Are paladins widely admired in your D&D world? (by most NPCs) [Archive] - Wizards Community

Are paladins widely admired in your D&D world? (by most NPCs) [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
JulesCARV
10-17-06, 01:38 AM How do you think most people react to paladins, within the campaign world?

Do people even distinguish, in in-game terms, between paladins and fighter/clerics, favored souls, and whatnot?

Is the typical paladin widely hailed as a hero, and adored by the masses as a wonderful knight in shining armor? Are paladins always welcome within civilized societies, with people of the opposite sex swooning on seeing the paladin ride into town?

Or does the everyday venality and prejudice of most ordinary D&D societies mean that many paladins are widely disliked? (for instance, being called "wimpy" or "unpatriotic" for calling for more humane policies toward orcs in a country where the policy is kill orcs on sight, or being called "alarmist" or a "warmonger" for calling for war against a tyranny that is killing all of the elves in its own territory, but is peaceful toward its neighbors)

Or are they viewed much as they are by D&D players themselves -- idealistic and noble, but frequently boorish and irritating? (this is frequently the attitude of fellow party members, from what I can tell from the boards)
UnrelentingHoror
10-17-06, 01:46 AM in my world? Well they are generally accepted because of the high charisma but in my world paladins are more connected to their orders, meaning through the association opinions varry widely due to political stances. Also another thing I did was since paladin is more a title of someone who fights for church and state and there are plenty of "paladins" who are actually of the fighter or even warior classes.
All in all their no more accepted than anyone else with a high charisma, possibly less because of political stances and the nature of chaotic types to be put off by a paladin's general lawfulness.
Vegepygmy
10-17-06, 01:55 AM In my campaign world, people don't know you're a "paladin," or "rogue," or whatever. So while the particular good deeds you are widely known to have performed may earn you some goodwill from people in general, the mere fact that you took one or many levels in the paladin class means absolutely nothing to anyone else.
Archangel62
10-17-06, 02:07 AM Yes and no. Yes in that paladins are more noticeable, they have a greater charisma and are often part of orders that will use them for propaganda purposes. The stories get disseminated fast so paladins are the superheroes of their age. They also tend to have the rather painful side effect of everyone running to them begging for aid, guidance, or to come along as allies or squires. It also means that they can be favorite targets of enemies of their order or faith hoping to send a message or simply anyone who wants a bit of infamy.
Dolomite
10-17-06, 04:13 AM Well the Paladins in our game are respected pretty much, even by the enemies since the one we have uses common sense and will accept a surrunder when the badguys giveup. The downside is that when an enemy decides that the Paladin has to go, he throws everything at him.
Vaelan
10-17-06, 04:50 AM People in power dislike them, unless their power stems from religious sources and they aren't corrupt.

Common people don't care unless they're being attacked by something and the Paladin saves them. Then they like the Paladin.
Grey_Mage
10-17-06, 05:25 AM Paladins are the one class that people will always recognize unless the character goes out of their way to hide it.

"A paladins basic ideas are legendairy in and of themselves... always honest, always helps the weak, and defends whatever town theyre in. Good chaps them... strange in their perfection... almost a little to much, but theyre on our side and so I aint gonna say a bad word against them. Heck... Im not sure you could even find a bad word against them from any man in five kingdoms."

A rogue? *shrugs* fighter? *shrugs* people dont see classes... they see people. Wizard, Sorceror, Warmage... all the same to a layman. A favored soul vs a cleric? Unless its church vs prophet no one could tell that one either outside the higher level echlessiarchs *in church rank, not classes*.

Paladins... Theyre different. They have a presence that radiates goodness and honor. They support that idea with their every word and dead.... thats the whole point of being a paladin. Its not something you can fake, you either are or you arent.
okaynowa
10-17-06, 10:27 AM I've seen only one paladin PC in all the games I've run. It was a "fairy tale" style game, set on a small, temperate island. The NPCs were mostly villagers and fisherman-- very simple, rural. The paladin, Porrig, was himself the son of a fisherman, and in fact used a net as his favored weapon. The people of the village knew stories about knights and so forth, and may even have heard legends of paladins, but they would never think to call Porrig by those titles. What the NPCs knew was that Porrig was "charmed," "heroic," and "the most eligible bachelor in Shorewell."

