[Pally]Armor of Ro

[Beaniron]

Originally Posted by Aaron [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

Well that's not very Paladin-like.

He should have been a Dark Elf Shadowknight. Then his actions would fit the character. He's giving the rest of us Paladins a bad reputation.

[kaev]

Originally Posted by Beaniron [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

He should have been a Dark Elf Shadowknight. Then his actions would fit the character. He's giving the rest of us Paladins a bad reputation.

I think you may be confused as to the meaning of Paladin in Norrath. Twisted evil hypocrite is probably as terse as you can put it. Don't believe me? To quest your holy armor you must murder some faeries quietly minding their own business in Lesser Faydark, or better yet pay somebody else to commit the murders for you! To quest your holy sword you must murder an ally beset by an horrific infestation of undead (shin lord is a paladin to Mith Marr) or perhaps murder your own guildmaster (or doesn't whatshisname in Felwithe drop ghoulbane on p99?), or, again, pay others to commit the murder for you.

Necros and Shadowknights are practically honest upstanding citizens in comparison, really only Enchanters are darker and more twisted (imo, ofc).

(My main, back in the day on live and now here, is a Paladin, btw. It's always been my favorite EQ class to play despite Verant's sick and twisted implementation. Or maybe not so sick and twisted if you consider the origin of the word as a reference to an officer in Charlemagne's court, and we all know what loveable cuddly teddybears the high and mighty are in societies ruled directly by force of arms.)

[Danth]

Have to kill gnomes too, or at least their clockworks. Just figure Paladins as zealots. Like most zealots they have little trouble with rationalizing theft and murder when it benefits them to do so, preaching their own righteousness all the while. Then they write the history and paint themselves in a positive light.

Or optionally just ignore the in-game lore because it's idiotic.

Danth

[Beaniron]

That's because Paladins are technically people of God and Nobility. Upholding Truth, Honor, and Valor is one thing, but if you really want something, sometimes you have to be willing to take whats yours.

[kaev]

I am so wishing I had a link to that Iraqi Minister of Information .gif handy [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

[Beaniron]

Originally Posted by kaev [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

I am so wishing I had a link to that Iraqi Minister of Information .gif handy [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

Hey, do Paladins become KING of an entire county by serving their Gods and being a champion of truth and peace? No. They can do that, but if you want to be KING, you have to be willing to reach out your hand and take it, even if it means bathing your hands in blood.

Good and Evil are not so clear cut, especially in EQ; there are many shades of grey in between. Good and Evil are based on perspective; Paladins may be seen as relatively evil bastards for some of the things they have to do, but in the end they're only staying true to their teachings.

[kaev]

[You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.] So given a Paladin dedicated to Mith Marr, a Paladin who is a champion for his people leading and defending them in a holy war vs. a relentless invasion of undead. You're saying that my Paladin, also consecrated to Mith Marr, is staying true to his teachings by ambushing and murdering this selfless champion? I suppose that it is important for me to steal the holy sword from his steaming corpse to increase my personal power while seeking still greater personal power. It's all so obvious now.

By that standard, Sir Lucan's only crime was declaring for Innoruuk. He'd have been just fine so long as he limited himself to murdering his benefactors and brothers-in-arms and usurping their wealth, power, & property for his own use.

On the plus side, while repurposing words like "Noble" & "Truth" EQ fashion is surely Orwellian and dark as hell, at least there aren't any sparkly rainbow ponies involved in this vision. [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

This does suggest a possible rationale for HalfElfs not being allowed to be SKs in EQ, which always seemed odd to me since they're so generally shat upon in the game-world. You'd think more than a few would respond with the active hostility of the SK. But it turns out that there's simply no need. Just choose to be a Paladin to Mith Marr and you can fight evil while being evil yourself. It's the best of all possible worlds, the penultimate in self-interest, self-serving, & self-dealing (the actual ultimate evil being the Enchanter, of course.)

[Beaniron]

Originally Posted by kaev [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

[You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.] So given a Paladin dedicated to Mith Marr, a Paladin who is a champion for his people leading and defending them in a holy war vs. a relentless invasion of undead. You're saying that my Paladin, also consecrated to Mith Marr, is staying true to his teachings by ambushing and murdering this selfless champion? I suppose that it is important for me to steal the holy sword from his steaming corpse to increase my personal power while seeking still greater personal power. It's all so obvious now.

By that standard, Sir Lucan's only crime was declaring for Innoruuk. He'd have been just fine so long as he limited himself to murdering his benefactors and brothers-in-arms and usurping their wealth, power, & property for his own use.

On the plus side, while repurposing words like "Noble" & "Truth" EQ fashion is surely Orwellian and dark as hell, at least there aren't any sparkly rainbow ponies involved in this vision. [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

This does suggest a possible rationale for HalfElfs not being allowed to be SKs in EQ, which always seemed odd to me since they're so generally shat upon in the game-world. You'd think more than a few would respond with the active hostility of the SK. But it turns out that there's simply no need. Just choose to be a Paladin to Mith Marr and you can fight evil while being evil yourself. It's the best of all possible worlds, the penultimate in self-interest, self-serving, & self-dealing (the actual ultimate evil being the Enchanter, of course.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqSlaMME-Mk