This is long, but here's the oath I wrote for my Devotion Paladin player to swear into a knight order called the Scarlet Hand
The scarlet of the hand is the blood of our bodies. The blood of our covenant. Devotion is diligence without assurance. Devotion is self-sacrifice. Devotion is walking face first and full speed into the dark.
The scarlet hand lies upon a field of white, that it may be seen. So do we wear white. Do not hide your injuries, let all see you bleed. Let the world behold the full weight of your Devotion and let those who stand against you be crushed beneath it.
Deep calls unto deep. Shallow hearts believe in luck. Strong hearts believe in themselves. The gods will not have their work made manifest by cowards
Whatever path your Devotion leads you down hold true to it and you will always be unbreakable. By your taking of the Oath, by your deeds, and by receiving this badge you are a Knight of the Scarlet Hand.
Show me what passes for fury among your misbegotten kind!
A general oath/statement
Upon him I will visit death and fire, Till all around him desolation rings And all the demons in the outer dark Look on amazed and recognize That vengeance is the business of a man.
And just a couple I like in general
People should say you should always do the right thing. But sometimes there is no right thing. And then, well you just have to pick the sin you can live with.
Too many children have suffered. Too many families have been broken. Too many have to grow up alone. Or not at all. I won’t let them ruin anyone else.
The stain of evil upon you roils about you like vermin. I am here to save you from this terrible thing that you have done to yourself.
As I swing this blade, I pray that this sinner may have eternal life.
It is not my place to judge you. That would be hubris, the sin of pride. My duty is to humbly send you to the One who shall.
I actually just played my Leonin Ancients Paladin of Lurue in a campaign. He used sacred flame to blow up the tavern that had assassins of Shar to save the rest of the party/comrades from certain defeat.
He lost his arms in the explosion, but was saved by Selûne and Balinor (deity of the hunt and nature). Balinor gave him wooden arms and Selûne blessed him with extra astral arms that manifest in battle (or when he climbs). He now serves them with as a (Simic) Hybrid Oath of Vengeance Pally, to strike evil first before it strikes the innocent.
I vow to teach those who prey on the meek the error of their ways
I vow to teach those alien beings, those mind flayers, what the true meaning of death is
Oghma, I vow to help
I vow to help those harmed by my enemies
I vow to help all others in the pursuit of knowledge, that it may empower the weak to resist the corrupt
Oghma, I vow that I will use my brain, my strength, my being to further the knowledge that leads to true freedom from tyranny
My vow for vow of enmity: Give me the knowledge needed to slay this evil.
Oath of vengeance Goliath Paladin whose village was destroyed/subjugated by a mind flayer. Sworn to Oghma, god of knowledge (god of the monastery who took me in)
"This sword of mine glows with an awesome power Its burning edge tells me to defeat you Take this My love, My anger, And all of my sorrow Shining Saber!"
I don’t have any vengeance paladins planned, but if I made one he or she’d probably have a variant on this speech from Mega Man Zero 4:
”I never cared about justice and I don’t remember ever calling myself a hero. I have only ever fought for the people I believe in. I won’t hesitate! If an enemy stands in my way, it will be destroyed!”
Only ever made a paladin once (never used in a real campaign since I'm a forever DM and I like it that way) and it was Oath of Redemption (but I'm putting it here anyway). The oath was along the lines of, "Sorry Eldath, I shouldn't have poked him just because he murdered my family. I promise I'll be good next time!"
The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men.
Blessed is he, who in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children.
And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who would attempt to poison and destroy my brothers.
And you will know my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee.
My Paladin started out as a War Cleric in Curse of Strahd. When we brought Arkenvost back to life, he swore to protect the people of Barovia. I pledged myself to him and became the first Knight of the Silver Dragon, a Vengeance Paladin dedicated to cleansing the world of all evil, starting with the supernatural kind.
"If you prey on the innocent...fear me.
If you follow the wicked...fear me.
If you revel in evil...fear me.
For the first time you see my face will be the last time you draw breath."
Mine own innocence be not whole, nor am I villainous. Let my blade be untethered by rectitude of the unjust or immoral. Eilistraee willing, I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger the subjugation of the innocent by the tyranny of evil.
For battle;
Above all else, may I be guided by wisdom and the hand of an expert.
Equinox: God of balance, who splits into the god of wrath and mercy.
O' Equinox, I swear myself to the decimation of evil. My body a shield for the weak. My might their spear. The blood of our foes, the beacon in the dark. Your wrath is mine, and mine yours. No mercy for the wicked.
Vow of enmity: By this blade of which I carry. You shall know true might.
I swear there will not be peace for the evil ones. They will be defeated and they will pay. I swear this sword will not rest. It will be my companion until the evil is eradicated. I swear I will not rest until the evil ones are no more. There will be no rest until all is as it should be. I swear I will not have a peaceful sleep, as long as there is a victim without revenge. No offense will be forgotten. No price will be too high. No measure will be too cruel. Because i'm the blade of vengace, and I won't find peace until the evil will be gone.
This is long, but here's the oath I wrote for my Devotion Paladin player to swear into a knight order called the Scarlet Hand
The scarlet of the hand is the blood of our bodies. The blood of our covenant.
Devotion is diligence without assurance.
Devotion is self-sacrifice.
Devotion is walking face first and full speed into the dark.
The scarlet hand lies upon a field of white, that it may be seen.
So do we wear white.
Do not hide your injuries, let all see you bleed.
Let the world behold the full weight of your Devotion and let those who stand against you be crushed beneath it.
Deep calls unto deep.
Shallow hearts believe in luck. Strong hearts believe in themselves.
The gods will not have their work made manifest by cowards
Whatever path your Devotion leads you down hold true to it and you will always be unbreakable.
