History HonorBeforeReason / Webcomics

* In ''Webcomic/GameOverTalesCrouchingOstrichHiddenVulture'', the ninjas only have one purpose in life: to kill the "dragon rider"

* In the ''Webcomic/{{Noblesse}}'' manhwa, [[http://www.mangafox.com/manga/noblesse/v03/c189/27.html one of the noble vampires proceeds to cut himself because Frankenstein "unfairly received a wound.]]

** Except later, [[spoiler:Serini Toormuck]] calls the paladins out for their willingness to go to extremes rather than accept failing their oaths; spending your last moments desperately trying to protect the innocent is good and all, but when 'protection from evil' constitutes ''a mass-MercyKill that nobody chose'' or even knew about, and gates those not under your oath from getting a chance to succeed on their own terms (if it doesn't ''kill'' them) because your oath indirectly preserves the status quo and medieval stasis, it's probably best for everyone if the 'lawful' paladins are sometimes forced to sit down and stop enforcing the BalanceBetweenGoodAndEvil.

* In ''Webcomic/CastlevaniaRPG'', [[http://www.cvrpg.com/archive/comic/2009/03/25 Katrina has been harassing Shaft]] (one of Dracula's lieutenants), convinced his take over of a villiage is part of some master plan of villainy (he was elected mayor through no trickery on his part). In exasperation, Shaft removes the CatGirl curse he'd placed on her years ago, thinking that would shut her up. Instead, it made her angrier, since she was convinced she had to "earn" the curse's removal through good deeds and demanded Shaft ''re-curse her''. [[http://www.cvrpg.com/archive/comic/2009/03/26 He does]] - again, just to shut her up.

** [[KnightTemplar The Knights of La-Shoar]] have a strict policy on anything that goes against "Natural Law", policies that have become defacto law in their territory - at the top of that list is magic. ''Any'' magic, from healing magic to offensive spells to charmed items. Not only does this put their kingdom at a disadvantage (Every other major power makes open use of magic), but they know it. But refuse to change their ways at all.

** On the other hand, [[spoiler:this led to O-Chul being able to completely avoid compromising ANYTHING about the other gates.]] This is lampshaded by Redcloak, who remarks with frustration that it is absurd for generations of paladins to wilfully sabotage their own ability to perform their duties, all for a silly promise. A ([[LampshadeHanging literal]]) lampshade is then promptly hung around the lampshade itself.

** Honor and Reason go hand in hand when he takes on his current quest. He acts with Honor by fulfilling an ancient contract to save a village, fully knowing he may never be able to return home. He acts with equal Reason--it's his hometown, and if he turns this quest down, he ''will'' never be able to return home as his family is in the exact same predicament as everyone else. Even if he dies without completing his quest, [[MyDefenseNeedNotProtectMeForever his village is protected.]]

** Hell, as one of the few who are able to disobey orders, Keith tries to off himself from the crushing guilt. It should be noted that not every Eastern Basitin is happy about this urge and can deeply regret following questionable orders.

* In ''WebComic/DocRat'', this is ZigZagged during Ben and Daniella's mugging on the night he intended to proposed to her. Initially, [[https://crosstimecafe.com/speedreader/doc_rat.html#899 Danni is the one to say they should just surrender their belongings]] instead of fighting, primarily because their attackers were armed. Of course, per BondVillainStupidity, [[https://crosstimecafe.com/speedreader/doc_rat.html#900 that ended up all for naught]] and they had to fight anyway. By the end, [[https://crosstimecafe.com/speedreader/doc_rat.html#905 Danni wanted to kill them,]] and Ben became the voice of reason, insisting they wait for the police. This, of course, led them to find out the muggers were the same individuals who attacked Julian.

