Paladin: Guide to Weapons and Armor

Sword

 * lvl 1 Wax Sword (Wax Sword +1 recommended if have money)
 * lvl 9 Spatha
 * lvl 11 Bee Spatha (I seriously think that PLD should get Bee Spatha +1, this sword is very powerful for its lvl and +2 ACC helps)
 * lvl 18 Iron Sword or
 * Longsword or
 * Fire Sword/Flame Sword
 * lvl 19 Auriga Xiphos Rare/Ex Drop from Chariotbuster Byakzak (NM)in Fort Ghelsba.
 * lvl 30 Centurion's Sword
 * lvl 34 Hunting Sword
 * lvl 39 Grudge Sword (+1 Enmity is nice, keep till lvl 50 for emergency situations)
 * lvl 42 Honor Sword (AF1)
 * lvl 50 Tactician Magician's Espadon
 * lvl 55 Wise Wizard's Anelace(Gluttony is not the end all be all. You can use this until 66)
 * lvl 57 Gluttony Sword (This has the highest delay of any sword in the game. Despite this, it also has very high damage along with VIT +7, and is probably your best bet until Macuahuitl +1)
 * lvl 65 Macuahuitl +1 (Enmity +4 is very nice. This is generally the best sword for endgame tanking.)
 * lvl 66 Espadon (Get the Espadon +1)
 * lvl 70 Joyeuse (Double Attack, Piercing Damage - Best sword for DDing)
 * lvl 70 Company Sword (hidden effect of +2 base damage for each party member, mostly used for playing a DD.)
 * lvl 71 Durandal (Cheap. +1 enmity, +7 vit and low delay. However at 75 VIT does very little for a PLD compared to Enmity, stick with Macuahuitl +1 if you can afford it.)
 * lvl 71 Hauteclaire (Rare drop from Khimaira, but most comparable to Excaliburr]])
 * lvl 73 Justice Sword (100% drop from Jailer of Justice powered by Virtue Stone and must have sea access)
 * lvl 74 Sanguine Sword (HP +20, MP +20, VIT +4)
 * lvl 75 Excalibur (Only the most dedicated will ever get Excalibur. If you have it, you use it.)

Great Sword
Keep in mind that a paladin's main role is tank. While a great sword paladin can theoretically hold hate better with a higher damage output, the B- rating in great swords leads to more misses and a lower damage-over-time. ''' Never use a Greatsword in exp parties while tanking. Yes, you will do more damage, but you will also take a lot more damage than with Sword + Shield '''

That being said, here is a list of approved great swords.


 * lvl 1 Rusty Greatsword (Your only option at this level.)
 * lvl 10 Claymore
 * lvl 13 Flame Claymore (Or Burning Claymore, these will help to kill the fire-weak enemies in the dunes.)
 * lvl 18 Braveheart (Dex+2, Acc+5 is a lot at this level, and will help with a two-handed weapon.)
 * lvl 20 Mercenary's Greatsword (Carry this with your Braveheart. Att+7 will be helpful when you don't need the Acc+5.)
 * lvl 25 Federation Sword (The +2 version of the Mercenary's Greatsword which grants +8 MP. Not bad.)
 * lvl 36 Mythril Claymore
 * lvl 39 Ice Brand (Huge jump in DMG, Plus the ice damage is beneficial at this level.)
 * lvl 43 Royal Swordsman's Blade +2 (You're a paladin using a great sword. You need the +3 VIT.)
 * lvl 55 Royal Guard's Sword (A PLD-only great sword, and it's really good. STR+2, MND+3, CHR+1.)
 * lvl 62 Mercurial Sword (This GS is great for melee/accuracy built PLD/DNC)
 * lvl 69 Flamberge
 * lvl 71 Nagan
 * lvl 72 Subduer (If you can get your hands on one, it outdoes the Nagan in DPS after it's been broken, but it has no defensive values stat-wise, so be careful.)
 * lvl 75 Ragnarok (Clearly a pipe dream.)

