"Buttkicking for goodness!"
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D&D 5E roleplaying the Oath of the Ancients
- Thread starter pukunui
- Start date
"Buttkicking for goodness!"
Ahrimon
Bourbon and Dice
'Lo, there do I see my father.
'Lo, there do I see my mother, and my sisters, and my brothers.
'Lo, there do I see the line of my people...
Back to the beginning.
'Lo, they do call to me.
They bid me take my place among them.
In the halls of Valhalla...
Where the brave may live forever.
Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: Have we anything resembling a plan?
Herger the Joyous: Mm-hm. Ride till we find them... and kill them all.
Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: [Ahmed is given a Viking sword] I cannot lift this.
Herger the Joyous: Grow stronger!
[Herger proffers a drinking horn containing mead.]
Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: I cannot...taste neither the fermentation of grape nor of wheat. [Herger laughs] What? Why do you laugh?
Herger the Joyous: Honey...It's made from honey!
[With the Wendol pursuing, the Vikings attempt to swim under the Thunder Cliffs.]
Herger the Joyous: The way we'll know is: if they don't follow us it's too far to swim!
[Ibn has killed a 'beast']
Herger the Joyous: It's all right, little brother... there are more!
Herger the Joyous is my ideal Oath of the Ancients Paladin.
'Lo, there do I see my mother, and my sisters, and my brothers.
'Lo, there do I see the line of my people...
Back to the beginning.
'Lo, they do call to me.
They bid me take my place among them.
In the halls of Valhalla...
Where the brave may live forever.
Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: Have we anything resembling a plan?
Herger the Joyous: Mm-hm. Ride till we find them... and kill them all.
Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: [Ahmed is given a Viking sword] I cannot lift this.
Herger the Joyous: Grow stronger!
[Herger proffers a drinking horn containing mead.]
Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: I cannot...taste neither the fermentation of grape nor of wheat. [Herger laughs] What? Why do you laugh?
Herger the Joyous: Honey...It's made from honey!
[With the Wendol pursuing, the Vikings attempt to swim under the Thunder Cliffs.]
Herger the Joyous: The way we'll know is: if they don't follow us it's too far to swim!
[Ibn has killed a 'beast']
Herger the Joyous: It's all right, little brother... there are more!
Herger the Joyous is my ideal Oath of the Ancients Paladin.
Hey, that's a good movie you're quoting from there, Ahrimon! The 13th Warrior, starring Antonio Banderas. He was just a good-aligned warrior, I think, perhaps a paladin of the ancients as you say, though that is not my cup of tea. The Vikings of the movie, I believe, were actually the Rus, the original people of Russia.
This guy, made by @shilsen, would work quite well I think. He fights to preserve the light even as he struggles to keep the joy within himself. Read his story all the way to the end.
http://www.enworld.org/forum/showth...din-in-your-game-(new-fiction-added-11-11-08)
http://www.enworld.org/forum/showth...din-in-your-game-(new-fiction-added-11-11-08)
Zaruthustran
The tingling means it’s working!
I'd roleplay those tenets as how Legolas, and particularly Glorfindel behave in The Lord of the Rings (the books).
The "joy" angle is key. A Green Knight would literally laugh in the face of danger.
See also: Tom Bombadil.
As for the questions:
What sorts of things would you have them do (or not do), both in combat and in social situations? Laugh, dance, sing. Celebrate and be merry. Love and live life. No half-measures, ever. Always act with passion and total commitment.
Would your PC always offer their opponents the opportunity to surrender instead of fighting to the death, or would it depend on the type of creature? Mercy is mentioned as a component of The Light, but I think the notion of mercy (in the form of a knightly virtue) is more of the traditional Oath of Devotion thing. Orcs and other evilkind are things, things which should be not be suffered to live and should always be destroyed with extreme prejudice. An orc surrendering on the field of battle would be slain instantly, with no hesitation or regret. Same with a promise given to one who proved to be not worth trust; that promise would be broken without a second thought. The traditional Paladin traps don't apply here.
What would your PC's thoughts be on mind control (charm person, etc)? On breaking and entering? On haggling for a discount? On giving alms to the poor? On obeying unjust laws? On assassination and poisoning? On lies and deceit? I'd reference the tenets. Focus on being an exemplar of all that is good in the world. Or/and, as being the antithesis to despair and darkness. Of the things you mention, all of the above are perfectly acceptable if it furthers the Light or destroys evil. Again, think: WWTBD--what would Tom Bombadil do?
What if your PC's teammates are a bunch of murder hobos? Would your PC admonish them and try to reform them or turn a blind eye? Or would they merely try to lead by example? Lead by example, though I'd eliminate the word "merely." The paladin should be a shining, irrefutable beacon of light. He'll behave in a way that inspires the others. The kind of person everyone wants as their friend, and wishes they were. A Green Knight is definitely not the wrist-slapping tsk-tsking stick-in-the-mud Paladin. This character celebrates and respects others' life choices, unless they spread darkness, in which case they'll be avoided, actively acted against, or destroyed. This character should never whine "c'mon guys, don't do thaaat." And should instead act decisively and dynamically to beat back the darkness and further the light.
In my mind Tolkien's elves are really the model here. More the glorious, merry, mighty elves from the books than the dispassionate Vulcans from the movies.
JRR Tolkien said:
The "joy" angle is key. A Green Knight would literally laugh in the face of danger.
See also: Tom Bombadil.
As for the questions:
What sorts of things would you have them do (or not do), both in combat and in social situations? Laugh, dance, sing. Celebrate and be merry. Love and live life. No half-measures, ever. Always act with passion and total commitment.