* ''Webcomic/TalesOfTheQuestor'' is filled with this trope and subversions, and just reading the comic would be faster than listing every case. Some noteworthy examples include [[spoiler:taking on a rat-king on his own with nearly suicidal results]], freeing a thief he believed would be punished remarkably severely, feeding said thief ''after'' she tried to steal from him, and being polite and friendly to humans he had little reason to trust. When Quentin reveals himself to the villagers to help fight the [[TheFairFolk evil Fey lord]], his honorable behavior he displayed at the farmer's home comes into play when that [[http://www.rhjunior.com/totq/00493.html farmer speaks up and tells the crowd that he trusts the Racoonan hero]]. Even more recently, attempting to draw the attention of said evil Fey lord to protect a bunch of humans earned him ThreeWishes.
** However, HonorBeforeReason is [[GoodIsNotNice nowhere to be found]] when he makes those three wishes. He -- as a narrator -- tells us that even one carefully-worded wish could ruin a fae. When he's done making his ''three'', the evil Fae Lord is utterly ''ruined''. Then again, perhaps he ''is'' showing honor -- by protecting the mortal realm by turning their nemesis into the fae version of a penniless vagabond, especially when he could have wished for all his grand quest items to allow him to return home in triumph.
*** It may not be immediately obvious, but most of his Honor Before Reason behavior is attributable to his own naïveté. [[spoiler:Taking on a rat-king alone was a matter of being in a hopeless scenario. If he ran, the shadow rats would have overwhelmed and devoured him anyway.]] He helped the thief in question less because of honor and more because he's a soft touch. As to wishing for the Fae Lord to retrieve all the quest items for him, that was a little bit above the Fae's pay grade (they're powerful, not omnipotent or omniscient). Phrasing the wishes just right to avoid a backlash would have required a platoon of lawyers, and even if the Fae had granted the wish he would still have been left with a very powerful and very ANGRY Fae Princeling ready to squash him like a bug. His three wishes were phrased so as to minimize the damage the Fae Princeling could cause. He is largely oblivious till after the fact what a perfect storm of bankruptcy his wishes have caused the Fae Lord in question.
** Honor and Reason go hand in hand when he takes on his current quest. He acts with Honor by fulfilling an ancient contract to save a village, fully knowing he may never be able to return home. He acts with equal Reason--it's his hometown, and if he turns this quest down, he ''will'' never be able to return home as his family is in the exact same predicament as everyone else. Even if he dies without completing his quest, [[MyDefenseNeedNotProtectMeForever his village is protected.]]
** And yet again, when he takes on the mission to kill a dragon that had been terrorizing the countryside. After the guardsmen sent to assist him [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere abandon him in the middle of the night]], he decides to press on... despite having little-to-no supplies and only Sam and a disgraced squire (with a possibly haunted suit of self-motivating magic armor) as back up. Though this time it's heavily implied that it's as much about Quentyn's ego as it is about keeping his word.
* In the ''Webcomic/{{Noblesse}}'' manhwa, [[http://www.mangafox.com/manga/noblesse/v03/c189/27.html one of the noble vampires proceeds to cut himself because Frankenstein "unfairly received a wound.]]
* ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick'': Lord Soon of the Sapphire Guard swore an oath of non-interference regarding the Snarl's Gates, other than his own. This was a good idea at the time, to prevent infighting from spoiling old friendships. However, ''all'' the paladins of the Guard still consider themselves bound by this oath, even though those to whom it was sworn are (probably) all dead, and seizing the Gates before the BigBad does is the key to saving the multiverse. Nevertheless, the oath takes precedence over the paladins' drive to oppose evil wherever it be found. This forces [[spoiler:Lord Shojo to get creative, and hire the title party to investigate the Gates instead. Ironically, at least one other Scribble member thought Soon would break his oath, and booby trapped the location he gave for his Gate in an act of spite. Double irony: he was the only one that didn't break it.]]
** On the other hand, [[spoiler:this led to O-Chul being able to completely avoid compromising ANYTHING about the other gates.]] This is lampshaded by Redcloak, who remarks with frustration that it is absurd for generations of paladins to wilfully sabotage their own ability to perform their duties, all for a silly promise. A ([[LampshadeHanging literal]]) lampshade is then promptly hung around the lampshade itself.
** No longer true. A leader of the paladins eventually offers to help the Order of the Stick in their quest, if only by covering one of the remaining gates when the main characters go to find the other. He explains that [[spoiler:with their Gate destroyed, the oaths that bound them are dissolved]].
** Durkon declares [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0084.html he and Hilgya must part]] because they must do their duty -- followed by ManlyTears.
*** [[spoiler: It is later revealed that Dwarves have to die "honorably" in order to avoid an Afterlife in Hel. This makes dwarf society as a whole often bound to Honor Before Reason as a default.]]
* The entirety of the qualified regulars (except for Paracule) in ''Webcomic/TowerOfGod'' one by one decide to help Bam and Rachel take the Guardian's test, even though they've known each other only for a month and expected to fight each other, and even though that specific test is harder than the usual course. Special mention goes to [[spoiler:Hatz, who is the most immediate and most vocal proponent of supporting Bam, and Khun, who by pretending to be against it riles most up to follow Hatz.]]
* ''Webcomic/{{Flipside}}'' has one ongoing example and one example that crosses over with RefusalOfTheCall.
** [[KnightTemplar The Knights of La-Shoar]] have a strict policy on anything that goes against "Natural Law", policies that have become defacto law in their territory - at the top of that list is magic. ''Any'' magic, from healing magic to offensive spells to charmed items. Not only does this put their kingdom at a disadvantage (Every other major power makes open use of magic), but they know it. But refuse to change their ways at all.
** LadyOfWar Bernadette jumped through every ridiculous hoop The Knights put up to test her "suitability" to be one of their numbers. They had to be sure she wasn't "cheating" or just getting lucky when challenging other knights. (As if her taking down an ArtifactOfDoom-wielding psycho who'd carved through their ranks wasn't proof enough.). This has been Bernadette's life dream. And just when the elder Knights formally ask Bernadette to join them... she turns them down. She chose to come out of the closet as Maytag's lover, rather than be forced to deny her as a knight. (Homosexuals ''also'' being against "Natural Law") Note that Bernadette and Maytag were very much on the down low before Bernadette's moment and Maytag would've been perfectly happy to keep it that way.
* In ''Webcomic/TwoKinds'', this trope is the Eastern Basitin [[PlanetOfHats hat]], to the point that they're biologically tuned to accept and obey orders, even clearly self-destructive ones. (Keith's ability to disobey is considered "proof" that he's "broken and unfit".)
** Hell, as one of the few who are able to disobey orders, Keith tries to off himself from the crushing guilt. It should be noted that not every Eastern Basitin is happy about this urge and can deeply regret following questionable orders.
* Villainous example: The Wizard's Apprentice in ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive''. He swore to his mentor and God that he would kill all of the [[GreenRocks Dewitchery Diamond]]'s spawn, which previously had all been monsters. Now that he's discovered that Ellen is not a monster but instead an OppositeSexClone who has done nothing wrong, well, he feels really bad about it, but he takes his oaths ''[[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2009-03-10 very]]'' seriously.

