Cryptic's Guide to the Pathfinder Paladin: Being a God's Wrecking Hammer
A note about style: First many thanks to Treantmonk, whose style I straight up robbed. Also thanks to my gaming crews present and past, especially for not stoning me when I play a paladin. Seriously, I know that it can suck the be in a party with one.
Color Coding the Guide:
In this guide I will be Color Coding your various options to provide my opinion on each of these options.
Red: Warning. This is a poor option and should be avoided.
Orange: This is an OK option. I'm not recommending it, but it's not bad.
Green: I recommend this option. It is a strong choice.
Blue: A must have. Your best possible option.
Paladin Roles:
The Face:
You have a decent Charisma, and Diplomacy and Sense Motive are on your class skill list. You can get Intimidate or Bluff from traits, though the latter is a harder fit. More to the point, you have a reputation to uphold (given that you lose class features if you violate your code of conduct) and Detect Evil. You lose out on the ability to wheel and deal with evil creatures, but you are trustworthy.
The Tank:
You have a d10 hit dice, you have Heavy armor, you have great saves, smiting boosts AC, and you are penalized less than other classes for carrying a shield (as less of your damage comes from strength and more of it comes from smiting). Add to this your ability to heal yourself as a swift action, finally a decent in combat heal before level 11, and you have all the makings of the hard target. That said, PCs should never be the party's punching bag of choice which is why druids (and some clerics) have animal companions, more than a third of the classes in the game can summon, and full casters can bind up foes from afar or debuff them to the point where their paltry attacks don't matter.
The Smiter
Paladins really toss out the damage against specific foes. Double smite damage against undead, evil outsiders, and evil dragons really stacks up. Also consider that the tough varieties of these foes typically have a couple decent lines of defense - AC, SR, DR, and spell like abilities. Smite helps against AC and bypasses DR...paladin is THE mellee class that doesn't have to worry about DR or get hosed by it at high levels.
Race
The Paladin can choose a couple different combat styles and the benefits of race depend on which you choose:
Dwarf: The penalty to Cha is tough to overlook. The speed penalty is meaningless because you probably want heavy armor. Darkvision is good, the random bonuses against low level monsters are ok.
Elf: Dex is ok if you want to be shooting a bow and for TWF users who need to hit 15 Dex, but a penalty to Con and no bonus to the big two stats...Str and Cha isn't so hot. The other bonuses don't really help, unlike the other mellee classes enchantments aren't quite as nasty, perception isn't your boathouse, and you needn't beat SR.
Human: You need 2 feats at 1st level for both the Shield TWF'er and for a bow user. Paladins are pretty feat poor so this is a great choice. You skill list isn't shabby and the extra skill point helps. The flexible +2 is equally good.
Half-Elf: Just like a human, but your feat has to be skill focus...that wouldn't be my first choice of feats.
Half Orc: Darkvision and ferocity are pretty darn good. Those I might trade for a feat.
Halflings: You get good archer paladin stats. Being small with the strength penalty trades +1 to hit and to AC for a -1 damage...which is a pretty decent trade. For the archer paladin, Halfling is a pretty good choice, for mellee the trade is not so good. Also depends very strongly on access to equipment. RAW you get hosed on equipment because so little small equipment is laying around. If your DM is mindful of this or bends the rules to let armor and especially weapons work for small PCs, go for it. Also small characters can ride medium mounts inside dungeons. If you want to go mounted, halfling and gnome make good choices.
Gnomes: Same as above. Though Con is better than Dex for mellee characters. Here a mellee character with a str penalty and small size gets +1 AC no change in to hit and -1 damage. Really depends on equipment and if you plan on being mounted.
Divine Bond:
Weapon Bond: The upside is that your weapon bond is very strong either ensuring that your weapon is maxed out on enhancement bonuses, increasing your crit range (those are your first two priorities) or adding extra attacks or extra damage at high level. The downside is the standard action cast time and that you cannot use it on your second weapon if you TWF. The ability is extremely flexible and when combined with smiting really pumps up your to hit modifier at mid level. Note: the ability seems to stack with Greater Magic Weapon.
