The only diseases their immunity doesn't protect against is Mummy rot and lycanthropy, since those are actually curses, not true diseases. As mentioned, I'll have to go double check, though it is mentioned in the description for generic the paladin, and might simply not have been implemented (wouldn't be the first time).
But disease immunity has ALWAYS been a basic feature of all paladin, so if it is missing/not implemented, that's another thing to add to my list of base class issues.
Paladin can't contract diseases though (disease immunity is a basic feature of all paladin)? They don't even suffer tooth decay from not brushing (but counts as minor violation if it becomes a habit of shirking their duty to keep themselves healthy and fit to serve their god).
I'm pretty sure I've seen either my Charname Paladin or Ajantis get hit with disease by a ghast before. Maybe this feature wasn't implemented into BG.
It's from 3.5Ed, immune to disease didn't existed in AD&D from what i know.
You guys are way over thinking things. A paladin doesn't need to know where his powers come from. A good deity seeing the PC in BG1 struggling against his evil nature and striving to be a paragon of good could be moved to impart divine power to said Paladin. The PC can consider his new powers as proof that the gods have heard his prayers or the God can just give the PC a dream informing them that they have a new divine patron.
That wouldn't be a Paladin. That would be a Warrior/fighter with Divine abilities. A Paladin trains to be a Paladin and in doing so must devote himself/herself to a cause or specific divinity or cause. Paladins do get martial training, but it is in the service of the Church and the Deity. They don't go off to soldier school and then upon graduation 'Become born again' into the service of their Deity and then ALL OF THE SUDDEN become a Paladin.
A Paladin isn't a Paladin just because he worships a good god, that would make him more of a Cleric. A Paladin actively strives to make the world a better place through martial talent (physical fighting). He holds a strict code of conduct not just because his god commands it because he wishes to be a paragon of virtue. In order words, to inspire others to great deeds through his example. A paladin falls when he can no longer be upheld as a Paragon of virtue.
A Paladin is a holy warrior for the church of his/her given patron. he isn't a paladin merely because he worships a good god, he is a paladin because he trains to be a paladin in the service of that god and under the tutelage of the church and the order of Paladins in service to that Deity, and is further chosen by that god to be one of their sword hands on the prime material plane. And he holds a strict code of conduct "In service to that god". Simply having a code does NOT make someone a Paladin.
This means that a Paladin actually falling would be extremely rare. Instead, a Paladin who believed he has done morally ambiguous acts for the greater good such as siding with the thieves guild would seek atonement to reaffirm his vows but he wouldn't auto fall just because he accepted the help of the thieves guild.
A Paladin would fall if they took action that their patron Deity felt was unbecoming of that Deities chosen emissary. You are right in that it shouldn't happen very often, but not because the decision to fall is based on the characters beliefs, but because the character's beliefs should by there very nature be in line with the Deity's own and has been trained (and further chosen) in the service of that Deity.
"A Paladin would fall if they took action that their patron Deity felt was unbecoming of that Deities chosen emissary"
A deity displeased with their Paladins actions wouldn't jump to striping their powers immediately. They would make it clear the Paladin would need to seek atonement.
That said, this is why I prefer Pathfinders description of a Paladin. Where its made clear its a calling and doesn't require you to be part of any Paladin Order or Church for proper training.
That said, I still think its valid that one of the gods could have chosen the PC to be their Paladin. Such a story is fitting since the PC both struggles with his nature and strives to become a true knight (which you can in BG 2, very rewarding).
"They don't go off to soldier school and then upon graduation 'Become born again' into the service of their Deity and then ALL OF THE SUDDEN become a Paladin."
Well, I disagree with you on that completely. I'd say it would be perfectly fine for a character's background to say they are a former soldier that was disgusted with the injustices he saw in his travels. He was inspired to combat those injustices and became a Paladin. With the backing of a good detiy that took notice of his mission, he strives to become a proper knight in order to have the backing necessary to complete his grand quest.
