/tg/, how do I make a paladin interesting? I love the concept,

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>>46693843
I was also considering maybe having him/her (I'm undecided on male/female ight now, if you have an idea dependent on character gender) be really close to the party rogue through childhood, but recently the rogue is beginning to pass of some of his bad habits on the naive paladin.

>>46693843
Can you mixed classes together? Like a paladin-rogue?

>>46694165
Not in our setting, no. Other classes can multi, but you're either all paladin or no paladin.

>>46693843
Well, for one, you ought to think of his upbringing, and principally, why he chose to be a paladin. Secondly, you should think about his paladin vows. Why did his particular order appeal to him?

>>46694309
I only have a one staple for his backstory that I really want to keep, but other than that, the details are up in the air. I wanted to play a character with living relatives, so

>his/her family brought him/her to the big city with what little money they had from the father's military retirement to take an apprenticeship in the local Order.

>>46693843
What about paladins gives you the impression of them being boring and/or same-y?

>>46694492
No, I mean the ones I play. They've all been meh-tier.

>>46694589
When making a paladin, are there any recurring themes that make them boring or or similar to each other? How many paladins (or paladin equivalents) have you made so far?

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>>46693843
Be like her, Anon, except the subject you argue for is Elemental Good. Complete with this facial expression at all times.

>>46694463
Well, why don't we explore that. In what sort of war did the father serve? A just one, a successful one, an unjust one, a horrific one? Did this shape your character's view of war? Does he think of war as a positive or negative thing? If positive, he might be more fiery, passionate, and damage based. If negative, he might be more level headed, diplomatic, and support/tank based. Or maybe the other way around, based on the type of person he is. He might be a fiery activist for peace, or a level headed tactician who supports war. Or maybe this did not affect your character at all and he doesnt care!

Also, think about the Order. What god(s) does the Order support, and why? How does it support them? Are they based on rooting out and fighting evil, or fostering and protecting good? Or is it less dualistic like that? Is it an Order of knowledge, philosophy, and study? Or maybe one of travel and storytelling. Or of gold and jewels and mercenary work. The Order's teachings and what got your character (or his family) to choose that one tells you a lot about the people involved.

>>46694680
3 or 4, and all of them are the "do the best you can, when you can" sword and board types.

Most interesting one (to me) that I played was one that was a grizzled soldier that had lost his leg in battle prior to finding the Church.

>>46694719
The father was a peacetime soldier, no real amounts of valor or glory, just did his duty and kept his nose clean.

The character will most likely have a somewhat neutral stance on war as a result.

The Order is one of authority and order. Cleansing light and all that. Recently (due to peace) functions more as a police squad for the city.

I started writing this before anons started talking about war:
>To make a gritty paladin origin, just add warfare directly to the character
>Child Soldier
At a young age, the character was thrown into the meat grinder of a dirty war and only survived through divine intervention and a killer instinct. Character trusts only their self to do the right thing at first but slowly comes to accept others.
>Army-Brat
Your character was born into and raised by a large extended family whose martial achievements changed the tides of war. Character loves their family but out on the field they are torn between their ingrained disciplined and their desire for personal glory.

>Add a layer of soul-searching in there too:
>Doomed Martyr
In exchange for power, your character has no choice in how they are going to die. That is up to the will of the gods, not mortals such as your character.
>Exchanged Servant
Character started off serving one god but was given up to another. Now the character has to figure out their new set of divine abilities and responsibilities.

>>46694896
Alright, then your character probably thinks of peace as being a great virtue, being that he was raised by a peacetime soldier in a time of peace and joined an Order dedicated to keeping peace and order. Or maybe his parents just think that and your character is more warlike and wishes his country wasn't such a pussy, and one of his flaws are lapses into violence and anger which he views as righteous (but his Order does not). These beliefs would form the methods he uses to act upon them; if more peaceful, healing, buffs, and tankiness. If more warlike, damage and weapons. These things will also decide how he feels about how to answer his problems. Will he try to work with others and come to a peaceful diplomatic solution, or will he take the initiative and go in to fight?

>>46694721
If "do the best you can, when you can" has been the character aspect that shapes/changes other aspects of the character, I'd suggest going the other way. Start out with this same ideal, but let it be changed by other aspects you give the character.

Perhaps a vice makes it difficult for the character to follow the original ideal, such as fear keeping him from being heroic when it comes down to it. He talks big but won't take action. Or the paladin is easy to anger, making it so that his heroic actions appear less so to the public. He does good things but goes overboard.

Another thing could be that his ideal either regarding himself and his duties clash with what his faith brings into the world.

>>46695100
>vice
>fear

Yeah, these are the sorts of things I'm looking for. Care to spitball any other suggestions?

Have him become a bit of a cynic. He's seen the evil that people are capable as well as all the petty sins that everyone does and he's starting to have serious doubts about whether there truly is any good in the world worth protecting. He's not so far gone into "fuck everyone else" that he's fallen yet, but he's in that direction.

>>46695534
I think it'd be helpful to view the "paladin" part as a job. If you think of characters, or just people in general, they're rarely defined solely by their profession. It can play a big part in their life, but other things can be equally important in determining who they are.