By your taking of the Oath, by your deeds, and by receiving this badge you are a Knight of the Scarlet Hand.
I have several I use.
Abjure enemy/Vow of Emnity
I fear no evil, for I am fear incarnate!
Fear me, for I am your apocalypse
No Fear! No Pity! NO REMORSE!
I will either find a way, or I shall make one
Show me what passes for fury among your misbegotten kind!
A general oath/statement
Upon him I will visit death and fire,
Till all around him desolation rings
And all the demons in the outer dark
Look on amazed and recognize
That vengeance is the business of a man.
And just a couple I like in general
People should say you should always do the right thing. But sometimes there is no right thing. And then, well you just have to pick the sin you can live with.
Too many children have suffered. Too many families have been broken. Too many have to grow up alone. Or not at all. I won’t let them ruin anyone else.
The stain of evil upon you roils about you like vermin. I am here to save you from this terrible thing that you have done to yourself.
As I swing this blade, I pray that this sinner may have eternal life.
It is not my place to judge you. That would be hubris, the sin of pride. My duty is to humbly send you to the One who shall.
"I am the fear, in the eyes of my enemy.
I am the hope, in the eyes of the hopeless.
I am the shield and the wall that protects the innocent.
My friends will know the truth of my words.
My foes will know the truth of my steel.
My Goddess will know the truth of my heart."
To the pain
I actually just played my Leonin Ancients Paladin of Lurue in a campaign. He used sacred flame to blow up the tavern that had assassins of Shar to save the rest of the party/comrades from certain defeat.
He lost his arms in the explosion, but was saved by Selûne and Balinor (deity of the hunt and nature). Balinor gave him wooden arms and Selûne blessed him with extra astral arms that manifest in battle (or when he climbs). He now serves them with as a (Simic) Hybrid Oath of Vengeance Pally, to strike evil first before it strikes the innocent.
Oghma, I vow to learn
I vow to learn what I can to do what I must
I vow to learn the true meaning of vengeance
Oghma, I vow to teach
I vow to teach those who prey on the meek the error of their ways
I vow to teach those alien beings, those mind flayers, what the true meaning of death is
Oghma, I vow to help
I vow to help those harmed by my enemies
I vow to help all others in the pursuit of knowledge, that it may empower the weak to resist the corrupt
Oghma, I vow that I will use my brain, my strength, my being to further the knowledge that leads to true freedom from tyranny
My vow for vow of enmity: Give me the knowledge needed to slay this evil.
Oath of vengeance Goliath Paladin whose village was destroyed/subjugated by a mind flayer. Sworn to Oghma, god of knowledge (god of the monastery who took me in)
When using a flame tongue with vow of enmity:
"This sword of mine glows with an awesome power
Its burning edge tells me to defeat you
Take this
My love,
My anger,
And all of my sorrow
Shining Saber!"
G Gundam! 😀
I'll save this one for a divine smite perhaps!
If you get out of jail. LoL.
I've been a forever DM for like 4 years now, so he's probably died from starvation already, lmao.
It's ok Ranger, you'll always be cool to me.. Unless druid gets another use for its wild shape charges.
I don’t have any vengeance paladins planned, but if I made one he or she’d probably have a variant on this speech from Mega Man Zero 4:
”I never cared about justice and I don’t remember ever calling myself a hero. I have only ever fought for the people I believe in. I won’t hesitate! If an enemy stands in my way, it will be destroyed!”
Only ever made a paladin once (never used in a real campaign since I'm a forever DM and I like it that way) and it was Oath of Redemption (but I'm putting it here anyway). The oath was along the lines of, "Sorry Eldath, I shouldn't have poked him just because he murdered my family. I promise I'll be good next time!"
Beardy druid.
Very beardy druid. With a cap.
My Oath of Vengeance:
The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men.
Blessed is he, who in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children.
And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who would attempt to poison and destroy my brothers.
And you will know my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee.
My Paladin started out as a War Cleric in Curse of Strahd. When we brought Arkenvost back to life, he swore to protect the people of Barovia. I pledged myself to him and became the first Knight of the Silver Dragon, a Vengeance Paladin dedicated to cleansing the world of all evil, starting with the supernatural kind.
"If you prey on the innocent...fear me.
If you follow the wicked...fear me.
If you revel in evil...fear me.
For the first time you see my face will be the last time you draw breath."
Mine own innocence be not whole, nor am I villainous. Let my blade be untethered by rectitude of the unjust or immoral. Eilistraee willing, I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger the subjugation of the innocent by the tyranny of evil.
For battle;
Above all else, may I be guided by wisdom and the hand of an expert.
Half Drow Vengeance Paladin.
Equinox: God of balance, who splits into the god of wrath and mercy.
O' Equinox, I swear myself to the decimation of evil. My body a shield for the weak. My might their spear. The blood of our foes, the beacon in the dark. Your wrath is mine, and mine yours. No mercy for the wicked.
Vow of enmity: By this blade of which I carry. You shall know true might.
I swear there will not be peace for the evil ones.
They will be defeated and they will pay.
I swear this sword will not rest.
It will be my companion until the evil is eradicated.
I swear I will not rest until the evil ones are no more.
There will be no rest until all is as it should be.
I swear I will not have a peaceful sleep,
as long as there is a victim without revenge.
No offense will be forgotten.
No price will be too high.
No measure will be too cruel.
Because i'm the blade of vengace,
and I won't find peace until the evil will be gone.
I am the shield that protects.
I am the sword that defends.
I am the tip of the spear...the coming storm.
To preserve life...that is my charge.
To defeat evil...that is my mission.
To bring peace...that is my oath.
Two homages to some of my favorite screen fantasies.
The way is shut… and so we advance,
The storm approaches… and so we stand,
All hope is lost… and so we persevere,
The night is dark and full of horrors… and so we hunt