Anybody feel like donating their paladin as an NPC?

[Kalridian]

I need a CR 9 paladin to throw at my players. My groups wizard has recently gone from CN to NE, being further on the move towards CE due to some actions that the rest of the group mostly doesn't know about
(main thing being a pact with a powerful demon, who left some kind of "mark" on him that allows him to see through the characters eyes)
I want to have a paladin confront him out in the middle of the street and accuse him of his evil ways (since a pally should definately be able to sense the demonic bond with detect evil, not to mention his new unholy scyte)
The Pally is supposed to be strong enough to REALLY endanger the wizard, if the rest of the group holds back. Since they have been friends for quite some time, they will probably rush to his aid, after which I intend to confront them with the repercussions for killing a church official in the middle of the street, since they have become a little to "meh, just kill it and think later" lately. (partially due to my fault, since I have given them a bit to many monsters and to little hostile NPCs)

They are currently Level 9 but I usually count them as 2 levels higher due to non-core races and 25 point buy, so a CR9 should be pretty challenging for one of them alone, right?

The thing I am asking for is a melee Paladin, CR 9, not optimized for anti-wizard-combat, since i want to give him a fair chance and don't want to come of as directly countering his character.
The problem is, I have never played or built a paladin before, so I don't know to much about the mechanics of that class. I would therefore ask for a rather straightforward build, since I don't want to get chindeep into the fine options of paladin-hood only to have them kill the guy in one encounter.

Anybody willing to donate their char to the cause?

(On a sidenotice, what would you guys think about making a thread to share NPCs and PCs in, formattet in Adventurepath-stlye, so other GMs can use them in their games? Kind of like an extension to the NPCs in the GM guide. I have been sitting around and preparing NPCs more than once, thinking "damn, I bet 20 people on the forums have already built a guy like that")

edit: fixed some typos, you can keep the rest

[Are]

I don't have a Paladin at the ready, but I wondered about one thing: Why did he lose the chaotic part of his alignment when he turned evil? It would seem more likely that a CN character would go directly to CE, than for him to make a detour into NE :)

[DaWay]

Sounds like you need a level 10 paladin. But why not have a level 11 on show up with the town guard. When the poop hits the fan the pally can give smite evil to all his allies, read town guard, and the brawl will ensue. That should be a fairly challenging encounter.

[Dominigo]

I don't have a paladin on me at the moment, but if you don't have one when I get home, I will try to build you one real quick. It isn't going to be hard to make the paladin challenging for a wizard 1v1, though. Cha + Cloak of Resistance gets his saves high enough the wizard is gonna start having trouble getting spells to stick. Against a full group of mostly non-evil PCs, I doubt the paladin will last very long without back up though. I would definitely recommend having him bring in some town guards (level 6 warriors maybe?) to aid him in apprehending this demonic threat he has discovered in the town. You won't need many, just enough to get in the way of the rest of the party.

[darkwarriorkarg]

Don'y have one on hand, but maybe I can help with your setup?

Paladins don't come out of nowhere with automatic "evildar"... it has to be active. And the middle of the street? That is un-paladin like behaviour...

Maybe the wizard left a survivor somewhere who called out for help. Or better, another evil being who knows him and framed him for a murder, reporting him to the authorities. The pally might have his own adventuring group (Paladin, ranger or inquisitor for tracking, a couple of local guardsmen) with a warrant for his interrogation in regards to the disspearance of a local "helpless maiden".

Now, the fun part is that maybe the wizard IS innocent of this actual crime (guilty of others, though). But he reeks of evil.

Knowing most PCs, the first action of the wizard will be to prove his innocense by fireballing the paladin :-)

[Kalridian]

@Are: He is NE because the guy he made the deal with is not a demon but a devil, who is lawful evil and since he's serving him now, we found it appropriate to move it a little closer to him. On top of that, the I-kick-puppies-because-f%&k-you-CE-thing doesn't really fit his flavour. He is a selfcentered, cruel A**hole, and clearly sees torture and murder as options to advance himself, but he doesn't do evil stuff just FOR TEH EVILZ.
He was only CN to begin with because that was the "lowest" alignment I allowed them when they made their chars. If I had allowed more, he would have gone evil right away, I just didn't feel comfortable with the concept of GMing an evil char when I started the campaign at 5th level.

@DaWay: I explicably only want the fight to be hard for the wizard (and his cohort, who wil help him without doubt) alone, it's supposed to become rather easy if the rest of the team joins in, because if they do, I don't want it to really have a "heroic" feel, if they help killing him. It's supposed to be a little dull on purpose, to make it easy for them to question their actions.

[Crosswind]

What's CR 9 work out to, a level 11-ish Paladin? Here you go:

Paladin With a Greatsword(Human)

Stats (Base): 16+2(human),14,14,10,10,14 (25 point buy)
Stats (Modified by level): 20,12,14,10,10,14
Stats (After buffs): 24, 12,14, 10,10,18

Feats:
1.) Power Attack, Cleave
3.) WF: Greatsword
5.) Furious Focus
7.) Great Cleave
9.) Improved Critical: Greatsword
11.) Cornugon Smash

I don't know how much equipment you want this guy to have. But let's give him:

+1, Holy Greatsword
+2 Full Plate
+2 Amulet of Natural Armor
+3 Cloak of Resistance
+1 Ring of Protection
If you want to make him harder, Boots of Haste

Figure that he gets +4 str/cha from buffs, and uses bondedweapon to give his Holy Greatsword another +2.

His defense is: 10+1(dex)+12(plate)+2(ANA)+1(RoP) = 26. With haste, 27
His saves are: 7/3/7+4(Paladin Saves) + 3 (Cloak of Resistance) = 14/10/14, and he's immune to Charm, Diseases and Fear.

As a swift action, he can Lay on Hands to heal 6d6 damage to himself, and cure Fatigued, Staggered, and Poisoned conditions

Offensively, he will do 4 things.
1.) If mobbed by 2-3 guys, he will cleave everything he can, full power attacking.
His attack for this is +11(BAB)+3(Weapon)+7(Strength)+1(WF) = +24. He will do 2d6 + 9(PA) + 10 (strength) +3(Weapon) +2d6 (if evil).

2.) If he's only fighting one person, full attack. Full attack is at:

+22/+13/+8, for 2d6+22 damage, plus another 2d6 if the person is evil.

3.) He will absolutely Smite Evil the wizard. Against the wizard, this gives him +4 to hit, and +11 damage per swing.