Mount : The rating of this ability is determined by two factors: 1) Do you need a mount for Mounted Combat? 2) Does your DM allow you to choose creatures that are on the Druid Animal Companion list but not explicitly included on the paladin list? If your answer to either of the above is yes, the Mount is a better choice.
If you are considering the Mount as an option, also consider playing a small race. Small creatures can ride medium mounts which have the benefits of better fitting within the dungeon environment. The squeeze rules are quite harsh and because a lance is a reach weapon you will need at least 20' of width to Ride By Attack if you are Medium and riding a Large creature.
Also be aware that unlike in 3.5, your mount is no longer summoned at will and sent back into the ether (the so called poke-mount) it can be summoned to you but not sent into the ether. That means any space a horse (or dog or camel) cannot fit through or cannot logically pass (like climbing up a rope) leaves it stuck there until you summon it to the next place.
Finally, before you choose, be aware of several potential concerns with the mount option. Your mount has an Int of 6, it shouldn't need war training because it is intelligent (confirmed by James Jacob in Paizo Chat). A character with a Mount unlike an Animal Companion really gets screwed if the animal dies. It takes 30 days for the paladin to get a new Mount. That is a long time to be without a mount. In that time, you would be forced to rely upon an actual, backup horse, the Mount spell, or the Phantom Steed spell. At mid to high level, those are one shot kills - leaving you, yet again without a mount.
Large Listed Mounts: Horse has a better AC than camel and more attacks. The spit feature on the camel is decent, but I would prefer the attacks.
Medium Listed Mounts: Boar has the best AC and will probably do more damage on its one attack than a pony (next best choice) does on two because of better die and Strength.
Other Special Abilities:
Smite Evil: Yes, you will be smiting evil....Evil, consider yourself smited.
Detect Evil: For when you need to know if you can smite, now conveniently in a new move action formulation.
Lay On Hands: This ability is excellent mostly because it is one of the best in combat heals in the game. Swift action self healing is part of what makes the paladin shine.
Mercy: I recommend Sickened, Dazed, Nauseated, Stunned, Blinded, then Diseased (in that order) but this really depends on what you are likely to be facing.
Channel: The Cleric is better than you at this. Only use before you lack access to a wand of Cure Light or other similar magic. Not to be greedy, but if you tank you can freely reserve the healing for its in-combat use.
Aura of Courage: Situational to be sure, but allies will love the bonus and you will love one less way to get screwed.
Aura of Resolve: Nobody likes being told what to do.
Aura of Justice: If you have multiple allies in mellee combat or decent (smaller) summons in the party this ability is pretty awesome.
Aura of Faith: Saves some align weapon castings.
Aura of Righteousness: Nobody likes being told what to do, part 2. Now with DR.
Holy Champion: More DR. Plus you can banish evil outsiders. Most importantly...maxed out Lay on hands
Specialization, How do you Take your Smite:
Lancer: Knight in shining armor astride his mighty stallion may be the most traditional hero in fantasy.
This option is OK for Medium races and Recommended for Small Races.
The Lancer focuses on using his mobility to ensure that he gets Spirited Charge attacks while enemies must charge for lesser damage. The best way of building this character is to have a small character atop a medium mount. You will be more mobile and considerably less likely to get bottlenecked. Most importantly you can get your mount through the door.
Tactically you must remember that you must always charge in a straight line and that you have reach with a lance. Your best option is to charge just inside your range and just outside of the 5' reach of medium creatures in a line along side the creature. Even against creatures with reach you do not provoke, however they are better at cutting off your attack angles.
Remember that just because you can cover a lot of ground, (double your mount's speed) doesn't mean that your should. You will often miss key buffs by staying outside of the usual 30' buff range.
Also, your mount can be tough, but he isn't invincible and losing him will be a significant disadvantage.
