In the next month or so the next book in our Pathfinder Player Companion line will be released. Faiths of Purity isn't a book about the gods. It's not even just about their clerics. It's really a book about the vast masses of the faithful, the worshipers of the gods of absolute good and their place on Golarion. It's about the living religion, and how that religion ties into the everyday lives of its followers. More importantly, it outlines the role of adventurers in the faith, and why an adventurer might choose a particular god—not merely because the god's alignment matches, or because the best spells come from his domains, but because your philosophies match. Most importantly, it's about how your story can encompass faith, and how a myriad of different heroic characters can battle evil and live in the light of the gods.
This is an awesome book that focuses on the seven major good-aligned gods, provides an outline of the god in question, and summarizes the deity's domains and interests, and why that god might be a good fit for your character. In addition to new feats, spells, and write-ups on different organizations officially sanctioned by the various churches, Faiths of Purity also discusses the various codes paladins of the different good gods live by. As a teaser, here's the code that paladins of Shelyn (yes, she has paladins) follow:
Illustration by Sara Forlenza
Paladins of Shelyn are peaceable promoters of art and beauty. They see the ugliness in evil, even when cloaked in the form of beauty, and their job is to prevent the weak and foolish from being seduced by false promises. Their tenets include:
I am peaceful. I come first with a rose. I act to prevent conflict before it blossoms.
I never strike first, unless it is the only way to protect the innocent.
I accept surrender if my opponent can be redeemed—and I never assume that they cannot be. All things that live love beauty, and I will show beauty's answer to them.
I will never destroy a work of art, nor allow one to come to harm unless greater art arises from its loss. I will only sacrifice art if doing so allows me to save a life, for untold beauty can arise from an awakened soul.
I see beauty in others. As a rough stone hides a diamond, a drab face may hide the heart of a saint.
I lead by example, not with my blade. Where my blade passes, a life is cut short, and the world's potential for beauty is lessened.
I live my life as art. I will choose an art and perfect it. When I have mastered it, I will choose another. The works I leave behind make life richer for those who follow.
I agree that paladins should be able to follow (mostly) any god. But, I also think that the final word would rest with the GM. Just that the GM's decision should factor in the official stance by Paizo (both paladins of Sheylin and Asmodeus have now been confirmed).
Is everybody forgetting that Shelyn's alignment is NG, not CG? Paladins of a NG god(dess) is nothing new - see every Paladin of Sarenrae printed thusfar. Yes, she's a goddess of love, art, and beauty, so her having devoted holy warriors is a bit out of the ordinary, but nothing revolutionary when it comes to the rules.
Love the detail on Paladins of Shelyn. Very inspiring. I'll put that on my ever-growing list of potential character concepts.
As excited as I am about this product, I do hope that we'll get to see some of the religions of the lesser deities fleshed out, too.
As I'm playing an Inquisitor of Kols, I'd absolutely love to see some information on this god, and I'm sure PCs who worship other minor deities would appreciate a bone thrown to them.
Is everybody forgetting that Shelyn's alignment is NG, not CG? Paladins of a NG god(dess) is nothing new - see every Paladin of Sarenrae printed thusfar. Yes, she's a goddess of love, art, and beauty, so her having devoted holy warriors is a bit out of the ordinary, but nothing revolutionary when it comes to the rules.
All major good gods (including the CG ones) are in the companion - and the paladin codes for each of the gods is included. So CG deity LG paladin
Enlight_Bystand(Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Adventure Path, Battles Case Subscriber)
See also Abadarian Paladins. It's Chaotic or Evil Gods having Paladins that's the concern, and I'd be suprised if this book changes it - there probably won't be Desnan or Cayden codes in this book.
Panish - the post says "Faiths of Purity also discusses the various codes paladins of the different good gods live by"
It's infinently possible the Desna & Cayden Cailien say 'we don't' for this bit.
Ooh, does this mean there'll be more paladins of Shelyn around? Most people seemed to think I was a little strange when I introduced my character at the beginning of PFS games :)
I love these guidelines, and if I ever get a chance to play Saki again, I'll be stridently upholding them.
