. But in D&D there isn't any mention of mercy or redemption in either the definition of Good nor in the Paladin's Code. If they are required in this campaign it is a Rule Zero, and ought to have been promulgated to the players in spoken or written words before they chose their characters: not by mental telepathy during a crisis and after the players were committed to their characters.</p><p></p><p>Regards,</p><p></p><p></p><p>Agback</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Agback, post: 1207819, member: 5328"] I don't agree that there was any moral question involved (by D&D standards). The only quandary was a tactical one: "What is the most practical way to abate the threat of these insidious monsters?" I think on reflection that the best thing to do would have been to let them leave with the abbot (hoping that they would not split up and spread out so long as they thought their cover was intact), but keep in surreptitious contact so that you can call in Cardinal Airstrike. But the paladin was duty bound to try to keep them in the abbey, and besides, this option was long gone by the time the poo got into the punkah. Once the monsters know that their cover is blown there is a terrible risk that they will split up, spread out, and never get caught. Remember that this encounter TPKed the party taking less than 25% losses. The paladin and his buddies had practically no chance of subduing all 24 of them, and once the party went down the subdued ones were as right as rain. So by the time the breakout occurred, the paladin's only Good choices were: (1) to try to take out as many as he could before he succumbed, and (2) to let them get away, hope that they were so stupid that they remained in a tight bunch, and to try to guide in his Cardinalosity. The second choice is not clearly better, and it is even further from what the cardinal implored the characters to do than what the paladin tried. In fact, this was a no-win situation. The GM suckered the PCs into a certain defeat and then saved their characters by a humiliating rescue. In my experience that is a sure way to get players to leave your campaign. For instance, it got all the players to leave the first campaign I GMed. I agree that there ought to be. But in D&D there isn't any mention of mercy or redemption in either the definition of Good nor in the Paladin's Code. If they are required in this campaign it is a Rule Zero, and ought to have been promulgated to the players in spoken or written words before they chose their characters: not by mental telepathy during a crisis and after the players were committed to their characters. Regards, Agback [/QUOTE]
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