Paladin/Dark Knight Discussion

So, I'm curious as to why everyone chooses the transformation they do. Is it because you prefer the way one looks over the other? Is it because the alignment of Pally/DK more closely relates to your vision of your character? Do you prefer some of the skills one has to the other?

At one point in time there really was no difference between Paladin and Dark Knight. Because of the Defense/Attack and Magic Attack caps, both were roughly the same. However, form two brought along major changes to the class trees, as well as the uncapping of Def/Att/MAttk. Now, although Dark Knight has a more easy to see advantage over doing damage, while a Paladin will take a lot less damage, it's form two that really creates the schism between the roles. The Paladin skill, Conviction, does very little damage (compared to Fissure) and the shield does not last more than 1-2 boss hits on average. Fissure, on the other hand, does a TON of damage and causes knock back or knock down regularly. Of the other differences of Paladin and Dark Knight, there are few, the only one really being the Aura skill. The Paladin Aura is great, though very, very small. It's only really noticeable when leveled up to at least rank 3 and being used with Fatigue rank 3 (SP regeneration +90%). The Dark Knight aura is alright, it gives a generous stamina boost to the entire party which is great for bosses where aggressive playing is fine (Lower level bosses, polar bear raids) but loses it's edge where tactical playing is involved (For example, bosses you can only poke at due to their large skill hitboxes or range. Irukul comes to mind.) The SP regeneration Aura does not have this disadvantage because it benefits both type of boss fights, passive or aggressive.

Now, for me, choosing Paladin on both my characters was a simple choice. I much prefer the look of it, and in general, my characters seem like, to me, characters that would align themselves with lawful good, not chaotic good. I understand that Dark Knight is a much better choice for Evie due to it's raw damage ability and Fissure, but do I regret my choice? Not really. Either way you slice it, both are good, with Dark Knight being the clear winner when it comes to benefiting skilled players.

On my Fiona however, I feel Paladin was a much better choice. Why? It's quite simple. Even without being transformed, bosses that Fiona heavy stands give massive amounts of SP when using a large shield, (Examples: Cold Imich, Irukul, Weeping Queen...) and bosses that she counters with her small shield, also give generous amounts. Transformed with +90% Sp regen, that gives about a full section of SP after heavy standing/countering a full boss combo. With the additional SP Aura, there's a constant flow of SP to Fiona, and the result is just beautiful. Not only that, Fiona's paladin transformation is sexy. Just watch the beginning of this video ( Click Here). See that spin? Ohhh yeah.

So what's your opinion of Pally/DK? Which do you like better, which do you use?