Kobold Avenger
Legend
So one of my ideas is that the common Paladin Oaths originated from the time of the Ancient Hobgoblin empire, 12 Oaths were sworn by 12 Paladins. 12 is more Oaths then the current number of official Paladin subclasses in 5e, leaving room for 3rd party or homebrew Oaths on top of: Devotion, Vengeance, The Ancients, Conquest, Redemption, Glory, The Watchers, and Crown (if that one still counts). And there definitely can be Oaths created after the time of the Hobgoblin Ancients.
The old Hobgoblin Empire was one of the earliest civilizations on the world, an Imperial Republic formed by refugees who fled the Feywild to the Material Plane, overall it was neither a force for good or evil, mainly it was up to the various Governors of the provinces for how each place was.
12 of the mightiest warriors known as the Praetorian Oathbearers, swore Oaths to different spirits that their ancestors from the Feywild were once connected to. Each of these spirits were an embodiment of one the Paladin Oaths. Devotion asked that the Hobgoblin Imperial Republic be a beacon of justice and righteousness, The Ancients asked to restore the beauty and hope lost from when they fled the Feywild, Vengeance asked that they avenge what was lost from the Feywild Exodus, Conquest asked that the borders of the Imperial Republic be expanded to ensure security, Redemption sought to heal the world the Hoblgoblins were exiled to, Glory sought to make the Imperial Republic the greatest Empire in the World and The Watcher sought to defend the world from the great enemy that drove the Hobgoblins from Feywild. And from each of the Praetors an order of holy warriors was formed.
In time under the direction of the 12 Praetors and their successors, the Imperial Republic grew in size and scope ever expanding and bringing the Hobgoblins idea of civilization to the world. It would righteous and fair to it's subjects as they brought many wonders to the world as many came to join or ally with the Imperial Republic through the efforts of its diplomats, but it was also oppressive to those outside its borders who refused their ways as the Imperial Republic often sought war and conquest as a way of expanding it's borders.
Eventually the ancient enemies corrupted one warrior, who swore an Oath to the ancient enemy from Feywild. This warrior known as the Oathbreaker was said to be the first Blackguard. And in becoming the Oathbreaker, grave misfortune came to the Imperial Republic as it fell apart due to internal strife and a civil war, combined with an invasion from Feywild and various plagues and curses. The Goblin underclass was in full revolt, rival empires sought to claim provinces of the Imperial Republic, and finally the great city-state of Koal fell into the sea. After the Oathbreaker's wake, were a bunch of disparate Hobgoblin nations and warlords each claiming to be the successor to the Imperial Republic.
As for the Oaths, they still remain as a legacy of the Hobgoblin Imperial Republic. While many Hobgoblin Paladins still remain, others in places no longer touched by the Imperial Republic have taken up to the causes of those Oaths, many barely acknowledging the ancient Hobgoblin progenitors.
The old Hobgoblin Empire was one of the earliest civilizations on the world, an Imperial Republic formed by refugees who fled the Feywild to the Material Plane, overall it was neither a force for good or evil, mainly it was up to the various Governors of the provinces for how each place was.
12 of the mightiest warriors known as the Praetorian Oathbearers, swore Oaths to different spirits that their ancestors from the Feywild were once connected to. Each of these spirits were an embodiment of one the Paladin Oaths. Devotion asked that the Hobgoblin Imperial Republic be a beacon of justice and righteousness, The Ancients asked to restore the beauty and hope lost from when they fled the Feywild, Vengeance asked that they avenge what was lost from the Feywild Exodus, Conquest asked that the borders of the Imperial Republic be expanded to ensure security, Redemption sought to heal the world the Hoblgoblins were exiled to, Glory sought to make the Imperial Republic the greatest Empire in the World and The Watcher sought to defend the world from the great enemy that drove the Hobgoblins from Feywild. And from each of the Praetors an order of holy warriors was formed.
In time under the direction of the 12 Praetors and their successors, the Imperial Republic grew in size and scope ever expanding and bringing the Hobgoblins idea of civilization to the world. It would righteous and fair to it's subjects as they brought many wonders to the world as many came to join or ally with the Imperial Republic through the efforts of its diplomats, but it was also oppressive to those outside its borders who refused their ways as the Imperial Republic often sought war and conquest as a way of expanding it's borders.
Eventually the ancient enemies corrupted one warrior, who swore an Oath to the ancient enemy from Feywild. This warrior known as the Oathbreaker was said to be the first Blackguard. And in becoming the Oathbreaker, grave misfortune came to the Imperial Republic as it fell apart due to internal strife and a civil war, combined with an invasion from Feywild and various plagues and curses. The Goblin underclass was in full revolt, rival empires sought to claim provinces of the Imperial Republic, and finally the great city-state of Koal fell into the sea. After the Oathbreaker's wake, were a bunch of disparate Hobgoblin nations and warlords each claiming to be the successor to the Imperial Republic.
As for the Oaths, they still remain as a legacy of the Hobgoblin Imperial Republic. While many Hobgoblin Paladins still remain, others in places no longer touched by the Imperial Republic have taken up to the causes of those Oaths, many barely acknowledging the ancient Hobgoblin progenitors.