A deity displeased with their Paladins actions wouldn't jump to striping their powers immediately. They would make it clear the Paladin would need to seek atonement.
this depends largely on the offense and how powerful the Paladin. A deity isn't going to come down from on high merely to caution a wayward 4th level paladin. They are still in a probationary stage as far as the Deity is concerned. That Paladin slays a kid in cold blood, and hey-presto. You are now a Fighter with a crappy XP advancement table.
That said, I still think its valid that one of the gods could have chosen the PC to be their Paladin. Such a story is fitting since the PC both struggles with his nature and strives to become a true knight (which you can in BG 2, very rewarding).
Oh, I absolutely believe that the PC could train to be a Paladin. I think that is perfectly viable. I don't think that Charnames lineage would in any way prevent him from pursuing such a calling. Not in the slightest.
Well, I disagree with you on that completely. I'd say it would be perfectly fine for a character's background to say they are a former soldier that was disgusted with the injustices he saw in his travels. He was inspired to combat those injustices and became a Paladin. With the backing of a good detiy that took notice of his mission, he strives to become a proper knight in order to have the backing necessary to complete his grand quest.
Again, what you are describing is a Fighter who just happens to get religion. Being a Paladin (and all of the powers and abilities and attitudes that come with it) involves years of training in the service of his/her chosen Deity/order. I don't doubt that a 4th level fighter could choose to pursue training AS a Paladin, but in game terms that would involve basically going back to school.
Picture it like this. Paladins are HIGHLY specialized profession. Although they have the same basic Martial training, that is maybe 10% of the entire course. It isn't something that someone wakes up one morning and all of the sudden IS. They may get the calling, but that isn't the same as graduating.
Disease immunity has been a paladin feature in every edition. The 2nd edition version even goes into great detail of exactly what Disease immunity actually means. They can never get sick ever by any means related to a disease (poison however can make them ill), they never suffer motion sickness, they never suffer tooth decay and their wounds don't fester or even require medical attention beyond stopping bleeding. Even diseases created by spells are immune. They also immune to most mental disorders and never suffer hallucinations/sanity slippage due to stress, loneliness etc.
The only ones explicitly not immune are Mummy Rot and Lycanthropy, due to being a result of a curse instead of a disease.
Most paladin (aside from the UD Hunter and Inquisitor) can even learn to cure diseases in others by lvl 3.
3rd just added a fear immunity aura to all paladin at lvl 2.
Again, what you are describing is a Fighter who just happens to get religion. Being a Paladin (and all of the powers and abilities and attitudes that come with it) involves years of training in the service of his/her chosen Deity/order. I don't doubt that a 4th level fighter could choose to pursue training AS a Paladin, but in game terms that would involve basically going back to school.
Picture it like this. Paladins are HIGHLY specialized profession. Although they have the same basic Martial training, that is maybe 10% of the entire course. It isn't something that someone wakes up one morning and all of the sudden IS. They may get the calling, but that isn't the same as graduating.
All in my own view.
Well, your own way of thinking isn't supported by the AD&D rules. You can't dual class into Paladin. You start off as a paladin. The way you describe a Paladin would mean that its impossible for a character to start off as a level 1 paladin as you do in BG1 or any AD&D campaign.
Martial Training is the majority of what a Paladin is. Your description is more apt for a Warrior Cleric. Such a Cleric has some combat training but is much more educated in religious matters, divine spells, etc. Being a priest is something that requires training.
If you wish to have such a rigid view of Paladins that fine, but its not necessary for anyone else to follow it.
Another example is Ajantis who isn't even a knight yet. He aspires to become a knight and yet hes still of the Paladin class.
"A deity isn't going to come down from on high merely to caution a wayward 4th level paladin. "
But they will listen to the daily prays to refresh your spells? lol. I prefer to think of a more intimate relation with a god if your their Paladin. They are spending their time daily to give you access to divine spells after all. You are their champion even at level 1, you special enough for some attention.
You don't just 'choose' to be a paladin. You are called into service by your deity. You can still be a lawful good fighter who serves a particular church but paladins are champions and chosen of their gods.
You don't just 'choose' to be a paladin. You are called into service by your deity. You can still be a lawful good fighter who serves a particular church but paladins are champions and chosen of their gods.
