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alchemyprime
2011-04-19, 07:44 PM
Not mechanically, but there was a quote I read on here the other week that summed up a paladin as someone who knows how evil everyone is, and is so urged to kill them, but holds back except for the worst of the worst.

Anyone have that?

Darthteej
2011-04-19, 10:49 PM
There is none of that, "Oh well if you're truly sorry, there's nothing I can do." horse****. No, he coup de graces your ass because he's a goddamn paladin. His job is killing evil. You know what his job doesn't entail? Being a sympathetic ear for every whiny NE or CN or LE douchebag who's only being evil because the world is unfair to him or every punk that lets his own dislikes or laziness overcome his own personality. You know what unfair is? Being able to know what kind of person everyone is before you even talk to them. Smelling evil so potent on a mother****er that you want to sink your fingers in his chest and pull that tar out until the screaming stops. Having the psychotic urge to murder people that you've never even met, for the sole reason that your God decided that you ought to be his right hand without your choice in the matter, that's unfair. But unlike Evil McBlacknails over there, that Paladin puts on his helmet, sharpens his sword, and then continues walking through crowds of people day by day, resisting the urge. Seeing evidence of injustice so black it makes him sick. Seeing murderers and rapists walk the street, watching good men hang as evil ones pull the lever. Saving his righteous violence for when the situation exactly, specifically, precisely calls for it. Surgically removing that which is most evil. Because he's a Paladin. And if he gave in to the urge, what would he be? Who will right the true wrongs if not he? It's not about not falling as a Paladin. It's about falling so ****ing hard you crash through the planet and stand up on the other side.'

Mystic Muse
2011-04-19, 11:34 PM
t's not about not falling as a Paladin. It's about falling so ****ing hard you crash through the planet and stand up on the other side.'

I was never exactly sure what this last line meant.

slaydemons
2011-04-19, 11:55 PM
it means you never fall you just kick booty

alchemyprime
2011-04-20, 12:24 AM
There is none of that, "Oh well if you're truly sorry, there's nothing I can do." horse****. No, he coup de graces your ass because he's a goddamn paladin. His job is killing evil. You know what his job doesn't entail? Being a sympathetic ear for every whiny NE or CN or LE douchebag who's only being evil because the world is unfair to him or every punk that lets his own dislikes or laziness overcome his own personality. You know what unfair is? Being able to know what kind of person everyone is before you even talk to them. Smelling evil so potent on a mother****er that you want to sink your fingers in his chest and pull that tar out until the screaming stops. Having the psychotic urge to murder people that you've never even met, for the sole reason that your God decided that you ought to be his right hand without your choice in the matter, that's unfair. But unlike Evil McBlacknails over there, that Paladin puts on his helmet, sharpens his sword, and then continues walking through crowds of people day by day, resisting the urge. Seeing evidence of injustice so black it makes him sick. Seeing murderers and rapists walk the street, watching good men hang as evil ones pull the lever. Saving his righteous violence for when the situation exactly, specifically, precisely calls for it. Surgically removing that which is most evil. Because he's a Paladin. And if he gave in to the urge, what would he be? Who will right the true wrongs if not he? It's not about not falling as a Paladin. It's about falling so ****ing hard you crash through the planet and stand up on the other side.'

Darthteej, THANK YOU! I am playing a Superhero RPG, and this was exactly how my character is! Thank you thank you thank you! :smallbiggrin:

Sarco_Phage
2011-04-20, 12:25 AM
I was never exactly sure what this last line meant.

It means falling so hard that, yes, you are fallen, but still technically standing.

Except on the other side of the planet.

I think.

Heliomance
2011-04-20, 01:13 AM
When I first became a Paladin, I thought in terms of black and white. I see now that it's really a spectrum of greys, and that plenty of people straddle my arbitrary line between good and evil.
But you know what? Those people aren't my problem. My job is to sniff out those who live their lives far enough away from that line that I need to squint to see any light, and then kick their ass in a manner most righteous.

Shpadoinkle
2011-04-20, 03:56 AM
You know who comes to mind when I think 'paladin?'

