#Paladin problems

[wearepaladin]

Paladin Problem #12

The Facestealer: I know the truth of what you are, Paladin. A true idealist, and thus more of a monster than I could ever be.

Paladin: You want to explain that logic, monster who steals the lives of people they kill.

Facestealer: Precisely. I value their lives, who they are as people. I take the time to know them thoroughly as I become them, so their family and loved ones never know the difference. So long as I exist, they in turn will live.

Facestealer: You, however, would strike me down. Kill their loved ones comfort in my presence, bring about a harsh new reality. For the sake of justice, for a person who only lives on through me.

Facestealer: Creatures of conviction like you perform a thousand little atrocities like this every day. Enforcing your ideals upon a reality desperate for its soft edges, you will make knives upon the feet of the world, so it cannot walk without tracking blood. Even when given the choice between those you love and what you believe is right, you would render them and all their experience and being to be annihilated upon the altar of virtue. Let their blood and souls feed empty notions of right, all so a beast of iron and stone like you can sleep comfortably.

Paladin:

Paladin: There is a grain of truth to what you say. But truth has no grains, only what is, and what isn’t. You murdered people to make their lives and identities yours. Destroying you will remove what vestiges of them you’ve hoarded for yourself, but spare all the lives that you would have stolen. I am a creature of ideal and conviction: I see a bigger picture, but unlike you I can find the threads that make the tapestry: they are all important, but your way would be to take the many pieces of the greater work and forget what they could make together. We are more than the sum our parts.

Paladin: You, however, are not part of that great work. But don’t be afraid: you’ll help me finish it.

[mslanna]

ok

so the undead knight appeared to tell me I broke my oath after fighting Nere and accidentally killing a gnome because they were STANDING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE BATTLEFIELD AND I SOMETIMES ATTACK MY SQUAD-MATES BECAUSE I SUCK AT FIGHTING OKAY?!?!?!

[caemidraws]

yea...

[wassidy-wanders-around]

I-...yea okay I'm obsessed. He's so handsome, so purdy (⁠ ⁠˘⁠ ⁠³⁠˘⁠)⁠♥ My swiss cheese mind is obsessed. You can visually see how I start to understand his features better. I have some um released...ideas, I paired him with my Tav and OG campaign character Vera. Who yes is also a teifling, they be my fave.

And I have so many plans for this man still but I've been studying him like crazy (⁠.⁠ ⁠❛⁠ ⁠ᴗ⁠ ⁠❛⁠.⁠) Still working on studies for his armor and different expressions, I like the stoic look but he's very expressive boi. Perhaps some animatics because Glen McCready, his va, did a video of poems and monologues for Zevlor and I'm obsessed.

[sleights-of-hand]

Timidly leaving this sketchy concepting art of my Dog comic guys as Fallout comic guys here and frolicking away.

[stoat-party]

So I’m working on a post about the things Fallout 3 did better than 4, but first I have to tell you the absolute worst thing about 3.

What’s with the ridiculous unimaginable cruelty toward 6/8 of your friends?

(The Lone Wanderer doesn’t feel the need to treat these two like trash for whatever reason.)

[void-thegod]

had a whole ass "debate" with some dude bc he just doesnt like HOW solarpunk is anti establishment

bro just wants grimdark dystopian bullshit like we have always seen

"it's just trees / star trek"

tell me you dont understand what a good civilzation looks like without telling me

solarpunk is EVERYTHING other types of punk are... except it is bright.

what is wrong with that???

[shorthaltsjester]

honestly as someone who has been in various fandoms for a long time now and who also watched campaigns 1 and 2 without really getting into cr fandom it isn’t Shocking but it is annoying how often people will look at the stories that cr tells and make absolute claims about the goodness of characters (goodness here meaning Moral goodness, not I Like This character and think it’s well made goodness, which is a separate post entirely). particularly regarding the gods and pc parents. and honestly like, typically in fandom i get annoyed by people bending over backwards to woobify characters who are active in their choice to be unkind and generally horrible but in the cr fandom it’s tended to be the opposite where like. a character is just. a human being (in the sense of being Average not in the sense of Fantasy Races) and huge swaths of the fandom act like that’s the most unforgivable thing someone can be. and maybe it is, but one of the most powerful things about fiction is that it tends to encourage people to expand their empathy and exercise their ability to forgive. because fictional characters, no matter how much people like to project onto them, tend not to cause anyone harm, so it’s easier to learn how to forgive and accept things you don’t understand without also villainizing them.