Granted, this was at 1st to 4th level. Had the campaign gone on longer, and Porrig started getting more of those legendary traits, people might have started to say, "Hey, that lad really is something special..." A little more time, and the NPCs might have started speaking his name in the same breath as "paladin."
CeilingNinja
10-17-06, 12:09 PM My world doesn't have paladins or clerics except those that are of the Ahn race (basically angels, but much weaker.)

And if you saw a divine-like being descending from the clouds... you'd tend to admire and respect them.
Dhaise
10-18-06, 04:35 PM In my homebrew game, Paladins are considered fairly highly by all the human population, frequently being asked to resolve disputes or offer advice. They are practically deputized in any of the civilized kingdoms and in several cases, actually get to suggest or provide binding judgements and/or punishments on the spot.
Darth Sephiroth
10-18-06, 04:49 PM Paladins are viewed as almost mythical in most of the worlds I've allowed them into in my games. Think of them like the Jedi are referred to in the Star Wars movies, mythical heroes of old.
Stormonu
10-18-06, 05:10 PM Paladins don't stand out in my campaign, unless they happen to belong to one of several orders that have gone out and made a name for themselves (Knights of the South, the Saracens of Randu, etc.) or have built up a reputation themselves for their deeds. Even those in groups tend to be treated different by different people (the people of "the East" often see the Knights as soft while those in the "West" see them as noble saviors, while the people of the "the West" tend to see the Saracens as murderers and criminals of the worst sort and "Easterners" tend to see the Saracens as the righteous hand of their god).
Sines
10-18-06, 06:41 PM I was thinking the Jedi comparison too.

Anyway, basically, the common folk see them as heroes and champions of good and justice. Remember, most commoners don't spend the time around a Paladin to worry about thier sometimes annoying sides. To somewhat more self-supportive people, view-points tend to skew more along alignment. Even if the 5th level Expert thinks he can hold himself well, he won't bemoan the Paladin taking care of the dirty work for him.

The more Evilly or Chaoticly aligned have lowering opinions of the Paladin. Chaotic Good might find them uptight and self-righteous, but they would still admire a Paladin for thier devotion to doing good. Any other chaotic has very little going for thier opinions to Paladins.

Remember, when dealing with how the populace reacts to paladins, they know them only as great and good heroes who protect people and ask nothing in return. The most interaction most people have had with Paladins is being healed in the streets or a church. If a given Paladin has any negative traits, they generally don't make them well enough known to the people, certainly not enough to outweigh the benefits they bring.
Stormbrand
10-20-06, 12:22 PM Yes. It is common knowledge that one can turn to a paladin for help. The advantage of this is trust from everyone with nothing to hide. The downside is all the people turning to the paladin for help. Most people cooperate with a paladin.

A common reaction to paladins would be admiration and near-awe at their selflessness and courage along with a slight fear of being secretly judged. People look up to a paladin's morality and yet are very conscious that they do not reach those standards - in effect, seeing someone so "perfect" highlights everything wrong with oneself.

I would say people distinguish between paladins and fighter/clerics, since paladins and fighter/clerics consider each other seperate. Paladin is something of a title. Paladins are renowned as beacons of heroism.

A typical paladin is respected, adored comes later. Anyone in trouble certainly adores the paladin. Paladins also find it easy to earn renown; through the combination of High Charisma, Diplomacy skill and heroic deeds. Members of a knightly order recieve some reflective glory for the achievements of their order as well. Generally, having a paladin in town makes people feel special.

Furthermore, Paladin Orders tend to take great care with their reputations to make themselves approachable by those in need. They can also be sources of some good stories; my paladin actually recieved money from bards to share the details of his latest quest with them.

As for swooning, I don't know. Some get it, some don't. High Charisma and Diplomacy again may explain some attractiveness, the rest would be misunderstanding the lifestyle. People see a knight with titles and fancy armour atop a great horse in all splendor...what they don't see is spartan temple accomodations, the long weeks spent on quests, regular encounters with mind-shattering horrors. Paladins are probably not ideal romantic partners for most people. I doubt a paladin could ever really be with a partner who isn't lawful good.

If a paladin has a shocking opinion it is worth remembering that paladins can be very persuasive, people usually hold their prejudices until they sit down and discuss them with a paladin.