As far as vices (or flaws, whatever term you prefer) are concerned, they don't have to be anything major unless you want that level of dramatic tension. Even small things can become memorable and interesting character traits as long as you remember to give them space when role-playing.

Out of the blue, I can think of:
* The character is very strict when it comes to money, and prefers to live frugally when possible. Much to the dismay of his peers or companions.
* The character's belief stems from something different than his fellow faithful and or the canon faith. He still adheres to core beliefs, but knocks heads with his peers on various points and performs his duties in a way that rubs the leadership in the wrong way.
* The character's profession makes him believe that he has some sort of divine right or blessing in all actions, even those that go against common morals or even some of the faith's rules. If he was in the wrong, surely his god (or servants of his god) would intervene?
* The character is no longer part of his faith, having been excommunicated or put in exile. But he still acts as if he's a proper paladin, keeping to the outskirts of civilization where the faith has little power. Depending on the setting, this may not work due to how paladins function in RAW.
* The character could have joined his order under false pretences, or have been sent on a mission from an opposing faction. He has since then been truly converted by the faith and either dreads or fears his past. This probably requires some DM input.

>>46696133
>The character could have joined his order under false pretences, or have been sent on a mission from an opposing faction. He has since then been truly converted by the faith and either dreads or fears his past. This probably requires some DM input.

My DM would fucking shit, he loves stuff like that, and I really like that idea. Please feel free to continue/add advice, but that's a really solid one right now.

>>46693843
Write out a code of conduct for yourself. Put it away for a day.

What are the implications? What are the loopholes? How could your enemies exploit it? What are the logical conclusions from it?

Alternatively, just pick a code from a media source that you like that's vaguely Paladin-ish.

Paladins of the Wall from Warmachine is a good option, in my opinion.

>>46694685
>Gamergate bullshit
>being edgy enough to suggest someone argue that true good exists in the world by straight up lying, cherry picking and fabricating evidence to stir shit up and get attention for yourself, knowingly deceiving thousands of people
Consider suicide

I made a paladin once that was questing because his God had decreed he had to stop a particular foe. His defining character trait, though, was that he was a family man. He was forced to abandon his wife and children to stop this terrible evil. Only once he'd completed his quest could he return home.

>>46693843
Play the rabbit from Zootopia

>>46696792
I haven't seen the movie, but that sounds about as appealing as >>46694685

How does one make anything good?

by doing it well and investing in it.

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>>46693843
Play as a disappointed Korean dad.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLPLgJqeZJw

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>>46696255
>>46696133
Running with this idea, here's the character art I'd like to use. Any suggestions based upon it?

>>46697468
Paladins are usually heavily armoured, and faces things head on. Maybe she's more of a subtle player, tricking people into doing the right thing?

>>46697803
I've always strayed from the tank style, never been my way of playing. So either playing subtley or swiftly, yeah.

>>46697377
thats actually fucking brilliant.

>>46693843
To OP:
Paladin's are essentially the police archetype.
They're fighters more or less, but not exactly as they generally fight for good and right.
Police aren't all the same.

You could play a paladin more interested in investigation and reason than in absolute morality. That can go in a number of ways, from world-weary, noire-esque, monologuing private detectives (always the fun ones), to sherlock holmes style great detectives.
You can also go down the US Marshals, lone ranger route, but with a sword.

Or play a former thief turned thief catcher - the FBI and such do this a lot, as the expertise needed to find criminals and wrongdoers generally needs one to be able to think like a wrongdoer/criminal.

Alternatively, you could even go into a corrupted kind of morality - think like Vic Mackey from the Shield. He felt he was doing the right thing, and he *was* punishing bad guys and keeping the peace, but to do so he had to become increasingly more evil and selfish. Playing a characters arc out knowing he will eventually fall can be quite fun. Especially finding that balance between doing the right thing, and getting away with the previous lies/crimes

Giving a character flaws is the start of basic roleplaying. But specific to Paladins you want to think about the archetype a Paladin fits.

>>46696255
It can be difficult without knowing more about the setting and how paladins work, but in general terms:

* An antagonistic non-clerical and non-magical faction could have sent the character to sabotage or gather information, motivated by greed, corruption or even revenge. Basic stuff, nothing BBEG level, but maybe a faction that becomes useful for the main campaign antagonist later.

* An opposing faction within the same faith have employed the character, and said faction has tenets or views that differ from whatever part swayed the character. Perhaps each faction serve a high-ranked member within the faith, both vying for power and the character is now a pawn in their game.

* A foreign faction wishes increased influence or even intend to spark revolution in the country the faith resides in, and wishes to do this via the clergy. The order that the character joins is treating him and teaching him to treat his fellows in a way much different than what his homeland promotes. Being converted brings a crisis of faith as well as of character.

* The character wishes to join the order to help himself rid of a socially taboo curse or sickness, knowing that he would be ejected from the order if his condition came to light. His fellows treat him with respect and friendship, making the his eventual failure or deception more painful.

* As above, but the character wishes to plunder riches or get his hands on a sacred relic, kept hidden or secret save from the very top of the clergy.