this is mostly prompted by the recent 4sd and the fact that matt’s response to what’s up with the dawnfather was a very insistent “He’s not bad!” and also seeing the online reaction to the mention that the matron would punish vax for saving keyleth that has taken the as usual completely bonkers tune that the raven queen (Who When Met With A Brother Asking A God To Kill Him In Favour Of His Sister, Gave Him A Job, and Later Extended His Natural Life To Help Protect The World And Have More Time With His Family And Allowed Him To Visit His Sister On Her Wedding Day) is a horrible evil abusive bitch of a god. like. can we grow up? can we understand the world and fiction that represents the multitudes of experiences found in it in shades of grey? is that too much to ask (i know it is).

but also specifically the like Extremely Adamant way that both matt and laura were like no no no no relvin isn’t Horirble he’s average. he’s not good he’s just. he’s A father, not a good or bad one. and on the surface it’s hilarious that they’re both so like. enthused to point out that he’s Average because typically when people respond to a claim of a characters badness with the level of immediacy they both did it’s a rebuttal of “no, this character is good actually.” but it was just to affirm that relvin did harm imogen, but not because there’s some aspect of his character that is inherently cruel or especially Bad. and like. yeah actually. yeah you should react like that to a claim that this average person who Has hurt someone, the way that nearly every single person has hurt someone in a way they cannot repair, with immediacy to say this person is a Person and thus imperfect and capable of great harm, but that isn’t some all encompassing judgment on their morality or capability to also do good or be fine.

anyway this is kinda just a rant post but also is just me saying i’m very grateful that when surrounded by a fandom that tends to paint characters as Good or Bad and even while using a game that can encourage that with its alignment system, cr has always told stories that see goodness as a persistent choice that might sometimes falter and that can be chosen even after a lifetime of Badness. i can’t remember exactly what the quote was so forgive me if it’s incorrect but when jester is talking to caleb after he claims he’s not a very good person and she says “good people do bad things sometimes. even bad people do good things.” that’s it! that’s one of the most consistent themes across campaigns. and yet.

[eri-pl]

Silm reread 22: Earendil (and very vague Elwing)

Earendil rules the people in the area. Elwing, despite being the heiress of the crown of one of the two groups who joined in there, is simply his wife. Huh.

Also, he's got sea-longing and wants fo find his parents (not a good reason to leave your wife and kids) and find Valinor and ask the Valar for mercy (ok, this is a better reason). So, Círdan makes Vingilot (from birch tree) and Earendil sails off. Elwing is sad.

But… his sailing is still a good thing, because he wants to ask the Valar for help? I guess? I have a hard time with Earendil, I'm not a fan of absent husbands. But I guess his mission is important.

And also, maybe they did discuss it with Elwing before they got married ("I dream of sailing far and for long periods of time." "ok, I may be sad with it but I still want this marriage.")…. You know what? I am going to HC that they did have this talk. It makes him 20x more sympathetic to me.

Meanwhile, among the Feanorians… Maedhros is restraining himself (again!) because he is remorseful for Doriath. But. the oath tornments them all (ok, so it is a compel, but not absolute. Not "dominate person", but it does give them mental damage for not following it. Unless it is just honor and stuff, but it doesn't sound like it.)

The Feanorians gather. (Which is a bad sign). They send messangers to Elwing, demanding "politely but clearly", the Silmaril. Well, you should have tried "politely" with Thingol, now, after Doriath, your politeness feels a bit empty.

[Also, Maedhoros' life would be much, much easier if he had the ability to just throw C&C under the bus and blame everything on them. It was even mostly true! And might have worked. But he is loyal to his brothers. And this is a good thing. This is tragic: he has one good trait, but can't manage another (not murdering people), and so he fails both morally, and fails at his chosen goal.]

Elwing, and the people of Sirion didn't want to give him the Silmaril. Because:

people have died and suffered for it (the usual argument, which I feel is increased by the nature of the Silmaril)

their ruler was not home, and they didn't want to make the decision without him (this is stupid, on a very mundane level. Earendil should have chosen someone to make important decisions when he's away. Also, Elwing seems either very indecisive / shy, or not respected by the people. My bet would be on "shy", or eldritch/shy, somewhat Varda-style)

it seemed to them that the Silmaril was the reason of their health and prosperity (this is a new idea)

So: it is not Elwing's decision. And it is not based mostly on "we hate them, they killed our people", but on survival needs (and a misconception). And again, there is no textual evidence that the people of Sirion know about the Oath.

Yes, there are people from Gondolin there, but who exactly? Turgon died. Idril was a child when the Oath happenned. They may not know, or they may not share the knowledge (but the later would be unwise).

Based on what the people of Sirion know and assume, their reply makes complete sense to me.

(Also, it seems like it was less a clear "nope" and more of a "umm, let's wait till Earendil returns, but we can't give you an ETA for that".)

