HYPERBOREA / Paladins of Hyperborea

**Posted by Handy Haversack** 1/27/2015 4:58 pm

In my game, the paladin as written up in the Players Manual could only be an NPC. And a villain at that! My players . . . are not ones to put up with a lot of Lawful do-Good-ery. They might stick up for the poor and oppressed if the oppressor ticks them off, but they might also scatter gems coated with contact poison among the children at a festival in order to cause a distraction so they can complete a jail break.*

*They actually did this.

**Posted by Rastus_Burne** 1/27/2015 5:34 pm

Handy Haversack wrote:
but they might also scatter gems coated with contact poison among the children at a festival in order to cause a distraction so they can complete a jail break.*

*They actually did this.

Good Lord!

**Posted by Handy Haversack** 1/27/2015 5:54 pm

Rastus_Burne wrote:
Handy Haversack wrote:
but they might also scatter gems coated with contact poison among the children at a festival in order to cause a distraction so they can complete a jail break.*

*They actually did this.
Good Lord!

Well, many of the people at the festival were in a thieves guild . . . and the kids who survived will make great adventurers . . . and they had made mittens for just such an emergency--I can't penalize them for thinking ahead!

**Posted by Rastus_Burne** 1/27/2015 5:59 pm

Ehh, in a world without morality who needs it? :D

**Posted by tomas** 6/25/2015 1:18 pm

Rastus_Burne wrote:
Rather than the 'lawful' good paladin, I would be inclined to see the paladin as something more akin to what Chainsaw is suggesting: a warrior who is lawfully devout to their god's ideals, or more accurately their interpretation of their god and its ideals. In this sense they are a 'holy warrior' (in their own eyes at least). If this is the case, it doesn't really matter what god, devil or ideal the paladin serves, because they'll still see their mission and purpose as true and noble.

That is pretty much how I would see them as well.

**Posted by Blackadder23** 6/25/2015 10:16 pm

Handy Haversack wrote:
In my game, the paladin as written up in the Players Manual could only be an NPC. And a villain at that! My players . . . are not ones to put up with a lot of Lawful do-Good-ery. They might stick up for the poor and oppressed if the oppressor ticks them off, but they might also scatter gems coated with contact poison among the children at a festival in order to cause a distraction so they can complete a jail break.*

*They actually did this.

On a less homicidal note, I've had AD&D players who used hypnotic pattern to mesmerize a crowd of 0-level townsfolk so the PCs could empty their pockets. They did this at every town they visited.

**Posted by grodog** 6/26/2015 10:56 pm

The paladin story from the Midnight d20 setting reminds me of the shining beacon in darkness model discussed earlier in the thread. If I find the text, I'll post a link.

**Posted by shankspeare** 3/25/2021 12:27 pm

Thread necromancy but oh well

I've approached Paladins a little differently, as I've only had one person interested in playing one and he picked Artemis for worship.

So, for now, there are a few keeps scattered here and there, training Clerics, Priests, and Paladins. For Paladins, I liked the idea of Artemis using them as "hunters". So, inspired by that first Paladin art, Artemis' ideals, and a little bit of Witcher, his character can only gain prominence in the organization by slaying "Monsters". We did a small backstory session, wherein he fought a few ghouls, consecrated a shrine to Apollo, and killed a werewolf with the help of his NPC trainer (RIP Roderick)

He seems very much into it. And at level 2 his current quest is to find a Manticore in the Lug Wasteland. But I'm trying to lure him into all kinds of deadly areas currently. The missing grandson for The Brazen Bull, a poor knave who lost his brothers in the Charnel Crypt... It is both fun and easy to pull him around with morality...

**Posted by BlackKnight** 3/25/2021 1:29 pm

Holy Post Revival Batman!! ROFLOL...

I'm typically open, There are paladins for all gods. if you look at a paladin as a Holy, or unholy warrior for whichever gods they are worshiping/obeying/following. And, just like I did in my many AD&D ventures, allow Anti/Unholy paladins...

**Posted by shankspeare** 3/25/2021 3:19 pm

Gotta talk to somebody about this stuff! Can't discuss too much with the players.

I like the idea of an Unholy paladin. I've been wanting to build a villain around that idea too. Part of his order is actually becoming corrupted, but him being a lowly Apprentice Paladin, he has no idea.

And I would totally allow someone to play an Unholy Avenger. Sounds awesome.

**Posted by rhialto** 3/26/2021 5:20 am

I like your approach with the Paladin of Artemis, and also allow Paladins of any alignment. I only use Law, Balance (Neutral) and Chaos alignments, too: a legacy of when I started my Atlantis campaign using Stormbringer 5th edition. I have one Paladin of Apollo now, but no one else has chosen the class.

**Posted by Caveman** 3/26/2021 6:17 am

I also now make paladin lawful, with a choice of evil, neutral or good depending on their gods. Apollo in my campaign is LN; as he gone a bit twitchy...