This guy.


http://www.dumpyourphoto.com/files2/56739/8FDb5.jpg

Doesn't matter what the press says. Doesn't matter what the politicians or the mobs say. Doesn't matter if the whole country decides that something wrong is something right. This nation was founded on one principle above all else: the requirement that we stand up for what we believe, no matter the odds or the consequences. When the mob and the press and the whole world tell you to move, your job is to plant yourself like a tree beside the river of truth, and tell the whole world — "No, you move."

Heliomance
2011-04-20, 04:12 AM
This is now a Paladin quotes thread!

A king may move a man, a father may claim a son. But remember that, even when those who move you be kings or men of power, your soul is in your keeping alone. When you stand before God you cannot say "but I was told by others to do thus" or that "virtue was not convinient at the time." This will not suffice. Remember that.


To dream the impossible dream
To fight the unbeatable foe
To bear with unbearable sorrow
To run where the brave dare not go
To right the unrightable wrong
To love pure and chaste from afar
To try when your arms are too weary
To reach the unreachable star

This is my quest
To follow that star
No matter how hopeless
No matter how far

To fight for the right
Without question or pause
To be willing to march into Hell
For a heavenly cause

And I know if I'll only be true
To this glorious quest
That my heart will lie peaceful and calm
When I'm laid to my rest

And the world will be better for this
That one man, scorned and covered with scars
Still strove with his last ounce of courage
To reach the unreachable star

Mystic Muse
2011-04-20, 09:36 AM
Paladin quote thread eh? I'm currently playing one so I have a lot of them. Some have been modified to fit my Paladin better though.


The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the iniquities 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.

"Rejoice, for your redemption is at hand." <draws greatsword>

"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." <draws sword>

"The only coin that can repay your terrible deeds is forged in steel and annointed in the blood of the wicked. I have it here in my hand."

“I have offered you an amnesty…a chance to escape with your life and your honor intact. If I see that hand stray towards the hilt of your sword one more time, we may consider that amnesty broken and may my deity forgive me for doing what I think is right.”

"Repent your evil ways and you will not be harmed."

"I do not intend to destroy you, i intend to destroy evil. Unfortunately for you it happens to be lodged in your being and you won't give it up."

"I pray you find the redemption in death that you spurned here in life."

“Demon, I want you to understand that this isn’t a magic sword. This is just a slab of metal that I heated up and beat a point and an edge into with a hammer. It’s steel…not mithril, adamantite, or some other fanciful material…just good, old, plain steel. I want you to understand this because I’m going to end you with this. I want you to fully realize the fact that the only thing that grants me the power to sheer your damned head off your shoulders is the strength of my right arm and the strength of my faith.”

"I cannot allow your evil to continue. Please don't do this. You have the power to end your evil without bloodshed. *draw sword* I don't."

For intelligent corporeal undead:
"You have not cheated death. This flesh is a prison for your soul! You have robbed yourself of the Light and locked your soul in Darkness. Let go of your fear and pass through the door. The Light is waiting for you on the other side if you will only seek it out!"

“You are standing between me and my injured friends. Remove yourself or I will remove you.”

“Upon my back I bear the hopes of an entire faith. My shield defends their dreams and my sword strikes down their enemies. What do you bring to the table that could possibly stop that?”

"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."

"If you refuse to seek repentance in this life, then I pray you seek it in the next. May the pain of my blade remind you of this."

"We all make mistakes. If you say that you've never flubbed once, then you're a liar. I too have made mistakes, done deeds that I regret. Don't call me perfect, or infallible, because I'm not. Nobody is.

But the important thing is what happens after? Do we keep going, or do we just give up, give in to our baser whims?

Me, when I fall off my horse, I get back up and try again. And I never allow myself to forget my mistakes. That way, I can learn from them, grow from them. That's what a paladin does. I try my best, and when I mess up, I try again, and try harder than before.

What about you?"