The remaining soF suddenly attack the poor people of Sirion and the book is pretty clear that this is bad. It's so bad that some of their followers change sides and die trying to protect Elwing (because of course they do die, we can't have any characters getting any sort of redemption… yea, I understand, it makes sense realism-wise that they all die. But still, non-lethal wounds causing unconciousnes are a thing and I think it was a thing among the Elves? I can't remember an example)

Anyway, A&A die (because this is the unburned version).

Oh, and also Gil-Galad comes to the (too late) rescue (with Círdan). Which means that the mainstream Noldor are (for the first time) willing to fight the Feanorians. They just miss the party. Hmmm, this one detail makes me more fond of G-G son of Fingon. Because: think of the angst. (Or even better: G-G son of one of the Feanorians. But this has other problems)

There are a few survivors who join G-G.

It is told that E&E were captured. It is told that Elwing jumped to the sea with the Silmaril.

For the capture we later get a confirmation. But not for how exactly Elwing landed in the sea.

No info on how much she knew about her sons (already captured? assumed dead? hidden? whatever?). No info on whether she panicked and run blindly, or tried to distract M&M from killing other people, or wanted to maneuvre them into falling into the sea too, or one of myriads of possible scenarios. Or just even fell by a lucky "accident".

You want a perfect, flawless Elwing? The text doesn't contradict it (though she is at least a bit indecisive or not in such a position of power that would make sense given her parentage).

You want a stupid, indecisive Elwing who does a random thing? The text doesn't contradict it.

You want a young, lost, completely panicked Elwing? The text doesn't contradict it.

You want Elwing putting the prosperity of her people (which is assumed to be based on the Silaril) and them not dying of hunger above her own children? The text doesn't contradict it.

(No, we can't have a canon-compliant terrible mom Elwing, we'll get a counter for this.)

She joins Earendil and they are really terrified about their captured sons. So yes, they do care about their sons. they fear that M&M will kill them.

Kidnap fam mentioned, Maglor is sad and tired because Oath. :,(

Earendil wears the Silmaril on his forehead. So… what happenned to the necklace? Did Ulmo take it when he shapeshifted Elwing? The text very much sounds like the necklace is now gone, it's just the gem.

It is said among the gnomes wise, that the Silamril was what guided them to Valinor and let them pass all the magic barriers/traps.

Elwing has Lúthien vibes of "No, I am your wife, you aren't going to do the deadly risky thing alone!"

Earendil comes during a celebration and we are reminded that it's just like Morgoth and Ungoliant did (but he does it by accident). Nice bracketing, I guess? He is scared that even if Valinor something bad happenned. I like this scene.

Eonwe gives him a really cool (however very formal) greeting. "the looked for that cometh at unawares, the longed for that cometh beyond hope." I love this line. Yes, a lot of Tolkien's good lines give the vibe of "wrote it as part of a prayer, rewrote it to fit in his fantasy book". It's not a flaw. But I do find it a peculiar kind of funny.

Anyway, stuff is happenning. The Valar summon even Ulmo for a conversation. They talk. Námo plays the bad cop, which peronally I don't like but ok. I guess somebody has to, it is his job.

Manwë goes "we won't punish them, because they took this risk out of love" which is a solid argument. Earendil&Elwing (and by mention their sons) get the choice.

Also, interesting wording (or translation): they will be judged according to the laws of the species they chose. Huh. Interesting phrasing, I'm not sure what to think of it.

I totally forgot Elwing chilling out with the Teleri in the meantime.

Anyway, Vingilot gets an upgrade, the three sailors get a new ship. Also, doors of Night mentioned. Also, Earendil comes back to Valinor at sunrise and sunset. And it does seem like he does land, he is banned from the mortal lands, but not from Aman? So I guess he does spend some time home with Elwing. When she flies to him it's just to meet him earlier.

But I may be wrong.

Estel / "High Hope" mentioned.

M&M notice a new star. Confirmation that they saw the Silmaril sinking in the sea. Mae is like "Sure it's the silmaril." Maglor is like "we are supposed to rejoice." Anyway they do, at least they are no longer despairing.

And Morgoth is freaked out. :D But he doesn't expect the war (as they say), because the Valar were upset at the Noldor, and he doesn't get what pity is.

The army has white banners, the Vanyar are there (all of them? I suppose Ingwë stayed with Manwe, because before we were told he never went back to ME? Maybe only some Vanyar went to war.) And so are the non-Exile Noldor.

There are some Teleri in the army of the West!!! Just not many. At least that's how the Polish text reads. "Not many wanted to go to war" — so, some did want? some went?

More Teleri (convinced by Elwing) join as sailors, but those Teleri stay at the ships and don't touch tha land. (So yes, it seems there were other Teleri there)

I will leave the War of Wrath for later, maybe for the Morgoth into the Void day 1. Maybe not. Maybe i will do it sooner.