Staff
There is only one staff a Paladin may use without truly dragging itself down. Even this however is debatable.


 * lvl 51: Earth Staff or Terra's Staff (Terra's is highly recomended if you take this method. Even if the gains are seemingly minimal, it's all you're going to get.)

This staff can be used with HNM's, and often used to be. However, it has been used in other situations.

This method has been confirmed to be used by at least one and argued by a few Paladin. The concept uses the VIT and -20% damage reduction to lower damage below the levels of a sword/shield Paladin. This method often relies on a Paladin using his/her magic to keep hate levels high, since the damage in conparison to a sword using Paladin will be lower. The Weapon skill of choice is often Spirit Taker in order to restore MP.

To use this method, staff skill must be capped beforehand, or else the Paladin's accuracy and damage will fall to very low levels, due to its A- skill. This also works for things like wyrms and Dynamis mobs that you do not actually engage to avoid giving them unecessary TP. In this situation, the Earth Staff is only being used for its damage reduction making its lower damage inconsequential.

Staff Tanking works, though most of the time it is ineffective compared to sword/shield as of recent patches. If you are in a party that wants to fight only monsters that are far too high level for you to be killing effectively and you find yourself getting hit for 100+ per regular attack an Earth Staff becomes a viable option. If you find you are only taking 30-50 damage per hit on VT and low IT mobs, you can use a staff for approximately the same damage taken as sword and shield. This will help you keep your staff capped without having to go to skillup parties.

The biggest negative for staff use might be the loss of Shield Skillups. These are hard to come by and the chance of Shield Skill up is of course reduced to 0% when using a staff.


 * Also get
 * Lvl 51 Light Staff & Dark Staff
 * Light Staff you can use it when PL
 * Dark Staff is good when fight is over and when PL
 * -Do not attempt to tank in an EXP PT with either of these however.


 * lvl 60: Battle Staff (DMG:49 Delay:402 Accuracy+3 Attack+10, Battle Staff +1 if you can find one for a reasonable price)
 * lvl 73: Kinkobo/Primate Staff (Kinkobo is almost always cheaper due to woodworkers skilling up on them and trying to mitigate a bit of loss. These staves are more powerful than even Claustrum.  With capped staff skill, PLD/WAR or potentially PLD/SAM can be a solo machine on many enemies, especially those weak to blunt damage such as skeletons and pots.)

Club
While club is not a viable weapon to use in an experience party due to its generally poor damage/delay, Paladins should be mindful of some of the uses of clubs.
 * In end-game situations, tanking with a club adds more to a Paladin's repertoire than most swords.
 * Templar Mace (level 71) Can be used as an alternative to Light Staff, It can be used on higher level HNM's while subbing
 * /nin. You will still be using a shield, but because your damage and acc using any weapon will be low, the +10% Cure Potency enhances
 * your ability to gain hate and keeps your HP high in those rough fights.
 * Buzdygan (level 71) has some MP and VIT and is the most comparable club to Durandal.
 * Jadagna (level 69) is a new club with the ToAU expansion, and has +29HP -29MP VIT+5.
 * Morgenstern (level 72) The best club paladins can wear.
 * Starlight and Moonlight weapon skills to restore your party's MP.
 * Club damage on bone-type mobs is generally greater than swords due to bones weakness to blunt weapons. Note that using Banish on skeletons allows swords and daggers to do more damage.

Ranged

 * lvl 55: Lightning Bow or Lightning Bow +1
 * lvl 70: Rosenbogen or Rosenbogen +1
 * lvl 75: Lamian Kaman or Lamian Kaman +1

Ammo

 * lvl 1: Happy Egg
 * lvl 1: Fortune Egg
 * lvl 30: RSE Ammo (If you cannot get the above)
 * lvl 60: Bibiki Seashell
 * lvl 70: Fenrir's Stone

Armor
* Bone or Lizard set may be used, Lizard is generally cheaper.