4.) He gets a free intimidate check against everybody he attacks, to demoralize them.

Some DMing notes:
If you full attack/smite the Wizard, he's _going to die_. So, be a bit careful about that. Great Cleave is a pretty nice way to spread damage around.
Paladins are generally a pain in the ass to kill. Use Lay on Hands every round - you have way more of it (...10ish uses) than you need, and it removes a lot of negative effects.

-Cross

(EDIT: Droped the level a bit to reflect the CR you want. The wizard will have to get EFFING CREATIVE if he wants to kill the paladin 1v1. Paladins in general tend to be a crappy matchup for wizards))

[Are]

Crosswind wrote:

What's CR 9 work out to, a level 11-ish Paladin?

It would be a level 10 paladin on his own, or for instance a level 8 paladin accompanied by a pair of level 6 characters.

[Kalridian]

Ouch... I might need to tone that down a bit, otherwise I'll have wizard-BBQ before the others get to think about helping or not. I guess I'll just take a little bit of this guy and add a squire or two...

Thanks a lot though.

[Mysterious Stranger]

Here is a write up of a Paladin I plan to be using soon. He may be a little tough for the wizard to deal with especially if he spends some time to buff prior to confronting the wizard. If I were playing him he would have cast bless weapon and used Divine Weapon(Holy) before approaching the wizard. First thing he would do would be to sunder the spell component pouch to limit the wizard casting spells.

Being he is a follower of Sarenrae he would try to redeem the wizard. That failing he would cast Litany of Righteousness and unleash with a full attack (Smite Evil and Power attack). If it hits the Wizard is probably toast.
Suli Paladin 10
LG Medium Outsider (native)
Init +3; Senses Darkvision, Low-Light Vision; Perception +0
--------------------
Defense
--------------------
AC 27, touch 13, flat-footed 26 (+12 armor, +1 Dex, +2 natural, +2 deflection)
hp 84 (10d10+20)
Fort +14, Ref +9, Will +12
Immune charm, fear, disease; Resist acid 5, cold 5, electricity 5, fire 5
--------------------
Offense
--------------------
Speed 20 ft.
Melee +2 Ghost Touch Falchion +18/+13 (2d4+11/15-20/x2)
Special Attacks Smite Evil (4/day)
Spell-Like Abilities Detect Evil (At will)
Paladin Spells Prepared (CL 9, 16 melee touch, 11 ranged touch):
3 (1/day) Dispel Magic
2 (2/day) Resist Energy (DC 15), Litany of Righteousness
1 (3/day) Divine Favor, Protection from Evil (DC 14), Bless Weapon
--------------------
Statistics
--------------------
Str 20/22, Dex 13, Con 14, Int 10, Wis 10, Cha 16
Base Atk +10; CMB +16 (+18 Sundering); CMD 29 (31 vs. Sunder)
Feats Fey Foundling, Improved Critical (Falchion), Improved Sunder, Incremental Elemental Assault, Power Attack -3/+6
Traits Magical Knack (Paladin), Reactionary
Skills Acrobatics -4, Climb +1, Diplomacy +13, Escape Artist -4, Fly -4, Handle Animal +7, Heal +5, Knowledge (nobility) +4, Knowledge (religion) +8, Ride +2, Sense Motive +15, Spellcraft +6, Stealth -4, Swim +1
Languages Common, Ignan
SQ Aura of Courage +4 (10' radius), Aura of Good, Aura of Resolve +4 (10' radius), Divine Weapon +2 (10 minutes) (2/day), Elemental Assault (1d6) (10 rounds/day), Lay on Hands (5d6) (8/day), Mercy: Exhausted, Mercy: Fatigued, Mercy: Sickened, Paladin Channel Positive Energy 5d6 (4/day) (DC 18)
Combat Gear +2 Ghost Touch Falchion, +3 Full Plate; Other Gear Amulet of Natural Armor +2, Belt of Giant Strength, +2, Cloak of Resistance, +2, Handy Haversack (empty), Ring of Protection, +2
--------------------
TRACKED RESOURCES
--------------------
Divine Weapon +2 (10 minutes) (2/day) (Sp) - 0/2
Elemental Assault (1d6) (10 rounds/day) - 0/10
Lay on Hands (5d6) (8/day) (Su) - 0/8
Paladin Channel Positive Energy 5d6 (4/day) (DC 18) (Su) - 0/4
Smite Evil (4/day) (Su) - 0/4
--------------------
Special Abilities
--------------------
Aura of Courage +4 (10' radius) (Su) You are immune to Fear. Allies within aura gain a morale bonus to saves vs Fear.
Aura of Good (Ex) The paladin has an Aura of Good with power equal to her class level.
Aura of Resolve +4 (10' radius) (Su) You are immune to charm. Allies within aura gain a morale bonus to saves vs charm.
Damage Resistance, Acid (5) You have the specified Damage Resistance against Acid attacks.
Damage Resistance, Cold (5) You have the specified Damage Resistance against Cold attacks.
Damage Resistance, Electricity (5) You have the specified Damage Resistance against Electricity attacks.
Damage Resistance, Fire (5) You have the specified Damage Resistance against Fire attacks.
Darkvision (60 feet) You can see in the dark (black and white vision only).
Detect Evil (At will) (Sp) You can use Detect Evil at will (as the spell).
Divine Weapon +2 (10 minutes) (2/day) (Sp) Weapon shines with light and gains enhancement bonuses or chosen properties.
Elemental Assault (1d6) (10 rounds/day) As a swift action unarmed strike/held weapon is wreathed in energy and deals extra damage.
Fey Foundling Magical healing works better on you
Immune to Charm You are immune to charm effects.
Immune to Fear (Ex) You are immune to all fear effects.
Immunity to Disease You are immune to diseases.
Improved Sunder You Sunder at +4 and don't cause an attack of opportunity.
Incremental Elemental Assault You may use your elemental assault ability in 1 rd increments.
Lay on Hands (5d6) (8/day) (Su) You can heal 5d6 damage, 8/day
Low-Light Vision See twice as far as a human in low light, distinguishing color and detail.
Magical Knack (Paladin) +2 CL for a specific class, to a max of your HD.
Mercy: Exhausted (Su) When you use your lay on hands ability, it also removes the exhausted condition.
Mercy: Fatigued (Su) When you use your lay on hands ability, it also removes the fatigued condition.
Mercy: Sickened (Su) When you use your lay on hands ability, it also removes the sickened condition.
Paladin Channel Positive Energy 5d6 (4/day) (DC 18) (Su) A good cleric can channel positive energy to heal the living and injure the undead; an evil cleric can channel negative energy to injure the living and heal the undead.
Power Attack -3/+6 You can subtract from your attack roll to add to your damage.
Smite Evil (4/day) (Su) +3 to hit, +10 to damage, +3 deflection bonus to AC when used.

