#i rlly do like that concept of like the knightly convictions but turned up to a T and it’s like this

[swordmaid]

i like the idea that shri’iia (esp before she fully commits to the oathbreaker role - which imo lines up well with redemption paladin 🤔 hmm thoughts abt that later…) isn’t as powerful as she was when she was a vengeance paladin just because her convictions aren’t as resolute. she’s able to do less smites than when she was in her prime, and it takes a toll on her both physically and mentally much quicker than before. the other paladin feats (like the healing, the buffing, etc.) are harder to do and she can only do a few at a time before she gets exhausted, so she ends up relying more on physical combat rather than on her paladin talents. hence why i think she will start to learn how to fight like how surfacers fight bc drow combat are mostly stealth based and designed for quick skirmishes rather than full length battles.

shri’iia being weaker than she was before is soooo delicious to me just bc of how much power and strength is coveted in drow culture, and now she has to bear with the shame and the knowledge that she’s weak bc of her own failure. it also makes the idea of swearing an oath to something/someone else more tempting bc she knows she’ll more empowered when there is something that validates her conviction - whatever they may be. like it’s really the easy way out but doing so will just make her go back to her old patterns, and she’ll just regress instead of grow as an individual bc she’s back to being a trained dog again who heels and sits on command 🤭