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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Jackinthegreen" data-source="post: 6039322" data-attributes="member: 6678119">It wasn't "almost" closed.  Based on the comments in it, it was definitely closed but the mods opened it up again because they got messaged by several people about it.Now for my bit about it all: Would I allow Cedric to be in one of my games?  Only if the players were mature enough to work not just with the sexual nature of it, but the circumstances and story that might only be possible in a fictional setting.     Do I think he could still be a Lawful Good Paladin by RAW?  If the powers that be in this setting can allow him to conduct himself as he does, then yes.  It won’t work in every setting, but it is plausible that a setting exists where it would work.  Would I create such a setting as a DM?  Only if I knew the players would (not could, would) be mature about it.  I expect there will be very few players who could pull this off, but to those that could I salute.     One of the contentious points here is the depiction of the prostitutes, their situation, and how Cedric interacts with them.  The first thing that needs to be pointed out is this is a fictional construct.  Even if prostitution was a contribution to several real world civilizations falling (which I have never seen definitive evidence of:  Several people saying they believe it to be and when asked why effectively state “Isn’t it obvious?” do not count as evidence though I’ll admit I haven’t thoroughly researched it myself), it does not have to be so in this setting.  It is possible to imagine circumstances where prostitutes could be accepted and respected members of their community and Cedric could patronize them responsibly without having his paladinhood taken away.  Are such circumstances something I would put into any setting?  No.  Again, I would have to know the players would be mature about it and be able to work with it.  Those who cannot realize real world examples might not apply to this because it is a fictional setting where things can and do work differently are not people I think could play in this setting.  Yes, it can be a rather large suspension of disbelief for some.  I hypothesize a reason people don’t like to suspend disbelief regarding fiction is they are worried it will change how they look at reality, and for some it very well could.  Your mileage may vary.     A minor tangent regarding how Cedric interacts with the women: In the first part someone noticed the line “Feeling a familiar stirring, he shook his head and muttered, "Down boy!" to himself,” and they took familiar to mean he had actually made Mr. Happy his familiar.  That’s one of the more amusing “out of context” things I’ve seen in quite some time!  Familiar here of course doesn’t mean the sorc/wiz class feature, but simply that he felt a commonly known feeling.  In the context he probably did feel a bit aroused, but he was the master of the urge, not it of him.  To me that means he does not give in to “hedonism” as others have put it.     Another contentious point is Cedric’s attitude and how others perceive him.  Even before the extra stories where Cedric is directly inspirational, I would say he was inspiring in some different degree.  He still fights the good fight even though he knows damn well what might happen to him without constant vigilance.  He never gets himself compromised such that he wouldn’t be able to watch himself, though he might tread the line far more than many would think is prudent.  Notice how the barkeep said he always had exactly seven ales?  I would expect that’s where Cedric knows he can stay in control but still let himself have some recreation.     Yet another way he can be thought of as inspirational is in hearing his story like Magnus did.  It’s oddly metagame in this sense since we ourselves are looking at snippets of his story.  However, I don’t think anyone can say Magnus didn’t come away impressed by the tales Father Shikuna told of Cedric.  I know I too was impressed, and I bet several others who have read it were as well.  That’s not to say other people who are not paladins also aren’t impressive or inspirational, but it does say that he fulfills the “requirement” of being inspirational.     I can definitely say he’s more of a “common man’s hero” than the paladins we typically think of, which is one of the reasons I like him as a character.  To me it’s a shame that characters like him can’t be portrayed more often because of peoples' sensitivity to some of the subject matter in question.To those saying this thread should be left to die, I say it should be relived time and time again.  It raises many important philosophical ideas that need to be continuously looked at for people in general to understand how not only our own world works, but how other worlds might work in a way that's totally different than ours.  Looking at the things we create can really give us understanding of ourselves after all.All this philosophy has given me a headache though, and I am glad for it being because of that instead of some flaming comments.  Good night, and thank you Shilsen for your wonderful writing.</blockquote>

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