[Shelved][✓] The Herald of Order :: The Mists of Xan Re-Write

[Tsuyose 3282]

Humanity will retain a devout light,

The ability to maintain their faith in darkest times,

But what is faith, when your eyes are veiled in disbelief?

True faith is to see the light despite the darkness.

 

Xan, Aengul of Order and Guardianship; Herald of Order

 

The Aengul of Order has often been referred to amidst his brethren as the Wayward Aengul, amassing his nigh Arch-like might to his advantage, however, despite his raw brawn his intellect is astounding, especially in times of war; his battle against Asura, for example, resulted in her eventual imprisonment. However, as a God of War his involvement with mortality is not unbeknownst to both mortality and deific beings alike, waging war over the likes of the wretched Black Wyrm, Setherien, and the Betrayer, Iblees. With a brood of mortal children - a lineage that derives back to ages past - he has managed to create several Orders throughout time, twice, he threatened the extinction of the unorthodox dragonkin due to their volatile nature. It goes without saying, the Lord of Sunlight truly beckons the Age of Man through his own pretentious ways; enforcing the concept of Order amidst the abundant realm of Man and the Unorthodox.

 

As mentioned, his intention is to enforce Order throughout the mortal realm albeit goes for the Seven Skies above, too, he has conflicted against the likes of Aerial, more primarily Asura, a deific being that threatened mortality with her chaotic concept of enforcement. A being that thrived upon the abnormal aspect of ‘Chaos’ itself. Xan took to war and eventually sieged her realm. This, however, is only an example of out a myriad that exemplifies his innate compassion to enact as a self-proclaimed vanguard for Mortality.

 

Having intervened from decade-to-decade in one guise or another, he thrives on his sense of Order and Guardianship; to hail Order over the Heavens and Mortality via the extinction of future, or present threats, and Guardianship as to ensure Mortality will be safekept by his devout followers. An Aengul that doesn’t beckon faith, but service, in turn for raw, empyreal power, previously known as the Order of the Golden Lance, the Tribe of Allayed Fear, and now, a vestigial of persistent Paladins.

 

 

-=-=- Vindicators & Wyrmstalkers  -=-=-

Vindicators, legends foretell of these conquering crusaders, empathetic toward their foe which they struck down mercilessly. Wielding weapon and shield these mythical crusaders were grouped in grandiose legions and trusted with the duty of slaying the felled dragonkin in their golden era. Many-a-foe they slaughtered in their valiant crusades against the primordial, beastial brood of Dragur and with each beast, they took a prize; tales have been foretold of castellas and castles alike housing the heads of a dozen dragons or so, horns mounted upon thrones and their ancient armoury produced by smiths able to weave draconic scales and bone alike. They were, after all, forces to be reckoned with beneath the pride and might of the Herald of Order, Xan, to which they self-proclaimed Him as their rightful Archaengul. They worked in conjunction with the Wyrmstalkers to fell their aerial-based foes and predominantly won against war with the unorthodox dragonkin, resulting in their almost extinction. However, their work never necessarily revolved primarily around the fabled dragonkin as they also aided against the usual blemished foes; Undead, Spectres, so on and so forth. The Vindicators of Xan were truly a force to be reckoned with.

 

Wyrmstalkers, the renowned folk who pierced the everlasting scales of dragonkin, both superior and lesser alike with their light-weaved arrows. With the ability to produce leather-esque armour with an affinity against dragonfire, a tactical Wyrmstalker was able to fell a lesser dragon by himself, however, an archery of Wyrmstalkers were able to cast the greater from the heavens above. Spawning volleys of arrows wrapped in starlight which slipped through the ivory clouds and damned their aerial-based foes to the grounds, to which their brethren, the Vindicators would promptly slaughter these felled beasts. Akin to their counterparts they were, of course, a force to be reckoned with; able to cull the likes of aerial and land-based foes. That said, legends also foretell of these folk able to produce explosive spells when struck against their enemy - of course, shoot from their reliant bow - it would produce a shattering explosion capable of ripping into blight and cast asunder flesh, and less commonly renowned for their ability to teleport from one location to the other. Though, some spells wielded by these folk were lost in the never ending tales of time.

 

To each their own they were, they worked together and produced a myriad of glorious crusades and daunting legions but they all had one thing in common.

 

They lived for the Crusade and they died for the Crusade.

