Can someone become a paladin without formal training?


Pathfinder First Edition General Discussion

Dark Archive

I am about to play a game run by one of my friends, and I'm considering a tiefling paladin. I have read the other threads regarding tiefling paladins, and I had decided that due to social stigma, the church of Iomedae would not welcome my character. I was wondering, therefore, would it be possible to form a deific connection to attain paladinhood through means outside of the church?


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As per the PRD, there is no deity requirement for a paladin, just a code of conduct.

Silver Crusade

Pathfinder Pathfinder Accessories Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber

Well who says a Paladin HAS to follow Iomedae? For a tiefling the redemption based faith of Sarenrae may be a better option and is within a step of the Lawful Good alignment, allowing it under paladin code.


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Joan of Arc.


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Ilarian wrote:
I am about to play a game run by one of my friends, and I'm considering a tiefling paladin. I have read the other threads regarding tiefling paladins, and I had decided that due to social stigma, the church of Iomedae would not welcome my character. I was wondering, therefore, would it be possible to form a deific connection to attain paladinhood through means outside of the church?

If they be true of faith, they will see your character rather than your form.

If they cannot see you as you are, they do not see with Iomedae's eyes. She will find you though other means, through eyes that can see the truth.

Faith, brother.

Silver Crusade

You certainly can go that route. Iomedae might want such a paladin to try to work with her church as much as possible, but if they absolutely refuse to accept him, even grudgingly, or are even outright hostile to him, they're off the tracks. And she wouldn't want such a paladin to be suicidal about trying to work within a system that rejects him. Though if he can change the system for the better...she would certainly be all about that, so long as the church, or the portion of it that's being problematic, is changed for the better and stable afterwards.


After reading the thread title, Joan of Arc immediately came to mind. Peasant girl, chosen by a deity to become a holy warrior and a charismatic heroine even against the deity's church. Didn't end well, though. Her story always screamed paladin to me. I would allow it in my game, and it could provide interesting RPing possibilities.

Edit: Ninja'ed by Bruunwald!

Dark Archive

Thanks for the responses, I was defenitly thinking Joan of Arc when I posted my question. I'll be sure to talk to my DM about this!

Grand Lodge

The best example in fiction I've seen is the Deed of Paksnarrion by Elizabeth Moon (Sheepfarmer's Daughter, Divided Allegiance, and Oath of Gold). It follows Paks as she goes from a mercenary, through training with a militant church, gets cast out of the church, and then becomes a Paly pretty much all on her own. It's a good read.

Liberty's Edge

The answer is a bit tricky. Yes, you could certainly gain all of your holy powers and your divine spellcasting innately, but I highly doubt you could become a paladin with absolutely no training.

Full BAB classes are special because they spend rigorous amounts of time mastering the art of combat, both ranged and melee, until they can use almost any weapon with ease and with much more accuracy and skill than others.

Personally, I believe that the classic example of a completely untrained class is the rogue. Yes, Sneak Attack does take some skill, but the rogue's actual attacks have the average to-hit ratio and he has proficiency with simple weapons and only four or five martial weapons (and one exotic, for some reason).

My 2 cp.

Dark Archive

NeoSeraphi wrote:

The answer is a bit tricky. Yes, you could certainly gain all of your holy powers and your divine spellcasting innately, but I highly doubt you could become a paladin with absolutely no training.

Full BAB classes are special because they spend rigorous amounts of time mastering the art of combat, both ranged and melee, until they can use almost any weapon with ease and with much more accuracy and skill than others.

Personally, I believe that the classic example of a completely untrained class is the rogue. Yes, Sneak Attack does take some skill, but the rogue's actual attacks have the average to-hit ratio and he has proficiency with simple weapons and only four or five martial weapons (and one exotic, for some reason).

My 2 cp.

Well, as a tiefling, he's been alive for close to a century before he comes to his starting age, if you follow the ARG rules. I would think he's had time to train with weapons and armor to get him up to par with other paladins in regards to martial training. I mean, the martial aspect of the paladin is exactly the same as the fighter, so maybe take a couple fighter levels, and then multiclass to paladin?

Shadow Lodge

I think that a paladin can be "called" by a diety and follow the code of conduct. I think that is a very interesting race/class choice and would make for a fun character to play with the right group of players. I think also that you would be even more beholden and strict on your following of your diety's tenants than those that would be expected to be a paladin as you may feel you have something to prove. You may have a few inqusitors looking your way at first but let the light shine on.

Matt


Holy Gun of Cayden Cailean? Aww hell yeah -- we've got one in our campaign. Sort of a young Don Quixote, sans the windmills, with a bit of Jack sparrow thrown in for good measure. He's a fantastic addition to the game, played by a wonderful player. He abides by a code, believes in personal freedoms above all, and is convinced his father was Cayden himself. And who knows, maybe he was?

My point is that you can absolutely play a Tiefling paladin, of Iomedae or any other god/ess you wish. Just talk it through with your GM and have some fun with it.


Ilarian wrote:
I am about to play a game run by one of my friends, and I'm considering a tiefling paladin. I have read the other threads regarding tiefling paladins, and I had decided that due to social stigma, the church of Iomedae would not welcome my character. I was wondering, therefore, would it be possible to form a deific connection to attain paladinhood through means outside of the church?