[Crosswind]

Kalridian wrote:

Ouch... I might need to tone that down a bit, otherwise I'll have wizard-BBQ before the others get to think about helping or not. I guess I'll just take a little bit of this guy and add a squire or two...

Thanks a lot though.

You could chop him down directly to level 8 or 9 (just ditch my high-level feats). Basic problem you're going to run into is that an unsupported caster is _fresh meat_ for anything he can't save-or-die, unless he can get summons in between him and the other guy.

And Paladins are effing tricky as crap to save or die. Or, frankly, to whittle down, thanks to Lay on Hands.

-Cross (If you want less damage, have him wield a sword and shield?)

[Anetra]

Hi! Also going to put my chips in on the 'will totally build you a paladin later' table. I'm just... at work, browsing the forums on my phone atm >_>.

Some initial thoughts: How are you feeling about races? There is an Aasimar Bloodline (Angel, I think) that gives +2 str and +2 cha without ability score penalties. Roll on the alternate SLA chart for added fun.

What are you doing for ability scores? Elite array, I suppose? Or do you want him to be more PC-like and use some amount of point buy?

What kind of wizard is this, or at least, what kinds of spells do you think they'll have prepared? Blast, save-or-die, control, ? Paladin saves kick all the ass, so seriously consider a Ring of Evasion and the best Cloak of Resistance you can afford.

Elite Array Aasimar 9th Level
STR 18
DEX 8
CON 14
INT 10
WIS 12
CHA 16

Then stick some gear on there, maybe a +4 str/con belt and a +4 cha headband (or go down to +2 con if this is getting extravogant).

Consider a weapon with the Greyflame property and possibly a phylactery of channelling. Channel Smite is a good fear if this Paladin is normally fighting a lot of outsiders. It won't help against the wizard himself, but it stops him from being completely optimized to murder your pc, and if the wizard summons any evil outsiders, he'll be able to cut them down twife as fast.

[The Crusader]

<-----------This guy.

He's campaign built for Cheliax, as a devil hunter. Some things you may not care for, like Leadership feat (which should be easy to replace). I removed most of the campaign specific stuff from his stats for you. He's got the Inheritor's Crusader PrC, which has some great flavor, if you've never seen it. Also, he's probably seriously over-geared for a NPC.

Character Sheet:

Male Dwarf Paladin (Iomedae) 8/Ranger 1/Inheritor’s Crusader 3
LG Medium Humanoid (Dwarf)
Init +2; Senses Darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +12
---------------------------------------------------------------
DEFENSE
---------------------------------------------------------------
AC 33, Touch 15, Flat-Footed 32 (+13 Armor, +3 Deflection, +1 Dexterity, +1 Insight, +5 Shield)
HP 160 (12d10+68) Favored Class (Paladin)
Fort +18, Ref +11, Will +16
---------------------------------------------------------------
OFFENSE
---------------------------------------------------------------
Speed 20 ft., Fly 40 ft. (Good)
Melee Holy Dwarven Waraxe +18/+13/+8 (1d10+6+2d6/x3)
Melee +1 Wooden Stake +17/+12/+7 (1d4+5)
Ranged +1 Keen Light Crossbow +14 (1d8/17-20)
Special Attacks Channel Positive Energy (5d6) 4/Day, Favored Enemy +2 (Outsider [Evil]), Lay on Hands (5d6) 9/Day, Mercy (Fatigue, Disease), Smite Evil 3/Day, Sword Against Injustice
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 11th)
At Will — Detect Evil
1/Day — Divine Bond +2 (Weapon)
Paladin Spells Prepared (CL 8th)
3rd — Fire of Judgment (DC 18), Mark of Justice
2nd — Inheritor’s Smite, Righteous Vigor
1st — Ghostbane Dirge (DC 16), Grace, Honeyed Tongue, Protection From Evil
---------------------------------------------------------------
STATISTICS
---------------------------------------------------------------
Str 18, Dex 12, Con 20, Int 12, Wis 11, Cha 20
Base Attack +12/+7/+2; CMB +18; CMD 29
Feats Alignment Channel (Evil), Channel Smite, Cleave, Iron Will, Leadership, Power Attack
Skills Diplomacy +16, Disable Device +2, Handle Animal +9, Heal +4, Knowledge (Engineering) +2, Knowledge (Nobility) +5, Knowledge (Religion) +9, Perception +12, Ride +5, Sense Motive +15, Spellcraft +5, Survival +4
Traits Natural-Born Leader, Scorin Kastel and the Siege of Moenspire (+1 Disable Device, +1 Knowledge [Engineering], +1 Will), Westcrown Firebrand (+1 Initiative, +1 Damage in Surprise Round)
Languages Azlanti, Common, Dwarven, Infernal
SQ Aura of Good, Aura of Great Courage, Aura of Resolve, Champion of Honor, Destroyer of Tyranny, Divine Grace, Divine Health, Track, Wild Empathy
Gear +1 Wooden Stake, +1 Keen Light Crossbow, +2 Holy Dwarven Waraxe, +4 Full Plate, Belt of Physical Might (Str, Con) +4, Boots of Teleport, Cape of the Montebank, Headband of Great Charisma +4, Mithril Bolts (20), Ring of Freedom of Movement, Ring of Protection +3, Wayfinder w/Dusty Rose Ioun Stone, Winged Shield
Other Gear Bag of Holding (Type IV), Gem of Continuous Flame (5), Grave Candle, Holy Water (8), Oil of True Resurrection (2), Silver Holy Symbol, Wand of Break Enchantment, 26,359 gp

[Jarred Henninger]

I have a paladin but he is was built as a PC for a rather cutthroat Campaign, so it might be a bit much. But here it is none the less.