 

 

-=-=- The Crusaders As They Will Be; Spells and Magic -=-=-

Whilst the Vindicators will receive many-a-change, the Wyrmstalkers will remain predominantly the same; however, the Wyrmstalker sect will be an addition to the current system.

 

Vindicators; able to produce semi-transparent, spherical shields that stands as a testament to Xan’s Guardianship, manifesting either over their bodies to produce the more commonly known suit of armour or a short range from their body. Whilst producing these shields outwardly they are unable to leave whilst nobody may enter, however, that said the further these fields manifest from the spell-caster the weaker it becomes. Donning suits of armour, which is the strongest of their guardian-esque ability, and roughly five blocks from the caster is when the spherical shield is at its weakest, able to be shattered with considerable force, and of course, the closer it is to the caster the easier they are able to maintain their shield. Copious strikes will weaken the shield until breaking point, producing a minor repulsion capable of knocking back its attacker - although not with excessive force - providing the Vindicator with a means of appropriating themselves.

Vindicators; able to imbue normal weaponry with a semi-transparent veil of empyreal energy, coursing through the spine of the weapon to produce a deific affinity. This feat is rather easy to produce albeit takes a short time to produce the enchantments and is consistently fuelled by their mana - akin to the manifestation except they’re reliant on pre-built weaponry. -   Represented either by the veil or a course of crackling - golden - electricity that provides nothing other than an aesthetic feature; albeit doesn’t detour from the blades’ capability, once enchanted by the Paladin in question, the piece of enchanted weaponry, whilst still capable against unholy folk is more able against the likes of dragonkin.

 

Wyrmstalker; akin to the Vindicators albeit unlike, the average Wyrmstalker is able to take a bow; long bow, short bow. To temporarily enchant it with a deific affinity which is up kept by their mana, when withdrawing the string of the bow and arrow cast from starlight manifests betwixt the string and bow. To the average person the empyreal weapon is akin to your average arrow, however, to a foe blighted or otherwise afflicted by corruption they are struck fierce. When struck, the arrow embeds itself into the victim and immediately disperses to reveal a gaping hole in its stead.

 

Wyrmstalker; By compacting the mists they produce it eventually becomes volatile and eventually warps into an elongated bolt that thrums with ‘electricity’ albeit it isn’t, the volatile light which was actively seeking a means of dispersing is then thrown with considerable force-- backed by the power used to compact this bolt it is able to pierce through the dense scales of a dragon; be it lesser or greater neither could withstand this volatile power. Which, of course, worked especially well due to their affinity for combatting dragonkin-- their magic was effective against any creature deriving from this category.

 

 

 

Holy Alteration: reminiscent to your average Alteration which is capable of producing a variety of pseudo-magic; warding and enchanting. Both of these are entirely dependent on the situation at hand. Enchanting, unlike its counterpart, warding, its rather simplistic and revolves around the inducting the Mists of Xan into a weapon or object of sorts to produce, again, a variety of effects-- from a warming aura to providing a deific affinity akin to weaponry. Warding, however, is capable of warding off the average person albeit is primarily focused against the likes of blemished and corrupted foes by producing a semi-transparent veil. (This sect is predominantly an event-esque sub-magic albeit is mostly used for its more renowned purpose, the creation of deific weaponry; holy swords, bows, deific - Orderly - fire, so on and so forth.)

 

Healing: whilst healing is plausible for both Wyrmstalkers and Vindicators alike it is predominantly best used on themselves instead of another. That said, they are still capable of weaving the Mists into a wound to patch the flesh over into scabrous remains. They are, however, capable of mending bone albeit exhausts the user. They are unable to mend a wound of excessive size.

 

It is worth mentioning that the magic produced by both the Wyrmstalkers and Vindicators are extremely efficient against the likes of dragonkin both blemished and natural.

-=-=- Connection and Disconnection -=-=-

 

The ritual of producing a connection betwixt soul and Aengul transpires via the teacher weaving the mists around their palm as if, in the lore of old, producing a gauntlet albeit doesn't solidify. Instead of the starlight mist usually produced via a Paladin they, instead, produce an azure mist which enacts as an ethereal gateway of sorts; enabling the teacher to delve their hand into the core of the initiate, clutching their delicate soul betwixt their digits whilst the azure mists engulfs the soul whole. Therefore producing the 'bridge' betwixt the soul and Xan.

 

When bound to Xan the initiate would discover a newfound warmth igniting their core, keeping them warm through their darkest, and harshest nights; a reminder of the Aengul they serve. In addition to this, they are imbued with newfound courage to perform their duty; Xan demands service, not faith.

