In Real Life, I'm A Dragonborn Paladin

In a campaign DM'ed by my good friend, A, I play a dragonborn paladin named Rhasgar Blackscale.

Thanks, DnDLore Wikia, for the shameless image theft.

The min/max being strong in my group, and with point-buy as the de facto method, my optimal character emerged slow-witted yet oddly charismatic.  His stats after level 4:

Str: 11
Con: 16
Dex: 10
Int: 8
Wis: 16
Cha: 19

Born from a one-shot turned ongoing game (my group has a lot of those, don't we?), I took my cues straight from the stats; I decided to play Rhasgar with the mind of a mostly-man-child, save for when in the heat of combat or in courtly etiquette.  I also left him with a backstory of a disgraced knight questing to redeem his faith - quite standard.

I expected him to be a throw-away.




For one, I have never enjoyed playing a large melee character; repeatedly dealing blows to the head has always been less tactically appealing than slinging spells or lurking in shadows.  This is especially so with computer RPGs.  The Barbarian is fine for learning the game, but hand me a Sorcerer or Rogue after that, please.

And my aversion to simple gameplay has also extended to simple characters.  I can't stand the idea of being unintelligent.  Both on and off the game table, I see mental fortitude as the greatest strength of them all.  I suppose that I'm quite brain-snobby.

I've also never played a paladin in the 3.5e era for one simple matter: the class' adherence to a Lawful Good alignment.  I simply don't agree with a blindly following a creed set before me by others.  4e got rid of alignment restrictions, thus freeing my from my own ideological trap.

Much to my surprise, Rhasgar is the most fun I've ever had as a PC in a game.  Playing with feigned stupidity allows me to drop comedic misunderstandings and horrible puns with abandon.  Leading at the head of every assault was energizing.

Lo and behold, I also ended up playing a role that I'd argue skirts the line between Neutral Good and Lawful Good; Rhasgar would always protect the weak, no matter what.  This led to throwing myself off of ships into high seas wearing full plate for strangers, standing in the way of balrogs alone, and always asking "who's hurt?".

My "aha!" moment playing this campaign came from a realization: that's me.  Certainly not Rhasgar's actual stats (he clearly never had Asian parents with great expectations, for one), but definitely his attitude.  I like to be at the head of the pack, banner flying.  I've become considerably more mellow about showcasing intellect over the years.  I'll always stand up for someone I think is in peril, even if it puts me in harm's way.  And, even if that isn't always me quite yet, that's who I want to be.

Sadly, Rhasgar Blackscale has been put on the shelf, until the groups regular DMing rotation passes back to him.  But his impact will remain.  I have resumed control of a highly-intelligent, shifty psion rolled-up from the original campaign I was to play; I now play him a little more brazenly, a little more concerned with the plight of the common man.

And then what?  What character will come next?  What campaign will I run?

Not bad for a wandering knight.

Merci beaucoup, Nicole Evelina, for the image grab.