** There is debate over the Silver set's higher DEF and the Eisenschaller set's overall higher VIT and AGI as a better set of armor. Kampfschaller is typically considered superior to Silver set.

*** Instead of loading up on MP armor, focus on VIT, Shield Skill, and HP. You can get MP from RDM casting Refresh, BRD casting Mages Ballad, or drinks - recomended - Cooking (30)

*** At lvl 35 you get: Auto Refresh.

Shield
There are several different size and styles of shields to choose from, and you may find that you want to have more than one on hand and use whichever best fits a given situation. The effectiveness of your shield-blocking is based upon your Shield Skill. When the Shield Skill activates it reduces the amount of damage taken from a melee hit. The higher your shield skill, the more often it will kick in. The Job Trait Shield Mastery also influences how often shield blocks will occur, and gives you TP for every shield block.

There are 5 distinct shield types. These are, in increasing size: Buckler, Round, Kite, Tower, and "size 5", which is currently restricted to the Relic shield, Aegis. The smaller shields will block more frequently, but will reduce the damage by a smaller amount than the larger shields (except for the Aegis, which is in a league of its own, being a fully upgraded Relic item). See the category listing for Shields for the types of all shields.


 * lvl 1 Lauan Shield or
 * Marine Shield
 * lvl 7 Shell Shield can work well, but some don't like the AGI loss
 * lvl 9 Aspis or
 * Clipeus (better than Aspis, but a NM drop)
 * lvl 20 Decurion's Shield
 * lvl 24 Turtle Shield +3 Vit or Turtle Shield +1 +4 Vit
 * lvl 25 Bastokan Targe or
 * Republic Targe (often preferred over the Kite Shield)
 * lvl 28 Kite Shield, reward for completing A Knight's Test
 * lvl 38 Jennet Shield (recommended until lvl49)
 * lvl 43 Heater Shield
 * lvl 50 Royal Knight Army Shield DEF:14 STR+2 MND+1
 * or Temple Knight Army Shield DEF:14 STR+1 MND+2
 * lvl 52 Master Shield, lower DEF, but +10 Shield Skill can be very helpful
 * lvl 55 Royal Guard's Shield
 * lvl 55 Musketeer Commander's Shield, small shield, but with AGI+3
 * lvl 58 Wivre Shield, +5 enmity.
 * lvl 60 Iron Ram Shield, +3 STR, VIT, Att and Eva. (WotG expansion)
 * lvl 66 Diamond Shield
 * lvl 69 General's Shield
 * lvl 72 Tatami Shield
 * lvl 73 Koenig Shield (Generally the best all around shield aside from relic.)
 * lvl 73 Januwiyah size 4 Tower shield with HP+25
 * lvl 75 Aegis the difficult to obtain relic shield

Head

 * Lvl 1 Bronze Cap
 * Lvl 1 Cache-nez (Enmity +2)
 * Lvl 7 Leather Bandana
 * Lvl 10 Faceguard or Royal Footman's Bandana
 * Lvl 16 Bone Mask or 
 * Lvl 17 Lizard Helm *
 * Lvl 21 Beetle Mask
 * Lvl 24 Iron Mask
 * Lvl 29 Eisenschaller or Kampfschaller
 * Lvl 36 Silver Mask **
 * Lvl 40 Iron Musketeer's Armet
 * Lvl 56 Gallant Coronet (AF)
 * Lvl 68 Iron Ram Sallet DEF:29 HP+20 Enmity+5 "Magic Def. Bonus"+3
 * Lvl 70 Aegishjalmr (Enmity +7)
 * Lvl 70 Lord's Armet
 * Lvl 73 Adaman Barbuta
 * Lvl 73 Valor Coronet (AFv2)
 * Lvl 73 Koenig Schaller (Abjuration Gear (Martial Abjuration: Head from Seiryu). One of the best endgame pieces due to the shield skill.)
 * Lvl 75 Askar Zucchetto (use when /NIN more useful than Homam and the Turban in my opinion due to Def STR VIT and DEX, could also be used as part of a DD setup also)
 * Lvl 75 Walahra Turban to be used when tanking as PLD/NIN.
 * Lvl 75 Bahamut's Mask (Enmity +8, Enhances "Dragon Killer" effect, overall a better piece than the Aegishjalmr, but even harder to get - This is the best head piece in the game for a PLD/NIN).