 

Disconnection, however, is akin to the connection albeit revolves around severing the bridge instead of producing it. The teacher clutches hold of the azure flame bound to the soul of the Paladin, to which, they then retract to tear the flame from their soul and inherently, the recoil of such a brutal disconnection means that the disconnected ex-Paladin is henceforth 'imprinted'; refer to the following lore:

 

 

-=-=- Redlines & Knowhow -=-=-

 

• After wielding the Mists of Xan the user is subject to an array of sore limbs dependent on the magic wielded; imbuing a blade with the Mists, for example, would result in the muscles correlating to said sword arm be exhumed in soreness - over usage of the Mists will result in excessive pain; that said it doesn’t hinder your ability to wield the Mists as you’re capable of going overboard, however, the more excessive you are with the Mists the more pain you will be subject to afterward.

• Unable to permanently wield the Mists; the more it is used, the more mana that is expended.

• The Mists of Xan will forever be more effective against the likes of dragonkin and their broodlings over the normal blemished foe- albeit isn’t ineffective against them.

• Healing a broken bone leads to exhaustion for a Paladin, making them unable to weave the Mists otherwise and therefore should be a last resort.

• You are still required to emote weaving the mists into both the light-forged arrow and the enchanted blade; preparation emotes are key.

• It is necessary to emote the aesthetic nature of your deific-imbued blade be it via a golden, electrical current, silver, or emerald, or even the blade exhuming the Mists. You must ensure that you retain some form of viable means to indicate your blade has been enchanted.

• The enchantment upon the blade is lost shortly after the loss of direct contact over melee weaponry. Whilst this means you are capable of throwing spears and the like, there is a chance the deific enchantment will lose its power prior to hitting its target. Therefore ranged weaponry is best aimed at the Wyrmstalkers.

• All spells current must have a preparation stage.

• You must apply for either or, you cannot be both a Vindicator and a Wyrmstalker.

[BolingbrokeIV 4]

Nice writing and a good read!

 

Cheers,

Bolingbroke (Aka Brandon)

[Wendigo 786]

Neat.

[TavernLich 324]

What's this about teleporting?

[Mephistophelian 972]

2 hours ago, Redxophos said:

What's this about teleporting?

 

He mentioned how those spells were "lost to time"

 

Great lore Tsu, can't wait to see this implemented! What of the Keeper lore, are you keeping it as is?

[BrandNewKitten 2788]

I do like it but I'm concerned that the spells are overpowered. The ability to walk through the mist shield but no one else can is a bit much in my opinion and seems to outclass Arcanism shielding which it shouldn't. 

[The Templar 195]

Fascinating work, as usual.

[Tsuyose 3282]

15 hours ago, BrandNewKitten said:

I do like it but I'm concerned that the spells are overpowered. The ability to walk through the mist shield but no one else can is a bit much in my opinion and seems to outclass Arcanism shielding which it shouldn't. 

 

I'd argue that. I don't necessarily see why everything should be hindered due to Arcanism shielding; Xan is, in the literal sense, the Aengul of Order and Guardianship therefore it is by right that his brood is capable of manifesting a shield akin to this. 

[ski_king3 0]

I won't lie, if I were still involved with the paladins, I would really dislike this change in direction or the change in the lore. I know I once meant to take them in a dragon-hunting direction, but this seems too far, and the changes to the magic deviate sharply from what they were meant to be. If most of the current paladins prefer it, then so be it, but as the original writer I wouldn't feel any connection to it whatsoever. The paladins already have super solid lore, and some of which is currently totally unused, and I much prefer that to this mess.

 

Likewise, this takes a step away from the very interesting dynamic the clerics and paladins have had over time of being thematically similar, with certain key differences that could lead them to be diametrically opposed. I just think this hurts the dynamic of those two holy groups and rewrites the paladins in a pretty negative way.

 

Sorry Tsu, I know you worked hard on it, but I just... really dislike this.

[Tsuyose 3282]

Just now, ski_king3 said:

I won't lie, if I were still involved with the paladins, I would really dislike this change in direction or the change in the lore. I know I once meant to take them in a dragon-hunting direction, but this seems too far, and the changes to the magic deviate sharply from what they were meant to be. If most of the current paladins prefer it, then so be it, but as the original writer I wouldn't feel any connection to it whatsoever. The paladins already have super solid lore, and some of which is currently totally unused, and I much prefer that to this mess.

