Comments on: The Paladin Code (Part I: Why is There a Code)

By: Alexander Davis

Alexander Davis — Wed, 10 May 2017 14:01:35 +0000

Part of the problem with the paladin is in its presentation, lots of nifty superior abilities and then giving only one way to officially to provide character balance. A very Gygaxian style of presentation which is ok if you learned from mentors nuance. Not so easy if you or your GM learned from books.
There is a better presentation: Divine Warrior.
The character has entered into a divine contract that gains the character divinely blessed powers on top of being a Fighter. then the contract should spell out: advantages, penalties, parties to whom obligations are owed, mediators/interpreters, who it is with, etc… all of which should be negotiated long before hand by the DM and the player to create a real document both can interact with and refer to. It shouldn’t be completely boilerplate, should have some grey areas deliberately and should never be written to intentionally harm greater parts of the design of the divinity or those to whom the Paladin owes allegiance to. The Prime example being the “Let us violate the kings orders, military axioms and tactical sense because my code says CHAAARGEEEE!!!” as the 1E UA implied nay demanded. No wonder ‘lawful stupid’ became a phrase.

The Paladin should also in a polytheistic world have nuances
A Paladin of Dionisis could ignore the drunk penalties but must never refuse a drink given in true hospitality.
While a Paladin of Thor might gain per level 1d6 worth of lightning bolts usable per week so long as he does not shy from combating evil Giants.
And a Paladin of Hecate should gain benefits while protecting Magic users but need to punish adulterers.

By: Ric Martens

Ric Martens — Thu, 04 May 2017 03:24:19 +0000

In reply to Todd Zender. I think you ran into a case of the DM having one idea about how a Paladin acts and you having another. It is that problem that seems to cause the most argument. I can't speak for every DM nor can I speak for every player, but I know when I first started doing the DM thing I was probably a little stricter than I needed to be and it frustrated a player or two. As I grew as a DM I learned that you don't need to punish every little slip up. I actually follow this article up with thoughts on what constitutes a violation of the Paladin code and what to do You should check it out if you haven't already... thanks for the comment!

By: Todd Zender

Todd Zender — Wed, 03 May 2017 05:22:22 +0000

When I played AD&D as a kid in the early 80’s I played a paladin, partly for the awesome powers but mostly because the illustration of the “paladin in hell” in the original players handbook was the coolest thing I had ever seen that wasn’t an Iron Maiden album cover. I spent hours rolling ability scores until I got 17 charisma. After getting the required numbers ( this was back in the old days when you had to roll your abilities in order no rolling six numbers and then plugging them in where you want) I was ready to adventure. That weekend my best friend DM’ed me through my first adventure, I think it was the “Keep on the Borderlands” module. I completed the adventure, I protected the weak, I punished the wicked, I smashed the altars of the evil deities. I was feeling pretty satisfied with my badass paladin self until my friend pulled me aside at recess on monday and told me my paladin was acting too impulsively and if I didn’t adhere more closely to the Lawful Good alignment he would be forced to knock me down to a 1st level fighter.

By: Ric Martens

Ric Martens — Fri, 28 Apr 2017 20:14:04 +0000

In reply to Brandon. I agree, and I also love playing paladins. I think a lot of players look at the paladin as a collection of powers rather than a character with a mission. I know that personally some of my greatest role playing moments where when I struggled with making choices between following my code and following my heart.

By: Brandon

Brandon — Fri, 28 Apr 2017 20:09:21 +0000

I’ve always loved playing paladins. I think you’re right that a lot of people feel like having a good is too restrictive, but there can be a lot of freedom to be found in having some guidelines like these. There are so many great role-playing moments to be had if you allow yourself the opportunity to discover how these edicts work for your individual character within your own religion.