Shadow Knight
Description
Paladins are holy warriors who use blessed spells and strength of arms to fight the evil and undead of Norrath. Paladins are primarily a melee class, able to wear plate armor and wield many kinds of weapons.
Paladins are able fighters and battlefield healers whose combat spells focus on stunning enemies and smiting undead. They also have several spells that increase the health and armor of their allies. Every so often, paladins can lay hands on themselves or their friends to instantly grant a powerful heal.
Paladins are the greatest force against undead. At higher levels they gain special abilities to smite these foes. Paladins also gain a limited ability to resurrect their fallen friends with lessened penalties for death.
Paladins can sometimes work alone, healing themselves with magic, but in a group a paladin really shines, going head to head with his enemies and occasionally falling back to heal. Players who like to engage in melee fights but want the options spells provide will find paladins a great class to play.
Class Titles
| Level 1-50 | Level 51-54 | Level 55-59 | Level 60 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paladin | Cavalier | Knight | Crusader |
Creation Guide
Choosing Your Race
The first thing you have to pick then is your race. Which race you pick will determine the foundation of you character for the rest of your life in Norrath so it is kind of important you pick one you like. With Paladins, the different races offer some large choices statistically which must be taken into account.
Dwarves, Half Elves and Humans offer the best melee stats. Dwarves particularly have the most hitpoints over other races, as well as superior strength. High Elves offer the most wisdom, and can still hold reasonable melee stats. This gives them more mana for casting spells over the other races. The Erudite Paladin unfortunately has very mediocre stats, but there are a number of good Erudite only Paladin items in the game to compensate for this, (ex. Shield of the Stalwart Seas) but for most of your life you will be less efficient than other Paladins if you choose this race.
Humans and Erudites have no night vision whatsoever. This can be a problem if you are unfamiliar with your territory, but you can easily acquire light sources to help you see better at night, or ask around for a vision enhancing spell. Besides some races having infravision there are no other special abilities any one race has over the other.
All of the Paladin races level at the same rate, and there are no experience penalties imposed for any specific race/class combination. Faction wise, all of the Paladin races are welcome in any other neutral or good-aligned city, however Erudite Paladins have an advantage since the faction associated with their guild is somewhat difficult for non Erudites to increase. Erudites have high faction with this guild automatically.
The true choice you have in selecting your race is what race you prefer, the look of your class (some people just hate being short dwarves), and where you start. Besides the variance in starting stats, all of the races are otherwise fairly equal.
Starting Statistics
Spending Your Bonus Points
Paladins are a tanking support class with great defensive skills and a powerful spells set to help you keep your group alive. As a paladin you are expected to have a high amount of hit points and AC to perform your main role as a tank and a decent mana pool to cast your aggro spells (flash of light and stun). With that in mind the most agreed upon is your agility should be 75 (erudites and dwarves must increase this), and you should dump as much as you can after that into stamina. After those two, weigh your options:
- Wisdom: Will increase your manapool
- Strength: Will increase your damage output (albeit slightly)
- Dexterity: Will increase the likelihood of procs (Ghoulbane, Fiery Avenger, and Fiery Defender come to mind)
- Charisma: Will increase the success rate of the Lull line of spells
Realistic/Modern statistic allocation:
- Dwarf: Add 15 to Stamina and 5 to Agility.
- Erudite: Add 15 to Stamina and 5 to Agility.
- Half Elf: Add 20 to Stamina.
- High Elf: Add 20 to Stamina.
- Human: Add 20 to Stamina.
Religion
Paladins must choose a religion, as their magic powers flow from their devotion to their chosen god. There is only one significant item for paladins which your deity will affect, and that is the Natures Defender (Tunare only). Your religion will also impact on where your character can start. Selections include Karana, Rodcet Nife, Erollisi Marr, Brell Serilis, Mithaniel Marr, Prexus, Tunare, and Quellious. Depending on your race you will be given a different number of these deities to choose from.
Spells
Level 9
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Template:SpellHeaderRowTemplate:SpellRowTemplate:SpellRowTemplate:SpellRowTemplate:SpellRowTemplate:SpellRowTemplate:SpellRowTemplate:SpellRowTemplate:SpellRow| Guard | Single Target AC Buff | Abj. | Vendor. | 80 |
Level 49
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Template:SpellHeaderRow| Flame of Light | Single Target Fire Based Direct Damage (Max: 125hp) | Vel. | Evo. | NPC Drop. | 85 |
Level 51
Template:SpellHeaderRowTemplate:SpellRow| Resist Disease | Increases disease resistance | Kun. | Abj. | Vendor. | 50 |
Level 52
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Template:SpellHeaderRow| Divine Glory | Single Target 150 HP Buff | Vel. | Abj. | E. Com. | 60 |
Level 54
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Combat Skills
| Level | Trained | Skill | Cap Until 50 | Cap Above 50 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | No | 1 Hand Blunt | 200 | 225 |
| 1 | No | 1 Hand Slashing | 200 | 225 |
| 1 | No | 2 Hand Blunt | 200 | 225 |
| 1 | No | 2 Hand Slashing | 200 | 225 |
| 1 | No | Archery | 75 | 75 |
| 1 | No | Bind Wound | 100 | 210 |
| 1 | No | Defense | 200 | 252 |
| 1 | No | Hand to Hand | 100 | 100 |
| 1 | No | Lay Hands | 200 | 200 |
| 1 | No | Offense | 200 | 225 |
| 1 | No | Piercing | 200 | 225 |
| 1 | Yes | Taunt | 180 | 180 |
| 6 | Yes | Bash | 175 | 200 |
| 10 | Yes | Dodge | 125 | 155 |
| 17 | Yes | Parry | 175 | 200? |
| 20 | Yes | Double Attack | 200 | 235 |
| 30 | Yes | Riposte | 175 | 200 |
| 40 | Yes | Disarm | 70 | 70 |
Casting Skills
| Level | Trained | Skill | Cap Until 50 | Cap Above 50 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | No | Abjuration | 235 | 235 |
| 9 | No | Alteration | 235 | 235 |
| 9 | No | Channelling | 200 | 220 |
| 9 | No | Conjuration | 235 | 235 |
| 9 | No | Divination | 235 | 235 |
| 9 | No | Evocation | 235 | 235 |
| 12 | Yes | Meditate | 185 | 235 |
Miscellaneous Skills
| Level | Trained | Skill | Cap Until 50 | Cap Above 50 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | No | Alcohol Tolerance | 200 | 255 |
| 1 | No | Beg | 200 | 200 |
| 1 | No | Fishing | 200 | 200 |
| 1 | No | Sense Heading | 200 | 200 |
| 1 | Yes | Swimming | 200 | 200 |
Disciplines
Paladin disciplines were introduced with the Velious expansion; they offer short term advantages with a long re-use: These are most useful in dragon/boss encounters.
{{#lsth:Disciplines|Paladin}}
Paladin-Specific Quests
{{#lsth:Class Race Quest List|Paladin}}
Gearing
Class specific gear suggestions are cross listed on the Gear Reference page. For a full list, view the Paladin Equipment category.
Pre-Planar
{{#lsth:Players:Pre Planar Gear|Paladin}}
Planar
{{#lsth:Players:Planar Gear|Paladin}}
Kunark
{{#lsth:Players:Kunark Gear|Paladin}}
Velious Pre-Raid/Group
{{#lsth:Players:Velious Pre-Raid Gear|Paladin}}
Velious Raiding
{{#lsth:Players:Velious Raiding Gear|Paladin}}