[amazinglyegg]

"It's what I was taught... I don't know if it was right..."

Remake of this

[dinitride-art]

Miwi is gonna get me through this. I will learn to animate and it is going to kill me, but these guys are adorable

[wearepaladin]

Paladin Problem #11

Eldritch Cultist: WITNESS THE APATHY OF THE UNIVERSE YOU CARE SO MUCH FOR! Cultist unleashes a vision of horrific cosmic indifference:

Paladin:

Paladin: Was that supposed to do something? I mean, sure it's upsetting, but.

Eldritch Cultist: WHy aren't you insane? Gone blind from the horror? Turned into tentacle slurry? Something!?

Paladin: I and the Ideals and Powers I serve are the engine and the hands thought which the cosmos shows it cares. So long as there is just one of me, then you have lost.

Paladin: So now that we're done wasting time.

SMITE

Paladin: Fudge, I've got calamari all over my tabard

[ahollowgrave]

Canon Outfits --

WHM & PAL BTN & WVR

(It's gotta have pockets!)

[grace-sketches]

:)

[sweetsmalldog]

Fantasy High class swap au solely for Barbarian/Monk Adaine

[dykedvonte]

Preston x Danse is the only companion ship I think would actually work because Preston’s inner turmoil is sort of a loss of faith in himself due to the traumatic experiences he’s faced while Danse is looking for something to have faith in and would find the fact that despite the desire to give up Preston held out so long not just for the honor of the Minutemen but because he had some hope.

It would 100% start off as a lotta unhealthy on Danse’s side as I believe he completely lacks the emotional intelligence (due to a combination of factors) to recognize the he’s feelings as anything but a sort of respect for a superior along with leaning too much into Preston as a substitute for the BoS. Preston may not really have a title but he’s like THE Lieutenant of the Minutemen. Realistically he’s the only companion Danse would probably be comfortable taking instructions from especially for how trusted Preston is by the Sole Survivor and his adherence to military standards despite how unstructured the Minutemen are. It would be him waiting for orders, approval, anything from Preston and he thinks it’s just the desire to have the regiment of the BoS again but he also like when Preston compliments him on being useful or resourceful. He likes the stories of Minuteman glory days and he trades the stories of the BoS that don’t hurt to talk about. He likes the familiarity Preston would provide and he’d be oblivious that it’s not just new found loyalty to the Minutemen.

Yet Preston explains it himself that he’s not a natural leader. He’s not an instructor. He helps manage what the General has put in place and he content on doing that. He relays what needs to be done and does major upkeep but I don’t think he’d know what to do with this guy this literally marches up to him and practically begs for a mission that doesn’t exist. Like the formality and respect is nice but he can tell it’s covering something even if Danse doesn’t.

Danse could go to Sturges for the many repair and upkeep assignments he gives him and has the freedom to go straight to the Castle if he really wants a big mission, but he chooses to come to him everytime. He’s aware enough that Danse only trusts him out of all of the Generals confidantes but it would take a bit for him to understand why. If anything Danse should be strategizing with him as equals seeing as he almost got the Minuteme wiped out and Danse was a Paladin for the Brotherhood with many successes under his belt before Preston even led his first scouting mission. It’s like he sees him as some figure of hope, some one who can come in and add stability. Someone with a fresh outlook who can provide a new perspective for him.

It’s like he sees him like he saw/sees the Sole Survivor but that would be crazy because that would also mean… and then oh, it clicks.

The revelation is both flattering and he doesn’t know what to do with it cause how do you address “I know you respect me but is that the only feeling you have for me?” To the guy who like refuses to rest unless you tell him at ease? He has to reevaluate his whole manner of interaction with Danse cause this is a very slippery slope that he’s sliding down and it’s even more perilous due to Danse’s repressed emotions regarding… everything. There’s an equal chance Danse will try to open up as completely shut down and he’s not just concerned about it cause Sole Survivor cares for him but because he has grown to care for the guy too. It’s not like he doesn’t also enjoy Danse’s company and value as a Minuteman member. He’s not a love at first sight guy but he’s played with the idea, anyone would when you’ve spent nights trading stories, historical facts and beers by the fire in a little home you’ve carved for yourself through literal blood, sweat and tears.

I think it’s one of those cases where it’s agonizingly slow to the actual relationship but neither part are anguished about that. If anything happened to soon Danse would be too dependent and Preston not equipped to handle it. It’s a case where I genuinely think they’d bring out the best in each other cause theyd want to figure out what is best for the other and not just apply what they think is the best. It’s the care that Preston would ask Danse what he wants to do and encourage it and at the same time Danse would be incredulous everytime Preston second guesses himself.

Long story short it’s a good ship to me because it’s just two guys with broken confidences and faith in their roles being each other’s hype man and kissin a little about it.