Paladin

Paladins are exemplars of Faith and Honor, holding themselves to an unusually high standard and selflessly working to improve the world around them. Their view of the world, so intimately connected to their own belief system, does not always align with those around them. This can set them at odds with those who choose a different path through life.

Above all, Paladins are upholders and enforcers of the law. If that law is defined by a monarch, they will be found among the staunchest supporters of the crown. However, if that law is defined by their own Paladin Order and sets them against the prevailing laws of the land, they can also be considered rebels, or even villains at times. Even in these rare circumstances, one can usually expect mercy from a Paladin. They do not revel in suffering or destruction, but wish in all things for order to prevail. This should never be mistaken for weakness; if a Paladin deems something to be a threat to that order, all notion of mercy disappears. Paladins will stop at nothing to vanquish their foes, often launching prolonged campaigns to eradicate their enemies. When Paladins go on Crusade, even the mighty tremble.

Class Overview

Typical Roles: Tank, Healer, Support/Utility, Melee Damage, Ranged Damage
Damage Types: Physical, Faith (Holy, Demonic, Psionic, Primal)
Class Mechanic:Honor and Faith

Default Stats: During Character Creation you may choose to use the default stat line shown below, before racial modifiers. This can be instead of rolling for stats, or if after rolling ten sets of stats you don’t like the results.

During Character Creation you may choose to use the Default Stat Line, before racial modifiers, instead of rolling for stats, or if after rolling ten sets of stats you don’t like the results

Proficiencies

Natural Armor Proficiency: Cloth, Leather, Mail
Trainable Armor Proficiency: Plate
Natural Weapon Proficiency: Knives, Swords, Bludgeons (2-handed), Shields
Trainable Weapon Proficiency: Swords (2-handed), Staves, Firearms

See Equipment section for details. When using a weapon that your class is not proficient with, see Combat Penalties. There is no level or title prerequisite to train in a new proficiency, however you must receive the appropriate Training.

Class Skills

Class Class Passive: Selfless Resolve
Class Secondary Skill: Commander, Theologian, or Combat Specialist (may select from Sword & Board, Freehand, Great Weapon, Paired Weapon, or Freestyle Specializations)

Primary Skills

Honor

Codes

For Paladin’s there is Honor to be found in the service of others and in the veneration of divine or otherworldly beings. Regardless of the divergent paths paladins may take, they are sworn to the powers they serve. This means that at they outset of their life journey every paladin must choose one of the following core codes of honor; Holysworn, Hellsworn, Primalsworn, or Soulsworn. Additional Honor Codes are typically prescribed by the Order to which the Paladin belongs, though some are less strict than others. Regardless, when selecting additional Codes, a Paladin will look to their order for guidance.

Holysworn

Hellsworn

Primalsworn

Soulsworn

Skills

Paladins have a robust array of Honor skills associated with the Codes they adhere to. These take the form of Oaths, Virtues, and Code skills. No training is required for Oaths and Virtues, as they are a function of one or more of the Codes that a Paladins lives by. However, oaths must still be sworn and upheld, while virtues must be demonstrated throughout a Paladin’s daily life and accolades. Training in Code Skills is required and is typically facilitated by the Order, where a higher ranking Paladin will act as Mentor and trainer.

Paladins cannot learn a previously unknown Code or Code Skill (i.e. putting the first code point into Divine Protection) unless they are taught/instructed by a Mentor (aka Code Trainer) that knows the corresponding skill. If assigning additional code points to an already known code skill, then no trainer is required and the point can be assigned immediately (i.e. increasing the number of code points in Divine Protection from 1 to 2). This represents an Paladin honing their skills rather than actually learning a new skill.

See Learning New Honor Codes and Skills for details.

Faith

Sacred Scriptures

Paladins carry the words of their Faith with them wherever they go. This most often includes the accepted mainstream text of their faith, but also could include scrolls or letters written by scholarly sources or long dead heroes from Crusades of old. In many cases a Paladin will revere and honor the sacred scriptures almost to the same extent as the deity or power they represent, defending them with their very life. Regardless of the degree of reverence, these written teachings are an essential repository of knowledge that acts as a source book of sorts for all of the Faith Powers that they would have access to as part of their faith. Depending on the circumstance and character background, a GM might choose to restrict what Powers are recorded within those sacred writings and scriptures, however unless otherwise stated it contains the entirely of what would be available for their choose Faith Path (i.e. if following the Holy Faith, it would contain all Holy Faith powers from all Disciplines)

From this repository, a Paladin can memorize powers for day-to-day use and for use in combat. As the Paladin gains levels they increase their capacity to retain or “know” powers, but this is not the same as actually learning them. For additional details see Learning New Faith Powers.

Battle Hymns

In order to actually cast any of their powers, a Zealot, Cleric, or Paladin must speak out a memorized scripture or verse while focusing their mind on the desired outcome. This must be paired with a simple but forceful casting gesture, often made with a symbol, relic, idol, or other such device of their faith (see Methods of Casting).

For Paladins, conflict and war are common place. As such they have become adept at exercising their Faith in the powers they serve while in the thick of battle. Many choose to recite battle hymns or shout out words of power that can carry across a battlefield. Many also choose to forge the symbols of their faith into their weapons and armor to make it that much easier to cast whiel in the thick of combat.

Level Ups

Paladins use the following chart for leveling up:

HP Dice (Regular): Small Race (1d8), Medium Race (1d10), Large Race (1d12)