If you're anything like me and have been playing for a while, you've probably met a player (or been a player) that has tripped over their own feet when roleplaying a paladin. More often than not, this is because most people don't know how to interact with their oaths, so I wrote down a few thoughts that I think may help some paladin players get more out of their character. Let me know what you think.
I enjoyed your deconstruction of the relationship between a paladin and his/her oath. I haven't yet played a paladin, but I find their limitations and the opportunities created by them to be compelling. I think I will play one when I get the chance.
i prefer to look at it the other way, develop a set of principles which are founded on the interaction of the wording of the oath and the tenets of your deity, base your charachter round those principles and play it. see john snows refusal to bend the knee to Cersei and not lie. that is straight up actions of a paladin, hold your principles they are the foundation of your being own the consequences too. you don't have to do something stupid, you have to learn to be creative. in how you answer question while not lying. the old chestnut of paladin doing something bad because they are following orders of a superior. shouldn't apply, unless it aligns with your gods doctrine don't do it. if it doesn't leave their service and start the rebellion.
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All plans turn into, run into the room waving a sword and see what happens from there, once the first die gets rolled
These are the conversations I love D&D for. Moral ambiguity and crises of conscience are things i enjoy seeing at my table. And we have to assume that the deity can see through potential BS as well. If you do the wrong thing for the right reason, your deity might not mind. Or a strict deity might punish the infraction all the same. Conversely, a paladin who follows the letter of the law without following the spirit of it might invoke the wrath of a deity who is less concerned with details and more concerned with intention.
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"Not all those who wander are lost"
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Hey everyone,
If you're anything like me and have been playing for a while, you've probably met a player (or been a player) that has tripped over their own feet when roleplaying a paladin. More often than not, this is because most people don't know how to interact with their oaths, so I wrote down a few thoughts that I think may help some paladin players get more out of their character. Let me know what you think.
https://rerollpodcast.tumblr.com/post/178943632216/bloody-oath-different-approaches-to-roleplaying-a
You're doing a bang up job
I enjoyed your deconstruction of the relationship between a paladin and his/her oath. I haven't yet played a paladin, but I find their limitations and the opportunities created by them to be compelling. I think I will play one when I get the chance.
"Not all those who wander are lost"
i prefer to look at it the other way, develop a set of principles which are founded on the interaction of the wording of the oath and the tenets of your deity, base your charachter round those principles and play it.
see john snows refusal to bend the knee to Cersei and not lie. that is straight up actions of a paladin, hold your principles they are the foundation of your being own the consequences too.
you don't have to do something stupid, you have to learn to be creative. in how you answer question while not lying.
the old chestnut of paladin doing something bad because they are following orders of a superior. shouldn't apply, unless it aligns with your gods doctrine don't do it. if it doesn't leave their service and start the rebellion.
All plans turn into, run into the room waving a sword and see what happens from there, once the first die gets rolled
These are the conversations I love D&D for. Moral ambiguity and crises of conscience are things i enjoy seeing at my table. And we have to assume that the deity can see through potential BS as well. If you do the wrong thing for the right reason, your deity might not mind. Or a strict deity might punish the infraction all the same. Conversely, a paladin who follows the letter of the law without following the spirit of it might invoke the wrath of a deity who is less concerned with details and more concerned with intention.
"Not all those who wander are lost"