Boorish paladins come from players who can't play the class well. Badly played paladins put people off the class.
Rand alThor
10-22-06, 12:09 AM As somebody who has played a paladin for the past 6 years (nearly), I have to say that this is one of the best threads I've ever read. You all made my night.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
JulesCARV 10-17-06, 01:38 AM	How do you think most people react to paladins, within the campaign world? Do people even distinguish, in in-game terms, between paladins and fighter/clerics, favored souls, and whatnot? Is the typical paladin widely hailed as a hero, and adored by the masses as a wonderful knight in shining armor? Are paladins always welcome within civilized societies, with people of the opposite sex swooning on seeing the paladin ride into town? Or does the everyday venality and prejudice of most ordinary D&D societies mean that many paladins are widely disliked? (for instance, being called "wimpy" or "unpatriotic" for calling for more humane policies toward orcs in a country where the policy is kill orcs on sight, or being called "alarmist" or a "warmonger" for calling for war against a tyranny that is killing all of the elves in its own territory, but is peaceful toward its neighbors) Or are they viewed much as they are by D&D players themselves -- idealistic and noble, but frequently boorish and irritating? (this is frequently the attitude of fellow party members, from what I can tell from the boards)
UnrelentingHoror 10-17-06, 01:46 AM	in my world? Well they are generally accepted because of the high charisma but in my world paladins are more connected to their orders, meaning through the association opinions varry widely due to political stances. Also another thing I did was since paladin is more a title of someone who fights for church and state and there are plenty of "paladins" who are actually of the fighter or even warior classes. All in all their no more accepted than anyone else with a high charisma, possibly less because of political stances and the nature of chaotic types to be put off by a paladin's general lawfulness.
Vegepygmy 10-17-06, 01:55 AM	In my campaign world, people don't know you're a "paladin," or "rogue," or whatever. So while the particular good deeds you are widely known to have performed may earn you some goodwill from people in general, the mere fact that you took one or many levels in the paladin class means absolutely nothing to anyone else.
Archangel62 10-17-06, 02:07 AM	Yes and no. Yes in that paladins are more noticeable, they have a greater charisma and are often part of orders that will use them for propaganda purposes. The stories get disseminated fast so paladins are the superheroes of their age. They also tend to have the rather painful side effect of everyone running to them begging for aid, guidance, or to come along as allies or squires. It also means that they can be favorite targets of enemies of their order or faith hoping to send a message or simply anyone who wants a bit of infamy.
Dolomite 10-17-06, 04:13 AM	Well the Paladins in our game are respected pretty much, even by the enemies since the one we have uses common sense and will accept a surrunder when the badguys giveup. The downside is that when an enemy decides that the Paladin has to go, he throws everything at him.
Vaelan 10-17-06, 04:50 AM	People in power dislike them, unless their power stems from religious sources and they aren't corrupt. Common people don't care unless they're being attacked by something and the Paladin saves them. Then they like the Paladin.
Grey_Mage 10-17-06, 05:25 AM	Paladins are the one class that people will always recognize unless the character goes out of their way to hide it. "A paladins basic ideas are legendairy in and of themselves... always honest, always helps the weak, and defends whatever town theyre in. Good chaps them... strange in their perfection... almost a little to much, but theyre on our side and so I aint gonna say a bad word against them. Heck... Im not sure you could even find a bad word against them from any man in five kingdoms." A rogue? shrugs fighter? shrugs people dont see classes... they see people. Wizard, Sorceror, Warmage... all the same to a layman. A favored soul vs a cleric? Unless its church vs prophet no one could tell that one either outside the higher level echlessiarchs in church rank, not classes. Paladins... Theyre different. They have a presence that radiates goodness and honor. They support that idea with their every word and dead.... thats the whole point of being a paladin. Its not something you can fake, you either are or you arent.
okaynowa 10-17-06, 10:27 AM	I've seen only one paladin PC in all the games I've run. It was a "fairy tale" style game, set on a small, temperate island. The NPCs were mostly villagers and fisherman-- very simple, rural. The paladin, Porrig, was himself the son of a fisherman, and in fact used a net as his favored weapon. The people of the village knew stories about knights and so forth, and may even have heard legends of paladins, but they would never think to call Porrig by those titles. What the NPCs knew was that Porrig was "charmed," "heroic," and "the most eligible bachelor in Shorewell." Granted, this was at 1st to 4th level. Had the campaign gone on longer, and Porrig started getting more of those legendary traits, people might have started to say, "Hey, that lad really is something special..." A little more time, and the NPCs might have started speaking his name in the same breath as "paladin."
