With the lack of a clergy to perform these rituals, I don’t see why these cultures would have them. That they do everything a human Paladin can do can be chalked down to game mechanics.
Relevant enough that the ritual is performed each time we have actually seen someone be made a paladin, and it’s greatly affected them. Blood Knights wielded the Light through M’uru like a conduit.
Fair.
This ritual was described in great detail in both Blood and Honour and Rise of the Lich King.
As for the removed part about runeblades? Retconned. Arthas is the only death knight so intimately bound with his runeblade, and already in Vanilla we had one example of a death knight replacing his shattered runeblade with another.
Well, no? That’s kinda the problem you have with the lore. In order to say that this ritual is performed “every time” we are told someone is made a Paladin, we’d have to then include the likes of, say, Maraad, who is called a Paladin but it’s never stated he took the ritual you mention. Yet he is a Paladin:
As a paladin of the Holy Light, Maraad epitomized the strong arm of righteousness.
‘https://wowpedia.fandom.com/wiki/The_Characters_of_Warcraft/Vindicator_Maraad’
Now, we can assume those called “paladins” underwent a similar form of empowerment, I would agree there, but it’s noteworthy that if true, then the Silver Hand’s descendants would no longer have the exclusive claim upon the identity of Paladin, as there are other ways to become a paladin.
I can’t read your mind so if you mention “Paladin”, I have no way to understand you refer exclusively to the paladins of the Silver Hand. But…surely no one disputes that the paladins of the Silver Hand aren’t paladins?
The point of contention is that other cultures also have paladins.
This isn’t a proper answer though. Drawing something from the game doesn’t mean it’s not canon - ie. an orc’s appearance is clearly drawn from the game, but it doesn’t mean it’s false.
Usually, if something is mentioned to be this thing in many different sources - books, website, comics, game - it turns out that’s the canon version.
Who says they do not have something Similar to a Clergy. Blood knights work along side Blood elf priests. Sunwalkers work along side the Seers. Dreanei culture has priests all over. Prelates have the many many loa priests. Just because these cultures do not have Roman Catholic coded Clergy doesn’t mean these other orders do not have options to perform these rituals.
We only have distinct lore written about the Silver hand, because they are the original. Arthas was among them, which lends it to even greater lore detail due to his book.
Your argument boils down to: “Because blizzard didn’t put effort in fleshing out the other Paladin orders, they cannot have anything the one that was fleshed out has” Even though we are shown all across the game and story that these Non silverhand paladin can perform the exact same feats a silver hand paladin can.
For simplicity I think a Cult of the Forgotten Shadow Paladin being a discipline type deal would be dope! But I have a few other ideas milling around in this noggin’ I wanna add to the pile…
• Scarlet Undead Redemption
We have seen in the past that Scarlet Crusaders are willing to turn from their ways and become part of the Argents or the Silver Hand. There is no reason, imo, why Scarlet Undead couldn’t do the same. We’ve seen them in the past in the many iterations of the Monestary and Halls dungeons. Perhaps a group of them will seek to create a Church of the Forgotten Light? Who knows!
• Tyr’s Guard
While I hoped it would remain a titanforged only group (Humans, Dwarves, Gnomes, Kul Tirans) it has now shown us that it will be an order which does not affiliate with any race or faction in particular. It makes sense, because Tyr was never gonna be Faction aligned with the Silver Hand for example. This does however open the door to folks like the Forsaken who wish to put their faith into practice.
• Paladins of the Gilded Skull
Alonsus was the one who created the first Order of Paladins. He is now, of course, Forsaken. It would be a GREAT thing to see him do what he has in the past: Find the faithful Warriors and Priests of the Forsaken and see that they become more. They can become Paladins of the Church of Secrets, call it the Gilded Skull? Idk, I’m just spitballing here. Calia, though I am not sold on her character, may play a part in this as the first Light-raised Forsaken. In the Heritage questline her healing was described as hurting, but not as much: Because it came from kindness.
