Paladin

The paladin (often shortened to "pala" or "pally" by players) is a holy knight, a hybrid class with the ability to play a variety of different roles — healing (holy), tanking (protection), and DPS (retribution). Paladins stand directly in front of their enemies, relying on heavy armor and healing in order to survive incoming attacks. Whether with massive shields or crushing two-handed weapons, Paladins are able to keep claws and swords from their weaker fellows – or they use healing magic to ensure that they remain on their feet.

Stalwart paladins are trained to use the heaviest armor and shields, and can utilize their skill to ensure that enemies focus on them, defending weaker members of their group. Their potent healing abilities ensure that their allies remain in fighting shape and can be resurrect, while they charge their weapons with holy might, allowing them to deal additional damage with their strikes. As champions of order, paladins are extremely potent in a group – their blessings and auras can improve damage and survivability for both themselves and their party, while withstanding heavy physical damage with plate armor and strong defensive abilities.

Paladin talents increase their ability to heal the wounded, strengthen their capacity to protect their companions, and allow them to deal out vicious damage in the name of justice:


 * Holy paladins invoke the power of the Light to heal and protect allies and vanquish evil from the darkest corners of the world.


 * Protection paladins use holy magic to shield themselves and defend allies from attackers. Through the use of a shield and the wearing of plate armor, they can mitigate quite a bit of physical damage.


 * Retribution paladins are righteous crusaders who judge and punish opponents with weapons and Holy magic.

Game guide
''This is the call of the paladin: to protect the weak, to bring justice to the unjust, and to vanquish evil from the darkest corners of the world. These holy warriors are equipped with plate armor so they can confront the toughest of foes, and the blessing of the Light allows them to heal wounds and, in some cases, even restore life to the dead. Ready to serve, paladins can defend their allies with sword and shield, or they can wield massive two-handed weapons against their enemies. The Light grants paladins additional power against the undead and demons, ensuring that these profane beings corrupt the world no longer.''

''Paladins are not only zealots, but also guardians of the righteous, and they bestow blessings on those the Light would shine upon. The Light radiates from paladins, and worthy allies who stand near them are emboldened by its power.''

Creation screen description
''Paladins do battle to protect the world from the forces of shadow. Powerful warriors in their own right, they can also call upon the Light to heal wounds, create shields of force, and incinerate evil creatures. Although paladins were once exclusively human, a number of stout-hearted dwarves have recently been welcomed into the Order of the Silver Hand.''

''Paladins are champions who call upon the Light to heal wounds and combat evil. The draenei employed such holy warriors for millennia before arriving on Azeroth to find like-minded souls among the Alliance. Recently blood elves, too, began wielding paladin abilities. Yet these elves, having little in common with their counterparts, must bend the Light to their will. ''


 * Paladins are heavily-armored fighters and defenders who use Holy magic to heal wounds and combat evil. They can focus on two-handed weapons, shields or healing.

Classic guide
Limited to the Alliance, Paladins are bastions of divine light, meting out justice with magic and might.

Background
The first paladins may have been draenei, who were introduced to the Light by the Naaru after fleeing their home planet of Argus.

Second War


Founded during the Second War, the paladins were a holy order of warriors whose purpose was to defend and shepherd the war-torn populace of Lordaeron. The Archbishop Alonsus Faol had perceived that the pious Clerics of Northshire, who had suffered such terrible attrition in the First War, were ill-suited for the dangers of combat. Along with many of the surviving Clerics of Northshire, he sought those of only the greatest virtue among the knighthood of Lordaeron and tutored them in the ways of magic. Led by the crusading Uther the Lightbringer, it now rested upon the new paladins - christened the Knights of the Silver Hand - to heal the wounds sustained in combat and to restore faith in the promise of freedom from orcish tyranny.

Paladins were also known to minister to the masses during the war, gathering inside churches to deepen their faith. Through meditating, communing and tithing at these sanctified sites, they discovered new ways to channel their healing and spiritual powers.

Third War
In Warcraft III, the Paladins were introduced as hero units, a special unit-type of the Human faction.

Although the paladins were once loved and revered throughout the lands of Lordaeron, by the time of the Third War, they had since fallen into hard times. The entire Order of the Silver Hand was disbanded for refusing to kill innocent townsfolk who were believed to be contaminated by the dreaded Undead plague. Disenfranchised and driven from their former homes, the paladins still worked selflessly to protect humanity from the gnawing jaws of evil. Empowered by the Light, these mighty warriors brandish both their warhammers and holy fire in the battle against all who would trample the meek and innocent.