And as I said, theres no reason for your PC not to have been called into service at the start of BG 1. One might question why a god would use a bhaalspawn of all things as his champion but the ways of the gods are mysterious. :P
Just look at the Order of the Radiant Heart in BG 2. Its a Paladin order but they serve no one god. Their main deities are Torm, Tyr and Helm (the last of which is actually Lawful Neutral) and there are those within the order that serve other good gods. Individual Paladins have their own patron god but this doesn't mean they are trained or commanded by that deity's church.
Um, I think one of us is confused. I started off with Warriors can't just all of the sudden become Paladins. I only said I could maybe see a fighter converting to Paladinhood (through a complete retraining) conceptually (not rules wise) so that I could better understand your perspective. I stated earlier in the thread that I personally HATE later editions where anyone can take dips into classes like paladin simply to gain abilities. I personally never play a dual class Paladin.
Beyond that, my way of seeing Paladins is 100% in step with AD&D (as I see it). Paladins are indeed a Martial class but there are very specific distinctions between fighters and paladins (even in later editions). The XP table is much harder for paladins. Likewise, they don't get the Grand mastery and certain combat abilities that warriors get. They do get divine abilities that fighters don't and they are restricted (alignment AND having a Deity AND contributing to a church AND the ability to lose it all if they 'Fall') in ways that Fighters aren't. All of which matches (and indeed drives) my definition. Both can swing a sword reasonably well and wear armor, but therein ends the comparison.
As far as Ajantis, he was written (admittedly with a bit of creative license) during the creation of BG1 and therefore may not be subject to the Kits etc that could have been available. I put him down to more artistic license. But, if you look at it from the perspective that levels 1-5 really aren't "Name" levels yet, even that faux-pas is forgivable. To give background to this last bit, in Dragonlance, Wizards aren't 'Wizards' until they pass their final test at level 5. They are apprentices.
Deities and daily prayers: Yes and no. In D&D all divine spell casting below 3rd level is generated almost exclusively by the act of faith, prayers and devotion to the Deity. Yes, the Paladin (and cleric) passed their graduation in devotion and got "Approval" to receive their abilities, but no, the Deity doesn't get involved in the Day to Day of that devotion. But if it were to suddenly stop, they would notice and take steps (such as cutting off the powers etc...), but otherwise, so long as the checks (so to speak) come in, they don't really pay attention to levels 1-5. Even 6-10 levels are often times handled by lesser minions of the Deity rather than the Deity himself.
If you want a modern day equivalent, when you work in the mail room, the head of HR signs your paycheck, but so long as no one complains about you, they probably don't even know your name. You do have a boss who does though. That's a bit of an over simplification where paladins are concerned, but it is the same basic principle.
You don't just 'choose' to be a paladin. You are called into service by your deity. You can still be a lawful good fighter who serves a particular church but paladins are champions and chosen of their gods.
In fact you choose. Anomen for example does so, and he can prevail or fail. What you described is more to an favored soul than a paladin.
Well, you can claim that your Paladin in BG really isn't a paladin despite his class until you join the Order of the Most Radiant Heart. Thats just roleplaying.
I'll just disagree about warriors becoming Paladins and everything else. I think Ajantis' concept is perfectly fine for a Paladin and claiming 1-5 is not really a Paladin yet is being unnecessarily nit picky nor stated to work like that. Your chosen by your god, your a Paladin. And a doubt any god would pick people who didn't already have the martial training of a warrior already.
And yes, a god will probably send a servant as a messanger or simply use a dream to inform their servants of what the god wants. I don't expect a god to personally visit a Paladin in person.
That's the philosophy of an Assassin, not a paragon of virtue and righteousness.
If you substitute 'God' for 'Helm', it's the philosophy of Arnaud Amalric, one of the leaders of a papal crusade that took place in southern France in the 13th century. One of his soldiers was worried that they might be killing orthodox Catholics along with the heretics. Amalric advised him not to worry because God would know his own (and so take them to Heaven rather than banish them to Hell).
If you substitute the name "Arnaud Amalric" with "Adolph Hitler", who also thought that he was on a Holy crusade and acting under divine edict, what do you get?
