Really, I think that’s more a case of the story ranking/portraying “cool” characters based on how much over-the-top damage or destruction they can cause.
I can only really think of Anduin in the Siege of Lordaeron as a character ‘showing off’ by doing anything other than breaking things (and even then he beat up a tank with a sword because why not). Velen’s a holy priest as far as I can tell, but even he got to smite him some demons.
When was the last time we had a major character be a tank or healer?
The difference between a Priest and a Paladin is fairly simple, and it comes down to one being a caster, and the other not.
What I mean by this is that, regardless of what power they use, be it Light, Shadow, Arcane, Fel, and so on, all spellcasters shape said power using the seven (not counting Necromancy) schools of magic. Priests are no different, using prayers and hymns and words of power to cast their abilities, hence the names of their more iconic abilities like Power Word: Shield and Hymn of Hope.
Paladins, on the other hand, due to special trials and rituals, use the Light intrinsically. The flip side is that a Paladin is much, much more reliant on having the right mindset to retain their power, while also getting a lot of natural abilities such as high resistance to disease, the ability to literally sense undead and demons, increased strength, and being able to simply ‘call’ on the Light without specific psalms, prayers, or powerful words. Tirion literally just asked the Light for help, as if it were a friend, as opposed to any specific prayer or words, and it answered.
Of course, certain lore characters, like Anduin and Velen, tend to bypass these differences, but that’s the general idea.
As far as I’m aware, Paladins haven’t ever called upon forces of the void; except for the dead ones risen by Arthas
Which is why Paladins are so vehemently against those that practice in dark arts / use the void, and the prime argument against ‘Void Elf Paladins’.
When it comes to the better relationship / more power with the Light – That’s a debatable argument between Priests & Paladins. But when it comes to the Void - Priests trump Paladins everytime 10/10 hands down.
Witch doctors are probably closest thematically to a troll mage, even if their playstyle would be more like a warlock or shadow priest. DoTs, mind control, curses, etc. are all in the witch doctor’s bag of tricks as masters of voodoo. Voodoo basically being an ancient blend of shadow magic and alchemy that can do… All sorts of crazy things.
Granted most trolls seem to know at least a little voodoo in the same way you see common elves animating brooms and such. Witch doctors and shadow hunters are just the trolls who must achieve a mastery of it.
Which truly goes to show why shadow hunters are a paragon of their people. They must master both voodoo and the traditional martial skills of a trollish warrior, including stealth and tracking. Then they must also learn to commune with the loa and channel their power. In a way shadow hunters are the only class that wields both light and shadow at the same time. Able to heal with golden light (healing wave was a shadow hunter skill originally) and curse people with shadow damage without changing religions.
As for the druids, the answer to your question actually came up in Zandalar when we learned one of Gonk’s titles.
Loa of Shapes.
Gonk is a shapeshifter loa. The poem you can find about him references him traveling on hoof and by wing and fin. As the Master of Shapes Gonk seems to bestow his followers with the ability to assume any form. Even shapes that aren’t associated with a specific loa.
It’s hard to say… Twilight Vindicators use holy spells in game, but I really doubt that’s canon. It’s likely that the devs just used the spells because they didn’t want to invent new ones for some trash mobs. Based on their name, role, and shadowy appearance, IMO it makes more sense that they’d be shadow-based.
Yeah, I wouldn’t state Twilight Vindictors as ‘Paladins’ they’d be their own thing. Adding shadowy-based effects to their spells would be good though I admit.
Though the ‘Twilight Vindicator’ aesthetic does open a good point for a potential new class to consider, along with others.
The problem is that “Paladin” is a loaded term, but it’s used as a catch-all for Sunwalkers, Prelates, Blook Knights, etc. already. If they came up with a better name for the whole category, then it seems to me that Twilight Vindicators are kind of like the shadow priest version of whatever you call it.
Blood Knights were stealing light from a Naaru, and Sunwalkers embraced the light in a sense still too.
Twilight Vindicators are aligned with the Void, so I wouldn’t really classify them in the same order. It would be like comparing Death Knights with Paladins or Warlocks with Priests.
Are you talking about game advantage or lore advantage?
If the former, there are gameplay forums that will have the experts you need.
As far as the latter goes, Priests started becoming Paladins during the Second War because the Horde was massacring them on the field. So the advantage in the latter case was that Paladins had a better survival rate thanks to arms and armor training.
Their magic likewise was retuned for martial use and leadership.
IMO, Holy Priests are to Paladins what Necromancers are to Death Knights.
i.e. if Paladins weren’t shipped with the game, they’d have been a “hero class” who are generally recognized as (lore-wise) stronger than other classes.
I could be wrong here, but I’m going to push back on this characterization a bit.
It seems to me that specific prayers are a big part of the paladin class. First off, there’s the labeling of paladin skills. Many are given names that directly imply oral prayer components, like “Word of Glory” and all of the Blessings and Greater Blessings. Then there’s abilities like “Consecration”, “Repentance”, “Atonement”, “Execution Sentence”, and “Final Verdict” which suggest either oral or silent/internal prayer components.
Second, and directly related to the first point, is that a big part of the paladin identity is Librams, theological treatises on aspects of the Light. Unless it’s been retconned, Chronicle has the Librams as being a core part of the Order, with each of the original five getting a tome on a particular topic (protection, justice, etc.) Each of them was supposed to embody one of these sacred virtues, so they studied them devotionally. In -game, librams have continued to be a big part of the paladin identity. While the relic slot has been removed, when it existed, the paladin-exclusive relic was the libram. The graphics for paladin abilities has long involved them pulling out librams, going back to the RTS games, suggesting that they are at least mentally recalling if not orally reciting some specific prayer while they are performing an ability.
I’m open to being corrected on this issue, but I don’t think I’m imagining the connection.
And of course there’s the big book that Marrad carries in the Burning Crusade cinematic which he uses to cast one of those 5 minute blessings. Poor Marrad. At least he went out like a Paladin.