Stats: 10 Point Buy Str 16, Con 12, Dex 9, Wis 7, Int 7, Cha 15
15 point Buy Str 16, Con 14, Dex 11, Wis 7, Int 7, Cha 15
20 Point Buy Str 16, Con 14, Dex 11, Wis 7, Int 8, Cha 16
25 Point Buy Str 16, Con 16, Dex 11, Wis 7, Int 8, Cha 16
Feats: Required Feats (1) Mounted Combat, (3) Ride By Attack, (5) Spirited Charge
Bond: Mount
Pros: You get a bunch of damage based one high to hit modifier attack. Also, you benefit from reach and being quite difficult to get to. Also, least ability score dependent.
Cons: Terrain can really hose you, especially if you are not small. If your mount dies, you must wait 30 days.
Archer: A damage machine, you probably get off more full attacks than comparable characters and really max out smite damage.
This option is new to Pathfinder and is extremely effective. Ranged weapons have several advantages: you get many attacks with one weapon which reduces equipment costs and drastically increases damage, you can get more full attacks off than mellee characters because you don't need to close in to mellee range, and you can better manage terrain (like flying creatures and broken ground). The downside is that against foes with reach you may be forced to decided between giving up full attacks and eating AoOs this is especially true because of the Acrobatics nerf which punishes characters in medium or heavy armor. One way to mitigate this loss is to give a serious look at Mounted Archery. The mount gives considerable mobility because it is fast and can move you without you spending an action. With mounted archery your penalty to hit is minimal even on a double move. If your DM allows for flying mounts you are even more capable of staying out of AoO range.
Tactically archers are simple. 1) Whenever possible, full attack. 2) Using Rapid Shot is better than not using Rapid Shot in nearly ever case (on some AC values it breaks even). See Deadly Aim in the feat section for further advice.
Stats: 10 Point Buy Str 12, Con 12, Dex 15, Wis 7, Int 7, Cha 15
15 point Buy Str 12, Con 12, Dex 16, Wis 7, Int 8, Cha 15
20 Point Buy Str 14, Con 13, Dex 16, Wis 7, Int 7, Cha 16
25 Point Buy Str 14, Con 14, Dex 17, Wis 7, Int 7, Cha 16
Feats: Required Feats (1) Point Blank Shot, (3) Precise Shot
Bond: Mount if you are Small, Weapon if Not
Pros: Maximizing smite damage as a paladin is all about increasing the number of attacks while keeping the to hit modifier high. The archer gets the most attacks at the least penalty. Also, this build may work best in low magic campaigns. Unlike the TWF paladin, you only need one weapon. Unlike the Lancer, you don't need to tank out your mount to avoid a month of sucking. Your non-smite combat skills are pretty good.
Cons: The archer is more ability score reliant than they Lancer as you need Dex. That said, you probably won't be tanking as many hits so Con drops in priority. Also, if your group needs a tank, you make not be as good a choice as other paladins because you don't have a shield and you may have lower Con. Also, in tight quarters or against monsters with reach and speed you are at a disadvantage.
Sword and Board, TWF: You get it all: a shield for defense, lots of attacks, and good damage output.
Stats: 10 Point Buy Str 12, Con 12, Dex 15, Wis 7, Int 7, Cha 15
15 point Buy Str 16, Con 11, Dex 15, Wis 7, Int 7, Cha 14
20 Point Buy Str 16, Con 12, Dex 15, Wis 7, Int 8, Cha 15
25 Point Buy Str 16, Con 13, Dex 16, Wis 7, Int 7, Cha 16
Feats: Required Feats (1) Two Weapon Fighting, (3) Improved Shield Bash, (5) Double Slice are your starting feats.
Bond: Weapon Bond
Pros: You follow two fundamental rules. If you must be in mellee range 1) have a decent AC and 2) make it hurt your opponent more than it hurts you. Note, you could TWF with a second actual weapon and if you have access to non-core feats it may be best to do so, within the core rules...a shield is a heap AC boost and your damage is not coming from damage die so the trade off between 1d4 and 1d8 is negligible.