Except that this statement is false and Adolf Hitler in fact was a Darwinist atheist who rejected mysticism in his doctrine.
That statement is false. Hitler was a Roman Catholic. All Nazi soldiers wore belt buckles that said "Gott Mit Unst" (God On Our Side). The Nazi party had open support from the Catholic Church.
No he was not, he merely needed support from the Roman Catholic church to sustain his political power. In this sense religion and also the belt buckles were used as a means to an end.
His whole doctrine was based on Social Darwinism and he formed a racial concept out of Nietzsche's Ubermensch, who had in the decades before declared God death.
You can posit whatever you want, but the evidence shows that he was religious and believed that he was doing god's work. Of course, it's possible that he publicly showed this to receive support of the church and privately believed otherwise, but there's no hard evidence to support that.
Darwin's teachings were not taught in Germany. They were derided along with all other forms of atheism. In Mein Kampf he states that he is "fighting for the work of the Lord". The Catholic Church made it mandatory to celebrate his birthday every year until his regime ended.
If you want to show otherwise, you'd have to provide some hard evidence clearly stating that Hitler himself, by his own words, admitted that he was atheist and based his regime on Social Darwinism. Otherwise you're just providing speculation, and my evidence is stronger than yours. That doesn't necessarily mean I'm right, but you'd need better evidence than just how some people happen to interpret his doctrine.
Plenty more to argue on, but on second thought, let's stop discussing Hitler
Well, you can claim that your Paladin in BG really isn't a paladin despite his class until you join the Order of the Most Radiant Heart. Thats just roleplaying.
I'll just disagree about warriors becoming Paladins and everything else. I think Ajantis' concept is perfectly fine for a Paladin and claiming 1-5 is not really a Paladin yet is being unnecessarily nit picky nor stated to work like that. Your chosen by your god, your a Paladin. And a doubt any god would pick people who didn't already have the martial training of a warrior already.
And yes, a god will probably send a servant as a messanger or simply use a dream to inform their servants of what the god wants. I don't expect a god to personally visit a Paladin in person.
I think you have miss-understood my post. You put Ajantis up as "Not even a Knight yet" as example of your point of view. I come up with a scenario where what he says could be considered OK, and you say I am pushing the whole "not a Paladin till level 5". I am not. I am merely pointing out that his comment on the topic is reasonable from a certain point of view.
And I am not saying that paladins aren't martial, or don't have martial training. I am saying that the martial training they got was in a different school than your average fighter. And that they have a lot more training that the martial training that fighters get before they are Paladins.
Finally, read the R A Salvatore books and you will get more of how I see Deities intervention in the affairs of Humans. The gods exist and do walk among men, but they can't be bothered to come down and hold the hand of every one of their low level minions regardless of role. That includes dreams etc...
In my view, a Paladin in the making has a calling and joins the order, devoted to that deity and with the hopes of one day becoming a Paladin. They train 'As a Paladin' for years, learning all of the martial and devotional disciplines necessary to become a Paladin. they graduate and devote their lives and swords to their Deity. Then they are a Paladin.
Anyone who merely wakes up one morning and says "I will be a Paladin" of whatever god isn't suddenly 'A Paladin' of that God. it takes training and years of devotion. And there is a big difference between a fighter who gets religion and a Paladin. That's all I am saying.
Well, I have no idea what your trying to say then except that its irrelevant. You don't have to go through years of training and devotion to be a Paladin. Your god chooses you and your a Paladin. Thats it. Thats how even level 1 characters can be Paladins, they were just recently chosen. You might want to join a Paladin Order and become a full knight within said order. That will take years of training and devotion but becoming a Paladin just involves being chosen by a deity. However, you don't have to be part of any order or church. A constantly traveling Paladin may not have strong ties to any one location.
I've read R A Salvatore books and, as I said, I know gods don't personally come down to talk to followers. They can still comunicate through dreams as you said. Which is also what I was saying.
I would like to retract my initial post. I believe Paladins are misunderstood creatures that nobody fully understands. I will no longer personally judge them under the claim of ignorance. They're like dinosaurs, we clearly don't know enough to fully comprehend their nature.