Body
*** This is debatable, AGI plays a useful role in shield use. and Kampfbrust has 3 AGI over Centurions 1 VIT


 * Lvl 1 Bronze Harness or RSE
 * Lvl 7 Leather Vest
 * Lvl 10 Scale Mail
 * Lvl 16 Bone Harness or
 * Lvl 17 Lizard Jerkin *
 * Lvl 21 Beetle Harness
 * Lvl 24 Chainmail
 * Lvl 24 Bannaret Mail isn't easy to find due to a particular key item needed to synth it, but it's like a second Breath Mantle if you can get it.
 * Lvl 29 Eisenbrust or Kampfbrust Recomended: use this armour til lvl(39)
 * Lvl 30 Centurion's Scale Mail ***
 * Lvl 36 Silver Mail **
 * Lvl 40 Royal Squire's Chainmail
 * Lvl 42 Earth Doublet
 * Lvl 45 Brigandine Armor (best to use I.M. or Parade at 50)
 * Lvl 50 Iron Musketeer's Cuirass or Parade Cuirass
 * Lvl 52 Gaia Doublet
 * Lvl 55 Fourth Division Cuirass
 * Lvl 58 Beak Jerkin +1 (Yes, it looks like a Lizard Jerkin, but remember that it's the stats that matter, not the looks. Nobody's asking you to wear it in town.)
 * Lvl 60 Gallant Surcoat (AF, most popular body piece due to balance of vit, hp, and enmity)
 * Lvl 70 Lord's Cuirass or
 * Lvl 70 Heavy Cuirass (No VIT+, no Enmity+, no HP+, but it has Defense 60, significantly more than any other pre-75 armor, and it's significantly cheaper than Lord's.)
 * Lvl 73 Adaman Cuirass
 * Lvl 73 Koenig Cuirass (Abjuration Gear) or Kaiser Cuirass (HQ verision)
 * Lvl 75 Valor Surcoat (Rare AFv2 Drop from Dynamis - Xarcabard)

Hands

 * Lvl 1 Bronze Mittens or RSE
 * Lvl 7 Leather Gloves *
 * Lvl 10 Legionnaire's Mittens or Royal Footman's Gloves
 * Lvl 16 Bone Mittens or
 * Lvl 17 Lizard Gloves *
 * Lvl 21 Beetle Mittens
 * Lvl 24 Chain Mittens
 * Lvl 29 Eisenhentzes or Kampfhentzes (Tank) or
 * Lvl 27 Savage Gauntlets (Mithra only; +4 VIT and +16 MP don't hurt, though the 4 less DEF than Kampfhentzes may. Usable up to AF gloves.)
 * Lvl 40 Iron Musketeer's Gauntlets (Use if you can't afford Kampfhentzes)
 * Lvl 50 Storm Manopolas (A fully valid selection, even for PLD. Enmity +3 is nice and evasion can never be a bad thing.)
 * Lvl 50 Rush Gloves (the +4 Vit is wicked and useful until AF is available, also the added agi may come in handy)
 * Lvl 54 Gallant Gauntlets (AF)
 * Lvl 62 River Gauntlets (Mithra only; VIT+6 tops anything else available before Relic, and HP+60 can only help Spirits Within.)
 * Lvl 70 Lord's Gauntlets/King's Gauntlets (Level 70 Pld JSE good stuff if you can find it. Not necessary)
 * Lvl 72 Valor Gauntlets (AFv2)
 * Lvl 73 Adaman Gauntlets
 * Lvl 73 Koenig Handschuhs (Abjuration Gear (Martial Abjuration: Hands from Genbu))
 * Lvl 75 Homam Manopolas (Useful for Enmity and Haste for PLD/NIN.)
 * Lvl 75 Askar Manopolas (Useful as /nin due to Haste a higher enmity than some other pieces that also give haste.)