Many paladins traveled to quarantined lands to ease the suffering of those left within the plague-ridden colonies, but although the paladins were immune to disease of any kind, they were persecuted by the general populace who believed that they had been infected by the foul plague. Some of these paladins traveled to Northrend. When they finally reached Ner'zhul's icy fortress, embittered by the trials they had to suffer through, they had become dark and brooding. The Lich King offered them untold power in exchange for their services and loyalty, and they accepted to become death knights to his service.

World of Warcraft


The humans of Stormwind and the dwarves of Ironforge train their own paladins and consider themselves Knights of the Silver Hand. The human paladins spread their order to the dwarves of Ironforge.

The paladins who remained in Lordaeron continued to fight against the Scourge. The Scarlet Crusade evolved from the Knights of the Silver Hand dedicated to the eradication of the undead from Lordaeron, the Forsaken and Scourge. However, there were those who believed that the zealous and fanatic Crusade had fallen from their once-noble purpose, and left to form their own order, the Argent Dawn.

The Hand of Argus is a order of draenei paladins and vindicators based in the Azuremyst Isles.

The Blood Knights are a order of blood elf paladins formed by sapping Light energy from the captive naaru M'uru, once the Sunwell was restored in the wake of Kil'jaeden's defeat the Blood Knights channel their power directly from the Sunwell.

Tirion Fordring restored the original order of the Silver Hand in Lordaeron, which later merges with the Argent Dawn to form the Argent Crusade.

The Sunwalkers are an order of tauren paladin, who recently learned to use the power of the sun, much as druids use the power of the moon, to wield the Light and become paladins.

During the Cataclysm, the Twilight's Hammer deployed its own vindicator zealots.

Zandalari troll prelates are paladins who worship the loa Rezan. Some joined Zul's campaign in Pandaria, but most stayed in Dazar'alor serving the empire.

During the third invasion of the Burning Legion and after the defeat of the Argent Crusade in the Battle for the Broken Shore, the Silver Hand was formally reestablished and supported by each major paladin order on Azeroth.

Tyr's Guard is a secret order sworn to protect the tomb in Tyr's Fall who learned how to wield the Holy Light, and they became mighty paladins.

Lightforged draenei of the Army of the Light many of who are paladins fought against the Legion during the Argus Campaign and after the defeat of the Burning Legion ended up joining the Alliance.

Code of conduct
As "warriors of the Holy Light", paladins uphold all that is good and true in the world and revile all that is evil and sinister — especially undead and the Burning Legion. They offer assistance to the beleaguered and smite their enemies with holy fervor. Found in almost every corner of Azeroth fighting the forces of evil and barbarism, these stalwart, zealous warriors ceaselessly maintain their vigil. Paladins are the embodiment of good and selfless dedication to the protection of their peoples. Their passion and fearsome resolve can lead them astray, however. Most notably, the Scarlet Crusade, a faction of paladins and priests who broke away from the the Knights of the Silver Hand, took their commitment to eradicating the Scourge so far that they turned on their former allies, suspecting anyone whom they believed carried the "taint" of the undeath.

Paladins don't always have to work within good or neutral organizations, as seen by the Scarlet Crusade and others — however, they do have to believe they are working for good organizations or have faith that their cause is good and just. A paladin can be evil (as illustrated by Renault Mograine and Arthas before he took up Frostmourne), but as long as they believe their cause to be just, the Light will continue to serve them because wielding the Light is a matter of willpower and faith in one's own ability to do it. Since he felt conflicted, Arthas's ability to use the Light began to wane after he culled Stratholme. He perceived this as the Light choosing to abandon him, which weakened his faith in it further.

Similarly, the connection with the Light cannot be forcibly stripped from a paladin that personally conducts himself in an honorable manner. When Tirion Fordring defended the orc Eitrigg from his fellow humans, he was excommunicated from the Order of the Silver Hand after a ceremony was performed by Uther the Lightbringer to strip him of his light-given powers. Even if the ceremony succeeed, as he lost the blessings and holy powers he had obtained during his ceremony of initiation, he retained his connection with the Light as he was able to heal an injured Eitrigg by his desperate will to save him, and used the Light even after that in the years and wars to come.

