Warrior, Mage, or Paladin?

A warrior and a mage are the strongest characters; a paladin is somewhere in the middle (although I used to play as him). At first, the warrior is stronger, but once the mage levels up their magic skills, things change. However, a warrior with a treasure chest is also effective; I still prefer the warrior.

Ah, I'm getting confused myself. I used to think that magic in the game was hopelessly weak, and that muscles (=warrior leadership) were all that mattered. But after completing "The Armored Princess" as a mage, everything changed. Of course, there's no "Black Hole" spell in the lore (the Reaper's doesn't count ;)), but there is "Geyser" :). Maybe completing the lore as a mage will help me rank the characters by strength.

A rune stone is a rune stone, but the mage has high intelligence and the "Higher Magic" skill, the warrior has a lot of leadership and rage + "Wrath," and the paladin is neither fish nor fowl. The most useful skills are blocked for him, so the rune stone won't save him :(.