Paladin Help

>>51815089
You could make it more of a reluctance thing.

Like:
>oh, I joined the church of Iomedae from a young age because my older sister used up the whole family dowry
>it's alright but it's such a pain sometimes
>oh really? You're really going to commit this crime against her teachings in front of me? Fine, spread your arms and walk into my sword
>are we done yet?

>"angry policewomen" stage of my lawful-ness.

Alignment Law is the universal element of Order, opposite primordial Chaos.
Surely you can think of Orderly behaviors that aren't just blind obedience to mortal lawyers.

>>51815089
Captain Carrot from the Discworld books is a good example of what you might like to try. He's the epitome of lawful good, and lawful stupid a little, but his entire gimmick is being completely kind and just in a setting that is pragmatic as fuck.

You can be lawful and dedicated to your paladining religion, just play your character as kindly and generous but wont take no shit and give the asshole rogue a fair warning that justice is gonna smack their shit in if they keep being a jackass.

>>51815152
I think this is what i'm aiming for. I was originally leaning towards Sarenrae but prefered the idea of the Holy Knight aspect that Iomedae has.
My character is the kind of person who'll spend her downtime tending the wounded rather than hunting down criminals.

I feel i'm going to have the chance for some good party banter or encounters. We have a Half-Orc barbarian who's quite honourable, a Half-Orc magus who's out for vengeance and a Changeling rogue who assassinates targets for Pharasma.

>>51815202
Build up a friendship with the HOrc through both of your interests in honour, try to calmly deter the magus away from his path of vengeance (or at least make sure they're ready for their life after revenge was dealt).

I got nothing on the rogue, pathfinder's gods are foreign to me. But yeah, sounds like you've got a solid party and if you can hit that feel for your paladin right you're gonna have a lot of fun.

and like >>51815138 said, Law isn't always the law of a mortal nation, it can your own personal interpretation of law and justice and blah blah blah paladin blah.

Don't forget to smite evil and shit.

>>51815243
Yeah, already had an encounter that made me pause. We were on a drug trail and ended up finding a corrupt guard. MY 1st thought was to either arrest or kill this man because he's a liar and evil-aligned. However ended up leaving him as there was nothing we could do at the time and we had more pressing matters.

Also Pharasma is the neutral Death/Fate goddess, the whole "you're meant to die when you're meant to die and go get your soul judged"

>>51815290
Oh ok, so a decent god. Got it.

Yeah basically be careful with those sort of encounters, especially if your DM is anxious to make you fall. Sometimes all an NPC need for the evil alignment is to be callous and selfish. Neither of those things warrant a smiting. An ass whooping certainly. Arresting on grounds of corruption are fine imo.

desu I don't know much about your character so all I can give is pretty much basic paladin advice and I don't want to sound like an asshat going like 'You NEED to play your character this way' so yeah.
Not that you need it, sounds like you've got things fine so far.

>>51815403
well that was fucking weird typo on the last line.
Whatever, you get my point.

>>51815413
Indeed, thanks for the help :D

>>51815089
>Any tips on how to play a pious, dedicated Paladin that isn't a constant kill-joy?

By being a good person who isn't a dick?

I don't understand how this is a problem.

>>51815089
I played a paladin of Iomedae for two years from lvl 1-20, and what it taught me is that thinking of yourself as "Paladin of *deity*" is a bit erroneous. The paladin gains their power from their innate goodness, not their god. And the god they worship is more of a reflection of their flavor of goodness, not the source. Being LG is more about being fair and supportive of that which brings about the best in people. And in the case of 'angry policewoman' sometimes exacting vengeance/justice/whatever doesn't bring about the most 'good' outcome for those involved. Think about what orderly, consistent method allows for the nurturing of good. Otherwise, you're just a fighter that happens to target evil people.

>>51815290
>However ended up leaving him as there was nothing we could do at the time and we had more pressing matters.

This is paladin. 101 yes. Sometimes you gotta let the minnows go to get a bigger fish. Be sure to report that nigger to someone though, at least your superiors

Please, play something other than deendee, I sincerely want you to broaden your understanding of gaming so that you'll be a better, more interesting person.

Just be like Superduperman

>>51815570
it also leads to amusing situations like how you can be a lawful good paladin of urgathoa or asmodeus

>>51815089

Paladins are all about being beholden to something greater than themselves, greater than all of us. A lawful good paladin knows that the only thing required for evil to prevail is for good folk to do nothing. Paladins know that they must act to stamp out evil in the world, and must act well to prevent evil from creeping in themselves.

So if you remember that kind of stuff, it should be easier.

>>51815089
Start with your job. Are you a dully authorized law enforcement agent? No? Then stop trying to arrest people. Remember, you work within the laws of whatever society you live in.

No, you don't have to be chaste, or celibate or a teetotaler. If alcohol is legal in the country where you live, than your Paladin can certainly knock back a pint of ale after a long adventure. Hell, get fucking plastered.

Here's the big thing to bear in mind. Law/Neutral/Chaos as alignment is NOT constant from one place to the next. You are Lawful if you choose to STRIVE to follow the LAW OF THE LAND at all times. You are Chaotic if you STRIVE to break the law, if you insist there be NO LAW. You are Neutral if you just give no shits one way or the other.

Good/Neutral/Evil is the one that is always absolute. These remain constant from country to country, society to society.

Bear in mind, a Paladin places Good over Law. It's a good rp fodder should this ever happen, but you aren't going to lose your class if you decide to lead a revolution to overthrow a Lawful Evil king.

Did someone blashpeme against Iomede to your face? Walk away. Unless the kingdom you live in a theocracy and Iomede worship is mandated, you've no legal cause to whip the piss out of them. You're a defender of the faith, you keep temples from being overrun by orc tribes not dispensing beatings to edgey teenagers and bitter, drunken hobos.

You spread the word of your God through your actions. What's going to get more people to show up to Iomede's temple: The well armed and armored jerk who slaps them with a metal fist when they break a commandment they never heard off? Or the person who came out and used some Lay on Hands on the farmer that twisted his ankle plowing his field, before curing the disease that was spreading from the fouled well?

>>51821242
Cont.

You can also get meta with it. You're in heavy ass armor so your flat-footed AC isn't going to be much lower than your full AC, if it's lower at all. So don't put points in your perception. Allow your more devious characters to go be devious without you ever catching on.

Now, none of this is suggesting you be a doormat. If the other players are going out of their way to fuck with you just because you're a playing the Paladin, then you need to either talk with the GM about reigning that shit in, or find a more mature group to play with.