Divine sanction is a type of mark applied by certain paladin powers and feats.[DP:82]
Effect[]
A creature subject to a paladin's divine sanction is marked by the paladin for the duration of the divine sanction, or until marked by a different person. The first time each round a creature marked by a paladin's divine sanction makes an attack that doesn't include the paladin as a target, the marked creature takes radiant damage equal to 3 per tier + the paladin's Charisma modifier.
| Paladin's level | Damage for violating the paladin's divine sanction |
|---|---|
| 1st through 10th (heroic tier) | 3 + the paladin's Charisma modifier radiant damage |
| 11th through 20th (paragon tier) | 6 + the paladin's Charisma modifier radiant damage |
| 21st through 30th (epic tier) | 9 + the paladin's Charisma modifier radiant damage |
Comparison to divine challenge[]
The mark applied by a paladin's divine sanction is in addition to any mark on another creature applied by the paladin's divine challenge. The penalty to a marked target is the same, whether marked by divine sanction or divine challenge, but divine sanction can mark multiple targets, and does not require the paladin to engage a target every turn to maintain the mark. Divine sanction is, however, usually limited in duration (most powers read "Target is marked until the end of your next turn") whereas divine challenge remains without other special actions as long as paladin engages the target each turn.