Her art, incidentally, is calligraphy... also etching. I envisioned her to have personally decorated her full plate armor with Shelyn's holy symbols, plus a poem dedicated to love and beauty written in her native script (Minkai).
Now the next question is when do we get an extended Shelyn article in the Pathfinder APs? Here's hoping for sometime in Jade Regent!
See also Abadarian Paladins. It's Chaotic or Evil Gods having Paladins that's the concern, and I'd be suprised if this book changes it - there probably won't be Desnan or Cayden codes in this book.
Panish - the post says "Faiths of Purity also discusses the various codes paladins of the different good gods live by"
It's infinently possible the Desna & Cayden Cailien say 'we don't' for this bit.
From the product blurb: "Paladin codes for sacred warriors of each major god, as well as new organizations and knightly orders" I think this is to mean that they really have paladins of Cayden Cailean.
Dragnmoon(Paizo Charter Superscriber, Pathfinder Battles Case Subscriber)
flash_cxxi wrote:
Finally, confirmation that you can legally play a Paladin of a non-Lawful Good God.
I thought the Argument that not all "Golarion" Good gods had Paladins, because some did not fit well with the Paladin Code. At least that is what we where told by James over and over. We already know that some Golarion non Lawful gods have Paladins, Sarenrae and Shelyn *We already knew she had Paladins*. But if they change the code to fit the god, that fixes that problem.
Ooh, does this mean there'll be more paladins of Shelyn around? Most people seemed to think I was a little strange when I introduced my character at the beginning of PFS games :)
Probably not. the "Not Striking First" rule would be a dealbreaker to most gamers who prefer to launch attacks from surprise or at least first whenever possible.
The other problem would be the necessity to protect evil artwork from destruction.
I thought the Argument that not all "Golarion" Good gods had Paladins, because some did not fit well with the Paladin Code. At least that is what we where told by James over and over. We already know that some Golarion non Lawful gods have Paladins, Sarenrae and Shelyn *We already knew she had Paladins*. But if they change the code to fit the god, that fixes that problem.
While he reiterated that Shelyn did have Paladins, she did note that she's one of the more problematic gods for a Paladin to serve.
Dragnmoon(Paizo Charter Superscriber, Pathfinder Battles Case Subscriber)
LazarX wrote:
While he reiterated that Shelyn did have Paladins, she did note that she's one of the more problematic gods for a Paladin to serve.
That is why I like this Code per Code thing, fixes that problem, as long as the Code still fits the Idea of a LG PC.
Looks like the gestalt paladin-bard I played a few years ago has some soulmates in Golarion! :) Very cool writeup. That's the kind of thing that not only makes me want to buy the book, but maybe bite the bullet and adopt Golarion as a campaign world, at least for a while.
- Eridanis, maker of a homebrewed campaign world since 1983 :)
Chaotic good gods do not have paladins working for them.
If you're a paladin, and you're being lawful, then you're devoutly upholding the teachings and philosophies of your deity. If you worship a deity who isn't LG, NG, or LN, you're either shirking your duties as a paladin by straying too far from your LG alignment, or you're shirking your duties to your deity by straying too far from the DEITY'S alignment, which isn't lawful behavior, which means you're ALSO not a paladin.
Oo, does this mean they'll have the Paladin codes for all of those gods printed out? I would love that; it would save on a lot of "that's against your (nebulous) code" arguments.
"I will never destroy a work of art, nor allow one to come to harm unless greater art arises from its loss."
Excellent...
*steeples fingers*
GOBLIN BARD: We're a dadaist commune of pyrotechnic performance artists! We must burn the museum and the library as part of our critique on the hoary decadence of elven society and the power of books to enslave the minds of the populace by stealing the words out of your head! And fire pretty!
GOBLIN PALADIN OF SHELYN: Yes, fire pretty! We burn ugly books in beautiful fire! Why you no like?
