How to fix Paladins
by Mark Asher 
Dec 8th 2005 at 7:00AM
You can't kill them, but they can't kill you either. That's been the conundrum of the Paladin class since release. Non-paladins scratch their heads and wonder what Paladins complain about, what with their 37 different protective bubbles, heals, lay on hands, ranged stun, plate armor, and more. Meanwhile Paladins are frustrated because the amount of damage they output is so low relative to some other classes that players tend to ignore them in PvP fights. I know I do.
The fix is in, according to Blizzard, with the new 1.9 Paladin talents, but Gamepro doesn't think so. "It's not that Paladins are underpowered, weak, or even dull (Shaman dropping totems in PvE is almost as bad). At 1.9, Paladins are by no means a pushover. The problem is Blizzard poorly designed the class--and worse yet, doesn't know what to do with it."
Gamepro goes on to argue that Blizzard never has understood the role that Paladins should play in group situations. "An off-tank in PvE? A defensive hybrid? A Diablo II melee fighter?"
I think Gamepro makes some valid points, but in defense of Blizzard I think a class flexible enough to at least step into different roles isn't a bad thing -- it gives players more variety in play style. I think the real problem is just that players all want their characters to do a lot of damage and Paladins, with their superb self-preservation abilities, just can't hit as hard for balance reasons.
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Dr. Woo Dec 8th 2005 7:45AM
I have a ridiculously hard time with Paladins as a Warrior. It's frustrating doing enough damage to kill them three times before they finally go down, and most of the time they do just enough damage to kill me before I do the necessary 15,000 health points of damage to kill them.
Mortal Strike is effectively useless against Paladins most of the time as well, because their immunities remove all debuffs. It just becomes a Sinister Strike for Warriors with a cooldown against Paladins.
LiquidZero Dec 8th 2005 8:37AM
I've rolled a pally, and leveled all the way to 60. One of my problems with the class is that it's just so watered down. The talent trees, even after 1.9, strike me with indifference. You could unlearn all your talents and the character would play 95% the same.
It doesn't help that the class changes quite a bit through the levels. Up until 35 or so, you can do quite a bit of damage and can tank effectively. After that point, the role of a paladin changes to a backline healer. 9 times out of 10 that I do a Strat, Scholo, BRD/URBS/LBRS, or MC run, that's all I am. I just sit in the back, spamming FoL and decursives. If I try to fight I'm usually met with some derision about how "Paladins can't fight, get in back and heal more, learn2play". I'm really sick of group PvP for a similar reason. I don't jump into a BG just to be a healbot, I'd like to actually do some damage with the sword or mace that Blizzard lets us use.
I like the idea of a Paladin, I like the lore, I don't like the implementation in WoW.
illovich Dec 8th 2005 7:24PM
I belong to an end-game raiding guild, so I guess I have a different perspective than LiquidZero (I never get told "learn2play" for example, it's just rude).
In my guild paladins are fairly represented (I think we have 5 or 6 level 60s), and there are usually 2 along on a 10-folk raid, sometimes just one. I'm one of them, in case it wasn't clear.
I'm actually fairly satisfied with the Paladin class. With SoC and a nice blue 2-hander like a Barbarous Blade or Zulian Axe I can pump out a fair amount of damage (I tend to be around #5 to #7 in a 10 folk raid), heal a bunch (although why I would stay in the back and heal is beyond me, since I have gobs of AC and HP), provide either an extra 740 AC or a 24 point damage shield to the tank, or pump up wither fire, frost, or shadow resist.
Meanwhile, all mana classes have a mana regen on, the rogues and hunters have their aggro reduced, and I can backup heal the non-tanks in times of trouble. With a soulstone on, a wipe sets my guild back 5 minutes since I can resurrect everybody.
Wait, what's wrong with the class? Oh, PVP.
My experience in pickup PVP is that it's relatively disorganized, raid leaders don't set up balanced groups, and then the groups that are set up don't act together. In a situation where a group is uncoordinated, a paladin is stretched to the breaking point.
But this is a problem of players wanting the Paladin to be an ass kicker, when it's not. Paladins are cobmat/utility troops that have some healing capabilities. In PVP, when no one takes advantage of your utility then you are sort of useless. But this is the people you're playing with, not the class. The problems paladins have in PVP are more indicative of WoWs relatively dumb implementation of PVP. I think if it had open access battlegrounds that were FFA, paladins would be shining much brighter.
Law of Darkspear Dec 8th 2005 6:54PM
The main problem with the Paladin class is the dependency on gear. If you get a paladin at level 60 with epic gear, you can dish out some damage, otherwise you are attacking and praying that your Seal of Command goes off. Many of the Paladin players I've talked to are upset about 1.9 because their template they were content with in pre 1.9 isn't possible in 1.9. I think one of the biggest issues with Paladins is they are compared to Shaman and are supposed to be the Alliance equivalent; which in most people's eyes isn't true. In my opinion, 1.9 is a small buff to the Paladin class, but we'll just have to give it a few week to see the overall impact of the patch.
PickyPants Dec 8th 2005 3:24PM
Great comments.
I have never rolled a pally, but as a warrior, I fight them toe to toe quite often. An above commenter mentioned the little difference between the talent system for pallys, which is why I ask with trepidation why I always seem to either get my face smashed, or smash face when 1on1ing a pally.
The difference is staggering, even at equal levels between us. Is there something being left out here?
Law of Darkspear Dec 8th 2005 7:01PM
in response to picky.. the reason you get your "face smashed" or the pally get's his/her "face smashed" has a lot to do with whether Seal of Command proc'd. Either that or the gear the pally's had.. Paladin is probably the most gear dependent class in the game.
Mark Asher Dec 8th 2005 10:06PM
It seems to me that a lot of players try to play pallys as warriors with healing. They'll never be warriors. It's more like they're junior priests in plate armor.
I dunno -- really a weird class. How did DAoC handle them? I vaguely remember them in that game, or a class like them. Man, I played DAoC for a long time and I can't even remember the class names. Heh.
Any of you play pallys or pally-like classes in other MMOs? How would you compare WoW pallies to pally classes in other games?
spencer Dec 9th 2005 1:20AM
My biggest problem with the Paladin is that they're soooooooooo boring to play. Where other classes constantly get to dance all over the keys, the Paladin sets up his seal and commences auto-attack. Reseal as necessary.
Pretty boring, I was hoping the reevaluation would bring more interaction to the class.
L'Emmerdeur Dec 9th 2005 11:46AM
Most pallys are looking at 1.9 and deciding to reroll. the class is boring to play in endgame and PvP. I use mine to create and sell mooncloth, and then transfer the money to my Horde mage alt.
My rogue, mage and warrior alts are all a lot of fun, have clearly cdefined roles in both PvP and endgame PvE, and somehow end up making more moey than my pally ever did, even though I never had to spend money on my first mount.
Finally, unlike other classes, who can compete over various armor types and weapons, if a pally rolls on non-int/healing plate armor (Valor) or high-dps weapons, he is told to learn2play. So not only can we not really tank or dps, but the server populations make sure we don't even try.
Hybrid classes can work. The best tank I've ever played with was a feral druid, who had an ocean of hp and armor. I couldn't pull aggro off of him with my mage, even though I did around 40% of the group's dps. And shamans stand in as casters, healers and damage dealers, usually at the same time.
Expect to see a steep decline in the pally population over the next few months.
Check this site out: www.paladinsucks.com