I would like to retract my initial post. I believe Paladins are misunderstood creatures that nobody fully understands. I will no longer personally judge them under the claim of ignorance. They're like dinosaurs, we clearly don't know enough to fully comprehend their nature.
To answer your original question, its easy to roleplay a Paladin. Just keep in mind the concept of the chivalrous knight such as in the King Authur Legends. Be a true and just hero who focuses more on saving people rather than just smiting evil. Smiting evil is a means to an end (saving innocent people) rather an end it its self. If you want to be like Judge Dredd and hunting down criminals with no mercy then your character will be Lawful Neutral.
You don't just 'choose' to be a paladin. You are called into service by your deity. You can still be a lawful good fighter who serves a particular church but paladins are champions and chosen of their gods.
In fact you choose. Anomen for example does so, and he can prevail or fail. What you described is more to an favored soul than a paladin.
Anomen isn't a paladin, he's a member of an order of knights. I think a favored soul would fall under the same description though.
You don't just 'choose' to be a paladin. You are called into service by your deity. You can still be a lawful good fighter who serves a particular church but paladins are champions and chosen of their gods.
And as I said, theres no reason for your PC not to have been called into service at the start of BG 1. One might question why a god would use a bhaalspawn of all things as his champion but the ways of the gods are mysterious. :P
Just look at the Order of the Radiant Heart in BG 2. Its a Paladin order but they serve no one god. Their main deities are Torm, Tyr and Helm (the last of which is actually Lawful Neutral) and there are those within the order that serve other good gods. Individual Paladins have their own patron god but this doesn't mean they are trained or commanded by that deity's church.
Why wouldn't a god want to call into service a bhaalspawn? Their half-god abilities make them a more formidable combatant. We also can't just assume that a paladin charname wasn't already 'good' in the first place if they were called by the gods to be a hero. If the charname wasn't someone the particular deity wanted as a champion he wouldn't send him the calling. Also, some gods have 'tests' to make sure that a particular mortal is worthy of being their champion of good.
@Dragonfolk2000 , you're right about Anomen, just got a review about the Order of Radiant Heart. However, that doesn't change that you're labeling paladins with the features of favored souls. for this reason i will bring in the subject the book Complete Champion that work paladins, clerics and any class that want to guide him/herself with features of holy warriors. In no moment this guide state that paladins are just born to be paladins (unlike what happen with harpers).
About Good Gods wanting charname as an paladin: A potential higly powerful person in the service of good that can at end just turn an entire portfolio from evil's domain... maybe is just me but in my view every good god would like to patronage charname. The greatest hit on evil is when we turn part of it into good.
I have to agree with @kamuizin in this. A good deity wouldn't lose the chance to convert a potential god to the cause of good.
Just imagine an opposite situation. That Tyr or Helm died and charname carries a part oftheir essence. An evil deity would do anything to either corrupt charname or to steal charname's power and add to the god's own.
A good deity would have to be really stupid not to act in a similar way, guiding charname to the path of goodness and creating one more ally in the battle against evil.
You could technically become a Paladin after the fact by dual-classing assuming you met the requirements (if BG didn't nerf DCing to hell).
Though I've gotten conflicting answers on how dual-classing works. The PHB implies you can dual any class from any pool, with as many as you like as long as you meet the Alignment/stat requirements and don't mind the downtime, while the DMG (and some Complete Guides) says only 1 class from each class pool (Warrior, Priest, Rogue, Wizard) and lists a fighter couldn't dual into a ranger because they're both warrior classes as an example.
(which makes sense, since the penalty for falling turns a paladin/ranger into a fighter.....which would get KIND of awkward having a 9 fighter/3 fighter/10 fighter. (Starts as a fighter to GM 1 weapon, and becomes a paladin...but after 3 levels can't handle the pressure and falls, and decides to become a ranger instead..but then ends up realizing they're more neutral then Good and falls again. Now they've got 1 GM'd weapon, potentially another specialized, and bunch of stuff with Expertise (since only a single class fighter can specialize) and are still functionally a 10th level fighter despite spending a ton of extra xp on it. If we had the NCP system, you could at least get a few extra NCP points out of the deal).