Cons: You need Dex and you are going to have to take a hit to Cha or Con to get it. You need a crafter or a DM who gives creatures enchanted spiked shields because you are definitely going to want a magical weapon in both hands, in any case it is a cash outflow. You are going to be in mellee range of monsters more than the above two options, that is mitigated by your AC and self-healing ability.
Two Weapon TWF: Probably the best damage output. But has less defense than Sword and Board TWF.
Stats: 10 Point Buy Str 12, Con 12, Dex 15, Wis 7, Int 7, Cha 15
15 point Buy Str 16, Con 11, Dex 15, Wis 7, Int 7, Cha 14
20 Point Buy Str 16, Con 12, Dex 15, Wis 7, Int 8, Cha 15
25 Point Buy Str 16, Con 13, Dex 16, Wis 7, Int 7, Cha 16
Feats: Required Feats (1) Two Weapon Fighting, (3) Double Slice, (5) Weapon Focus (Kukri)
Bond: Weapon Bond
Pros: You have perhaps the best damage output of any paladin (if you take high crit range weapons).
Cons: You need Dex and you are going to have to take a hit to Cha or Con to get it. Compared to a Sword and Board TWF'er you trade an offensive gain (high crit offhand) for a pretty significant AC loss. TWF depends on mellee range full attacks, which means the monster can usually reply in kind. I would prefer the AC boost. Moreover, if you don't have a high crit weapon in your offhand and you are losing the (scaling) AC for an increase in damage die, the trade is really quite awful and gets worse at every level.
Sword and Board, Defensive: You swing that sword and keep that shield around for its defense not as an odd little weapon.
Stats: 10 Point Buy Str 16, Con 12, Dex 9, Wis 7, Int 7, Cha 15
15 point Buy Str 16, Con 14, Dex 11, Wis 7, Int 7, Cha 15
20 Point Buy Str 16, Con 14, Dex 11, Wis 7, Int 8, Cha 16
25 Point Buy Str 16, Con 16, Dex 11, Wis 7, Int 8, Cha 16
Feats: Required Feats (1) Weapon Focus Scimitar, (3) Tower Shield Proficiency, (5) Power Attack
Bond: Weapon Bond
Pros: You are far less reliant on good ability scores. You can use really common equipment. You can get a lot of the controlling feats like Stand Still, Step up and Combat Maneuvers because your base build requires fewer feats. Also, you can rock a great AC.
Cons: If you want a good AC and the ability to use combat maneuvers a fighter does this job better. He needs fewer good ability scorers and gets more feats than you do. Smite damage maximization is about attacks and you don't get that many. Sword and Board for defense is already a poor option, the paladin really isn't the home for this build.
One Big Weapon: You hit hard. You hit evil things especially hard. You hit extra evil things extra especially hard.
Stats: 10 Point Buy Str 16, Con 12, Dex 9, Wis 7, Int 7, Cha 15
15 point Buy Str 16, Con 14, Dex 11, Wis 7, Int 7, Cha 15
20 Point Buy Str 16, Con 14, Dex 11, Wis 7, Int 8, Cha 16
25 Point Buy Str 16, Con 16, Dex 11, Wis 7, Int 8, Cha 16
Feats: Required Feats (1) Power Attack, (3) Weapon Focus Falchion
Bond: Weapon Bond
Pros: You get a little more Power attack damage and 2d6 vs 1d8 damage over the sword and board guy above. You have the fewest items needs out of all the options and really use Weapon Bond efficiently. You can afford fun feats that other paladin builds either defer or cannot get. You can get by better with a low point buy. You maintain good damage when not smiting.
Cons: Your AC sucks and you are standing next to the monsters. That said, you have a good HP pool and can heal yourself as a swift action.