 

Likewise, this takes a step away from the very interesting dynamic the clerics and paladins have had over time of being thematically similar, with certain key differences that could lead them to be diametrically opposed. I just think this hurts the dynamic of those two holy groups and rewrites the paladins in a pretty negative way.

 

Sorry Tsu, I know you worked hard on it, but I just... really dislike this.

1

 

Could you exemplify this? I don't think it's rather fair for it to be called a mess when you haven't participated in the Paladins for a very, very long time. You very well may be the original lore writer but it was I who produced the next mega document and made Xan what he is today, I've produced over thirty pages quite literally revolved around the Aengul, the magic, and their culture; this doesn't deviate from what they're "meant" to be. Each deific group (excluding druidism) is currently undergoing a re-write in order to differentiate themselves from one another, so it isn't just Paladinism. Nevertheless, I don't believe this paints the Paladins in a negative way - especially when I've had players come up to me expressing keen interest in the magic due to this submission - albeit was liked by the majority of the chat.

 

None of the lore has gone unused, I haven't dabbled in the Clerical sect of the old magic because it's alike Tahariaen magic and I'd rather not produce two magics similar to one another with a different cultural background. It's entirely redundant and isn't anything of worth. This re-write means that the Paladins will have to use their initiative in combat and come prepared instead of actually engaging in a fight and being capable of producing their own weaponry out of thin air-- similar to the armour they once wielded. To be blunt, you made them what they were meant to be years back-- then I took over due to your leave and provided an expansive culture, history, and background to both the Aengul and the Paladins; I've worked with Xan for pretty much over a year now, almost two, I believe. 

[Mephistophelian 972]

1 hour ago, ski_king3 said:

I won't lie, if I were still involved with the paladins, I would really dislike this change in direction or the change in the lore. I know I once meant to take them in a dragon-hunting direction, but this seems too far, and the changes to the magic deviate sharply from what they were meant to be. If most of the current paladins prefer it, then so be it, but as the original writer I wouldn't feel any connection to it whatsoever. The paladins already have super solid lore, and some of which is currently totally unused, and I much prefer that to this mess.

 

Likewise, this takes a step away from the very interesting dynamic the clerics and paladins have had over time of being thematically similar, with certain key differences that could lead them to be diametrically opposed. I just think this hurts the dynamic of those two holy groups and rewrites the paladins in a pretty negative way.

 

Sorry Tsu, I know you worked hard on it, but I just... really dislike this.

 

Read the following in a calm and relaxed voice; I'm not angry or irate or even mildly upset, I'm just speaking my mind.

 

Ski, I'm pretty certain Tsu worked with the current Xan mages to make this lore (i.e. Taking their input and more). Additionally, I think it's not really yours to decide if this rewrite is suitable or not. Simply put, Xan was revived by Tsu when it was becoming almost entirely inactive (it even had a moment where no one practiced the magic), and so far he has done a stellar job of it. Whilst I can't put myself in Tsu's shoes, I could imagine a scenario where the original writer of Thahium or Shade lore comes up to me and tells me my rewrite is terrible simply because it is not the same as before. In that scenario, it only ever seems that the complainer has nothing to do with the lore anymore and just complains for the sake of complaining.

 

Change is good, Ski. I don't see how this change will remove RP or even break the dynamic (Tah/Xan dynamic) of before.

[ski_king3 0]

3 hours ago, Tsuyose said:

Could you exemplify this? I don't think it's rather fair for it to be called a mess when you haven't participated in the Paladins for a very, very long time. You very well may be the original lore writer but it was I who produced the next mega document and made Xan what he is today, I've produced over thirty pages quite literally revolved around the Aengul, the magic, and their culture; this doesn't deviate from what they're "meant" to be. Each deific group (excluding druidism) is currently undergoing a re-write in order to differentiate themselves from one another, so it isn't just Paladinism. Nevertheless, I don't believe this paints the Paladins in a negative way - especially when I've had players come up to me expressing keen interest in the magic due to this submission - albeit was liked by the majority of the chat.

 

None of the lore has gone unused, I haven't dabbled in the Clerical sect of the old magic because it's alike Tahariaen magic and I'd rather not produce two magics similar to one another with a different cultural background. It's entirely redundant and isn't anything of worth. This re-write means that the Paladins will have to use their initiative in combat and come prepared instead of actually engaging in a fight and being capable of producing their own weaponry out of thin air-- similar to the armour they once wielded. To be blunt, you made them what they were meant to be years back-- then I took over due to your leave and provided an expansive culture, history, and background to both the Aengul and the Paladins; I've worked with Xan for pretty much over a year now, almost two, I believe. 