CeilingNinja 10-17-06, 12:09 PM	My world doesn't have paladins or clerics except those that are of the Ahn race (basically angels, but much weaker.) And if you saw a divine-like being descending from the clouds... you'd tend to admire and respect them.
Dhaise 10-18-06, 04:35 PM	In my homebrew game, Paladins are considered fairly highly by all the human population, frequently being asked to resolve disputes or offer advice. They are practically deputized in any of the civilized kingdoms and in several cases, actually get to suggest or provide binding judgements and/or punishments on the spot.
Darth Sephiroth 10-18-06, 04:49 PM	Paladins are viewed as almost mythical in most of the worlds I've allowed them into in my games. Think of them like the Jedi are referred to in the Star Wars movies, mythical heroes of old.
Stormonu 10-18-06, 05:10 PM	Paladins don't stand out in my campaign, unless they happen to belong to one of several orders that have gone out and made a name for themselves (Knights of the South, the Saracens of Randu, etc.) or have built up a reputation themselves for their deeds. Even those in groups tend to be treated different by different people (the people of "the East" often see the Knights as soft while those in the "West" see them as noble saviors, while the people of the "the West" tend to see the Saracens as murderers and criminals of the worst sort and "Easterners" tend to see the Saracens as the righteous hand of their god).
Sines 10-18-06, 06:41 PM	I was thinking the Jedi comparison too. Anyway, basically, the common folk see them as heroes and champions of good and justice. Remember, most commoners don't spend the time around a Paladin to worry about thier sometimes annoying sides. To somewhat more self-supportive people, view-points tend to skew more along alignment. Even if the 5th level Expert thinks he can hold himself well, he won't bemoan the Paladin taking care of the dirty work for him. The more Evilly or Chaoticly aligned have lowering opinions of the Paladin. Chaotic Good might find them uptight and self-righteous, but they would still admire a Paladin for thier devotion to doing good. Any other chaotic has very little going for thier opinions to Paladins. Remember, when dealing with how the populace reacts to paladins, they know them only as great and good heroes who protect people and ask nothing in return. The most interaction most people have had with Paladins is being healed in the streets or a church. If a given Paladin has any negative traits, they generally don't make them well enough known to the people, certainly not enough to outweigh the benefits they bring.
Stormbrand 10-20-06, 12:22 PM	Yes. It is common knowledge that one can turn to a paladin for help. The advantage of this is trust from everyone with nothing to hide. The downside is all the people turning to the paladin for help. Most people cooperate with a paladin. A common reaction to paladins would be admiration and near-awe at their selflessness and courage along with a slight fear of being secretly judged. People look up to a paladin's morality and yet are very conscious that they do not reach those standards - in effect, seeing someone so "perfect" highlights everything wrong with oneself. I would say people distinguish between paladins and fighter/clerics, since paladins and fighter/clerics consider each other seperate. Paladin is something of a title. Paladins are renowned as beacons of heroism. A typical paladin is respected, adored comes later. Anyone in trouble certainly adores the paladin. Paladins also find it easy to earn renown; through the combination of High Charisma, Diplomacy skill and heroic deeds. Members of a knightly order recieve some reflective glory for the achievements of their order as well. Generally, having a paladin in town makes people feel special. Furthermore, Paladin Orders tend to take great care with their reputations to make themselves approachable by those in need. They can also be sources of some good stories; my paladin actually recieved money from bards to share the details of his latest quest with them. As for swooning, I don't know. Some get it, some don't. High Charisma and Diplomacy again may explain some attractiveness, the rest would be misunderstanding the lifestyle. People see a knight with titles and fancy armour atop a great horse in all splendor...what they don't see is spartan temple accomodations, the long weeks spent on quests, regular encounters with mind-shattering horrors. Paladins are probably not ideal romantic partners for most people. I doubt a paladin could ever really be with a partner who isn't lawful good. If a paladin has a shocking opinion it is worth remembering that paladins can be very persuasive, people usually hold their prejudices until they sit down and discuss them with a paladin. Boorish paladins come from players who can't play the class well. Badly played paladins put people off the class.
Rand alThor 10-22-06, 12:09 AM	As somebody who has played a paladin for the past 6 years (nearly), I have to say that this is one of the best threads I've ever read. You all made my night.