[thufir]

Paladins are a fairly strong class, I think. I like that you can lull and root, and critical failures on lull aren't disastrous because you are a tank class and were probably going to be getting the aggro anyway. Root lets you make up for your relative lack of aggro generation (flash of light is good, but it's almost all you have) until you get to 30 and can start stunning things. Also, a tank that can root park is pretty handy. For me the main drawback to a paladin is that you can't be an ogre. Frontal stuns depress me.

On the other hand, I make fun of rangers a lot because of their lack of defined role but properly twinked out they can kick ass for a long time. They definitely do more damage, and are better soloers. Given enough twinking, they can tank until much later in the game; rangers have great aggro generation. They have harmony which makes them great pullers in any outdoor zone. They can also sneak pull and have effective tracking. Your drawback is your lack of defined role, as mentioned. Groups looking for tanks will seek warriors or knights, groups looking for dps will favor monks and rogues, and most groups have monks to pull already so they don't look much for pullers. It leaves you out in the cold.

Comes down to what role, or lack thereof, you'd like to play, as Sage said above. If you are a group support tanky type, paladin. If you prefer a jack-of-all-trades that can solo or group, ranger.