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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Libramarian" data-source="post: 6117474" data-attributes="member: 6688858">Oh good <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /> I came to that comment about the appeal of the classic Paladin not in a theoretical way but just by really trying to think about how it actually works during character creation. Mostly, anyway--I was also reminded of Ron Edwards' discussion of a simulationist samurai vs. a narrativist samurai from one of his essays.I think from a sim perspective it just feels right to have weighty  consequences for falling as a Paladin, even though those rules are not  ever supposed to actually be used. Sort of like how it feels right to  have rules for hunger and thirst in D&D even though I wouldn't be  surprised if a D&D character hasn't actually died of hunger since  like 1975.My fantasy reference point for the Paladin is the Night's Watch from A  Song of Ice and Fire. It's not admirable to keep doing your duty once  you're there, because deserters are hunted down and killed so you don't  have much of a choice, but it's very impressive for someone to  voluntarily take the black.That makes sense to me. I prefer an alignment restriction to a specific  code of conduct, but only slightly. It's true that the vast majority of  the time in the classic D&D sort of game that I like they're  basically the same thing because it's so obvious what the proper  interpretation is. There are two morally dubious situations that come up  all the time: the opportunity to harm or threaten with violence  noncombatants, and the oppotunity to lie/deceive for advantage. The  first is evil, the second is chaotic. Players who want to play basically  ethical characters have to turn down those advantages most of the time.  If you want to play a Paladin, you have to make a commitment at the  beginning of the game that you will never even consider it, no matter  what the advantage is.</blockquote>

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