When to Smite:
Smiting has changed hugely since 3.5 and all for the better (though I would like the Extra Smite feat to be added). Smite gives a couple of discrete bonuses:
General note: There is a clear trade off between smiting glass cannon type monsters (those whose offensive output is greater than their defensive staying power) and smiting more balanced and defensively built monsters. Against the former your smite removes a significant danger faster. Against the latter you will often be more effective than your party members and you may feel more effective because your total damage for the evening may be higher (since you are going to be smiting longer). I tend to think that the former are the better smite targets. Firstly, quick death in D&D is harder to stave off than slow death - creatures that can kill you in a round (like casters) often cannot be simply addressed by good tactics, while mellee types often can be. Secondly, creatures are binary in the sense that, until they are dead, they do full damage. Thirdly, creatures that are more defensively built vis-a-vi your skill set (like high AC and HP) are often not so hard for the other members of your party to deal with (i.e. low Will save). Lastly, D&D rewards you for surviving (you get XP and keep playing) not for winning the total damage output contest.
Rule 1: Don't waste smites on things that are not evil. You have Detect Evil, if your party/Dm is of the "talking before the combat" variety use good sense and Detect Evil to determine who should be your target. A few obvious notes: dragons come color coded, undead and demons generally look the part, clerics of evil gods often flaunt it with their unholy symbols, chances are the guy with the pointy hat and the legion of undead might be a good target, anything that smells like sulphur deserves at least a good long look, and for every set of twins on must be evil - my best guess is the one with the goatee, but your milage may vary.
Low Level (1-4):
I would strongly advise saving your smite for targets that represent significant survival threats either because of a high attack bonus or because of a special ability (like SR and especially DR) that allows them to hurt the party when the party cannot hurt them.
Any monster you can kill or reduce to so few hit points that someone else can kill them before the monster's next turn if and only if they 1) impose a nasty status condition you cannot remove, 2) they can significantly harm the party directly or indirectly because of their access to area effects (using things like web or entangle or fireball) and the other creatures/terrain. Note that this is most often the case for various types of undead. Against undead get tons of extra damage and they have no Con. However, if chances are it will die without you smiting, this is a poor choice.
If the rest of the party has been subject to a save or suck. You have good saves. More to the point, you probably have the best save modifiers against Fort in the party and are probably close behind the divine caster on Will the two saves that resist save or suck spells. You also get a list of immunities starting at level 3. Those factors mean that chances are sometimes you will be one of few characters who saved. If so, end the fight and end it quickly.
Mid Level (5-10):
You have 2-4 uses of smite and that gives you more flexibility than you had at low levels. I would recommend keeping at least one smite as a reserve for the situations listed above. But for the rest of them:
Against single monsters that represent a reasonable challenge, smite them if you get double smite damage.
Smite things with significant DR. DR 5 isn't so bad; DR 10 can be kind of tough for TWF and is nasty against Defensive Sword and Shield; DR 15 is just asking to be smited.
High level (11-20):
You have about as many smites as you will have encounters, maybe more. The real question is when not to smite. Don't smite creatures whose damage is so low that it can be healed out of combat without expending significant resources. Don't smite things that will die anyway if their death doesn't require a significant resource outlay.
What to do when you are not Smiting:
Diplomacy: Chances are sometimes you want to be the party face, this is your chance to shine.
Ride: If you use Mounted Combat, then you want this maxed out. If you don't have a mount obviously this is low priority.
Knowledge (Religion): One of the better knowledges, but honestly, what do you need to know about evil clerics and undead other than how many smites you have left today.
Sense Motive: The downside of being a paladin is you can't lie. Sense Motive is taking the lying ball and going home; you can't play so nobody can.
Spellcraft: If you plan on knowing what is cast on you or crafting you need this.
Use Magical Device: If you have the Dangerously Curious Trait this is a class skill, regardless it can be fun.
If you have more than 14 (12 if human) Int look for traits that give you a class skill. UMD and Intimidate are good choices. If for some reason you are a dwarf, you can get Perception as a class skill with Militant Merchant and Perception is a great skill.
Favored Class: Paladin.
I am a big fan of hit points, they are the default option because a living character does a whole lot more than a dead one. That said, I recommended low Int for every build because these builds are optimized for combat. Some of those builds are more or less forced to spend the 1 skill point per level a non-human with an 8 or lower Int gets on Ride and might want something to do out of combat. If that is the case, you might need to spend your favored class bonus on the skill point. Just be glad you don't need Wisdom for spells in Pathfinder.
