Paladin
A holy knight sworn to an oath: strong and commanding, steadfast to a fault, and slow to doubt.
| Role | Difficulty | Key stats | Hit points | Mana | Spells given |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fighter, holy | Easy | Strength, Presence | 6 | 3 | 3, from level 6 |
Plays like: Sword and shield; smites foes, the undead and fiends hardest, and heals with zeal.
Starts with: a long sword (wielded); a small shield (in off hand); a hardened leather jerkin (being worn); an iron helm (being worn); a pair of gauntlets (being worn); an amber amulet (being worn, perhaps magic); 2 strips of dried meat; 15 gold coins (see Starting kit).
See also: Zeal.
How to play
You fight up close with sword and shield, like a warrior, and you hold
zeal: every blow of yours that hits, and every blow that hits you, builds a point.
Spend it from the abilities menu (a) on
Smite, a harder blow, hardest against the undead and fiends, or on
Lay on hands, hit points back at once. Your few spells come from level 6.
A deed that moves you toward evil empties your zeal (see Alignment).
Levels
A bonus talent at levels 10, 20, 30, 45, 55, from Vigour or Guard.
| Level | Ability | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Smite | active (the time of a melee attack), in a direction: a blow with 1d6 more damage per 10 levels (at least 1d6), and 1d6 more against the unholy (a creature tagged undead, fiend, demon, devil, yugoloth), your Presence modifier added to hit; you hold Zeal from now on; costs 3 zeal |
| 1 | Lay on hands | active (the time of a cast): 2 hit points per level back at once; costs 6 zeal |
| 6 | Divine grace | disease checks (catching, progressions) +2; Poisoned eases 100 % faster; checks against a drain +2 |
| 6 | Blessing | the spell Blessing (level 3, a cast, 4 mana): you are Blessed (1) |
| 12 | Branding smite | active (the time of a melee attack), in a direction: your Smite’s blow (its dice, aim, and unholy dice), and on a hit that does damage the foe suffers 1 degree of Branded; costs 3 zeal |
| 12 | Consecrate | active (1m of prayer, for 15 mana; interrupted as a rest is, it lifts nothing): standing in a cursed or draining room, it becomes a plain room for good; on a level a curse or a drain covers whole, the whole level’s is lifted instead. A good deed (see Alignment). Anywhere else it is refused, with no time spent |
| 14 | Brand | the spell Brand (level 7, a cast, 7 mana): you are Burning blade (1) |
| 18 | Purity of body | you never catch a disease |
| 20 | Unbinding | the spell Unbinding (level 8, a cast, 8 mana): ends Hexed and Weakened and Sluggish and Drowsy and Webbed and Frightened and Transfixed and Pinned |
| 25 | Retribution | a hostile beside you whose melee attack lands a blow on you takes your plain smite back at once (its dice, its aim, and its unholy die), free but for an exertion, spending 4 zeal; with less, or outside the talent’s alignment, nothing; an attack it answers is not also riposted |
| 32 | Wrathful smite | active (the time of a melee attack), in a direction: your Smite’s blow (its dice, aim, and unholy dice), and on a hit that does damage the foe checks Willpower (2d12 + its modifier) against 13 plus your Smite’s aim modifier; failed, it is Frightened by you for 2d3 turns, fleeing you; costs 4 zeal |
| 40 | Holy radiance | active (the time of a cast), on and off: while you are Radiant you shed a light reaching 3 cells |
| 40 | Holy wrath | every melee blow, shot, or throw of yours that hits an unholy creature (the undead and the fiends) rolls 1d6 more, of the blow’s kind of damage, resisted but never soaked, for no zeal |
| 50 | Banishing smite | active (the time of a melee attack), in a direction: your Smite’s blow (its dice, aim, and unholy dice), and on a hit that does damage a creature that was summoned is unmade, dying there whatever its hit points, your kill as any other; an unholy creature not summoned takes the Smite’s dice twice over (the rest of the blow once); anyone else, a plain smite; costs 6 zeal |
| 50 | Bulwark | Protection +2 |
| 60 | Avatar | Lay on hands heals every hit point and cures every status that ticks (bleeding, poison) and every disease, for 50 % of its cost (at least 1); and Holy wrath’s die lands on every creature you hit, not only the unholy |
Abilities
The paladin fights from one pool, zeal, for wrath and mercy alike. It holds 10, plus your Presence modifier, plus a point per 10 levels. It comes with Smite at level 1, holding 5.
You build a point of zeal with every blow, shot, or throw of yours that hits, and with every blow that hits you. It also comes back a point a minute, resting too (see Zeal). Your mana is for your spells; none of this spends it.
A deed that moves you toward evil empties the pool at once (“Your zeal deserts you.”). It fills again, and bars nothing (see Alignment).
The unholy are the creatures holy wrath falls hardest on: every type tagged undead, fiend, demon, devil, or yugoloth. What a creature has done, or which side it is on, plays no part. A hostile bear takes your smite as well as a ghoul does; only the ghoul takes the unholy die.
The smites are each a row of the abilities menu. Each is a melee blow with what you wield at the hostile in a direction:
- Cost: its zeal (the table below), and the time of the attack. A miss still spends its zeal.
- Effect: your Presence modifier is added to hit, and 1d6 more damage per 10 levels (at least 1d6), with one die more against the unholy.
- Refused: with nobody hostile there, for no time and no zeal.
| Level | Smite | Zeal | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Smite | 3 | The blow, and nothing more |
| 12 | Branding smite | 3 | The foe it wounds is Branded for five minutes: it sheds a faint light wherever it goes, so you can see it in the dark and it lights its fellows |
| 32 | Wrathful smite | 4 | The foe it wounds makes a Willpower check against 13 plus your Presence modifier; failing, it is Frightened of you for 2d3 turns and flees |
| 50 | Banishing smite | 6 | A foe it wounds that was summoned is unmade, whatever its hit points, your kill as any other; an unholy foe not summoned takes the smite’s dice twice over; anyone else takes a plain smite |
A smite’s extra effect still spends its zeal when it has nothing to do, and a blow that does no damage carries no extra effect.
Lay on hands (level 1) spends 6 zeal and a spell’s time to heal 2 hit points a level. Avatar (level 60) makes it heal fully, cure every status that ticks and every disease, and cost half: 3 zeal.
Retribution (level 25) works by itself. When a hostile creature beside you lands a blow of its melee attack on you, your smite answers once the attack is over. It costs 4 zeal and an exertion, and no time. The blow has already built its point, so 3 zeal is enough. With less, or while you are off guard, nothing happens. An attack it answers is not also riposted; see Combat.
Holy wrath (level 40) works by itself and costs nothing. Every blow, shot, or throw of yours that hits the unholy, smites too, rolls 1d6 more of the blow’s own kind. It is resisted but never soaked by Protection. From Avatar on, it lands on every creature you hit.
Zealot is the one talent pick on the pool, from level 6. Every blow that hits you builds 2 zeal instead of 1, for a paladin who stands in the doorway and takes them.
Which side you are on. Lay on hands, the smites, and Holy radiance work only while you are Kind or better; Consecrate while you are Neutral or better (see Alignment). Otherwise you can still use them, but nothing happens and no zeal is spent. A smite says “You call for holy wrath, but none answers.” The abilities that work by themselves do not care, except Retribution, which answers no blow while you are outside them. Your zeal builds whichever side you are on.