Author: David Goodner (---.20.3)
Date: 11-25-2002 06:41
I particularly liked the bit at the end about fear/courage. That, along with the paladin quote, brought to mind an interesting experience in my last D&D game.
I was playing a Paladin who was not Lawful Stupid. I hadn't played a paladin since high school, and back then I never did a very good job. So this time I worked carefully through the ramifications of being a holy warrior, and through the ramifications of a Paladin's special abilities. One of those special abilities is immunity to fear.
It took me a while to figure out how to play an utter lack of fear logically. My paladin did not have a low intelligence or wisdom, so throwing herself in the path of a charging dragon wouldn't have made any sense. What I ended up with was a sort of steely determination. Seraphina would back down when it made sense, but she was always, ALWAYS ready to lay down her life if the cause was worth it.
"To die gloriously against the hordes of Evil" wasn't worth it. "To die after taking out the hobgoblin general so his forces will break ranks" would have been - and in fact, nearly was. I beat the bastard by one sword blow. If I'd missed a single attack roll, Seraphina would have died. (Note to self: don't get more than 100 feet from the Cleric if at all possible - especially after you've used up all your Lay On Hands for the day to save a cool NPC) The point being, Seraphina viewed her own life the way a general directing troops would. To her, it was something pleasant to have, but less important than the greater cause. She would only preserve it as long as that was the strategically sound decision.
The rest of the group was a little weirded out by Seraphina. I imagine the average Frenchman was a little weirded out by Joan d'Arc.
David G.
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