Equipment Choices:
Weapons: Smite gets multiplied on a crit. Smite is a significant factor in determining damage output. Die size (e.g. 1d6 v 1d8) really isn't very significant. Given a choice of weapons, the best option is usually the one with the highest crit chance. For the Sword and Shield TWF and the Sword and Shield Defensive build, the best option is the Scimitar. For the Two Handed Weapon Fighter, the best weapon is the Falchion (Elven Curved Blade is ok, I personally would NOT trade a feat for an average increase of .5 damage, but it does have a high crit range). If you go TWF with two weapons, the best combination is either Kukri/Kukri (light, high crit weapons in both hands) or Scimitar/Kukri. The former benefits more from feats like Improved Crit and Weapon Focus (as you only need to take them once). The latter is (marginally) better if one does not have those feats.
More to come....
Feat Choices:
Channel Smite: Kind of like Smite Evil's younger cousin. The question is when you would use it because it takes away your third most precious expendable resource (first is smite, second is HP, 3rd are LoH usages). If you are smiting anyway, the damage doesn't seem that much of an improvement (1.75*level) on one attack. Ranged characters (who probably have extra LoHs to spare) can't use it. Two handed weapon users would get the most out of it (best chance to hit and fewer attacks) but have fewer LoH's to spare because of their low AC. It is probably best for a defensively built character with few attacks (no TWF) or a Lancer. The other stipulation is that it only works on undead. Unless your campaign is undead heavy (like Age of Worms) I would want more general use from a feat. More to the point, against the likes of the other feats I might choose at 5th+ level like Leadership or Improved Crit (you did choose a weapon with a big crit range right), I would probably not pick Channel Smite.
Deadly Aim: Like Power Attack but even better because you get it over more hits (and you probably have a smaller strength score contributing to base damage).
The use of this feat and its efficiency depends on numerous variables: how hard the monster is to hit, base damage, whether you are smiting, and level (which determines iterative attacks and the DA attack penalty). The following advice asks you to estimate the number you would need to roll to hit, counting rapid shot. So 19 means if you need to roll a 19 to hit with rapid shot.
Level Do not DA against when
1-3 17-19 either smiting or not smiting
4-5 17-19 not smiting
4-5 14-19 smiting
6-7 13-19 not smiting
6-7 10-19 smiting
8-12 12-19 not smiting
8-12 7-19 smiting
This model assumes pretty normal equipment and no extra damage bonuses like flaming. At higher level the calculation becomes much more difficult as it becomes more difficult to estimate average damage (because of wide variations is equipment). The general trend is that DA is best against low AC opponents and when your base damage is low. DA is a detriment against high AC opponents and when you have high damage before DA (an example of which is smiting). It is always good when you have to roll a 20 to hit.
Extra Lay on Hands: This gives a couple more usages of a powerful core class ability. Consider this feat if: 1) Your build isn't feat starved for example: the Lancer after level 5 or so or the Defensive build AND 2) You are routinely in need of in combat healing AND 3) Someone else healing you isn't a better option. I would rate this feat better than toughness (this gives 3.5 hp/level in healing while toughness gives 1hp/lvl in max hp).
Extra Channel: If you are seriously giving this feat though, please, please consider Craft Wand. Channeling uses up lots of LoHs or this feat. It takes an action, unlike healing yourself. Even worse, unless you take selective channeling you heal the bad guys. That means that for the most part, you are using it out of combat. Taking Craft Wand lets you make a wand of Cure Light Wounds every 1-4 days. That wand has 275 hp of healing in it. Unless the whole party is injured after every fight, the healing from the wand is better or close from level 5-12 or so. The gold used to make the wand is pocket change. More to the point, out of combat healing really is a secondary or tertiary job of the paladin. You already have to put of decent damage and take hits. Unless your healer is slacking, I wouldn't reccomend this feat.