An aspiring paladin is just a 0 level character with a martial bent, who at some point decided to devote themselves utterly in the service of a god and work towards becoming a paladin, rather then a mere fighter.
Perhaps during their fighter training, they became deathly ill and received healing from a cleric of a good God (say Illmater), and were so moved they decided to devote themselves utterly to the service of Illmater. Since they've already gained some martial training, instead of becoming a cleric, they decide to become a paladin instead, spending extra time learning the scriptures and devotions of their deity, instead of progressing their martial skills further. Because that near death experience was so powerful, it lit a fire in their soul to be a champion of that god, where as a lesser man might falter and fail the first test of faith to be a paladin (and a paladin NEVER truly stops being tested, unless they permanently fall).
Paladin are the MOST devoted servants of a god. Clerics might get higher casting, but are free to slip and slide a little, while Paladin must be absolutely resolute in their devotion. IF they are found wanting, they fall and become fighters, though still have the option dual into a cleric if they are adamant about being more then a mere worshiper and doing a gods will, but lack that iron sense of duty that marks a true paladin.
Though I've gotten conflicting answers on how dual-classing works. The PHB implies you can dual any class from any pool, with as many as you like as long as you meet the Alignment/stat requirements and don't mind the downtime, while the DMG (and some Complete Guides) says only 1 class from each class pool (Warrior, Priest, Rogue, Wizard) and lists a fighter couldn't dual into a ranger because they're both warrior classes as an example.
The impression that I got was that you could do any dual class combination as long as you had the minimum stat requirements and the combination existed as a multi-class combination in the core book. I don't play 2nd edition often but the impression that I get is that the latter part of the rule is rarely followed. However, because of the latter part of the rule (and because of Elminster and it sounds like an efficient build), I would like to see the ability to triple dual-class (Fighter/Thief/Mage and Fighter/Mage/Cleric) added to BG.
Well, I have no idea what your trying to say then except that its irrelevant. You don't have to go through years of training and devotion to be a Paladin. Your god chooses you and your a Paladin. Thats it. Thats how even level 1 characters can be Paladins, they were just recently chosen. You might want to join a Paladin Order and become a full knight within said order. That will take years of training and devotion but becoming a Paladin just involves being chosen by a deity. However, you don't have to be part of any order or church. A constantly traveling Paladin may not have strong ties to any one location.
I've read R A Salvatore books and, as I said, I know gods don't personally come down to talk to followers. They can still comunicate through dreams as you said. Which is also what I was saying.
By all means, play your game and your Paladin as you see fit.
From my perspective, EVERY class in the game requires training. Mages don't suddenly know intuitively how to cast spells. Clerics aren't suddenly imbued with the ability to heal. Thieves don't just decide to pick someone's pocket and hey-presto they are a thief.
Clerics need to develop the devotion and learn the appropriate prayers (as do Paladins). Druids need to learn about nature and the balance. Wizards need to learn (a) to read and (b) to channel the arcane magics necessary to cast spells. And thieves need to learn how to be sneaky and set/remove traps and open locks. None of this simply falls out of the sky. At least in my game they don't.
But this is all according to my view in my game. None of it need apply to your game or philosophy on the subject. Fair enough?
Comments
I'm not sure about EE - But in Vanilla you get nauseated by ghast hits. Idk if its the same as disease though.
But disease immunity has ALWAYS been a basic feature of all paladin, so if it is missing/not implemented, that's another thing to add to my list of base class issues.
A deity displeased with their Paladins actions wouldn't jump to striping their powers immediately. They would make it clear the Paladin would need to seek atonement.
That said, this is why I prefer Pathfinders description of a Paladin. Where its made clear its a calling and doesn't require you to be part of any Paladin Order or Church for proper training.
That said, I still think its valid that one of the gods could have chosen the PC to be their Paladin. Such a story is fitting since the PC both struggles with his nature and strives to become a true knight (which you can in BG 2, very rewarding).
"They don't go off to soldier school and then upon graduation 'Become born again' into the service of their Deity and then ALL OF THE SUDDEN become a Paladin."