Legs

 * Lvl 1 Bronze Subligar or RSE
 * Lvl 7 Leather Trousers
 * Lvl 10 Scale Cuisses
 * Lvl 16 Bone Subligar or
 * Lvl 17 Lizard Trousers *
 * lvl 20 Royal Footman's Trousers
 * Lvl 21 Beetle Subligar
 * Lvl 24 Chain Hose
 * Lvl 29 Eisendiechlings or Kampfdiechlings
 * Lvl 40 Royal Squire's Breeches (Perhaps a better option than Eisendiechlings, but definitely not better than Kampfdiechlings)
 * Lvl 50 Iron Musketeer's Cuisses (Definitely the piece you want from 50-58)
 * Lvl 55 Fourth Division Cuisses
 * Lvl 58 Gallant Breeches (AF)
 * Lvl 59 Sipahi Zerehs (Compared to AF: Same AGI, +2 STR, more HP, a bit less defense, and no +2 ENM.  Enhancing skill who cares.)
 * Lvl 70 Lord's Cuisses
 * Lvl 73 Adaman Cuisses
 * Lvl 73 Crimson Cuisses (Abjuration Gear with movement speed increase, godsend for kite fights)
 * Lvl 73 Koenig Diechlings (Abjuration Gear)
 * Lvl 74 Valor Breeches (AFv2)
 * Lvl 75 Homam Cosciales (Fast Cast and Haste for PLD/NIN.)

Feet

 * Lvl 1 Bronze Leggings or RSE
 * Lvl 7 Leather Highboots or Leaping Boots/Bounding Boots (if bought/camped, these can be used as footgear until lvl 29)
 * Lvl 10 Scale Greaves
 * Lvl 16 Bone Leggings or
 * Lvl 17 Lizard Ledelsens *
 * lvl 18 Power Sandals(can be hard to obtain, but can be used till 29)
 * Lvl 21 Beetle Leggings
 * Lvl 24 Greaves
 * Lvl 29 Kampfschuhs (This is the best foot gear until AF.)
 * Lvl 40 Iron Musketeer's Sabatons (Use if you can't afford Kampfschuhs)
 * Lvl 52 Gallant Leggings (AF, never take these things off if you're using a shield.)
 * Lvl 67 Rutter Sabatons
 * Lvl 70 Lord's Sabatons
 * Lvl 71 Valor Leggings (AFv2 - Macro in for Sentinel only, stick with AF1 full time)
 * Lvl 72 Aurum Sabatons
 * Lvl 73 Koenig Schuhs (Abjuration Gear)
 * Lvl 74 Gallant Leggings +1 More shield skill than the level 52 boots.

Waist

 * Lvl 1 Dash Sash (Enmity +2)
 * Lvl 7 Leather Belt
 * Lvl 15 Warrior's Belt or Warrior's Belt +1 (seriously, get the +1 as a PLD.... the longevity is amazing)
 * Lvl 48 Life Belt (Never get rid of your Warrior's Belt +1. Life Belt is great if you have problem hitting. If you are hitting fine, stick with the Warrior's Belt +1.)
 * Lvl 50 Swift Belt Haste +4% great for tanking PLD/NIN and DDing
 * Lvl 51 Astral Rope This is great for Galka/Elvaan PLD. 5 Def and 15 HP -> MP helps. The big attraction is the +2 Enmity
 * Lvl 60 Potent Belt Replaces life belt.
 * Lvl 71 Warwolf Belt
 * Lvl 72 Trance Belt HP+ and Enmity +4 What more do you want?

