[Spoilers] I dont understand the end of the Paladin storyline...

[WhiteArchmage]

I also disliked the quest but now that Arannon mentioned it, it DOES draw a lot from chivalric times and literature: Every knight wants to be the very best in the world; by their deeds, by their power, by their fame at jousting or with ladies, it's all about who has the biggest, best sword or lance.

i.e. Lancelot and Tristam are thought of as their generation's best knights and they fight each other to a draw, I'm currently reading "Yvain the Lion Knight" and the only reason any knight in that book does anything is to prove himself better than the other (the first thing Yvain learns is that pouring water from a certain fountain on some steps summons a huge storm and later knight will challenge whoever brought the storm to his castle, so Yvain goes and does just that). In fact, Charlemagne's knights were explicitly called Paladins and Curtana is attributed to Ogier the Dane, one of the Paladins (other sources put it as Tristam's sword, though).

So, yeah, it's a very dumb plot by today's standards (and they even tell Solkzagyl that) but it was trying to send up a literary genre that doesn't QUITE mesh well with today's audience.

[Morningstar1337]

So, yeah, it's a very dumb plot by today's standards (and they even tell Solkzagyl that) but it was trying to send up a literary genre that doesn't QUITE mesh well with today's audience.

The Solution? Don Quixote Paladin!