Extra Mercy: As I have said a couple times above, I think Lay on Hands is best used for in combat, self healing. Its side use to get rid of status conditions is a nice add on. If you are constantly getting hit with a specific status effect choose it as your next mercy or mitigate against it by improving your saves with equipment or just wait until you start facing different monsters. This feat sucks and sucks hard.
Improved Crit: Great for anyone but the Lancer and Archer, and it is decent for them. Critical hits are dramatic boosts in damage especially when smiting. This is why I recommend high crit range weapons and improved Crit. You can get keen with Weapon Bond or as an actual weapon enchantment. The downside is that those do not stack with Bless Weapon which is a pretty good damage boost.
Power Attack: Much better at higher levels and best for Lancer and 2H weapon users. Not as big of a boost for Sword and Board defensive characters, but honestly they need any damage boost they can get.
Shield Slam: This feat is really more useful for the trip moreso than the bullrush. Most of the time you want to monster close to you. My decision would depend on two main things monster size and fight locale. The feat is best against smaller foes and against those fighting in close quarters.
Step Up: This feat removes the option casters have to take a 5' step and cast, forcing them to make a choice between a somewhat difficult Concentration check to cast or to eat an AoO for actual movement or to try and use Acrobatics (I am sure that incentivizing wizards to take Acrobatics is an unintended consequence of the new Concentration rules and a hilarious one). The feat scales oddly (it is better at first level when casters have low ability scores and worse at high levels when they have high ability scores) and against some foes it is almost worthless (high level casters who have Combat Casting...which is kind of an NPC feat...so many NPCs).
Toughness: I prefer Extra Lay on Hands for reasons discussed above. That said, toughness isn't an awful feat if you can spare one.
Weapon Focus: This feat works well for most builds, Lancers, 2H weapon users and and those fighting with matched Kurkris get the most benefit.
Critical feats:
Bleeding Critical: It only works after level 11 (the BAB requirement) and against things that do not heal. I would wait for Staggering Critical. Against casters, the hit point damage over time mechanic is probably weak - either they can heal or they have few hit points. Against mellee creatures, stagger is better.
Blinding Critical: A solid effect, and the save is pretty competitive. Critical feats already only trigger on a crit, I want more reliability. This is especially true if my weapon isn't high crit. I prefer the critical feats that apply a nasty condition even when you save. YMMV.
Staggering Critical: Not sexy, but pure gold. It prevents mellee baddies from getting full attacks and everyone else from running away. The automatic 1 round of stagger is great. Combine with tripping for hilarious consequences (and by tripping I mean Shield Slam when adjacent to a wall). I might even consider taking a second critical feat to use when the monster fails its save and will remain staggered.
Stunning Critical - Like Staggering Critical but even better. If you have at least one high crit range weapon, this feat rocks. At worst, you stagger a foe for 1d4 rounds.
Non-Core Feats:
Iomedaen Sword Oath - Two feats (this and weapon specialization) to get +2 damage AND a nasty atonement requirement. Easily the worst feat ever.
Indomitable Mount - A mounted paladin has a very visible weak point (his mount) and this makes it a little tougher.
Mounted Blade - This feat allows an extra attack on a mounted charge. After Spirited Charge this may be the next critical mounted feat. It is a regional feat however.
Wheeling Charge - Being able to turn while using ride by Attack and Spirited Charge is nice. It does keep you from getting
Spells:
Level 1: Mostly this is an exercise in what stacks.
Bless: This is better cast by a cleric. Note however, that Bardic Music is no longer morale based so it will stack with that.
Bless Water: You have better things to do to undead than 2d4 damage.
Bless Weapon: At High level (9+, after you pick up Improved Crit), this will make all of your threats crits which is probably the best damage output for any 1st level spell in the game. At lower levels it gives the Align Weapon effect at a lower spell level than the comparable cleric spell. Doesn't stack with keen from Weapon Bond.
Create Water: This is a cantrip for full divine casters, if you need water let them make it.
Cure Light Wounds: Your caster level is woefully low and you can't swap in and out like a cleric.
Detect Poison: Very situational, and you don't have the skills to do the fun detective work that might be the follow up to using this spell.
