The Atheist Paladin: why Paladins should be free to be deity free


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GM_Starson wrote:
stuff

Generally speaking it’s the opposite. Players trying to be edgy or get away with doing things that may not be considered goodly and the GM “forcing” them to be more LG. If you want to play a goody two shoes paladin, you are probably going to have no problem regardless of what deity you select. GMs rarely try to enforce a deity’s dogma over general paladin tenets. Most GMs couldn’t recite the sphere of influence of a deity beyond the typical alignment generalities. As long as you are being good and doing the “right” thing, you’ll be just fine. Trouble comes when a paladin tries to justify borderline behavior citing exploitable loopholes in dogma or alignment expectations

1/5 5/5

Pathfinder Lost Omens Subscriber

Or, alternatively, tries to 'force' the table to do 'goody two shoes behaviour' when they play.

Understanding one's fellow players and the play environment can help a great deal, and respecting the play-style of one's fellow players is paramount.

2/5

I think we've skipped an axiomatic question:
What is an atheist on Golarion?

On Earth, atheists lack a belief in god(s), or even actively disbelieve.
The lack of evidence & consensus supports this view, so it can be seen as rational.

On Golarion, do atheists lack a belief in god(s)?
The preponderance of evidence & nearly universal consensus refutes this view, so it could be seen as irrational.
Is Ezren so ignorant or irrational? I doubt it. He just holds a different opinion on gods. (Whether that's sound is a different question!)

The atheist main character in one of the PF novels from a Paizo bigwig works for a goddess. And an author for a PFS scenario with an atheist nemesis stated she should likely be called an antitheist instead since she knows of gods existing.
So two more examples of atheists believing gods exist, but not seeing them as "godly".

So I'd say an atheist on Golarion does believe that creatures that call themselves gods exist, but that they are not worthy of worship nor maintain/create some fundamental aspect of the universe (so are not "necessary beings" in the philosophical sense). They're just higher up the totem pole, but like a Mythic Wizard might have godly power, that doesn't make them a "God".

So starting from there, it seems there could be a Paladin in PFS who chooses a god as a mentor, some god whose LG nature reflects the moral being she herself wishes to become. This god could fill the "worship" slot mechanically, and the Paladin could spend the requisite time studying its ways & meditating. In turn, that god (being LG!) could support this Paladin's path by bequeathing Paladin benefits upon her.
It's more a partnership. And since she's Lawful, she likely respects the authority the god has earned through LG behavior.

Heck, arguably an LG god could be doing the busywork with the Paladin unaware of the support! The player knows, and chooses a god which aligns strongly with the Paladin's inclinations/codes, but maybe the Paladin herself doesn't. She'd still be subject to the same codes (as she's still being held accountable even if oblivious to that.)
So there'd be no mechanical benefit nor RP loophole other than not having to spout a god's name as some sort of validation. The atheist Paladin could truly be good for goodness' sake.
And that could lead to some interesting RPing of objective vs. subjective views of morality & how those tie to the planes. :)

Cheers

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