In the end I’m VERY excited to see how and when we’ll get Forsaken Paladins in particular. Also saves me from constantly having to defend myself from playing one :'D
Edit:
I am well aware that Forsaken will inevitably experience pain and side-effects from being Paladins of the Holy Light. Which is why I really hope there will be a proper story behind it, instead of just tossing the class on them.
If the rest of the sentence is about the Silver Hand, I’m not sure why you would bring in Maraad.
You’re right. As opposed to the Paladins of the Silver Hand who are empowered by the ritual that makes them paladins.
We know a fair bit about the Blood Knights and there is nothing to imply they have a similar ritual. The ritual of empowerment Silver Hand Paladins undergo is hardcoded into the Church of the Holy Light.
No, my argument boils down to “I want these holy warriors to be culturally distinct and not carbon copies of each other”. Based on what we know of these other paladin orders they lack this ritual, it’s something only the Silver Hand has been depicted with, it’s part of the Church of the Holy Light. Why would Sunwalkers have this ritual when their religious belief differs greatly beyond a general veneration of the Light in the form of Ahn’she?
In terms of game mechanics all of them are paladins, but in the lore they don’t have much in common beyond being holy warriors wielding the same kind of power through religious belief. Or the Sunwell, in the case of most Blood Knights.
Well they would not have the exact same ritual. That is silly to imply. They would have comparable rituals that would end up with the same result.
For example.
a Prelate, who has finished their training, goes to the temple of Rezan. there the Loa and his priests bless the prelate with the light. allowing them to become the Holy warrior.
A Sunwalker finishes his training. they would under go a rite, as Tauren do, that have them proof to An’she and their elders that they are worthy. once proven worthy, they are blessed by the Seers, alongside a whole typical Tauren ceramony with drums and food and what have you.
You can easily apply the Ritual to other cultures. the only issue is, Blizzard did not put that much effort in.
Another note.
Because we know a Blood knight and a Silver hand Knight. are pretty equal on the battlefield. saying only 1 of them needs a special ritual to get to that strength, doesn’t make them look all that powerful.
So its easier to assume All paladin under go a blessing ritual to get their powers. than saying only one needs it to be viable.
From the looks of it prelates gained their powers directly from Rezan, which is why a lot of them lost the ability to wield the Light with his death. With a Loa directly giving them their powers they would be pretty powerful.
Fair.
Which isn’t necessarily because of that strength. A Blood Knight could easily overpower a Paladin of the Silver Hand without a ritual of empowerment simply because their training ensures only the best of the very best are ever made into actual Blood Knights.
Do they have one? Do they need one? They are still holy warriors.
With the lack of known empowerment rituals for these other paladins, it probably is.
I don’t think they need one to be Paladins tbh, perhaps channeling the Light through you achieves the same effects of the ritual you mentioned over time.
See, here is the thing: I don’t need to explain it, I need a canon source, and I have plenty. The fact that there isn’t an explanation isn’t on me, it’s on Blizzard, but it doesn’t make the canon less canon.
She can’t give you what doesn’t exist. Blood Knights simply aren’t empowered, even in the heyday of TBC; they made up for their lack of empowerment with other means. Such as the brutal training, the heavy emphasis on teamwork and community between themselves which was depicted in BothB (which always acts as a force multiplier tbqh) and generating trinkets - even unpleasant ones such as Scourgebane - to elevate themselves.
And this is /okay/. The Silverhand have their boons, the Blood knights have their. They each have drawbacks and pros.
Its probably safe to assume that a connection to the Sunwell which is an intergalactic well of power so strong it can be felt in other universes also acts akin to a blessing would. You are, after all, bathing in the constant rays of what is essentially a Naaru, a being of Pure Light.
Though this still doesn’t really align with Alannyse believing other Paladins doing what Human Paladins can do is simply game mechanics when, for the past 15-odd years, it gets proven that is very much not the case.
Yeah, it’s basically the only race that can get holy golden eyes by simply existing. No trials, no nothing, you just don’t do the fel and boom, golden eyes on a 1d3 roll.