>>46698211
>how paladins work

It's D&D5e, the only thing added is that they cannot multiclass. I'll pitch a few of those concepts to the DM, I like it.

>>46693843
He woke up one night in a cold sweat and thought he saw the avatar of his god hovering over his bed, and decided to go on a one-man crusade against evil.

But actually he's just a little touched.

>>46698340
I hope it works out, and yields a good adventure hook

>>46698371
Dunno about that one, mate.

Do you want to talk about it?

Also, question for the thread:
Normally I take the Shield Master feat at Level 1 for my pallys, but this is the first one I'm playing that doesn't use a shield. Any noteworthy Feats I should consider? D&D5e for reference.

Also, which Oath? Probably Devotion, right?

>>46698482
Good feats really depends on what you want your character to do, but generally, Lucky is a really good feat that can and will save your ass a lot.

>>46698579
Might take it given the clandestine nature of the character, but for added detail she will be

Lightly armored, mobile, and an aggressive fighter. She uses tools imbued with magic more often than channeling spells herself.

>>46694685
He asked how to make paladins interesting, not how not to ever actually play games.

>>46698672
You should consider dual-wielding, alert, and mobile, then.

>>46698879
Those are the obvious ones lol, any that aid in the use of magic items or casting in general? I saw War Caster, but I don't think I'll take it.

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>>46693843
Maybe this helps?

>>46698942
There's not really a lot for magic items, I'm afraid. As for magic, Magic Initiate or Spellsniper are some of the more useful options.

>>46699070
Saved for later, thank you!

>>46693843

Play the old guy that has seen too much but follows his faith because it is the one thing he has left.

His religion is persecuted and he has to do his best to protect the faithful at the same time avoiding trouble.

>>46699822
Did that before, unfortunately, see >>46694721

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>>46699822
alternatively try the idealist new guy who starting to become a little scared of how much he likes fighting...

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I've always found the antiheroes and moral deconstructionists to be the characters that are uninteresting, while the paragons of virtue and the unsympathetic evil characters to be the ones I'm drawn to. I like classic archetypes above all else, and have no interest in subversion.

If you're making a paladin, you have to understand the mindset of this archetype. You have to be the protector of form and order, supporting authority and opposing rebellion. A paladin is a loyal servant first and foremost, humble with the strength they are given.

If you're looking for the darker shades of a Paladins personality, you would find a sadist or a masochist in their shadow.

>>46693843
>/tg/, how do I make a paladin interesting?
Make a character.
Make them interesting.
Give them a motivation for being a paladin.
Done.

In general, much like there are many different ways to play a LG character, there are many different ways to play a LG paladin. You could play a good-focused paladin, who thinks that the laws benefit and help the people and thus ignore the laws which do not do so. You could play a law-focused paladin, who thinks that order and society are a benefit to everyone and thus avoid going of of the way to aid people short-term when they could be setting up a way to benefit them in the long term. You could play a paladin to a dwarven deity, focused on bringing benefit to the dwarven race. You could play a paladin to Kelemvor, acting as a judge and warden of death.

Just make sure you don't have a GM who acts like a dick and enjoys switching your alignment every session.

>>46693843
>Nobody is perfect, that won't stop me from trying
Once you understand that statement you can play a Paladin.

>>46703016
Uh, ok.

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Next time I get to be a PC (some time in 2026 or around there) I'll probably be a cleric/paladin

I was going to have him be older, like early 40s or so. Ex-mercenary/soldier who did some bad things (like war crimes things) because he was young and impressionable and was just following orders.

Years of this go by before an event that makes him desert/quit his soldiering/mercenary life, and he wanders for a time before finding himself at a temple of some war god, whatever fits the setting. repents for his crimes and etc and begins to adventure in the name of his god, hoping to make up for past misdeeds. Visually i pretty much have the DD man at arms in my head

I think that's a bit more interesting than the normal handsome paladin guy.

>>46703335
See
>>46694721

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>>46693843
Play a crazed Paladin who's on some sort of weird, ambiguous holy quest that he himself probably doesn't understand. Despite being crazy, he's still a cool dude who helps people.

>>46693843
>>46693898
man them a rent-a-cop living in a village full of people who don't respect him
then he gets hired by the local party of heroes and they go on jolly adventures.

pull over a wagon and ask "Sir, do you know how fast you were going?"

>>46693843
You should probably think about what you've done so far and look into changing it as far as you can in one or two aspects while still having him remain a Paladin (you may want to talk to your DM about that beforehand, to make sure you two are on the same page about it).

>>46694721
If those were all nice guys who uphold goodness and are fairly calm and collected, maybe try a young hothead who's out to kick evil in the nuts and save the day, or something more like the stereotypical medieval knight (he has rules he follows, not necessarily chivalry but it could be, that typically have him protect the weak and so on, but he's not necessarily a nice guy on any given subject those rules don't cover).

Or, heck, you could make a full-on Lawful Stupid Judge Dredd type and smite the shit out of anyone who does anything evil near you. Though, this one isn't likely to be as popular with your group.

tl;dr change random crap and see if you like what comes out