Detect Undead: I am not a huge fan of this spell. Undead are not usually very hidden. Additionally because the Zombie and Skeleton have so many HD per CR your chances of getting stunned if you encounter an appropriate challenge are pretty high. If you do face vampires, liches and more sneaky undead this may have some use.
Divine Favor: Doesn't last long but if you can get it off without blowing a round in which you could attack, it is worth it.
Endure Elements: Luckily this spell lasts 24 hours so you will often know if you need it when you prepare spells.
Magic Weapon: By level 4 you should have an actual magic weapon. May be useful if you TWF.
Protection From Evil/Chaos: Doesn't stack with your AC bonus from smiting. It does prevent you from being mellee attacked by summoned monsters.
Read Magic: This is a cantrip if the party needs scrolls read, the paldin isn't the first choice.
Resistance: Not a huge bonus,
Restoration, Lesser: Getting rid of status conditions is partof the paladin theme and it is a lower level spell for you than it is for other casters. Grab it if they don't.
Virtue: Temporary hit points are excellent (notice the plural there). Also, it's a cantrip for everyone but you.
Level 2: Getting better and fewer stacking issues
Bull's Strength: Subject gains +4 to Str for 1 min./level.
Delay Poison: Your caster level is low and this is a spell you get at 7th level that everyone else got a 3rd. That said getting rid of conditions is your thing so maybe. Additionally poison is sometimes pretty harsh for low Fort characters so any chance to help them out may be desirable.
Eagle's Splendor: Decent if you have time to cast out of combat.
Owl's Wisdom: A Bonus to will saves...bleh. Paladin's don't need wisdom anymore.
Remove Paralysis: Not my first choice, but you have a great fort save (probably best in the game and if you suspect paralysis monsters...I guess this works.
Resist Energy: This is a good spell, with a long duration, that scales. If nothing else it works pretty well to let casters use energy AoE spells over the top of you. That said, it is so good and on so many spell lists, someone else probably has it. Grab it if they don't.
Shield Other: Can be useful situationally or to protect especially important NPCs.
Undetectable Alignment: Sometimes you don't want the whole world to know you aren't mister goody two shoes.
Zone of Truth: Don't cast spells with saves
Level 3: Much better choices
Cure Moderate Wounds: Get a wand if you need out of combat healing.
Daylight: Light is a cantrip, and dispelling darkness is a wizard's job.
Discern Lies: No spells with saves
Dispel Magic: Your caster level is low. But this can be situationally useful.
Heal Mount: If you have a mount this will be your 3rd level spell(s)
Magic Circle against Chaos/Evil: Still doesn't stack but at least you help your allies. This is a much better spell for a cleric to have. If you don't have a cleric pick it up.
Magic Weapon, Greater: Your 3rd level spell if you don't have a mount. This is rated high only for TWF builds. Your caster level lags, but any little bit helps.
Prayer: Much better for a cleric given your other choices at this level.
Remove Blindness/Deafness: Friends don't let friends stay blind. I would prefer to use the Mercy because I have more Lay on Hands than spells and because I can LoH myself as a swift action.
Remove Curse: Unless their curse is hilarious...or you used a cursed item to appropriately change their alignment.
Level 4: Mixed Bag, more stacking issues
Break Enchantment: See remove curse
Cure Serious Wounds: Um, you know you will heal more as a swift action right...
Death Ward: This keeps undead from hitting you with status afflictions. If the cleric is not casting this or you don't have a cleric, and there may be undead, this is a great choice.
Dispel Chaos: Against Chaotic but not evil creatures it might help your AC. If you need to dispel chaotic spells this works quite well.
Dispel Evil: The AC bonus doesn't stack with smite, useful only to dispel evil spells.
Holy Sword: Only useful on your offhand weapon and if that weapon is not +5.
Mark of Justice: No save and it is a means of punishing NPCs who bother you. Great spell for a face character, not a great combat spell.
Neutralize Poison: Situational
Restoration: Take it if nobody else has it. Otherwise just memorize it the next day. In general, Death Ward is a good way to prevent the need to use this spell.