NOTE: This guide was built on the Path of 3 different Paladins, 2 being Highlanders, and 1 being an Avalonian. I will share my thoughts about each one as we get to each section.

CREATION:

All races but Inconnu may walk the Path of Paladinhood, and each with thier own strengths and weaknesses. I will go thru each one with my reccomendation of point spreads:

• The Highlanders are typically the first choice, being the strongest and hardiest of the bunch. By adding 10 points to Dex, Qui, and Strength, you have very strong starting fighter. Plus, you get to wear a kilt, and try to type in a scottish accent.
• Britons are a good average race, and have no true weakness. Add 10 points to Strength, Con, and Dex.
• Avalonians suffer from a weak arm, and even weaker body. However, they are faster than Britons or Highlanders. Add 15 to Strength and 10 to Con.
• Saracens are like Avalonians, but are slightly stronger and tougher. Add 10 to each Strength and Con, and then place the last 10 where you wish. If you are going for Defensive Paladin, add to Qui and Dex. If you are going for Aggressive, add another 5 to Strength.

PALADIN TYPES:

Here, before you spend any of those precious skill points, you must decide what kind of Paladin you wish to be. You have 3 basic types. The Aggressive, Defensive, and Group support.

• The Aggressive Paladin (Zealot) tends to be the strong fighter with back up Chants. This type tends to max out the 2 hand weapon skill, and splits the points evenly between Parry and Chants. This gives for a good damage output, while having the ability to stop some of the damage they take, and add some healing to a party. Highlanders and Britons tend to make good Zealots.
• The Defensive Paladin (Penitent) tends to be a fast fighter, using Chants to increase the parties living potential. This Paladin tends to keep Shield and Parry high, while training in a one handed weapon type and Chants. The ability to guard and block shots for the stronger Armsman and Zealots gives these Paladins a definite place in groups. Avalonians and Saracens tend to make the best Penitents.
• The Group Support Paladin (Cavalier) tends to be a very Pious type, and offers some blocking skill, tho not usually as high as the Defensive type. This type tends to max out Chants, giving the best possible heals, damage adds, and shielding, while splitting his points between a one handed weapon, Shield, and Parry. Not a strong arm of the group, this Paladin is able to take on fights equal to his level and win, with a little downtime. All of the races are equally good at being Cavaliers, tho natural strengths (Fast, Strong, etc) tend to focus them into one area.

ROLES IN THE GROUP:

Paladins tend to be well loved in every group they join. The Damage Chant is good for the whole party, even archers. The Shielding Chant helps the cloth clad casters, and the Heal Chant helps the clerics and friars keep more of thier mana needed for emergencies. Also, because the Heal chant pulses, and can heal up to 40 pts of damage in one round at 5th level (8 people, approx 5 hp per pulse), the Paladin usually out aggroes most other types of fighters, save for the Armsman and possibly Reaver. Using these strengths, plus the fact they get the use of the heaviest armor (Plate at 20) makes a Paladin a good wall to have standing in front of you.

So what does the Paladin do in a group? The Paladin can fill several holes. The most blaring one is that of a Tank. The heavy armor and Chants can keep the Paladin going for quite awhile. However, they are not as good in melee as a Mercenary or Armsman. Paladins can be main tanks, but are better as a secondary tank.

The second role would be that of Add watch. The Paladin can watch for any roaming mobs in a hostile area, and engage those mobs if they aggro upon the backline of your group. The armor and toughness of a Paladin can hold a mob until the main tanks take down the first target, and move to engage the second.

The third role would be as Puller. With the ability to Tease the monsters, thus pulling them from a range, and being able to take a few hits before the Main tank pulls the aggro makes a Paladin a good choice for puller. This role is best left for Archers if any are available, otherwise, the Paladin performs admirably.

WHAT TO HUNT:

Being a fighter, and having the ability to learn almost all weapons, plus wear some of the best armor, a Paladin can pretty much hunt where they please, and be happy. The best bet is decide on the weapon type you are going to use, and find the creatures who are weak against it. This is, of course, a normal stature for Dark Age, but always serves as a useful reminder. The truly best idea is find a group of 2-3 people, preferably one healer, and go to town on anything that cons red to the highest person in the group. Chances are, you will be able to take it down, given good group tactics.

RVR:

A paladin in RVR has a few choices as to what he will be doing. If you havent taken up a craft. and there is already a heavy tank in the group (Such as an Armsman), you may be delegated to caster watch. This means standing around a bit, and fending off enemies which run through your tanks to the caster line. If you are the heaviest tank in the group, you may lead the charges into combat against other realms' casters. If you have taken up a craft, and have gotten 500 plus skill within it, you may be expected to bring seige equipment to the frontier for keep takes and re-takes. This also helps in the fact that you can wear the heavy armor, and still take a shot or two from the stealther that actually tries to drop you, or the archer which can reach you.

NOTES FOR SI:

With the new expansion out, SI offers even more hunting areas, and some decent armor, weapon, and jewellery drops for any kind of hunting charcter. Even better, the Paladin and Reaver work very well together in a group. Of course, if you are on one of the RP servers, this might be a little difficult to do ("What? False believer! Stand away from me before I smite you!" or my favorite "Aw, how cute. A talking fish!").

CRAFTS:

"My Paladin is so poor! How can I afford all that plate armor?"

I hear that question often, seeing little Paladins or Paladin-to-be fighters running around. I give them the most honest answer I can. You can either find creatures that will give you plate armor, such as ghouls in Avalon Marsh, or skeletons in Llyn Barfog, or take up one of the crafting skills open to you. The easiest, and often safest, way of making the money would be to take up crafting. Armorcrafting would allow you to make the very armor you wish to wear, while Weaponcrafting will give you a good sharp blade (or which weapon you prefer) to use. And with the addition of Spellcrafting and Alchemy, many crafters have been bombarded with tells and requests for player-made items.

AC and WC are both slow building skills. The first hundred points of skill or so are typically easy, so you wont spend much time on it. It will start becoming slower and tougher, along with expensive. Start doing your Craftmaster tasks as soon as you can. You will not only save yourself a good amount of money, but also get to know the town you are running about in.

*Remember!* Your trainer will give you quests! Do them, as they tend to grant pieces of armor during the higher levels! They are free, usually helpful in the way of bonuses and benefits, and normally fall into the 100% quality areas, thus giving you maximum protection until you can afford better spellcrafted armor.

I hope this guide helps some people out there who wish to try Paladins, but never had any one to ask. This is all from personal experience, as well as form other friends who have all played Paladins. I am always available on the /advice for those who need any, and am happy to give any answers you have.

Good hunting, and may God watch over your blades!

Stann Faithbringer/Paladin of Amicitiae Sanctus/Guinevere