* Sir Muir in ''Webcomic/{{Harkovast}}'' pretty much personifies this trope.
* Big Ears from ''Webcomic/{{Goblins}}'' qualifies, as it is usual for paladins. He would throw himself "into the fires of hell" if he thinks it's the right thing to do, but fortunately he can be reasoned with by his companions.

* In ''Webcomic/GameOverTalesCrouchingOstrichHiddenVulture'', the ninjas only have one purpose in life: to kill the "dragon rider"

* Pete from ''WebComic/DarthsAndDroids'' is an unrepentant MinMaxing, [[RulesLawyer Rules Lawyering]] {{Munchkin}}, but the rules cut both ways for him. If it’s rules-as-written, he accepts it, even if it would be disastrous for the party or if he’s given a rules-bending out. This ends up [[spoiler:getting Chirrut killed; when he’s caught in a fuel line explosion, the DM offers to let him use his absurd dodge skill to escape, but [[LawfulStupid Pete rejects the offer because it would break the rules]].]]

** Durkon declares he and Hilgya must part because they must do their duty [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0084.html]] -- followed by ManlyTears.

* The entirety of the qualified regulars (except for Parakewl) in ''Webcomic/TowerOfGod'' one by one decide to help Baam and Lahel take the Guardian's test, even though they've known each other only for a month and expected to fight each other, and even though that specific test is harder than the usual course. Special mention goes to [[spoiler:Hatsu, who is the most immediate and most vocal proponent of supporting Baam, and Koon, who by pretending to be against it riles most up to follow Hatsu.]]

* In ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'', Equius refuses to take down the raging Gamzee, despite the fact that he could easily do so, saving both his own life and that of [[PlatonicLifePartners Nepeta]], purely because Gamzee is ranked higher in the trolls' FantasticCasteSystem

* In ''[[Recap/GameOverTalesCrouchingOstrichHiddenVulture Game Over Tales: Crouching Ostrich, Hidden Vulture]]''', the ninjas only have one purpose in life: to kill the "dragon rider"

* A variation in ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'': Maxim [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20100611 forces]] Old Man Death to choose between keeping the hat they are [[ItMakesSenseInContext fighting for possession of]], or damaging his reputation as a sandwich-maker. Old Man Death chooses to keep his reputation and lose the hat.

* In ''Webcomic/EightBitTheater'' White Mage's oath means she has to heal anyone who needs it, even if it's someone she despises like Black Mage.

* The entirety of the qualified regulars (except for Parakewl) in ''Webcomic/TowerOfGod'' one by one decide to help Baam and Lahel take the Guardian's test, even though they've known each other only for a month and expected to fight each other, and even though that specific test is harder than the usual course. Special mention goes to [[spoiler: Hatsu, who is the most immediate and most vocal proponent of supporting Baam, and Koon, who by pretending to be against it riles most up to follow Hatsu.]]