Summary
Mounted troops. Cost 4AP. Move 500p in good going or road, 200p in bad going. Combat factors are +6 vs foot or Stronghold, +6 vs mounted.
If they draw with a Magician in close combat then both are destroyed if the total roll is odd.
If they lose a close combat they are destroyed.
If they are doubled in combat they are destroyed.
Disrupt bespelling if the line of fire passes within 600p. May contact Aerials.

Alan Saunders writes:
Support them well on the flanks, and their +6 combat factor eats enemy troops. They're as good as a hero general, but you don't lose the battle if they die. I always assume, however, that the paladin will die, and plan accordingly; losing 4AP is OK if in doing so it helps you win the battle.

Paul Grace writes:
Paladins are (next to aerial heroes) my least deployed (and owned) troop types. <>It's not that I don't like them but they can be difficult to fit into the background / rationale of many of my HOTT armies. If you use your elements 'in character' the paladin should be out in front and attacking the most dangerous opponent - often ending up surrounded and making a gallant sacrifice. If I have a rider or two to spare, then they will accompany him.

I have noticed that when I do field a paladin they are often in armies led by (or at least containing) a cleric.

Jeff Bolton writes:
I rarely field paladins, mostly for the reasons previously cited. FWIW, I am not particularly concerned about the inability of the paladin to be a general - I prefer that they lead by example. 8^)

I consider a paladin a VERY good substitute for a cleric. I believe that enemy magic users should be disconcerted in every way possible.

I like to send a paladin out supported by riders. They move fast and hit HARD!

I do field paladins in my steppe nomad armies, based on Harold Lamb's stories about the Paladins of the Steppes (and every rider a hero).

Chow Li writes:
I consider the paladin worth anything only when you know the enemy has a magician, Otherwise, spend your points elsewhere.

Interesting that one person likes to use them in front and alone. I say isolate them and simply surround it.

If your army has a magician the enemy paladin should be your first target of your plan.

Joel Gregory writes:
I like the combination of paladin and two heroes. I have found them to be every effective against an army that contains a magician. I do not put the paladin out front, but in a position to protect the heroes from magic attacks while the army closes on the opposition. I have two armies with this combination - Arthurian and Joan of D'Arc (Joan is the paladin, as she had generals to lead the army, but her presence on or absent from the field effected the fighting morale of the troops).

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