Well, I disagree with you on that completely. I'd say it would be perfectly fine for a character's background to say they are a former soldier that was disgusted with the injustices he saw in his travels. He was inspired to combat those injustices and became a Paladin. With the backing of a good detiy that took notice of his mission, he strives to become a proper knight in order to have the backing necessary to complete his grand quest.
Picture it like this. Paladins are HIGHLY specialized profession. Although they have the same basic Martial training, that is maybe 10% of the entire course. It isn't something that someone wakes up one morning and all of the sudden IS. They may get the calling, but that isn't the same as graduating.
All in my own view.
Disease immunity has been a paladin feature in every edition. The 2nd edition version even goes into great detail of exactly what Disease immunity actually means. They can never get sick ever by any means related to a disease (poison however can make them ill), they never suffer motion sickness, they never suffer tooth decay and their wounds don't fester or even require medical attention beyond stopping bleeding. Even diseases created by spells are immune. They also immune to most mental disorders and never suffer hallucinations/sanity slippage due to stress, loneliness etc.
The only ones explicitly not immune are Mummy Rot and Lycanthropy, due to being a result of a curse instead of a disease.
Most paladin (aside from the UD Hunter and Inquisitor) can even learn to cure diseases in others by lvl 3.
3rd just added a fear immunity aura to all paladin at lvl 2.
Just look at the Order of the Radiant Heart in BG 2. Its a Paladin order but they serve no one god. Their main deities are Torm, Tyr and Helm (the last of which is actually Lawful Neutral) and there are those within the order that serve other good gods. Individual Paladins have their own patron god but this doesn't mean they are trained or commanded by that deity's church.
Beyond that, my way of seeing Paladins is 100% in step with AD&D (as I see it). Paladins are indeed a Martial class but there are very specific distinctions between fighters and paladins (even in later editions). The XP table is much harder for paladins. Likewise, they don't get the Grand mastery and certain combat abilities that warriors get. They do get divine abilities that fighters don't and they are restricted (alignment AND having a Deity AND contributing to a church AND the ability to lose it all if they 'Fall') in ways that Fighters aren't. All of which matches (and indeed drives) my definition. Both can swing a sword reasonably well and wear armor, but therein ends the comparison.
As far as Ajantis, he was written (admittedly with a bit of creative license) during the creation of BG1 and therefore may not be subject to the Kits etc that could have been available. I put him down to more artistic license. But, if you look at it from the perspective that levels 1-5 really aren't "Name" levels yet, even that faux-pas is forgivable. To give background to this last bit, in Dragonlance, Wizards aren't 'Wizards' until they pass their final test at level 5. They are apprentices.
Deities and daily prayers: Yes and no. In D&D all divine spell casting below 3rd level is generated almost exclusively by the act of faith, prayers and devotion to the Deity. Yes, the Paladin (and cleric) passed their graduation in devotion and got "Approval" to receive their abilities, but no, the Deity doesn't get involved in the Day to Day of that devotion. But if it were to suddenly stop, they would notice and take steps (such as cutting off the powers etc...), but otherwise, so long as the checks (so to speak) come in, they don't really pay attention to levels 1-5. Even 6-10 levels are often times handled by lesser minions of the Deity rather than the Deity himself.
If you want a modern day equivalent, when you work in the mail room, the head of HR signs your paycheck, but so long as no one complains about you, they probably don't even know your name. You do have a boss who does though. That's a bit of an over simplification where paladins are concerned, but it is the same basic principle.
I'll just disagree about warriors becoming Paladins and everything else. I think Ajantis' concept is perfectly fine for a Paladin and claiming 1-5 is not really a Paladin yet is being unnecessarily nit picky nor stated to work like that. Your chosen by your god, your a Paladin. And a doubt any god would pick people who didn't already have the martial training of a warrior already.
And yes, a god will probably send a servant as a messanger or simply use a dream to inform their servants of what the god wants. I don't expect a god to personally visit a Paladin in person.
And I am not saying that paladins aren't martial, or don't have martial training. I am saying that the martial training they got was in a different school than your average fighter. And that they have a lot more training that the martial training that fighters get before they are Paladins.