Would your PC always offer their opponents the opportunity to surrender instead of fighting to the death, or would it depend on the type of creature? Mercy is mentioned as a component of The Light, but I think the notion of mercy (in the form of a knightly virtue) is more of the traditional Oath of Devotion thing. Orcs and other evilkind are things, things which should be not be suffered to live and should always be destroyed with extreme prejudice. An orc surrendering on the field of battle would be slain instantly, with no hesitation or regret. Same with a promise given to one who proved to be not worth trust; that promise would be broken without a second thought. The traditional Paladin traps don't apply here.
What would your PC's thoughts be on mind control (charm person, etc)? On breaking and entering? On haggling for a discount? On giving alms to the poor? On obeying unjust laws? On assassination and poisoning? On lies and deceit? I'd reference the tenets. Focus on being an exemplar of all that is good in the world. Or/and, as being the antithesis to despair and darkness. Of the things you mention, all of the above are perfectly acceptable if it furthers the Light or destroys evil. Again, think: WWTBD--what would Tom Bombadil do?
What if your PC's teammates are a bunch of murder hobos? Would your PC admonish them and try to reform them or turn a blind eye? Or would they merely try to lead by example? Lead by example, though I'd eliminate the word "merely." The paladin should be a shining, irrefutable beacon of light. He'll behave in a way that inspires the others. The kind of person everyone wants as their friend, and wishes they were. A Green Knight is definitely not the wrist-slapping tsk-tsking stick-in-the-mud Paladin. This character celebrates and respects others' life choices, unless they spread darkness, in which case they'll be avoided, actively acted against, or destroyed. This character should never whine "c'mon guys, don't do thaaat." And should instead act decisively and dynamically to beat back the darkness and further the light.
In my mind Tolkien's elves are really the model here. More the glorious, merry, mighty elves from the books than the dispassionate Vulcans from the movies.
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Fralex
Explorer
You all seem to have the right idea. When thinking about how to role play your oath, you may want to think of it in terms of where you get your strength to persevere. That is, after all, why you can cast spells. A Green Knight would fight first and foremost out of love for the world they vowed to defend. Every day, the knowledge of the infinite beauty and goodness they see in the world inspires them. If you've ever read Terry Pratchette's Carpe Jugulum, Mightily Oats became a sort of Green Knight after he found his faith: "The world is... different. Everywhere I look, I see something holy."
White Knights fight out of devotion to their ideals more than devotion to the world itself. They get their strength from the hope their ideals inspire in themselves and the good they see adherence to these ideals accomplish. Although both kinds of paladins want to make the world a better place and be a force of justice, I see those with the Oath of Devotion taking a more active role in trying to be an agent of change. Taking the Oath of the Ancients is more of a promise to defend what's good in the world and restore that light where it has darkened, but not necessarily impose some kind of strong order on top of that to enforce any one person's specific ideals of right and wrong.
Dark Knights don't really hold any lofty ideals about peace and goodwill, and don't particularly love the state of the world. They're the cynics who have seen how awful people can be, how little justice there is in some parts of the world, and how some cowards want to do what's right but are too afraid of getting their hands dirty. Their strength comes in some ways from outrage at the way things are, and the satisfaction of seeing people responsible punished. Suffice to say, they generally have trouble getting along with Green Knights, whom they have little in common with other than the desire to fight evil.
(You've probably noticed this already, but the Oaths of Devotion, the Ancients, and Vengeance roughly correspond to the three alignments Lawful Good, Neutral Good, and Lawful Angry respectively)
In answer to that new question, I don't actually think Oath choice would play much of a role here. The only thing that comes to mind is that of the three types of paladin, avengers would probably have the least compunctions about killing the dominated person if there was no other option readily available. They'd still want to try to save their ally, obviously, but if that began to feel impossible, well... Sometimes you need to get your hands dirty to eliminate evil. The other two paladins are both much more devoted to defending good, and the specifics of how they responded would be up to the individual character.
White Knights fight out of devotion to their ideals more than devotion to the world itself. They get their strength from the hope their ideals inspire in themselves and the good they see adherence to these ideals accomplish. Although both kinds of paladins want to make the world a better place and be a force of justice, I see those with the Oath of Devotion taking a more active role in trying to be an agent of change. Taking the Oath of the Ancients is more of a promise to defend what's good in the world and restore that light where it has darkened, but not necessarily impose some kind of strong order on top of that to enforce any one person's specific ideals of right and wrong.
Dark Knights don't really hold any lofty ideals about peace and goodwill, and don't particularly love the state of the world. They're the cynics who have seen how awful people can be, how little justice there is in some parts of the world, and how some cowards want to do what's right but are too afraid of getting their hands dirty. Their strength comes in some ways from outrage at the way things are, and the satisfaction of seeing people responsible punished. Suffice to say, they generally have trouble getting along with Green Knights, whom they have little in common with other than the desire to fight evil.
(You've probably noticed this already, but the Oaths of Devotion, the Ancients, and Vengeance roughly correspond to the three alignments Lawful Good, Neutral Good, and Lawful Angry respectively)
In answer to that new question, I don't actually think Oath choice would play much of a role here. The only thing that comes to mind is that of the three types of paladin, avengers would probably have the least compunctions about killing the dominated person if there was no other option readily available. They'd still want to try to save their ally, obviously, but if that began to feel impossible, well... Sometimes you need to get your hands dirty to eliminate evil. The other two paladins are both much more devoted to defending good, and the specifics of how they responded would be up to the individual character.
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Voort
Explorer
1. Determine how the person is being controlled.
2. Break said control.
3. Immediately destroy the cursed item.
4. Help the survivor recover.
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