Spoiler:

Scarrow CR 10
XP 9600
Male Human Oracle 1 Paladin 10
LG Medium Humanoid (human)
Init +7; Senses Perception +0
--------------------
Defense
--------------------
AC 27, touch 15, flat-footed 22 (+7 armor, +5 shield, +5 Dex)
hp 102 (10d10+1d8+33)
Fort +17, Ref +15, Will +16
Immune charm, fear, disease; Resist fire 10, Tongues (Celestial, Aklo)
--------------------
Offense
--------------------
Speed 30 ft.
Melee +1 Greyflame Falcata +12/+7 (1d8+11/17-20/x3)
Heavy Shield Bash +11/+6 (1d4+10/x2)
Special Attacks Smite Evil (4/day)
Spell-Like Abilities Detect Evil (At will)
Oracle Spells Known (CL 1, +11 melee touch, +8 ranged touch):
1 (5/day) Cure Light Wounds (DC 16), Bless, Abundant Ammunition
0 (at will) Mending, Create Water, Purify Food and Drink (DC 15), Stabilize
Paladin Spells Prepared (CL 7, 11 melee touch, 8 ranged touch):
3 (1/day) Deadly Juggernaut
2 (2/day) Weapon of Awe (DC 17), Righteous Vigor (DC 17)
1 (4/day) Hero's Defiance (x4)
--------------------
Statistics
--------------------
Str 16/18, Dex 7, Con 16, Int 9, Wis 10, Cha 18/20
Base Atk +10; CMB +14; CMD 22
Feats Exotic Weapon Proficiency (Falcata), Fey Foundling, Improved Critical (Falcata), Noble Scion of War, Power Attack -3/+6, Shield Focus, Step Up
Traits Birthmark, Reactionary
Skills Acrobatics -4, Climb +2, Diplomacy +9, Escape Artist -4, Fly -4, Ride +0, Sense Motive +14, Spellcraft +12, Stealth -4, Survival +1, Swim +2
Languages Aklo, Celestial, Common
SQ Aura of Courage +4 (10' radius), Aura of Good, Aura of Resolve +4 (10' radius), Divine Weapon +2 (10 minutes) (2/day), Ioun Torch, Lay on Hands (5d6) (10/day), Mercy: Cursed, Mercy: Fatigued, Mercy: Sickened, Ring of Evasion
Combat Gear +1 Greyflame Falcata, +1 Righteous Mithral Breastplate, +2 Shield, Heavy Steel; Other Gear Backpack (3 @ 18.24 lbs), Belt of Giant Strength, +2, Cloak of Resistance, +2, Grappling hook, Headband of Alluring Charisma, +2, Ioun Torch, Ring of Evasion, Rope, hempen (50 ft.), Smelling Salts
--------------------
Special Abilities
--------------------
Aura of Courage +4 (10' radius) (Su) You are immune to Fear. Allies within aura gain a morale bonus to saves vs Fear.
Aura of Good (Ex) The paladin has an Aura of Good with power equal to her class level.
Aura of Resolve +4 (10' radius) (Su) You are immune to charm. Allies within aura gain a morale bonus to saves vs charm.
Birthmark +2 save vs. charm & compulsion
Damage Resistance, Fire (10) You have the specified Damage Resistance against Fire attacks.
Detect Evil (At will) (Sp) You can use Detect Evil at will (as the spell).
Divine Weapon +2 (10 minutes) (2/day) (Sp) Weapon shines with light and gains enhancement bonuses or chosen properties.
Fey Foundling Magical healing works better on you
Immune to Charm You are immune to charm effects.
Immune to Fear (Ex) You are immune to all fear effects.
Immunity to Disease You are immune to diseases.
Ioun Torch This item is merely a burned out, dull gray ioun stone with a continual flame spell cast upon it. It retains the ability to float and orbit, and allows the bearer to carry light and still have his hands free. It may be in any crystalline shape common to ioun stones (ellipsoid, prism, sphere, and so on).

Construction
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, continual flame, creator must be 12th level; Cost 62 gp, 5 sp
Lay on Hands (5d6) (10/day) (Su) You can heal 5d6 damage, 10/day
Mercy: Cursed (Su) When you use your lay on hands ability, it also removes curses, as per the remove curse spell at a caster level of your Paladin level.
Mercy: Fatigued (Su) When you use your lay on hands ability, it also removes the fatigued condition.
Mercy: Sickened (Su) When you use your lay on hands ability, it also removes the sickened condition.
Power Attack -3/+6 You can subtract from your attack roll to add to your damage.
Ring of Evasion This ring continually grants the wearer the ability to avoid damage as if she had evasion. Whenever she makes a Reflex saving throw to determine whether she takes half damage, a successful save results in no damage.

Moderate transmutation; CL 7th; Forge Ring, jump; Price 25,000 gp.
Shield Focus +1 Shield AC
Smite Evil (4/day) (Su) +5 to hit, +10 to damage, +5 deflection bonus to AC when used.
Step Up You may make a 5' step closer when your opponent makes a 5' step away from you.
Tongues (Celestial, Aklo) You can only understand and speak two languages in combat.

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[Kalridian]

Thanks a lot for all the options guys. The details you asked for:

The wizard is not actually a real wizard, but a 3rd party class, a death mage which gives him some melee capabilities and some more HP than your average wizard. He prefers the debuffs of the deathmage-list and doesn't summon very much normally.
His cohort is a bloody skeleton cleric of asmodeus (he does not speak in public and has his whole body wrapped in a tunic, so most people don't know about the sekeleton part)
His AC is pretty respectable, since he managed to get his hands on a +1 mithril chain shirt and has some dex and an amulet of nat armor +2.
Most pallys will probably hit him anyway, at least with the first attack.

His 5th level spell will most probably be slay living, for 4th level I expect enervation and bestow curse, on 3rd definately animate dead (that guy raises effing EVERYTHING, I really have to watch what I throw at him, because he is SO gonna use it against my next encounter, given the chance), further 3rd will probably be danse macabre III and vampiric touch. I don't think level 1 and 2 will matter much, because by the time he arrives this far down his list, either he or the pally will be dead anyway.

[Kalridian]

Guys, as much as i appteciate the help, a level 11 pally one on one will definately be to much as far as I can see from this.
Maybe somebody has something more around level 9 or so? If not, I'll just take some levels off of one of the guys you posted. My PCs are not very optimized, they mainly go for style and flavour. The player of the Death mage is by far the best tactician though. They DO work well in a group, but once the others decide to join in, they ARE supposed to be abled to kill the pally without TOO many problems. I just want him to put the fear of death into my necromancer (*muhuhar*) and make him ask the other guys for help, because he's gotten rather arrogant lately, due to having major plotrelevant secrets from the other PCs and a general I AM THE LORD OF DEATH! FEAR ME!!! - attitude.