Finally, read the R A Salvatore books and you will get more of how I see Deities intervention in the affairs of Humans. The gods exist and do walk among men, but they can't be bothered to come down and hold the hand of every one of their low level minions regardless of role. That includes dreams etc...
In my view, a Paladin in the making has a calling and joins the order, devoted to that deity and with the hopes of one day becoming a Paladin. They train 'As a Paladin' for years, learning all of the martial and devotional disciplines necessary to become a Paladin. they graduate and devote their lives and swords to their Deity. Then they are a Paladin.
Anyone who merely wakes up one morning and says "I will be a Paladin" of whatever god isn't suddenly 'A Paladin' of that God. it takes training and years of devotion. And there is a big difference between a fighter who gets religion and a Paladin. That's all I am saying.
I've read R A Salvatore books and, as I said, I know gods don't personally come down to talk to followers. They can still comunicate through dreams as you said. Which is also what I was saying.
About Good Gods wanting charname as an paladin: A potential higly powerful person in the service of good that can at end just turn an entire portfolio from evil's domain... maybe is just me but in my view every good god would like to patronage charname. The greatest hit on evil is when we turn part of it into good.
Just imagine an opposite situation. That Tyr or Helm died and charname carries a part oftheir essence. An evil deity would do anything to either corrupt charname or to steal charname's power and add to the god's own.
A good deity would have to be really stupid not to act in a similar way, guiding charname to the path of goodness and creating one more ally in the battle against evil.
Though I've gotten conflicting answers on how dual-classing works. The PHB implies you can dual any class from any pool, with as many as you like as long as you meet the Alignment/stat requirements and don't mind the downtime, while the DMG (and some Complete Guides) says only 1 class from each class pool (Warrior, Priest, Rogue, Wizard) and lists a fighter couldn't dual into a ranger because they're both warrior classes as an example.
(which makes sense, since the penalty for falling turns a paladin/ranger into a fighter.....which would get KIND of awkward having a 9 fighter/3 fighter/10 fighter. (Starts as a fighter to GM 1 weapon, and becomes a paladin...but after 3 levels can't handle the pressure and falls, and decides to become a ranger instead..but then ends up realizing they're more neutral then Good and falls again. Now they've got 1 GM'd weapon, potentially another specialized, and bunch of stuff with Expertise (since only a single class fighter can specialize) and are still functionally a 10th level fighter despite spending a ton of extra xp on it. If we had the NCP system, you could at least get a few extra NCP points out of the deal).
An aspiring paladin is just a 0 level character with a martial bent, who at some point decided to devote themselves utterly in the service of a god and work towards becoming a paladin, rather then a mere fighter.
Perhaps during their fighter training, they became deathly ill and received healing from a cleric of a good God (say Illmater), and were so moved they decided to devote themselves utterly to the service of Illmater. Since they've already gained some martial training, instead of becoming a cleric, they decide to become a paladin instead, spending extra time learning the scriptures and devotions of their deity, instead of progressing their martial skills further. Because that near death experience was so powerful, it lit a fire in their soul to be a champion of that god, where as a lesser man might falter and fail the first test of faith to be a paladin (and a paladin NEVER truly stops being tested, unless they permanently fall).
Paladin are the MOST devoted servants of a god. Clerics might get higher casting, but are free to slip and slide a little, while Paladin must be absolutely resolute in their devotion. IF they are found wanting, they fall and become fighters, though still have the option dual into a cleric if they are adamant about being more then a mere worshiper and doing a gods will, but lack that iron sense of duty that marks a true paladin.
From my perspective, EVERY class in the game requires training. Mages don't suddenly know intuitively how to cast spells. Clerics aren't suddenly imbued with the ability to heal. Thieves don't just decide to pick someone's pocket and hey-presto they are a thief.
Clerics need to develop the devotion and learn the appropriate prayers (as do Paladins). Druids need to learn about nature and the balance. Wizards need to learn (a) to read and (b) to channel the arcane magics necessary to cast spells. And thieves need to learn how to be sneaky and set/remove traps and open locks. None of this simply falls out of the sky. At least in my game they don't.
But this is all according to my view in my game. None of it need apply to your game or philosophy on the subject. Fair enough?