 

For one, I don't really appreciate trying to invalidate my opinion by stating that I've not been involved for a while, given that most of the past year you were pretty much absent from playing your paladin as well. The only person who has consistently played their paladin for the past year is Numirya, though that's beside the point.

 

I won't comment on the forced rewrites, as that's an issue that needs to be addressed privately.

 

2 hours ago, Mephistophelian said:

 

Read the following in a calm and relaxed voice; I'm not angry or irate or even mildly upset, I'm just speaking my mind.

 

Ski, I'm pretty certain Tsu worked with the current Xan mages to make this lore (i.e. Taking their input and more). Additionally, I think it's not really yours to decide if this rewrite is suitable or not. Simply put, Xan was revived by Tsu when it was becoming almost entirely inactive (it even had a moment where no one practiced the magic), and so far he has done a stellar job of it. Whilst I can't put myself in Tsu's shoes, I could imagine a scenario where the original writer of Thahium or Shade lore comes up to me and tells me my rewrite is terrible simply because it is not the same as before. In that scenario, it only ever seems that the complainer has nothing to do with the lore anymore and just complains for the sake of complaining.

 

Change is good, Ski. I don't see how this change will remove RP or even break the dynamic (Tah/Xan dynamic) of before.

 

As for the rest, my response goes for the both of you. I'm reasonably certain that most of the paladins support this, but my hope is to dissuade that. For one, this rewrite definitely increases the capabilities of paladins and makes them notably stronger, which definitely isn't necessary. But more importantly, older paladins would be fundamentally incompatible with this rewrite.

 

The Paladins, formerly the Order of the Golden Lance, were a holy order with roots in dragon slaying who focus on serving as guardians and preserving order in the world. This usually took the form of combating the greatest "evil" presence out there and ruthlessly trying to eliminate them, but capable of focusing on lesser threats if nothing warranted all of their attention. They had three "sects" (though it was never quite so explicit), those most capable with the sword, holy magic and voidal magic, though this may have been partially done away with even in the Golden Lance era. They were a pragmatist holy order differing sharply in motive and desire from the clerics who, if there were no great threat, would find other matters to attend to, other groups to protect and smaller threats to combat (not necessarily dark ones), whilst they fortified themselves in wait.

 

The order I stepped into eighteen or so months ago was quite a bit different. There was a much greater focus on order and lesser focus on guardianship. Their healing had become second tier, rather than a fundamental part of the pillar that had been de-emphasized, and shortly thereafter it was made that paladins could not use voidal magic and the paladin's holy magic (ironically, in order to make them more like other holy groups, even though there is no aspect of deity lore that makes the two fundamentally incompatible). While they had changed, they still clung to this core tenant of a pragmatist holy order, and it was really cool, even if it was different than what I had envisioned.

 

Their focus was still on helping others, albeit the focus had shifted to make them more aggressive, they were very much morally inclined. You served Xan by dedicating yourself to protect others and root out those who sowed disorder through the world. Yet you differed from the clerics in a number of ways, the two greatest being the emphasis on order, and the idea that delving in the dark did not automatically condemn you in the eyes of the paladins. Both of these views led to the butting of heads between paladins and clerics, nearly to the point of violence between these two groups that, to outsiders, seemed almost the same.

 

But this rewrite isn't compatible with that of a principled holy order, the original version or the version I stepped into when I took the lead, or the one that existed as I sporadically involved myself up to six or so months ago. These dragon crusaders buff the magic, make one half of it essentially useless despite how important it has always been in the lore and the values of the paladins, and take away a lot of the nuance that made the paladins so interesting to play. If my character Garion were still alive and this change suddenly happened, he'd kill himself, because the paladins wouldn't be paladins anymore, and I truly can't see any of the paladins I remember RPing with being consistent characters and undergoing this.