[Crosswind]

Caaareful, with that spell list.

He has a reasonable chance to miss the paladin, who's going to have a touch AC of ~15 after smiting the wizard. The save DC of slay living is probably around 22 or 24, which means the paladin should make it at least 60% of the time. So you figure there's about a 20% chance that slay living hits.

And remember that a full-attacking paladin is going to be hitting for like 4d6+35, average damage of 49. Your mage probably doesn't have 80 hitpoints, so 2 hits kills.

So just have a bit of caution. Paladins can really put out the damage vs. evil.

-Cross

[darkwarriorkarg]

Now, if you wante dto be really mean, oath against undead paladin.

let the paladin puree his cohort first :-)

[Jarred Henninger]

Alright i drop him 2 lvls, but i didn't mess with the gear any.

Spoiler:

Scarrow CR 8
XP 4800
Male Human Oracle 1 Paladin 8
LG Medium Humanoid (human)
Init +7; Senses Perception +0
--------------------
Defense
--------------------
AC 26, touch 15, flat-footed 21 (+7 armor, +4 shield, +5 Dex)
hp 84 (8d10+1d8+27)
Fort +16, Ref +14, Will +15
Immune charm, fear, disease; Resist fire 8, Tongues (Celestial, Aklo)
--------------------
Offense
--------------------
Speed 30 ft.
Melee Heavy Shield Bash +9/+4 (1d4+10/x2) and
. . +1 Greyflame Falcata +10/+5 (1d8+11/17-20/x3)
Special Attacks Smite Evil (3/day)
Spell-Like Abilities Detect Evil (At will)
Oracle Spells Known (CL 1, +9 melee touch, +6 ranged touch):
1 (5/day) Cure Light Wounds (DC 16), Bless, Abundant Ammunition
0 (at will) Mending, Create Water, Purify Food and Drink (DC 15), Stabilize
Paladin Spells Prepared (CL 5, 9 melee touch, 6 ranged touch):
2 (2/day) Weapon of Awe (DC 17), Righteous Vigor (DC 17)
1 (3/day) Hero's Defiance (x3)
--------------------
Statistics
--------------------
Str 16/18, Dex 7, Con 16, Int 9, Wis 10, Cha 18/20
Base Atk +8; CMB +12; CMD 20
Feats Exotic Weapon Proficiency (Falcata), Fey Foundling, Improved Critical (Falcata), Noble Scion of War, Power Attack -3/+6, Step Up
Traits Birthmark, Reactionary
Skills Acrobatics -4, Climb +2, Diplomacy +9, Escape Artist -4, Fly -4, Ride +0, Sense Motive +12, Spellcraft +11, Stealth -4, Swim +2
Languages Aklo, Celestial, Common
SQ Aura of Courage +4 (10' radius), Aura of Good, Aura of Resolve +4 (10' radius), Divine Weapon +2 (8 minutes) (1/day), Ioun Torch, Lay on Hands (4d6) (9/day), Mercy: Fatigued, Mercy: Sickened, Ring of Evasion
Combat Gear +1 Greyflame Falcata, +1 Righteous Mithral Breastplate, +2 Shield, Heavy Steel; Other Gear Backpack (3 @ 18.24 lbs), Belt of Giant Strength, +2, Cloak of Resistance, +2, Grappling hook, Headband of Alluring Charisma, +2, Ioun Torch, Ring of Evasion, Rope, hempen (50 ft.), Smelling Salts
--------------------
Special Abilities
--------------------
Aura of Courage +4 (10' radius) (Su) You are immune to Fear. Allies within aura gain a morale bonus to saves vs Fear.
Aura of Good (Ex) The paladin has an Aura of Good with power equal to her class level.
Aura of Resolve +4 (10' radius) (Su) You are immune to charm. Allies within aura gain a morale bonus to saves vs charm.
Birthmark +2 save vs. charm & compulsion
Damage Resistance, Fire (8) You have the specified Damage Resistance against Fire attacks.
Detect Evil (At will) (Sp) You can use Detect Evil at will (as the spell).
Divine Weapon +2 (8 minutes) (1/day) (Sp) Weapon shines with light and gains enhancement bonuses or chosen properties.
Fey Foundling Magical healing works better on you
Immune to Charm You are immune to charm effects.
Immune to Fear (Ex) You are immune to all fear effects.
Immunity to Disease You are immune to diseases.
Ioun Torch This item is merely a burned out, dull gray ioun stone with a continual flame spell cast upon it. It retains the ability to float and orbit, and allows the bearer to carry light and still have his hands free. It may be in any crystalline shape common to ioun stones (ellipsoid, prism, sphere, and so on).

Construction
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, continual flame, creator must be 12th level; Cost 62 gp, 5 sp
Lay on Hands (4d6) (9/day) (Su) You can heal 4d6 damage, 9/day
Mercy: Fatigued (Su) When you use your lay on hands ability, it also removes the fatigued condition.
Mercy: Sickened (Su) When you use your lay on hands ability, it also removes the sickened condition.
Power Attack -3/+6 You can subtract from your attack roll to add to your damage.
Ring of Evasion This ring continually grants the wearer the ability to avoid damage as if she had evasion. Whenever she makes a Reflex saving throw to determine whether she takes half damage, a successful save results in no damage.

Moderate transmutation; CL 7th; Forge Ring, jump; Price 25,000 gp.
Smite Evil (3/day) (Su) +5 to hit, +8 to damage, +5 deflection bonus to AC when used.
Step Up You may make a 5' step closer when your opponent makes a 5' step away from you.
Tongues (Celestial, Aklo) You can only understand and speak two languages in combat.

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Pathfinder® and associated marks and logos are trademarks of Paizo Publishing, LLC®, and are used under license.

[Kalridian]

I think right now I will go with Cross' char and maybe tone him down two levels. I'll run a test combat or two before we play, since I have full character sheets for all the chars back home.
But I gues one way or the other, Mr Necromancer will better start calling for help from his friends after the 1st round, if he doesn't want to be shredded. The others are a sword and board fighter, a backstabby rogue and an air elemental sorc, together they should be abled to take care of Mr Righteous.

[Crosswind]

Redoing my paladin to be level 9, took away some loot.