Back

 * Lvl 4 Rabbit Mantle
 * Lvl 17 Lizard Mantle or
 * Lvl 18 Dhalmel Mantle
 * Lvl 18 Breath Mantle (This is the best mantle before High Breath Mantle since it is so hard to keep hate prior to it.)
 * Lvl 28 Wolf Mantle or Wolf Mantle +1 (+1 suggested)
 * Lvl 30 Mercenary Mantle Def: 2 Latent Effect: Enmity: 1 (if having any difficulties keeping hate)
 * Lvl 36 High Breath Mantle (Most useful, easily obtainable cape. If someone is crafting them on your server. Very good to have as a backup for if you are having trouble keeping hate.)
 * Lvl 37 Cavalier's Mantle (If you are willing to suck up the hit to Evasion, this is the best mantle before the Knightly Mantle.)
 * Lvl 40 Earth Mantle
 * Lvl 51 Gaia Mantle
 * Lvl 55 Republican Army Mantle (Exclusive item from Bastok conquest points.)
 * Lvl 58 Beak Mantle
 * Lvl 60 Knightly Mantle (Use High Breath Mantle for hate-holding trouble, thf or /thf-less party, or PLD/NIN)
 * Lvl 65 Lamia Mantle or Lamia Mantle +1(good Magic Defense boost for AM tier IV and tier III aga nukes)
 * Lvl 70 Gigant Mantle (Use for +HP gear setup)
 * Lvl 70 Valor Cape (Arguably the best back piece in the game for paladin.)
 * Lvl 70 Boxer's Mantle (Excellent for any situation, well worth the 75 Ancient Beastcoins)
 * Lvl 75 Shadow Mantle (Dropped only from the Dynamis Lord. Good Luck.)

Neck

 * Lvl 7 Justice Badge
 * lvl 11 Scale Gorget (This piece is skippable. It is only 1 more DEF than the Justice Badge, and may not be worth the money/hassle to use it for 10 levels.)
 * Lvl 14 Van Pendant (This can be hard to camp, but is useful throughout the dunes, it can also last until the tiger stole)
 * Lvl 21 Fang Necklace or Spike Necklace (Spike is the +1 version of Fang)
 * (+STR and +DEX will help through damage to hold hate. Macro +MND for Cure spells.)
 * lvl 24 Tiger Stole With DEF 2 and Attack +5, this is a nice option until level 35 for races less concerned with MP
 * lvl 26 Holy Phial
 * lvl 35 Medieval Collar
 * lvl 50 Parade Gorget (Get one of these. 1 mp/tick while you're in white hp is unbelievably helpful)
 * lvl 55 Iron Musketeer's Gorget
 * lvl 55 Royal Guard's Collar
 * lvl 60 Fortified Chain
 * lvl 65 Shield Torque (+7 shield skill very nice. Combine this with Gallant Leggings +10 skill and Koenig Schaller +5 skill and you have +22 shield. You wouldn't believe how much this helps with skillups.)
 * Lvl 70 Ritter Gorget DEF: 8 HP +25 Evasion +5 Enmity +3 (Obtained via 15 000 Ampoules of Therion Ichor - Amazing for HP and Enmity build while PLD/NIN)
 * Lvl 72 Harmonia's Torque (Vit -5 Enmity +3 - The VIT loss is nothing compared to the enmity gain - use it /nin)
 * lvl 73 Fortitude Torque (VIT +5 & Sword skill +7, very nice for end-game DDing, useless for tanking.)

