Paladin advice - hunting/combat maneuvers, etc.

[LivderaDeralleur]

So, after all the comments I've been reading about how awesome Paladins are now, I thought I maybe should dust off my Paladin and see what the fuss was about. The problem? I converted what once was a Warrior into a Paladin a long long time ago (back when Paladins first came out and I had been bored with the Warrior lifestyle) - since then I haven't really touched her. I got really into my Ranger and left her to collect dust. Now I'm left rather clueless about the ways of Paladin hunting and I have questions that the wiki failed to answer.

Background:
L27 Sylvan Paladin
Currently in Voln
Training:
2x Edged
2x Shields
2x Armor
1x Dodge
1x CM
1x MOC
1x Paladin spells
1x harness power
1x physical fitness

So - here we go.

1. Combat Maneuvers - what do you recommend focusing on? Are there any that really stick out as a useful option?

2. Shield Specialization - same as the combat maneuvers. Should I specialize in a shield size or go for something like Shield Bash?

3. Armor Specialization - same as combat and shield. What's a good option to go for? What's useful for a Paladin?

4. I'm going to read up on the Paladin spells to get more of a grasp on them, though are there any really good ones that may aid the most in combat or are really helpful attack spells I should read more into?

5. Should I stick with Voln or switch to something else? She's not Mastered with Voln yet, so could likely switch if it provided enough of a benefit.

6. Any undead critters that would be around L27 in/around the Landing area? I must confess I can only think of zombies and they're L26, right?

So yeah - any advice appreciated. I'm more used to hunting with my Ranger, who solely snipes from the shadows with arrows, so this will be a different hunting style. I'm finding I really like semis, though - I've also been playing my Bard a lot lately and enjoying the experience, so hoping picking the Paladin up will be similar. The only issue is the fact I don't get the experience of starting from the beginning as a Paladin to learn the hunting style - if she didn't have a character-bound Dhu lizard I'd be tempted to reroll her and start over since she's only L27.

[Androidpk]

1. For a heavy melee class you'll want feint to deal with casters and other critters that turtle. I would usually knock them down with 1615 (get those lores!) feint and then kill.

2. I'm not familiar with the shield cmans, especially the new ones, but you can't go wrong with shield bash. Pick uo a sanctified shield for extra kickassery.

3. Fluidity seems like the better choice for paladins.

4. 1615 is an awesome single target setup spell. Get 25 ranks of religion lore to maximise its effectiveness. The specific type of damage it does is based off which deity you are aligned too.

https://gswiki.play.net/mediawiki/index.php/Holy_Damage

5. Seems more like a personal choice. For me GoS is the perfect thing to compliment a paladin.

6. Castle Varunar is close to the landing and there are plenty of undead you can hunt there. Believe they're 30+.

[Gorex]

I haven't dusted off my pally in a while either so take these answers with a grain of salt as far as recent changes go.

1. Feint to force opponents into offensive. Besides that I like cmans that are always active, such as weapon spec, combat focus, and cunning defense.

2. These weren't out when I was playing my pally, but shield bash was in the CMAN list and I used that as an alternate attack to bypass AS/DS. You can purify a sanctified shield for flares.

3. Fluidity

4. 1615 is your attack spell, and 1630 is the multiple target version. 1630 is not player friendly though so be careful using it in high traffic areas.

5. Can't recall enough about the Voln changes to answer. I know I used to be against Voln but they did improve it.

6. You're getting into the levels for the pookas, mare, and miner areas. Great fun. The zombies you mention are like 23 I think.

[LivderaDeralleur]

Thanks for the quick advice! From the looks of things I'm going to have to update her armor and try to find a better shield/weapon combo, though at least I have some idea where I'm going with her hunting strategy now.

I'll definitely need to see if I can fit in some lore ranks in the future.

[Vusit]

Plate armor asap game changer for paladin. Remember to bond to your weapon. I am loving weapon spec and feint for CMs, but I am Thw paladin. Had some good luck hunting moaning spirits just remember to get purify air the night hounds room effect is annoying.

[time4fun]

Personally, I'd drop dodge. It's insanely expensive, and you just don't have a ton of extra TPs at that level. It'll also free you up to get some lores- which you really do want as a Paladin. At this point, you aren't going to go wrong with religion, summoning, or blessings- any of those is going to be beneficial.

Start building up your shield bash. Personally, I use my CMANs for that, but I'm also a higher level- so I have the points to spare. I'd take feint first for the aforementioned reasons.

If you're ditching dodge- as I suggested- then go for a tower shield to maximize your benefit.

Fluidity is key for armor use- for sure. You still cast pretty heavily as a Paladin, and armor hindrance can be fatal.