I know very very little about lore but something I’ve been curious about is why paladins use melee weapons in combat. For example a priest can use smite which is a ranged holy damage spell and holy paladins can use holy shock which can be a holy damage spell so theoretically instead of getting up close and personal why not just stand back and be a spell caster. “Don’t bring a knife to a gunfight.” (Or in this case spell-slinging) I’ve read some places the light is innate in them because of their strong devotion to the light so I could see them like inbueing their weapon with holy energy but can’t create fireballs of holy magic and that’s why they don’t spell cast but just curious if there’s a reason in lore for why they prefer melee weapons instead of casting.
Paladins use/prefer melee weapons because they were either warriors that decided to train in priestly ways, or priests that decided to train in warrior ways that then got infused with the Holy Light, enhancing their physical stats and making them immune to disease, granting them also their abilities such as auras and blessings. Going off of the Knights of the Silver Hand, anyway.
That’s what paladins do. It’s their class fantasy. The fantasy paladin is a holy knight; the sword is its iconic weapon, though by no means its only weapon. The modern fantasy paladin is based on Templars and Charlemagne’s knights and other medieval religious military orders.
The Knights of the Silver Hand are… Knights. They’re descended from Priests, but specifically Priests who chose to take up an existing martial tradition that is all about melee.
The Blood Knights were founded specifically to fill a hole in Quel’thalas’s tactical layout - the Elves had plenty of archers and mages, what they lacked was the ability to present a solid wall to invaders.
Because 1. the Light does have it’s liimits and 2. Combat is part of how Paladins maintain their connection to the Light.
Their faith requires that they deal with Evil close up and personal.
If I remember correctly this even applies to Healing Paladins in Raids. You gotta mix things up with crusader strikes to maximise your healing.
In warcraft it’s more the hammer.
Oh that’s really interesting and that would make sense why they wear plate armor thanks!
Curiously Priests also use maces.
Which I’m pretty sure was a nod to their D&D Cleric roots. Where they’re a much more martial class, frequently starting with chainmail, a shield and a blessed breaker of skulls in hand.
Wish they had at least one ability to reflect this. Sure burning people for their sins and splitting thoughts open with voiceless whispers is fun and iconic. But sometimes nothing beats a good ole fashion;
There’s an old dragon magazine cartoon Where one figure is pleading with two others to stop their fight saying.
“This fight is pointless”
A fourth replies. “It’d better be, they’re both clerics.”
In the old game, clerics were prohibited from using weapons that spilled blood.
Bashing skulls however was perfectly OK.
Because they’re themed around being holy knights, and knights are melee combatants.
Well. It is mostly brain matter and cranial fluid.
Man what’s with deities being such micromanagers about what we do with our fluids. Buncha busy body voyeurs if you ask me.
You’re looking at this from a modernist “don’t bring a knife to a gun fight” mindset that relies on the fact that, in real life, you have an incredible advantage over someone if you use an accurate and powerful ranged weapon over a melee implement.
This is not cold hard fact in fantasy settings.
Our precious bodily fluids?
Because they are holy warriors. Plus I don’t think a Crusader would bring a shotgun into a melee fight.
A holy hand cannon is still a bludgeoning weapon of sorts.