Rings

 * lvl 10 Astral Ring (1 is good for Elvaan/Galka PLD)
 * lvl 14 Amber Ring or Stamina Ring (HQ1 version) or Stamina Ring +1 (HQ2 version)
 * lvl 30 Sattva Ring (As a CoP ring, this will last you all the way up to endgame.)
 * lvl 36 Sphene Ring or Verve Ring (HQ1 version) or Verve Ring +1 (HQ2 version)
 * lvl 40 Ether Ring (Cheap replace for Astral Ring)
 * lvl 43 Mermaid's Ring for Enmity +2
 * lvl 50 Unyielding Ring (The defense, DEX+, and Resist Charm make this ring better overall than Vigor Ring. However please do not use this at 75, there are much better rings that you should have at that point.)
 * lvl 50 Phalanx Ring (Only if you have an abundance of VIT, otherwise keep your second Verve Ring until 54.)
 * lvl 54 Chrysoberyl Ring or Vigor Ring (HQ1 version) or Vigor Ring +1 (HQ2 version)
 * lvl 57 Bomb Queen Ring (+75 HP great for HP build)
 * lvl 63 Jelly Ring
 * lvl 66 Hercules' Ring Mainly for the Enmity - Latent Effect is activated by HP below 50%. +3HP and +1MP every 3 sec (stacks with Auto-Refresh for a total of +2MP per tick).
 * lvl 70 Defending Ring (Good luck)
 * lvl 72 Topaz Ring or Robust Ring (HQ1 version) or Robust Ring +1 (HQ2 version)(Please do not use these)
 * lvl 74 Soil Ring (Please do not use these)
 * Lvl 75 Shadow Ring Wonderful ring for tanking anything that casts

Earring

 * lvl 10 Onyx Earring or Energy Earring +1 recomended
 * lvl 10 Optical Earring (easy NM, 100% drop)
 * Lvl 21 Beetle Earring(+1 recomended. PLD doesn't really evade anyway)
 * Lvl 29 Dodge Earring
 * Lvl 30 Mercenary's Earring (One of the best earrings for PLD when leveling.)
 * Lvl 32 Bloodbead Earring
 * Lvl 33 Pigeon Earring (Really only useful for endgame where +HP matters)
 * Lvl 35 Wing Earring or Drone Earring (AGI can have an impact on Shield and Parry Rate.)
 * Lvl 35 Buckler Earring (A good match with Mercenary's earring for untill you get Knights or Ethereal.)
 * Lvl 50 Insomnia Earring/Antivenom Earring (Good for MP/Resist/+1MP recovered while healing)
 * Lvl 54 Hospitaler Earring (Macro in for Cures if anything. Still isn't very useful.)
 * Lvl 55 Feyuh's Earring (Mithra only; can replace or pair with the Mercenary's Earring for Mithra, as it's STR+1 VIT+2.)
 * Lvl 59 Knightly Earring
 * Lvl 72 Ethereal Earring (Converts 3% damage to MP. No arguments, the BEST earring for PLD in the game.)
 * One of the following from Divine Might:
 * (see Talk:Paladin:_Guide_to_Weapons_and_Armor for discussion)
 * Lvl 72 Knight's Earring (+5 Shield Skill, +5 Divine Magic Skill, +2 VIT)
 * Lvl 72 Suppanomimi (+5 Sword Skill, enhanced Dual Wield, +2 AGI)

Melee Defense Foods

 * Under 90 Base Defense: Boiled Crayfish
 * 91-190 Base Defense: Boiled Crab or Steamed Crab
 * 191-260 Base Defense: Steamed Crab
 * 261-280 Base Defense: Nebimonite Bake or Fish Mithkabob or Fish Chiefkabob
 * 281-360 Base Defense: Fish Mithkabob or Fish Chiefkabob or Shallops Tropicale or Seafood Stew
 * 361-380 Base Defense: Fish Chiefkabob or Seafood Stew or Shallops Tropicale
 * 381-400 Base Defense: Seafood Stew or Shallops Tropicale
 * 401-480 Base Defense: Seafood Stew or Tavnazian Salad or Tavnazian Taco
 * Over 481 Base Defense: Tavnazian Salad or Tavnazian Taco or Black Curry

Gearing a PLD/NIN
While situational, a Paladin subbing Ninja can be one of the most effective tanks in the game. Mostly used for Grand Wyrms and Cerberus, a PLD/NIN focuses on Haste and enmity gear to get Utsusemi and Flash recasts down as low as possible to compensate for the lack of provoke. It takes an experienced player with good gear and a good grasp of how shadows work to pull it off, but i