Paladin With a Greatsword(Human)

Stats (Base): 16+2(human),14,14,10,10,14 (25 point buy)
Stats (Modified by level): 20,12,14,10,10,14
Stats (After buffs): 24, 12,14, 10,10,18

Feats:
1.) Power Attack, Cleave
3.) WF: Greatsword
5.) Furious Focus
7.) Great Cleave
9.) Cornugon Smash

+1 Greatsword
+1 Full Plate
+1 Amulet of Natural Armor
+2 Cloak of Resistance
+1 Ring of Protection

Figure that he gets +4 str/cha from buffs, and uses bonded weapon to give his Greatsword another +2.

His defense is: 10+1(dex)+12(plate)+1(ANA)+1(RoP) = 25. With haste, 27
His saves are: 6/3/6+4(Paladin Saves) + 3 (Cloak of Resistance) = 13/10/13, and he's immune to Charm, Diseases and Fear.

As a swift action, he can Lay on Hands to heal 4d6 damage to himself, and cure Fatigued, Staggered, and Poisoned conditions

Offensively, he will do 4 things.
1.) If mobbed by 2-3 guys, he will cleave everything he can, full power attacking.
His attack for this is +9(BAB)+3(Weapon)+7(Strength)+1(WF) = +20. He will do 2d6 + 9(PA) + 10 (strength) +3(Weapon) = 2d6+22

2.) If he's only fighting one person, full attack. Full attack is at:

+20/+12, for 2d6+22 damage, plus another 2d6 if the person is evil.

3.) He will absolutely Smite Evil the wizard. Against the wizard, this gives him +4 to hit, and +11 damage per swing.

4.) He gets a free intimidate check against everybody he attacks, to demoralize them.

[Kalridian]

I think right now I will go with Cross' char and maybe tone him down two levels. I'll run a test combat or two before we play, since I have full character sheets for all the chars back home.
But I gues one way or the other, Mr Necromancer will better start calling for help from his friends after the 1st round, if he doesn't want to be shredded. The others are a sword and board fighter, a backstabby rogue and an air elemental sorc, together they should be able to take care of Mr Righteous.

[TGMaxMaxer]

If you really wanna hammer home the consequences, but don't want to kill the party, I suggest the following build.

I used the 25 point build that you use for characters, since that is already factored into the ECL for a party of chars of equal level. As well, I made him a 10th level character, and I also second the idea of using 5-10 4th level warriors as backup, equivalent to a squad of city guard, defenders of the local temple of whoever, you get the idea.

Aasimar Angel Blooded Paladin(Tranquil Guardian) 8/Fighter (Lore warden)2.

Tranquil Guardian (Paladin):

A tranquil guardian is a missionary of peace and tranquility, a soothing voice of succor in a violent and dangerous world. A tranquil guardian gains the following class features.

Touch of Serenity (Su): At 1st level, a tranquil guardian gains Touch of Serenity as a bonus feat, even if she does not meet the prerequisites. At 6th level, and every six levels thereafter, the duration of a tranquil guardian's Touch of Serenity increases by 1 round. Each round on its turn, the target may attempt a new Will save to end the effect. The duration does not stack; only the longest remaining duration applies. This ability replaces smite evil.

Serene Strike (Su): At 3rd level, when a tranquil guardian confirms a critical hit, she may convert all damage from her attack to nonlethal damage, and when she does, she can activate Touch of Serenity through her weapon or unarmed strike. Using serene strike is a free action. This ability replaces aura of courage.

Divine Bond (Su): A tranquil guardian who chooses a weapon as her divine bond may only increase her weapon's enhancement bonus or add the following properties to her weapon: conductive, defending, disruptive, grayflame , or merciful.

Aura of Calm (Su): At 8th level, a tranquil guardian is immune to all spells and spell-like abilities with the emotion descriptor, as well as all fear effects. Each ally within 10 feet of her gains a +4 morale bonus on saving throws against these effects.

This ability functions only while the tranquil guardian is conscious, not if she is unconscious or dead. This ability replaces aura of resolve.

Waves of Peace (Su): At 11th level, a tranquil guardian may expend 2 uses of her Touch of Serenity to affect each opponent within 5 feet of her with that effect. She does not need to touch the creature for the effect to take hold. This ability replaces aura of justice.

Stats/Feats:

Str 16 Dex 12 Con 14 Int 13 Wis 10 Cha 20 (2 level bumps here)

Feats: Power Attack, Furious Focus, Combat Expertise, Imp Trip, Felling Smash, Channel Force, Imp Channel Force, Extra Lay on Hands
Fort:17 Ref:9 Will:12 CMD: 24 CMB: 13 (+2 trips)
HP: 92(8 favored, 20 Con, 64classes)
AC: 25 (+2 Fullplate +1 Dex +2 Heavy Steel Shield) Touch: 15 Flat Footed: 24
Attacks:+15/10 +2 Keen Conductive Longsword or 15/7 with Power Attack
Damage: d8+5 (17-20x2) +1hit/dam and +1d6 if evil(grayflame, also counts as good/silver) +1d6 if merciful and all damage nonlethal.
PA damage d8+11 +etc.
Spells Prepped: 1st: Compel Hostility(UC), Challenge Evil(APG), Bless(CRB)
2nd: Litany of Righteousness (UC), Fires of Entanglement(APG), Communal Prot Evil(UC).

Equip: +2 Keen Conductive Longsword, +2 Fullplate, Celestial Shield(ARG Aasimar), +2 Cloak of Charisma
Tactics: Casts Bless, Casts Communal Prot/evil. Casts Challenge evil during surprise round if he has one, otherwise move spells back one round.
First round of Combat, Casts Fires of Entanglement, then moves to target. Always attempting to place himself between his allies and the targets allies, in case he needs to use Compel Hostility. First Attack, will cast Litany of Righteousness then PA Full attack. He uses his Channel Force ability to try and not fight the non-evil party members, knockback is always good.

Have him use his paladin bond for a weapon, granting Grayflame and Merciful to the weapon, giving +2d6 damage against evil creatures, but all damage done with the weapon becomes nonlethal. This lets him smite, and power attack, and whathaveyou without killing a group of players that have gotten to 9, but lets you chastise them properly for their increasingly casual disregard of the consequences of actions.