 

 

The fact of the matter is I understand that there's a desire to differentiate the holy groups (even though they are already quite differentiated), but that should be done without destroyed the foundations laid by the group before. Healing is a super important part of the magic and the values paladins have always upheld. Focusing their attention upon a single group contradicts the entirety of the paladin's past, and will exacerbate the issue of the past where the paladins went inactive because there was nothing to fight (I know Mth has a drakaar now, but once he stops playing his, who's to say there will be ET/LT around to actively play dragons and give the paladins something to do. Don't make them largely staff reliant for their key function). Change can be good when it's needed, but I don't really think it's needed, and there are a lot of expansions or changes that can be made that don't fundamentally change what paladins are. This lore does that, something I've never felt about the many changes made to paladins in the past (with the exception of the void change), and that's why I take such tremendous issue.

[Mr. Etan 2839]

Hi my names Toxzero and I play an old washed up paladong since Xan first started even being a thing and this is my story

 

 

 I think it's a nice idea of bringing back Wyrmstalker, it was a very cool class of Paladin and is very lore-sound because of the fact that Xan did war against Wyverns and drake etc. And the Vindicators are literally Paladins now in a way if I'm correct.

 

10/10 Would read again
The only thing I would suggest is making sure that they're not too overpowered to where its going to curb-stomp the darkones but still remain a threat, I guess.

 

 

[Tsuyose 3282]

2 hours ago, ski_king3 said:

 

For one, I don't really appreciate trying to invalidate my opinion by stating that I've not been involved for a while, given that most of the past year you were pretty much absent from playing your paladin as well. The only person who has consistently played their paladin for the past year is Numirya, though that's beside the point.

 

I won't comment on the forced rewrites, as that's an issue that needs to be addressed privately.

 

 

As for the rest, my response goes for the both of you. I'm reasonably certain that most of the paladins support this, but my hope is to dissuade that. For one, this rewrite definitely increases the capabilities of paladins and makes them notably stronger, which definitely isn't necessary. But more importantly, older paladins would be fundamentally incompatible with this rewrite.

 

The Paladins, formerly the Order of the Golden Lance, were a holy order with roots in dragon slaying who focus on serving as guardians and preserving order in the world. This usually took the form of combating the greatest "evil" presence out there and ruthlessly trying to eliminate them, but capable of focusing on lesser threats if nothing warranted all of their attention. They had three "sects" (though it was never quite so explicit), those most capable with the sword, holy magic and voidal magic, though this may have been partially done away with even in the Golden Lance era. They were a pragmatist holy order differing sharply in motive and desire from the clerics who, if there were no great threat, would find other matters to attend to, other groups to protect and smaller threats to combat (not necessarily dark ones), whilst they fortified themselves in wait.

 

The order I stepped into eighteen or so months ago was quite a bit different. There was a much greater focus on order and lesser focus on guardianship. Their healing had become second tier, rather than a fundamental part of the pillar that had been de-emphasized, and shortly thereafter it was made that paladins could not use voidal magic and the paladin's holy magic (ironically, in order to make them more like other holy groups, even though there is no aspect of deity lore that makes the two fundamentally incompatible). While they had changed, they still clung to this core tenant of a pragmatist holy order, and it was really cool, even if it was different than what I had envisioned.

 

Their focus was still on helping others, albeit the focus had shifted to make them more aggressive, they were very much morally inclined. You served Xan by dedicating yourself to protect others and root out those who sowed disorder through the world. Yet you differed from the clerics in a number of ways, the two greatest being the emphasis on order, and the idea that delving in the dark did not automatically condemn you in the eyes of the paladins. Both of these views led to the butting of heads between paladins and clerics, nearly to the point of violence between these two groups that, to outsiders, seemed almost the same.

 

But this rewrite isn't compatible with that of a principled holy order, the original version or the version I stepped into when I took the lead, or the one that existed as I sporadically involved myself up to six or so months ago. These dragon crusaders buff the magic, make one half of it essentially useless despite how important it has always been in the lore and the values of the paladins, and take away a lot of the nuance that made the paladins so interesting to play. If my character Garion were still alive and this change suddenly happened, he'd kill himself, because the paladins wouldn't be paladins anymore, and I truly can't see any of the paladins I remember RPing with being consistent characters and undergoing this.

 

 

The fact of the matter is I understand that there's a desire to differentiate the holy groups (even though they are already quite differentiated), but that should be done without destroyed the foundations laid by the group before. Healing is a super important part of the magic and the values paladins have always upheld. Focusing their attention upon a single group contradicts the entirety of the paladin's past, and will exacerbate the issue of the past where the paladins went inactive because there was nothing to fight (I know Mth has a drakaar now, but once he stops playing his, who's to say there will be ET/LT around to actively play dragons and give the paladins something to do. Don't make them largely staff reliant for their key function). Change can be good when it's needed, but I don't really think it's needed, and there are a lot of expansions or changes that can be made that don't fundamentally change what paladins are. This lore does that, something I've never felt about the many changes made to paladins in the past (with the exception of the void change), and that's why I take such tremendous issue.

