Originally Posted by Odieman
Originally Posted by N7Greenfire
Scag is a supplement compared to core, you know core supercedes.

You seem to have a misunderstanding of what paladins are. They channel power from their willpower and dedication to their oath.

"Clad in plate armor that gleams in the sunlight despite the dust and grime of long travel, a human lays down her sword and shield and places her hands on a mortally wounded man. Divine radiance shines from her hands, the man’s wounds knit closed, and his eyes open wide with amazement."

"A dwarf crouches behind an outcrop, his black cloak making him nearly invisible in the night, and watches an orc war band celebrating its recent victory. Silently, he stalks into their midst and whispers an oath, and two orcs are dead before they even realize he is there."

"Silver hair shining in a shaft of light that seems to illuminate only him, an elf laughs with exultation. His spear flashes like his eyes as he jabs again and again at a twisted giant, until at last his light overcomes its hideous darkness."

"Whatever their origin and their mission, paladins are united by their oaths to stand against the forces of evil. Divine radiance shines from her hands It is a source of power that turns a devout warrior into a blessed champion."

https://www.dndbeyond.com/classes/paladin

A devotion paladin who swore no oath to a god is just as valid as one who did. Not to mention the other subclasses.

HAHA, omg, you are lost my friend... An oath cannot give power by itself! You just used the words yourself: "Divine radiance shines from her hands"

Divine! Blessed champion, devout warrior. Your quoting language thar disproves your point.

And no SCAG takes presidence in this instant, the core book caters to all d&d settings, homebrewn or otherwise. BUT because were talking specifically about the Forgotten Realms setting.... Sword Coast Adventurers guide takes presedence. Newsflash BG3 is set in the Forgotten Realms.

Scag. first Paragraph on Paladins: page 131 (I use hardcover books mostly, not d&d beyond)
"... These warriors aspire to be the best people they can . When such a warrior also has great devotion to a particular deity, that god can reward the faithful with a measure of divine power, making that person a Paladin"

Page 132: "MOST Paladins in the Forgotten Realms, LIKE CLERICS, are devoted to a particular deity"

So no its not "just" as valid. because its a quite rare Paladin indeed that has no devotion to a deity, and most of those Id argue are oathbreakers to be quite frank. And those who arent, STILL get their powers from deities, its all in the wording of theirs spells, and powers itself. Bless, divine smite, etc etc. Its an outlier that you are able to play, for the sake of diversity, what they have done in BG 3 is not a normal Paladin its a very rare exception is what it is.

And before anyone thinks I have a higher agenda from RL or something, Im a stonewall Atheist in rl.
Look my dude I'm linking the source material to you that says you can be a paladin even if the only witnesses to your oath are the corpses of your slain family. If you want to follow your hombrew instead it's fine but the conversation is done as I see there's no way for it to be productive now.