Races


The paladin class can be played by the following races:

Racial mounts
Each paladin order has a different mount.
 * Human, Dwarf: Summon Warhorse, Summon Charger
 * Dwarf: Summon Dawnforge Ram
 * Dark Iron dwarf: Summon Darkforge Ram
 * Draenei: Summon Exarch's Elekk
 * Lightforged draenei: Summon Great Exarch's Elekk
 * Blood elf: Summon Thalassian Warhorse, Summon Thalassian Charger
 * Tauren: Summon Sunwalker Kodo, Summon Great Sunwalker Kodo
 * Zandalari troll: Crusader's Direhorn
 * All: Argent Charger, Highlord's Golden Charger

Specializations

 * For a full list of specialization abilities, see Paladin abilities

Holy
Invokes the power of the Light to protect and to heal.

Holy paladins have devoted themselves to healing, with powerful specializations including Beacon of Light and Light of Dawn. With their plate armor, Holy paladins are some of the toughest healers in the game. They are most powerful when close to their allies, due to their Mastery: Lightbringer. When they need to deal damage, they have access to both ranged and melee Holy attacks like Holy Shock and Crusader Strike.

''Like priests who serve the Light, holy paladins are devout in their faith. After spending much of their lives in hallowed halls studying divine doctrine, those who pledge themselves to a holy order become beacons of the Light for their allies in conflict, taking up the heavy armor and weaponry of justice. Holding the unwavering belief that any battle waged to eradicate evil in the world is righteous, these paladins stands on the frontlines in service to all others dedicated to the cause. The truth and virtue of the Light imbues these sacred knights with the power to revitalize their comrades. If necessary, they even lay down their own lives to serve as a martyr for the greater good.''

Protection
Uses Holy magic to shield  and defend allies from attackers.

Through the Protection spec, paladins gain an increased ability to tank enemies. Paladins are especially well known for their ability to tank many enemies at once with rapid threat production. Strong stamina scaling, simple and very high threat generation and the superb Ardent Defender ability make paladins powerful tanks. With plate armor, shields and an array of powerful self-healing and defensive options, Protection paladins are often hard to defeat even without a healer by their side.

''The paladin’s tools of war lay bare their motivations. Clenched in one hand is the weapon, a deadly device for exacting righteous judgment. Locked in the other hand is the shield, a symbolic and literal barrier protecting good from evil. Stalwart and steadfast, these protectors are ardent defenders of the Light and all that it touches, and are rejuvenated by its radiance in return. So dedicated they are to their cause that they consecrate the very ground upon which they battle corruption.''

Retribution
A righteous crusader who judges and punishes opponents with weapons and Holy magic.

Retribution paladins favor slow two handed weapons, causing sudden damage spikes through both melee and spell crits. They favor single-target attacks like Crusader Strike and Blade of Justice to build Holy Power, powering regular use of Templar's Verdict, or Divine Storm for AoE. In PvP, Retribution paladins can be very effective off-healers, but have poor mobility. Retribution paladins can use powerful augments like Avenging Wrath to buff their damage output.

''To serve as instrument of the Light is to hold an unshakable faith. Oftentimes the most dedicated paladins become fanatical in their devotion, instruments of retribution against those who dare defy the laws of the divine. These paladins are vengeful guardians of the weak—crusaders judging and punishing the wicked. Their resolute conviction in the divine order of all things assures them that victory is inevitable—but they will fight to the end to ensure that the Light prevails.''

Holy Power


In addition to the mana, paladins have a unique resource system called Holy Power. Similar to the rogue's combo points, Holy Power can be gained through certain spell and talents, such as Crusader Strike and Blade of Justice, and is used for casting other spells, such as Templar's Verdict and Divine Storm. Up to 5 Holy Power can be stored, and does not decay until 30 seconds out of combat.

Gear


Paladins can wear cloth, leather, mail or plate armor and may use a shield. They can use polearms and one or two handed swords, axes and maces.

Paladins cannot dual wield, or wield daggers, fist weapons or staves. They also cannot use ranged weapons.

They can summon their own Warhorse at level 10 and automatically learn the Apprentice Riding skill. At level 17 they can summon their epic Charger, however, it does not give the benefit of 100% movement speed boost until Journeyman Riding is learned.

Lore-wise, paladins are often depicted wielding large, often two-handed warhammers. The "paladin hammer", in addition to the book of incantations paladins often carry, are perhaps the most characteristic features of a paladin. Some hammers are even known to have names, such as Arthas Menethil's Light's Vengeance and Uther the Lightbringer's Hammer of the Lightbringer. Draenei paladins also tend to prefer their own two-handed hammers, a Light-blessed crystalline weapon known as the Hammer of the Naaru. Blood elf paladins seem to prefer polearms instead.

