The Righteous Barbarian

"You?" the Great Fang asked as the man stepped into the warrior's circle. "You are the Lightning Sword? The Wrath of Thunder? Surely you jest!"

The man who stood before him was no stripling, and there was strength in his heavy chest and shoulders. But he looked no different than a dozen other dirt-streaked warriors who had taken the field that day. With his wild hair and thorny beard, there was nothing unusual about him at a glance. Certainly nothing that would warrant the reverence of those who parted to let him stand within the Ring of Skulls.

"No," the man said, shaking his head. "My name is Einar. I am but a vessel."

The Great Fang snorted, and spat, he hefted his ax high, and charged across the circle, bellowing his war cry. As the ax came down, though, there was a shift in the wind. A tension in the air, like the calm just before a storm. Faster than the eye could blink, the man called Einar drew his blade, and crashed it into the ax. The steel head creaked, then exploded in shards of burning metal. The Fang staggered back, his eyes wide. The man followed him, walking calmly. The steel fragments had bounced off his skin, and his eyes burned with a bright, white light.

"I am the Sword," the man said, his voice booming like thunder. "And now you, too, shall know the storm."

Do not challenge the gods. They may accept.

The Wrath of The Gods

When most of us picture a barbarian, we imagine someone like Conan or Kull. Warriors who rely on their own wits and strength, with no concern for the gods and spirits of the world around them. They believe in steel and strength, not in magic or in the aid of the divine.

The Righteous Barbarian, though, has dedicated themselves to the service of a god... or gods.

What form this dedication takes can vary wildly, depending on the origin and style of the character. For example, the character may be a member of a holy order of knights who is filled with righteous fury when taking the field in service of their god. They might be a tribal protector, tattooed with the sigils of their clan totem in order to summon the power of that spirit in defense of their people. In some cases, the warrior may even be possessed by a spirit, being dragged into situations it demands whether they want to be involved or not.

Whether it's simply a cultural or religious belief, an oath the character has sworn, a mechanical implication of their rage powers (as I mentioned back in 50 Shades of Rage: Flavoring The Barbarian's Signature Class Feature), or some combination of all of them, the Righteous Barbarian is the sword of the gods.

Build Recommendations

The first thing you need to ask yourself for this concept is how big a part of the character's life the divine plays a hand. On the smaller end of the scale, the Righteous Barbarian is simply a faithful warrior who shapes their life, morality, and what sort of causes they support. Larger forms of divine involvement include things like celestial totem rage powers, or for those who want to go the bloodrager route taking appropriate bloodline powers to tie you to the greater powers (including the celestial bloodline, or taking something like the abyssal or infernal bloodline and turning those powers against evil). The character may receive dreams from the divine, or see signs of the gods' displeasure much like a cleric would, but it's more of an occasional, instinctual call from their patron than a direct connection.

The most extreme version of the Righteous Barbarian is when the character is a direct instrument of the divine... willingly, or not. A character with the trait possessed for example has a spirit that lives within them, and whispers to them. Someone who gains a cohort, or who acquires an unusual mount or familiar (through the Eldritch Heritage feat tree, or by taking the Familiar Bond feat tree) could use that creature as a conduit to their deity, listening to what they demand of them. Characters who are at the most extreme end of this concept may even go into fugue states when they Rage, channeling the powers of the divine through themselves, having little to no memory of who they were (or what they did) during combat. These characters may even be prone to black outs, finding the gods control them when they attempt to go against their wishes, dragging them forcibly into adventures.

How deeply the concept runs in your character is entirely up to you!

Also, for more tips on making your barbarians unique, make sure you check out 5 Tips For Playing Better Barbarians, along with the rest of my ongoing 5 Tips series!

Like, Follow, and Stay Tuned For More!

That's all for this installment of Unusual Character Concepts. Hopefully this one gave you something to chew over, whether you're a player, or a dungeon master.

For more of my work, check out my Vocal and Gamers archives, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio. Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my most recent collection of short stories The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

The "Paladin In Name Only"

So, I caused a bit of a stir last Monday with my post Concept Policing is Something Gamers Should Stop Doing. This wasn't, of course, meant to say that a DM has to allow every concept to come to a table, or that players should feel free to throw all sense to the winds to make the most ridiculous characters that come to their minds. What I had in mind was more along the lines of gamers, as a community, stopping their knee-jerk reactions whenever someone chooses to play against type in a way that creates a unique character who makes sense, and who obeys the rules, the canon, and the setting of the game you're in.