I built him as much like a Crusader as I could, an intelligent warrior prepped specifically to fight evil, and bless those weaker than himself who fight alongside him, but also with a Redeemer feel in case he wins and the party doesn't help to kill the Holy Warrior. I don't know if the powerlevel is what you were looking for, but i'd play this character myself in a game, and he'd be prepped the same way for a regular who knows what we run into day.

[Lacdannan]

I'll add a few things.

Be sure to give the Paladin the ability to fly (Potions probably). Otherwise, at 9th level, your wizard could adopt a nuke from orbit strategy and make the fight much simpler for him. Also give the paladin a bow in case he dispels the paladin, but I’d make sure to give the paladin at least 3 fly potions. He knew he may have to take out a wizard today, and 2 potions given to the party when he dies won’t be game-breaking.

Second, I'd avoid the cleave feats. They make him a threat to more than one opponent and you are wanting a single opponent challenge. I'd give him the feat "Stand Still" (Combat reflexes prereq) that allows him to prevent characters from moving from his threatened space with attacks of opportunity. That way, if he 5 foot steps, you can do the same and full attack. If he tries to take a full movement away, you AoO to stop him and then full attack. And if he full retreats to avoid provoking, he is still within charging distance. By the time he realizes he'll need to full retreat, the fight should be decided one way or another. Regardless of which of the three routes he takes, his spellcasting without provoking attacks will be severely hampered. Additionally, find out if he has Dimension Door, because if he does, using the above tactics won’t prevent him from D-Dooring away and fleeing or nuking from distance. A wizard's main tactic is to get out melee, and so you need to stop that to provide an adequate challenge.

Get improved initiative. Heck, get Eldritch Heritage for a familiar if you can and get a Compsognathus for another +4 to initiative. The paladin MUST go first to be a threat for a good wizard. Get into melee fast, get into melee first, and make the wizard react to you.

Of course, if you really want to scare the bejeebus out of him, do all the above and have the paladin have an anti-magic aura cast on him before he moves into melee range (10min/level, so minimum 110 minutes, easily done before heading out to find the wizard). It's invisible so the wizard won’t know he's in the effect until he's in deep trouble. Smite should still work in it, but the paladin's magic items will be suppressed. Still, advantage goes to the paladin. When the wizard tries to cast a spell and cant the other PC's will know that without their intervention, the wizard will most likely die. In my opinion, this is a bit much and doesn't give the wizard the fighting chance you wanted him to have, but there you are. Additionally, if you got the Compsognathus familiar, put the field on him. Then have the familiar spend all of his actions readied to move to keep the wizard in the aura. Proper positioning then allows you paladin to enjoy buffs while the wizard cant. If the paladin employs a reach weapon, the wizard can’t even 5 foot step out of the field. Wicked tactic.

...I really want to make a paladin now.

Edit: to include additional thoughts. I know it's wrong, but I couldn't help it.

[Dominigo]

Here's a paladin a played a one shot with. He was originally built to be more of a combat medic, but I switched him around a little to make him more offensive.

Julian:

Julian Sunrest, Suli Hospitaler Paladin 9
Aura: Good (strong), Courage, Resolve
LG Medium Outsider (native)
Init. +0 Senses: Darkvision 60 ft
----------------------------------
Defense
----------------------------------
AC 27, touch 12, flatfooted 27 (+10 armor, +4 shield, +1 natural, +2 deflection)
HP 70 (9d10 + 27)
Fort +16 Ref +11 Will +16
Immune Fear, Disease, Charm Resist Fire 5, Cold 5, Acid 5, Electricity 5
----------------------------------
Offense
----------------------------------
Speed 20 ft
Melee +1 Holy Longsword +14, +9 (1d8 + 6/19-20)
Ranged Longbow +10, +5 (1d8 + 3)
Space 5 ft Reach 5 ft
Special Attacks Smite Evil 1/day (+6 to hit, +9 damage)
At will - Detect Evil
Spells Prepared (CL 6)
2 - Bull's Strength, Weapon of Awe, Righteous Vigor
1 - Bless Weapon, Protection from Evil, Hero's Defiance
----------------------------------
Statistics
----------------------------------
Str 17 Dex 10 Con 14 Int 10 Wis 14 Cha 22
BAB +9 CMB 12 CMD 24
Feats Weapon Focus (longsword), Shield Focus, Extra Lay on Hands, Power Attack, Greater Mercy
Skills Knowledge (religion) +12, Spellcraft +12
SQ Divine Grace, Lay on Hands (4d6, DC 19, 12/day), Channel Energy (3d6, DC 17, 9/day), Mercies (fatigued, staggered, exhausted), Divine Health
Languages Common, Terran
Gear: +1 Full Plate, +1 Heavy Steel Shield, +1 longsword, masterwork mighty composite longbow (+3 str), +2 Ring of Protection, +1 Amulet of Natural Armor, Cloak of Resistance +2, Headband of Alluring Charisma +2, Belt of Mighty Constitution +2,3 potions of Fly, Wand of Cure Light Wounds (50 charges), Wand of Cure Moderate Wounds (25 charges), Wand of Lesser Restoration (50 charges), 20 arrows

Before combat, Jullian casts Bull's Strength, Weapon of Awe, Bless Weapon, and Protection from Evil (these changes are included in statblock). He then uses his Divine Bond to make his weapon Holy.

During Combat Julian casts Righteous Vigor and smites his target as he approaches. The heals himself as necessary using his Lay on Hands while attacking his target, using power attack if he is not having trouble hitting his target. If his target can fly, he prefers to drink one of his potions of Fly rather than shoot his bow, but will if he can't us his potion.

[Anetra]

Be careful with that 25 point buy stuff. NPCs with class levels are meant to use the elite array (15, 14, 13, 12, 10, 8) (Compared to NPCs with NPC levels who use the standard array (13, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8)). You could use 20 or 25 point buy on an npc, but uh, I don't know if that's a good idea in this instance, given you don't want to obliterate this wizard and he'll be by himself.

[Lacdannan]

Bah, just noticed the antimagic field, while listed as a range 10 and not personal, states the field emanates from the caster, so that tactic won’t work for the paladin. Ah well, it was overkill anyway and I was only recommending it as an aside on how to really scare a wizard.

[TGMaxMaxer]

Actually, to really hammer home the message of consequences to actions, have the Paladin identify the evil and confront the char in front of the rest of the party, with the whole, "you have gotten into more than you thought", etc etc, then have him turn to the other PC's with something like, "You aren't evil, how can you travel with him, either you don't know what he really is or you're in thrall" kinda speech. Then leave, like it's not really an encounter. They'll probably shrug it off if they are as you described, and shouldn't jump into combat if it's in a public setting, but the seed will settle in their minds.