Abilities


Paladins stand directly in front of their enemies, relying on heavy armor and healing in order to survive incoming attacks. Whether with massive shields or crushing two-handed weapons, paladins are able to keep claws and swords from their weaker fellows – or they use healing magic to ensure that they remain on their feet.

Paladin talents increase their ability to heal the wounded, strengthen their capacity to protect their companions, and allow them to deal out vicious damage in the name of justice.

They have several anti-undead and demon abilities such as Sense Undead, Wake of Ashes, and Turn Evil which made them very effective when fighting Demon and Undead targets (not including Forsaken players, who are considered Humanoids for balance reasons).

Blessings
Blessings are spell buffs that can be cast on party and raid members. Blessings are derived from previous Hands, and include Blessing of Freedom, Blessing of Protection, and Blessing of Sacrifice.

Auras
Auras are spell buffs that can boost the abilities of the party and raid members with passive effects, but only within a certain radius of effect around the paladin. They can be changed at any time, but with only one aura active at a time. Since Shadowlands, all paladin specializations once again have access to auras, among them Devotion Aura, Retribution Aura, Concentration Aura, and Crusader Aura.

Healing
All paladin specializations have access to spells like Flash of Light, or Lay on Hands to instantly heal themselves or an ally for the paladin's maximum health, and Redemption to resurrect an ally back from death. Holy Paladins also have Absolution to resurrect all dead allies, and Cleanse to remove all poison, disease, and magic effects from them or an ally.

Crowd control
Paladins have regular access to spell interruption through Rebuke and Hammer of Justice, as well as talents including Repentance and Blinding Light.

Stats
Paladin stats vary by role. Secondary stats can be optionally obtained after primary stats have been met.

In the RPG
A paladin must be good and will lose all Light-given abilities if he ever willingly commits an evil act. Additionally, the paladin's code requires that he respect legitimate authority, act with honor (not lying, not cheating, not using poison and so forth), help those in need (provided they do not use their help for evil or chaotic ends), and punish those who harm or threaten innocents. While he may adventure with others from different organizations, a paladin will never knowingly associate with evil persons, nor will he continue an association with someone who consistently offends his moral code. A paladin may accept only henchmen, followers or cohorts whose intentions are good. A paladin who violates this code, becomes an ex-paladin, and loses all Light-given abilities until he atones for his violations.

Trivia

 * Any paladin will tell you that the brunt of their power comes from the shoulders. The bigger the better.
 * Their description during the Warcraft III alpha was as such: "The noble warriors of humanity employ both a strong military and powerful magics in the defense of their kingdoms. Bestowed with the ancient arms and armor of their forefathers, they wander from town to town righting the wrongs of society. Although the Alliance has all but fallen apart, these valiant warriors have once again taken up steel against the enemies of humanity."
 * Some paladins are known to change their name after being knighted, with the example of Davil Crokford who became known as Davil Lightfire.
 * Several paladins are depicted with golden eyes glowing with the Light, such as the Paladin and Turalyon units in Warcraft II, also seen with the paladin on the Divine Favor TCG Card. All Lightforged draenei have Light-infused eyes even though they are not all paladins. Since Battle for Azeroth, golden eyes are also an option for blood elves. Lady Liadrin and her paladins have them.
 * According to Chris Metzen, the "heart and soul" of the Marvel Comics superhero was particularly influential in developing the "true vibe" of Warcraft paladins. The Protection ability Avenger's Shield and the talent First Avenger are explicit references to Captain America and his.
 * Seals were self-buffs, permanent until changed, turned off or the Paladin switches specialization, which boost the power of the Paladin's melee attacks. Effectively, they added a weapon proc to their melee strikes. Previously, Paladins could unleash these seals upon an enemy using Judgment, causing holy damage and causing an effect depending on which seal was used. The Paladin needed to have a Seal active to use Judgment.
 * In Hearthstone: Rastakhan's Rumble's HS Rumble Run the player character is HS Rikkar a jungle troll who HS Rikkar (Paladin) (can be) a paladin. HS A New Challenger... is a collectable card that also has what could be a jungle troll paladin.
 * In Hearthstone: Rise of Shadows HS Commander Rhyssa appears to be a gnome paladin, even sporting a unique mechanostrider mount.
 * HS Lightfang Enforcer is a worgen paladin in Hearthstone Battlegrounds.