Characters like the Paladin In Name Only.

A little spit and polish goes a long way.

Let's set the scene. A figure approaches the party, dressed in heavy armor. The armor is bedecked with holy symbols, and figures of religious lore. The person wearing the armor, whether it's a man or a woman, has a forceful personality. A born leader, whose commands are law in battle, and whose suggestions off the field are given weighty consideration. The character has a deep knowledge of a certain faith, and is also a part of that church's military arm. This character prays every day, and follows a strict, ethical code that determines their actions.

Is this character a paladin? Well, they appear to be... but no one says they have to be.

The Mechanics

Nothing in the above description is completely unique to paladins. The description could fit a cleric or an inquisitor, but it could also fit a fighter or cavalier dedicated to a religious cause. Knights in shining armor come in a big variety of mechanical flavors, and just because they look and act in ways we typically associate with paladins, that doesn't mean they aren't just a mere mortal who aspires to follow in the footsteps of the righteous.

Every aspirant has to start somewhere.

 

There are all kinds of ways to mechanically support a hero of the faith concept, without actually taking paladin levels. For example, Bravery is one of the most commonly exchanged fighter abilities, but combined with a background trait that provides a bonus against fear, and feats like Iron Will, it's possible to appear all but fearless in the face of true evil. With the right feats, fighters can be deadly weapons against the enemies of a faith.

That's far from the only option, though. Cavaliers of all varieties gain the ability to challenge their foes, and to steel their allies' morale in the face of danger. Those sensations might, to the uninitiated, bear similarities to declaring a smite on an evil enemy, or spreading the force of one's divine light out to protect his or her allies. Samurai's Resolve allows them to move forward through sheer force of determination, shrugging off punishment and terrors in a way that might make them seem superhuman.

The point is, before you decide to play a Paladin In Name Only, you need to know what abilities you're focusing on to create someone who has dedicated his or her life to being a paragon of goodness. The further you get from being a divine spellcaster, the bigger the surprise is going to be when the party realizes, in-character, that it's faith without magic backing your sword arm.

Story

There are a thousand reasons for someone to aspire to heroism... what's yours?

Heroism comes in many forms, and for many reasons.

 

For example, you could take some inspiration from history and say that your fighter was the most powerful warrior in the land, putting him in a select order of holy knights. In case you didn't know, that was pretty much what the word paladin originally meant, since it referred to the 12 Peers of Charlemagne. Alternatively, your Paladin In Name Only might be a wandering do-gooder, traveling from town to town with nothing more than his armor, weapons, and trusty steed in order to help the defenseless and downtrodden. He may have found his faith in a fox hole while fighting against a demonic incursion, or she may have been raised by a holy order. Even if this character wasn't chosen to be the embodiment of divine rightness, and to serve holy judgment, that is no reason not to use characters who have as models for what kind of adventurer you want to become.

There's also the personal motivation a character has to dedicate their life to a cause like this. There's the born-again hero, who lived an ignoble life, but who saw real greatness and courage on a battlefield like the World Wound. That changed this character, and made them want to be better, tempering their talents for violence and helping steer them toward a more just course. Being a hero might be a family calling, the way some families all do a stint of military service, and the character isn't going to let a little thing like not being divinely chosen stop him from following in his ancestors' footsteps. Maybe the character grew up hearing stories of great paladins and their deeds, and holds that up as his or her highest ideal.

Why Do This?

The point of the Paladin In Name Only is not to pull a "gotcha" moment on the rest of the party, who suddenly realize they don't have a secondary healer. The purpose is to play with the expectations of what drives certain types of characters, how they act, and what it's like to share in their endeavors. It's also to show that just because there's no mechanical negative to breaking your vows and sworn oaths, that doesn't mean those things don't still matter to a character who took them. After all, they inform the character's view of the world, and of who he or she is... they're kind of a big deal. They might even be big enough for the Paladin In Name Only to go on a quest of redemption, even if it's only to make peace with not measuring up to an ideal that's all but impossible with divine grace, and even more difficult without it.

For those who are interested in straight paladins, you might find 5 Tips For Playing Better Paladins more up your alley. If you want to use another class though, my 5 Tips For Playing Better Base Classes list is getting a little bigger all the time!

Like, Follow, and Stay Tuned For More!

That's all for this installment of Unusual Character Concepts. Hopefully this one gave you something to chew over, whether you're a player, or a game master.

For more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio. Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my alley cat noir novel Marked Territory, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my most recent collection of short stories The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!