This will give the other PC's something to think about, make them suspicious of the non-shared info that you said the mage has, and hesitate for a round or two when he confronts him afterwards.

With the above build, he's not committing to killing the character, but his first set of actions goes like this. Change to greatsword, since it's not lethal anyways, Drop the tranquil Guardian since i didn't see that it lost smite, make him wet himself on the first attack.

First attack action, cast Litany of Righteousness as a swift, then charging PA/Smite proc'ing Felling Smash (charge optional, just fun). Attack at +25, 8d6 +46(4d6 +23 doubled from lit of righteous, one attack).
The mage then gets to: make a reflex save to avoid the entangle, DC 18, and combat maneuver check of +27 probably knocks the guy prone, his CMD shouldn't be more than 23-26 or so.

It's all nonlethal, but he doesn't have to know that. Then, if the other PC's do rush in, he uses the Channel Force to do a cone knockback, while his cohorts (just level 3-4 warriors) tie up the mage if he's unconscious, or tie up the pet if he's not.
If the mage pops a fly, or tries to range, hit Challenge Evil, be sickened if you don't attack the paladin each round. Compel Hostility means the other PC's have to attack the paladin while his cohorts bundle up the mage, if they do have to jump in. If not, it's a fun rescue mission for the rest of the party, and the mage cools his heels for getting to cocky.

[Mysterious Stranger]

Here is an idea that may work for you. Instead of an equal level paladin use a lower level paladin with the leadership feat. I was thinking of a 7th level paladin with a 5th level inquisitor cohort and some followers. So instead of a single paladin confronting him it would be a whole group. I figure he should have about 15 1st level warrior followers and a 2nd level warrior as a sergeant. You can change the level of the paladin to better fit the character.

[Anetra]

Okay! Hi, I'm back. I built a paladin that, while not optimized for destroying your PC, is actually following the rules for creating NPCs that are intended to be thrown at your characters as encounters?

You can't actually just toss guys that are geared up like PCs at your characters. NPCs aren't, on the whole, meant to have 25-point-buy ability scores, and they certainly aren't meant to have the same amount of gear as a PC of equal level -- if they did, your PCs gold would go up exponentially after each encounter, instead of increasing in an amount that is roughly proportionate to the EXP they gained from the encounter.

So. Our CR 9 paladin should be 10th level, because they have a 1/2 CR race. They use the elite array because they're an NPC, and they have about 20,000 GP worth of gear and 3,000 GP in consumables. A 9th level NPC with character classes is intended to have 10,000 GP in gear as a baseline, but some creatures and encounters possess double the normal amount of loot, and we're going to say this paladin qualifies.

Spoiler:

Aasimar (angelkin) paladin 10
LG Medium outsider (native)
Init -1; Senses darkvision 60 ft; Perception +10
Aura Good (strong), Courage, Resolve
==========================================================
DEFENCE
==========================================================
AC 19, touch 9, flat-footed 19 (+10 armour, -1 dex)
hp 118 (10d10+40)
Fort +16, Ref +8, Will +14
Immune fear, disease, charm; Resist acid 5, cold 5, electricity 5
==========================================================
OFFENCE
==========================================================
Speed 20 ft
Melee mwk greatsword +16/+8 (2d6+16/19-20)
with GMW +17/+9 (2d4+18/18-20)
Special Attacks smite evil 4/day (+4 attack and AC, +10 damage)
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 10th, concentration +14)
at will - detect evil
1/day - daylight
Spells Prepared (CL 10th, concentration +14)
3rd - magic weapon
2nd - righteous vigor x2
1st - hero's defiance x3
==========================================================
STATISTICS
==========================================================
Str 18/20, Dex 8, Con 14/16, Int 10, Wis 12, Cha 16/18
Base Attack +10; CMB +15; CMD 24
Feats Power Attack, Furious Focus, Channel Smite, Extra Channel, Alignment Channel (Evil)
Skills Diplomacy +10, Heal +8, Knowledge (Planes) +8, Knowledge (Religion) +8, Perception +10, Sense Motive +12, Spellcraft +8
Languages Common
SQ Divine Grace, Lay on Hands 9/day (5d6 DC 19), Channel Positive Energy 2/day (5d6, DC 19), Mercies (fatigued, staggered, exhausted), Divine Health, Divine Bond 2/day (+2)
Combat Gear potion of resist energy fire CL 7, potion of cure moderate wounds CL 10, potion of veil of positive energy CL 10; Other Gear +1 fullplate, mwk greatsword, +2 cloak of resistance, +2 belt of physical prowess (str, con), +2 headband of alluring charisma

I gave the NPC Extra Channel and Alignment Channel specifically for use with Channel Smite; I like this feat on an NPC paladin, especially on one you're not trying to optimize to murder your PC, because it allows the paladin to do another 5d6 damage against evil outsiders and the undead; sure, you're a paladin and you can do lots of damage with your smites anyway, but why not do more?

The Paladin won't be able to Channel Smite your wizard, preventing them from murdering the wizard as quickly as they can take out his undead minions, so this makes the paladin less likely of outright killing the PC while still being a deadly force.

If you want a more generally optimized paladin, take those three off and replace them with ... well, whatever you fancy. Extra Lay on Hands, Weapon Focus, and Reward of Grace are good.

[Irontruth]

Another idea is that the Paladin wants to take him alive. So he's got some underlings with nets and stuff, so they can take the wizard in for questioning. Maybe the church has been tracking the devil?

[Are]

The paladin could also use his divine bond to make his weapon merciful, thus only dealing nonlethal damage.

[TGMaxMaxer]

Check my build on a nonlethal encounter, even if you want to drop his level/gear.

[blackbloodtroll]

Ach, missed the melee part.

[Jubal Breakbottle]

A high-level, melee paladin has probably fought spell-casters before. Remember the Litany of Sloth spell to prevent a caster from casting on the defensive and get base-to-base. That by itself, should scare the mage. The step up feat chain would just optimize that spell if you want to hammer the point home.

I also second the previous post to run the encounter as a two step. The first when the paladin confronts him and his friends, but has no intention of fighting unless provoked. Then, the paladin prepares/buffs, gets his posse, and confirms his "legitimate authority" to subdue, kill, or imprison the individual and any of his allies.

cheers