SK vs Paladin

[jeffd]

paladin has much more defensive utility (root/stun/buffs/heals/LOH/rez), a stackable HP buff, but a much higher skillcap.

SK does much more damage, has more offensive utility (fear/dots/debuffs), and has an easier time holding aggro (disease cloud spam).

all things being equal, both can get snap aggro, which is really all that's required to tank for an exp group. they both tank equally well and holding aggro is easy on both, so it comes down to your personal preference.

take a look at the paladin and SK spells to see which set you'd prefer.

re your edit: if you're interesting in min/maxing (as opposed to looking cool/roleplaying), there's no reason to make anything other than an ogre SK. if the choice is only between DE SK and dwarf pally, the dwarf pally is superior, strictly in terms of min/maxing.