And I don't appreciate the fact that you called my lore submission a mess. So don't argue semantics with me. It is fact that you hadn't been involved for a long, long time prior and after; I believe Numirya can attest to that despite the fact that you proclaim her to be the only player to of played their Paladin consistently (somehow forgetting the fact that she dropped Ryder for quite sometime to play in the Sanctuary, right?) It isn't besides the point; don't make a claim and then try to avoid the clash you've inevitably produced. For one, I have been with the Paladins since the very beginning. I lead them right throughout the entirety of the Fringe - bearing in mind, I was literally their leading force; Herun Athna who lead the Order of the Golden Lance - whilst producing a second Order betwixt the Clerics and the Paladins - which never worked due to personal conflict between two characters; Daniel/Herun with things utterly irrelevant to the concept of Order/Purity. - In addition to this I produced the Brotherhood of the Golden Lion and stuck with them right throughout, inducted members, initiated folk, created an entire base for the Paladins to reside in. And you know what happened when I left the server first time round? I was asked to return due to the current leads inability to actually lead; and I returned. I actually put aside a few things in real life to return to the fantasy Order I produced on this server. I continued to RP with them and aid in the progression of the Order right up until I opted to take a break from playing my Paladin - bearing in mind I actively voiced in the chat that if they needed me, just request my presence and I would hop on. - So yeah, I believe I deserved a hiatus - for the better part of a year? That isn't true whatsoever. - I really did indeed deserve a hiatus from the Order as a whole and I don't deserve you comparing my hiatus to you literally going inactive; I put in a lot of effort into this Order.

 

So let's recount that; lead the Order of the Golden Lance through a series of events, argued for the revival of Xan, produced their culture, bases, Orders, developed said Orders, implemented a variety of things, revived it from inactivity twice, and so, so much more. I've practically been leading the Paladins for the better part of two years. Really, don't claim I'm trying to invalidate your opinion whatsoever. Besides, you can't claim "forced re-writes" when there hasn't been a forced re-write whatsoever and it's actually insulting.

 

Your 'hope' to dissuade the Paladins from supporting this lore piece has ultimately failed because I've gone through this with the Paladin chat multiple times, requested criticism, produced an entire chat to request criticism from both the Ascended and Clerical leads; the latter having agreed with the ideal of the newfound Paladin magic. I believe Farryn can attest to this. This magic, by all means whatsoever does not augment their magic whatsoever and in fact, it requires a Paladin to use their initiative. You can't honestly believe that being capable of producing weaponry out of thin air is much more augmented then having to bring their own weaponry and being capable of enchanting it, can you? It's quite literally a minor version of Holy Alteration which you've absolutely had no issue with beforehand. You're quite literally basing your opinion of this re-write on the pre-tense that it isn't compatible with the Holy Order you want, which isn't appreciated, either. Your time with Garion and the Order has long since passed and you have no literal ties to this lore other than what you produced years ago which is absolutely nothing in comparison to what I have produced - thirty pages compared to your nine; which if I'm correct wasn't solely written by you. I've had Arzota and a couple others claim they've produced their own bits in the lore. - Nevertheless, you have no affiliation with the magic, let alone the Order, or Xan for that matter.

 

You abandoned the project and I picked it up and effectively concluded it in an efficient manner. I did more for both the Paladins and Xan than you ever did, sure, perhaps without you he wouldn't of been created albeit was I who did a myriad more than you and made him who, and what he is today. (I'll be linking both documents shortly so the public community may compare whichever is more OP than the other.) In fact, this re-write is completely and utterly compatible with the principle of a deific Order, and again, this is entirely based on your emotional feelings and opinion on something you haven't been affiliated for the better part of a year plus, you weren't even interested in the Order come the end. I'm more than certain Numirya can attest to this.

 

I created the foundations of this magic. Not you. I picked up what you abandoned and I made it great. I produced a legitimate megadocument for Xan and I actively aspire for clarifications/expansions on the culture/backstory. Just because you don't like it doesn't mean you need to go out of your way to dissuade other players from playing it. - In fact, I've had players come up to me and express their interest in playing a Paladin with this re-write. - I'll also note that Numirya (the player you're so keen on using as an example of an active Paladin) has personally thanked me and express her likeness of the lore. Both she and Td were present for the re-write. I'm sure the duo can attest to that, too.