"He has killed hundreds of fathers, brothers, mothers, sisters, sons, and daughters. You seek to protect him? Then YOU confront the families he has shattered and tell them that redeeming this worthless creature's black soul is more important than justice, more important than making sure the potential for such tragedy is totally negated...YOU tell them that. If you can look one of the orphans he has left behind in the face and tell them that this man will not only live, but that you'll try as hard as you can to get him into heaven because that's what HE needs and damn their need for justice, for closure, for the assurance that he won't come for them next...you tell them their needs are secondary to his. I don't care about what is noble. I care about what is right. And by the laws of what is right, this man will die right here, right now."

There is a story told, of a child walking along a beach. Stranded on the sands were thousands of starfish, suffocating in the air. Moved by their plight, the boy walked among them, picking them up and returning them to the waves where they belonged. Seeing this, the child's parents asked him why he did this. After all, they said, there were many thousands of the unfortunate creatures stranded. Even were he to spend uncounted hours in his labour, he could no make a difference.
Bu what the boy had realised, that his parents had not, was that that was not the point. Maybe he couldn't make a difference in the overall scheme of things. But for each starfish that he returned to the sea - well, he had certainly made a difference to that one, had he not?

Never get ahead of the enemy, but keep pace. It is better to react quickly than not be where he is at all. Never fight a villain on his own terms, Don't rely on your equipment, rely on yourself and Even naked and unarmed, a paladin still has options. Your grace will guard you, and even a stray stone can smite. A lone paladin is at best headed for an early grave, at worst headed for damnation.

“Every day, you will fail. You will fail to end evil, to save all of the world from corruption. This is the curse of passion- that no matter how hard you work, there will always be a new cause, a new evil- a new failure. This knowledge is the greatest weapon the forces of darkness will ever bring to bear upon you, the wrongs you did not right. Hubris, the belief that you are infallible, is the most dangerous trait you can possess, because it will allow this weapon to work. Recognise that you can fail, and take comfort in the knowledge that greater heroes than you have suffered greater failures- and emerged victorious. Your place is not to win every engagement, your place is to uphold the virtues of righteousness, and to keep your sword in hand, your love in heart, until the Gods themselves come to tear your life away. For your greatest weapon is not righteousness, it is not infallibility- it is devotion. It is care. It is passion to a cause that is beyond any of us, beyond the setbacks, beyond the failures and shortcomings. It is unending dedication to the one truth worth fighting for: that goodness shall prevail over evil!”

"Keep your sense of humor and perspective. Nothing drives people away from right behavior than seeing its champions being jerkwads with sticks up their bums, and nothing kills paladins faster than biting off more than they can chew. Do not ignore evil... but don't sacrifice yourself to it if it solves nothing. Mark it, monitor it, and bide your time. You are immune to fear, not sense."

“It should be the dream of every paladin that they could create a world in which there would be no purpose for paladins, where they could have been a farmer and the world would be no worse, where no weapon would be needed to help people. It is an impossible dream, but the paladin is better for trying to make that dream true.”

“You are never alone. Even if you stand at the gate of hell with your companions fallen on all sides, you are never alone. You are united in the brotherhood of those who have come before you, will come after you, and strive alongside of you for the greater good. You are not alone and never shall you be alone.”

"Do not confuse your honor with your pride. One can be sacrificed, the other will require sacrifice."
"Drink, wealth, women - none are the province of fiends alone. Worldly pleasures must be moderated, but they need not be forsaken; he who isolates himself from the world forgets why it needs to be saved."

At such times, all you can do is pray, with every fragment of your being, for just one chance. Where there is no third option, you create one. You find the way in the darkness. Where there is no hope, you bring hope, because you are a paladin, and giving up is incomprehensible. When the legions of hell are bearing down on you, it is your job to stand in their path, sword in hand, and say "This far, and no further." And who knows, maybe your stand will inspire the world to stand beside you, and you'll carry the day. Or maybe it won't. But it won't matter, because you did what was right, what had to be done. You stood there in the face of armageddon, because no-one else would. When people say "someone should do something about this," that someone is you. And sometimes all you can do is apologise, that everything you had within you wasn't quite enough.