Paladin Sage Abilities

Below can be found a list of the knowledge fields and studies available to the Paladin Class. Starting at 1st level, the paladin gains one field, and one study within that field. This choice is left entirely to the player. There are four fields to choose from:

Animal Training: the act of teaching animals specific responses to specific conditions or stimuli. Training may be for the purposes of companionship, work, detection, protection, entertainment and more. Includes breeding and veterinary skills.

Leadership: enables the character with practical skills to act as a leader, organising and overseeing other persons, teams and whole organisations. With this comes an understanding of power, ambitions towards a personal vision and the defense of social values.

Mastery at Arms: increases the efficacy and efficiency of using weapons in combat, enabling superior advantage over an adversary.

Reverence: relates to a life of conscious grace and servitude to the divine, with true penitence towards shortcomings, misjudgement, errors and transgressions that are made, enabling a greater understanding of the divine and the unnatural.

Sage Studies

The studies within these fields are each described more thoroughly on their own pages — and in turn are a number of sage abilities that await possession by player characters and others. Following are a list of studies sorted by their field.

Animal Training

• Camelback Riding: the use of a camel as transportation and for the purpose of combat.

• Dog Training: the employment of dogs for defense, attack, transport and work.

• Falconry: includes the use of falcons, hawks, eagles and owls for the purpose of hunting and reconnaissance work.

• Flying Mounts: includes the use of hippogriffs, pegasi and other flying mounts, for transportation and combat.

• Horseback Riding: like other mounts on this list, describes the use of the horse for transportation, combat and work.

• Mahout: allows action as a rider, trainer and keeper of elephants and oliphants.

• Underwater Mounts: allows knowledge of hippocampi, sea horses and sea turtles, providing superlative action in both waterborne and underwater environments.

Leadership

• Heroism: a philosophy that quests for reverence and glory through great risk, deeds and selflessness.

• Judgement: enables the character to make good sense in choosing those who serve under the character, particularly when assigning duties and giving trust to both followers and hirelings. Also provides great potential to inspire not only direct associates of a character, but to any group of willing persons, on the scale of a settlement, a province or a whole kingdom.

• Logistics: provides detailed knowledge surrounding the management of supply, enabling the endurance of a long-term campaign or providing immediate benefits to small parties.

• Motivation: enables the character to inspire and improve the morale of hirelings and followers, rallying them to engage in combat and giving their loyalty to actions the leader undertakes. Also provides great potential to inspire not only direct associates of a character, but to any group of willing persons, on the scale of a settlement, a province or a whole kingdom.

Mastery at Arms

• Martial Discipline: improves the tactical advantage of combatants through comprehension of formations, movement and the use of special equipment.

• Physical Balance: describes the combatant's ability to improve their balance and footwork while fighting or performing labour.

• Puissance: a collection of enhanced weapon skills and combat proficiencies that make the individual more dangerous as an opponent.

• Unarmed Combat: improvements in the character's ability to fight without weapons, increasing opportunities to hit and cause damage when pummelling, grappling and overbearing.

Reverence

• Beasts: provides knowledge of supernatural animal forms, their behaviour and their nature.

• Divination: pursues means of discovering knowledge of the present, past and future through extra-sensory communication.

• Dweomercraft: incorporates the power to detect, communicate with and ultimate control manifestations and creatures of supernatural origin.

• Piety: reflects the paladin's personal confidence and trust in their religious cause and sacred destiny.

Awarding Knowledge Points

At 1st level, the paladin player character will gain 12 knowledge points in their chosen study. A d8-1 is rolled for the other studies in the paladin's chosen field, producing a result of 0 to 7 each. A d4-1 is rolled for all other studies in all other fields, producing a result of 0 to 3 each. Therefore, the paladin will accumulate sufficient points in every study to most likely become an amateur in all or most studies. Be sure to read the sage abilities page for additional details.

This accumulation is assumed to occur steadily, through everyday discussions with NPCs in settled places, chance reading of books, experiment and insight, whether or not the character ever expresses their intention to gather this knowledge. Time in the campaign is often skirted over ... so we may assume the character spoke to someone in their profession along a road, at a tavern, perhaps finding a shelf of books (and poking through themm) during an afternoon's shopping or whenever.

Once the character has gained sufficient levels, the number of both fields and studies are increased. Furthermore, as levels are gained, so are knowledge points, enabling characters to progress from amateur to authority, and thence to expert and sage. At 5th, 9th and 13th levels, the paladin will gain a new study in a field that the paladin possesses. At 7th and 13th levels, the paladin will gain a new field.