 

If you actually read the lore you'd notice that I merely produced a line expressing that the magic is effective against dragonkin. Not once have I denounced their capability of combatting blemished foes if you actually read the lore and took the entirety of it into consideration instead of focusing on small parts. To be honest, I'd be more caring if a player who interacts with the Paladins or is apart of the Paladins had an issue with it, however, I've yet to receive a complaint, let alone anything negative on it other than clarifying what needs to be clarified. (It was never sword/voidal/clerical) It was Wyrmstalkers, Vindicators, and Clerics. The first being what I would like to re-implement, the middle is already implemented and the last was what I opted to leave out, however, I brought in the notion of 'healing.'

 

By the way, this is me clarifying our capability of healing formally. I have always expressed that the Paladins are unable to heal effectively alike the Clerics, however, they're still capable of healing nevertheless. If the Paladins have an issue with their inability to formally heal as they were able to then they're capable of approaching me and expressing their concern. Thus far, nobody has. Truth is, you abandoned Xan and I picked it up beneath Kai's guidance and did as he asked (Both Garrett and Kai can attest to this) whilst also implementing my own culture around it; your ideal is for the Paladins to eventually combat other deific Orders to severe the deific bond betwixt the mortal realm and AenguDaemonic which I have no intention of adhering to as of now.

 

Our magic does not solely focus around combatting dragonkin. It is an RP culture that my character is trying to implement on something completely unrelated to this and it doesn't deserve your disrespect as it is, in the simplistic sense, roleplay. I re-iterate the fact that you're attempting to produce an argument based on semantics and the fact that you disagree because of your emotional attachments to the old Order which is evident via our brief conversation on Skype and your reply here.

 

Both Numirya and Toxzero are two old Paladins, the former who has consistently played, and the latter who participated from the beginning are two veterans who have expressed their likeness for the lore.

 

I ask you again to provide me with examples or the next reply I won't be responding to. You've insulted both me and my lore twice; called my lore a mess and proclaimed my inactivity for the better part of last year - which is extremely in factual. - I'll ignore the fact that you're also proclaiming I've forced re-writes. At the very least, I did have the respect to contact you prior to submitting Xan lore, and did request any and all information on Xan's idealisms (unless you forgot about that.)

 

This re-write is completely and utterly compatible and your own idealism should not be enforced over this thread. I request that you reply to any further complaints through private messages, at least there I'm capable of providing factual evidence. For now, I'll provide the two documents linking to the 29 page document I produced - with some of Garrett's lore/Kalehart's) compared to your nine page document - refined version. -

 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Ql1Ub6Ucji4mhwRW7-wc47RMvkgoY_Kua7U6E4wRko4/edit?usp=sharing

 

Your written document of the first Xan lore.

 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1m03JLubtgAKq90tcaJ2F_x9uc2zhbIxkXNTbwJTqD14/edit?usp=sharing

My written document of the current existing Xan lore; including the entirety of the backstory and culture I put in the effort of developing.

 

"It's literally everything I want in paladin magic Nummy, 5:11 pm"

(Unable to appropriately format a Skype quote due to Web Skype, I'll post a legitimate one when I'm home.)

[GDPR 014 23]

7 hours ago, ski_king3 said:

I won't lie, if I were still involved with the paladins, I would really dislike this change in direction or the change in the lore. I know I once meant to take them in a dragon-hunting direction, but this seems too far, and the changes to the magic deviate sharply from what they were meant to be. If most of the current paladins prefer it, then so be it, but as the original writer I wouldn't feel any connection to it whatsoever. The paladins already have super solid lore, and some of which is currently totally unused, and I much prefer that to this mess.

 

Likewise, this takes a step away from the very interesting dynamic the clerics and paladins have had over time of being thematically similar, with certain key differences that could lead them to be diametrically opposed. I just think this hurts the dynamic of those two holy groups and rewrites the paladins in a pretty negative way.

 

Sorry Tsu, I know you worked hard on it, but I just... really dislike this.

Too far my ass. This is what Xan does, I might have been a **** tier paladin but even I knew that was one of our purposes. 

 

I love this lore though, makes me wish i was a Xan boy again. Also, why would you want very similar magics? For what purpose? 

 

Anyway, love the lore, this is what Xan magic should have been.