Dragnmoon(Paizo Charter Superscriber, Pathfinder Battles Case Subscriber)
James Jacobs wrote:
There are paladin codes for the following deities in this book:
Chaotic good gods do not have paladins working for them.
If you're a paladin, and you're being lawful, then you're devoutly upholding the teachings and philosophies of your deity. If you worship a deity who isn't LG, NG, or LN, you're either shirking your duties as a paladin by straying too far from your LG alignment, or you're shirking your duties to your deity by straying too far from the DEITY'S alignment, which isn't lawful behavior, which means you're ALSO not a paladin.
So really nothing has changed, though we get a Code per God now, which I like.
I don't actually expect this to happen but... PLEASE do this for antipaladins when the faiths of badstuff comes out. I get queasy just thinking about the code of an antipaladin of Lamashtu or Urgathoa.
If you're a paladin, and you're being lawful, then you're devoutly upholding the teachings and philosophies of your deity. If you worship a deity who isn't LG, NG, or LN, you're either shirking your duties as a paladin by straying too far from your LG alignment, or you're shirking your duties to your deity by straying too far from the DEITY'S alignment, which isn't lawful behavior, which means you're ALSO not a paladin.
And if said deity give special permission to the Paladin to do that (let´s suppose an non-Golarion pantheon) ? Or the Paladin is tricked in serving an heretical practice without knowing ?
Chaotic good gods do not have paladins working for them.
If you're a paladin, and you're being lawful, then you're devoutly upholding the teachings and philosophies of your deity. If you worship a deity who isn't LG, NG, or LN, you're either shirking your duties as a paladin by straying too far from your LG alignment, or you're shirking your duties to your deity by straying too far from the DEITY'S alignment, which isn't lawful behavior, which means you're ALSO not a paladin.
And if said deity give special permission to the Paladin to do that (let´s suppose an non-Golarion pantheon) ? Or the Paladin is tricked in serving an heretical practice without knowing ?
Neither of those topics is something a player-oriented book should address--that's more of a GM-decision issue.
Extending the thought a bit: what about a drunken master (monk); he could be lawful good and a follower of Cayden Cailean?
A Monk is not a Paladin.
Exactly. There is no requirement to have a deity for the monk class... its powers come from within, not from the divine, so there's no one-step rule for monks (or any other character that doesn't require a deity).
Call me whatever you like, but if I told my players they could play a paladin of Shelyn...they would call me a p#&$! and kick my ass! That has to be the worst concept of a paladin I've ever read in all my 28 years of gaming. Sorry folks, NOT buying into a wuss paladin carrying around roses and reciting poetry and kissing ass instead of kicking it. Nope.
Sorry folks, NOT buying into a wuss paladin carrying around roses and reciting poetry and kissing ass instead of kicking it.
That's the coolest paladin concept I've heard in a very long time.
Mairkurion {tm}(Pathfinder Adventure Path, Tales, Battles Case Subscriber)
Carrying roses and reciting poetry is hardly the wussificaiton that disables a paladin from ass-kicking. I am confident that real-life paladins answering this description could be found with a little research, since courtly love flourished during the age of faith.
If you're a paladin, and you're being lawful, then you're devoutly upholding the teachings and philosophies of your deity. If you worship a deity who isn't LG, NG, or LN, you're either shirking your duties as a paladin by straying too far from your LG alignment, or you're shirking your duties to your deity by straying too far from the DEITY'S alignment, which isn't lawful behavior, which means you're ALSO not a paladin.
And if said deity give special permission to the Paladin to do that (let´s suppose an non-Golarion pantheon) ? Or the Paladin is tricked in serving an heretical practice without knowing ?
By my book? You wouldn't be a paladin anyway, so it doesn't matter. If you REALLY want to play a non lawful-good holy warrior, there are plenty of options for clerics, rangers, cavaliers, and fighters, especially with the APG out now.
Extending the thought a bit: what about a drunken master (monk); he could be lawful good and a follower of Cayden Cailean?
Sure... although he'd still be a bit too stuffy or lawful to fit in really well with the actual priests of the faith. And he'd probably butt heads philosophically with most other worshipers.