Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.
Rocket your D&D 5E and Level Up: Advanced 5E games into space! Alpha Star Magazine Is Launching... Right Now!

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Ferghis" data-source="post: 3237149" data-attributes="member: 40483">Very good point, worthy of exploration. I'm just too tired to really think about it now. Apologies.I don't think any of your examples refer to paladins, and especially not to the kind of setting that the OP asked about (stricter than usual paladin code). Specifically, samurais that kill small time criminals are certainly not engaging in good acts, and a paladin should strive to engage in good acts every waking minute. I don't think it's a no-pain-and-suffering issue, I think those rules are rooted in the notion that victory in fair melee combat proves your cause righteous because your god guides you to victory. Fair melee combat is taken to mean, I think, a straigt-forward duel with no "tricks". So ranged weapons are not allowed because they allow you to attack an enemy who may not be able to respond appropriately, and, IIRC, weapons with reach weren't allowed for 1e cavaliers because they allowed the wielder to keep the opponent at bay. I have no idea why gauntlets are out, but I'll guess it's because they're not standard "knightly" weapons. The fight was viewed as a trial of the paladin's faith, so had the solemnity of a duel. I have no idea why I'm writing in the past tense... Two objections: The minor one is that there is a presumption of innocence in France, and there has been since ancient Rome (whether or not it's practiced is another debate, and off-topic in this forum). But I'm sure there are places where there is little or no presumption of innocence. The major one is that a paladin shouldn't apply one moral standard to an ingroup and another to an outgroup. I'm not saying that different groups cannot be treated differently, but the moral standard should be the same. Justice is blind, and so should the paladin's moral values. Again, no need to invite the opposing army over for dinner, just don't judge them till you know they're evil and a threat to someone.</blockquote>

Verification