A paladin is a person who is martially skilled and has true faith in his cause and his deity.

That's all that is required as far as I am concerned. Most churches will recognize paladins for what they are after they become paladins, even if they do not do so before. I don't think there are 'paladin schools' anywhere to train them, it's just something that you are, not that you do.


I tend to agree with Dabbler in this in that I think it can be played which ever way as long as it follows the fairly basic rules of the class.

oen thing I'd strongly sugget is vetting whatever concept you create with your DM. DM's always tend to have their views of paladins, and you're goign to want to make sure you and he/she is on the same page.

Grand Lodge

Pathfinder PF Special Edition, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
Bruunwald wrote:
Joan of Arc.

I see her more as one of Monte Cook's Champions actually.


Paladins are officially in the "Self-Trained" category.

Silver Crusade

1. No rule requirement for formal training.

2. No rule requirement for Paladins to have a deity. (IIRC, PFS does require one.)

3. Ragathiel may be a good choice for a tiefling paladin.


I thought I remembered reading something somewhere to the effect of

Not a real quote wrote:
the paladin's powers do not come directly from his deity, but are granted to him when he is anointed by another paladin

but I can't find it anywhere.


One the ideas I had for tiefling paladin of Iomeade was that he was "trained" and "sponsored" by a gold dragon.

Grand Lodge

Pathfinder PF Special Edition, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
Darnizhaan wrote:
One the ideas I had for tiefling paladin of Iomeade was that he was "trained" and "sponsored" by a gold dragon.

That's a good route for some Mary Sue points.


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Sarenrae would not turn you down! Join her church, they get to smite evil with out being all in your face about it.

Dark Archive

As these ideas come rolling in, I had another thought. Suppose Iomedae and the other goodly gods' priests bar hm from service, and he doesn't make some kind of connection like Joan of Arc. Suppose that the Iomedan refusal cuts the deepest, that he is refused entry into the service of the goddess of justice, unjustly. And, while we're supposing, let us go a bit further to say that he is disenfranchised with all dieties, and devotes himself to the cause of Justice itself, not any one god. Would even the Hellknights train him? I mean, according to Chelaxians, he is a perfect example of lost control, of a chaotic impulse in a lawful society, averything they hope to stamp out. I would think the most likely to work with him would be the Order of the Gate. Thoughts?

Grand Lodge

Pathfinder PF Special Edition, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
Ilarian wrote:
As these ideas come rolling in, I had another thought. Suppose Iomedae and the other goodly gods' priests bar hm from service, and he doesn't make some kind of connection like Joan of Arc. Suppose that the Iomedan refusal cuts the deepest, that he is refused entry into the service of the goddess of justice, unjustly. And, while we're supposing, let us go a bit further to say that he is disenfranchised with all dieties, and devotes himself to the cause of Justice itself, not any one god. Would even the Hellknights train him? I mean, according to Chelaxians, he is a perfect example of lost control, of a chaotic impulse in a lawful society, averything they hope to stamp out. I would think the most likely to work with him would be the Order of the Gate. Thoughts?

The genesis of another web comic? Unless you start putting in some meaningful whys into that origin, all you have so far, is bad soap opera.


My take is that gods have always chosen their paladins--not so much their mortal hierarchy. They annoint who it is that they please.
There are some good examples of this in the Old Testament in the Book of Judges. Judges is, by the way, an excellent source to mine for adventure ideas.

Grand Lodge

Pathfinder PF Special Edition, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
EWHM wrote:

My take is that gods have always chosen their paladins--not so much their mortal hierarchy. They annoint who it is that they please.

There are some good examples of this in the Old Testament in the Book of Judges. Judges is, by the way, an excellent source to mine for adventure ideas.

My view has always been that Paladins are like Green Lanterns, they might be chosen by their power rings, but they still have to prove themselves in boot camp. What form that boot camp takes whether it's a temple war academy or a tough as nails solo mentor, will vary case by case.

By the way the general assumption in Pathfinder Society play is that ontop of anything else, you spend 3 years in Absalom doing the Society's version of boot camp.

Liberty's Edge

AntiPaladin. Just to show them all what could have been.


My Paladin started off by being rescued by a lone pally when he was a child..persuading the man to accept him as a page then going through squirehood and being knighted by his mentor before formally joining the ranks of the Order


Ilarian wrote:
I mean, the martial aspect of the paladin is exactly the same as the fighter, so maybe take a couple fighter levels, and then multiclass to paladin?

If you subscribe to the popular notion that people in training for a PC class have an NPC class, he might have formerly been a warrior - possibly a sellsword or other dangerous sort who saw the light.

Grand Lodge

Pathfinder PF Special Edition, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
EWHM wrote:

My take is that gods have always chosen their paladins--not so much their mortal hierarchy. They annoint who it is that they please.

There are some good examples of this in the Old Testament in the Book of Judges. Judges is, by the way, an excellent source to mine for adventure ideas.

Every write up of game fiction novels that bring light onto the question however, suggests that Paladins enter like any other class, through the aegis of a mentor/sponsor/trainer, not from some bolt from above.

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