What makes a poison a poison?

[MrSin]

So, earlier I saw a thread asking if a spit that blinds people counted as a poison towards the paladin's code. Many people said yes, so I thought I'd ask what exactly defines a poison in pathfinder. Is it just a name? or does it have a better definition, because I'm not sure how that's even a poison, and there are all kinds of poisons that have type/frequency/onset that seem to be more so the poisons that would be underhanded. Then someone mentioned that stinking cloud was a poison and I'm just not sure how that works.

So what makes a poison a poison? Also, as a side question, do Vishyanka and Najaji paladins hate their own kin's use of poison?

[mplindustries]

Anything that says it is a poison is a poison. It's pretty much that simple.

Paladins don't use poison because its "cheating." If you are naturally poisonous, I, at least, wouldn't consider that cheating.

[Talonhawke]

Well I'd rule if it follows poison rules or its called a poison then it is otherwise no.

I have issues anyway with pallys and poison. Why is it more good/ noble to beat someone until they are passed out than to use a a poison to put them to sleep.

[MrSin]

mplindustries wrote:

Paladins don't use poison because its "cheating." If you are naturally poisonous, I, at least, wouldn't consider that cheating.

I understand that its supposedly cheating to use poisons. I thought it was a legacy thing for pathfinder more than anything however. The code itself has always seemed awkward and lacking in openness as far as I can tell. It appears some people even saw a creatures natural poison as breaking the code, due to strict readings.

Talonhawke wrote:

Well I'd rule if it follows poison rules or its called a poison then it is otherwise no.

I have issues anyway with pallys and poison. Why is it more good/ noble to beat someone until they are passed out than to use a a poison to put them to sleep.

How about a poison that doesn't do anything to harm the victim and isn't a poison except in name? Such as spit venom here. That was the one that popped up on the other thread.

Dead people complain less, if I had to guess.

Edit: Totally put this one on the wrong forum. Should probably be in rules.

[Atarlost]

The paladin code really needs a rewrite. By an ethicist. There's so much stupid in it because nobody's bothered to fix it because "tradition."

Frankly, apart from the alignment restriction (or possibly only the good component thereof) it would be better if the version in the CRB looked like the Order of the Ronin edicts and anything more defined was in a setting book.