Increase in starter level based on RPR - Discussion

[Thera]

Allows players who have proven their RP skills greater flexibility in creating characters to fit other player's plots and situations. Helps skilled players breath color and life into the server without having to engage in grinding for xp.

30 Bonus: Shows exceptional aptitude to bring out the good RPer in those around them, is part of the living, breathing world and environment of Arelith.

30 RPR - Can start a character on any level between 1 and 16.
Has access to to minor and normal award races.
Characters starting beyond a normal starting level have mark of despair.
Characters starting beyond a normal starting level cannot be Sacrificed for any award.
Awards cannot be redeemed on on Characters starting beyond a normal starting level.

40 Bonus : "A master role player is one who is willing and able to bend their character concept to make the game more enjoyable for all involved. To assist the DM in making the game fun, and not to show discord." -Gary Gygax

40 RPR - Can start a character on any level between 1 and 21.
Has access to to minor, normal and greater award races.
Characters starting beyond a normal starting level have mark of despair.
Characters starting beyond a normal starting level cannot be Sacrificed for any award.
Awards cannot be redeemed on on Characters starting beyond a normal starting level.

As a note, if anyone is caught abusing these advantages, their RPR gets knocked down.

Discuss

[Dalenger]

Sorry, I don't like it.

Whats wrong with being low level? Some of the best RP I've had has been below level 10. Being the Baddest of the Bad means a lot less if you weren't once one of the rabble.

[Thera]

Sorry, I don't like it.

Whats wrong with being low level? Some of the best RP I've had has been below level 10. Being the Baddest of the Bad means a lot less if you weren't once one of the rabble.

It's not even remotely about something being wrong with being low level. It's about giving more flexibility to the best storytellers among the player base.

Take for example, someone who would play a questing knight for a weekend to lead other players on an adventure to find a mcguffin. Or an epic level elven teacher who is on the isle to give a lesson about some random natural event that is happening over the next tenday.

[Cortex]

RPR serving as a mean to level faster with Adventure EXP is fine as is and serves this exact purpose via different means.

[Thera]

RPR serving as a mean to level faster with Adventure EXP is fine as is and serves this exact purpose via different means.

Once again - this isn't about leveling faster, it's about allowing those players who focus on their RP to do what they do best - which is tell stories. It allows for tailored, expendable characters for short term plot arcs.

Now, have we gotten all the "it means you can level faster than my power-building and optimization" out of our systems?

Actually, while we're on that point, why don't we look at is as a reward for those players who may spend large amounts of time at lower levels because their stories don't often involve tramping around dungeons. Some of the 40 RPR players I know barely ever get above level 15, and most have never experienced the shiny toys that come at epic levels.

(For transparency, last time I checked I was 20 RPR)

[Seven Sons of Sin]

Sorry, I don't like it.

Whats wrong with being low level? Some of the best RP I've had has been below level 10. Being the Baddest of the Bad means a lot less if you weren't once one of the rabble.

It's not even remotely about something being wrong with being low level. It's about giving more flexibility to the best storytellers among the player base.

Take for example, someone who would play a questing knight for a weekend to lead other players on an adventure to find a mcguffin. Or an epic level elven teacher who is on the isle to give a lesson about some random natural event that is happening over the next tenday.

While I do not want to dismiss your enthusiasm, and while my personal experience is by no means final judgment, I don't really think this is what 40s usually strive for.

One-off and throwaway characters provide immediate fun, potentially thought-provoking roleplay, a quirky scene, a cool interaction, etc. But often times that's not where you have high impact storytelling. 40ers beeline to becoming significant faction leaders, and creating sustained and consistent narratives by acting as 'supports' to swathes of different characters and groups. They act as links between plots, creators of hooks for new stories, and catalysts for other characters to tell their story. They often ask more questions than they do answer them.

And I don't think 40ers are the "best storytellers." I think they often have incredible characters, but let's not give them too much credit. What a 40er is often recognizable for is their selfless approach to roleplaying, not necessarily being the most intricate and amazing storytellers.

If you want to reward RPR, getting access to exclusive races is not suitable. I like what you're thinking with "immediately start at X level."

If anything, 40ers should have the option to not grind. Some kind of option that basically triggers x2 XP, no XP from monsters. But even that seems weird.

Nah, I don't even know. Mechanical incentives to the 'best' roleplayers on the server almost seems oxymoronic. Surely these are the people that care the least?

I've often thought 40ers should be on some kind of "Wall of Mentors", and Arelith can create a kind of buddy-system where these would be players who you could seek out to find roleplay in-game, or if you have questions about storytelling and roleplay, or if you're newbie, but even that seems kind of 'putting them on a pedestal.'

I think the 40 is fine. They get 2x as much XP as a 20, which is what most of the server has. That's a fine reward as it is.

(they also often get along easiest with the DMs)

[Peppermint]

I suppose I just don't see the benefit, for me. It takes time to build the necessary gravitas to partake in any meaningful interaction. Starting at a higher level isn't going to help me tell stories. If anything, it's going to make it more difficult, because I'll have less time to ease in to my character.

[Cortex]

•Years ago, special races were only available to people of 30 RPR and above. It eventually resulted in an overflow of them, questionable RP and a lot of jealousy.
•Short arcs can be done with low level characters, and reaching 16+ can be done fairly quickly when one is 30/40 RPR, even without grinding hard.
•If a short arc requires epic characters, perhaps such is best left for DMs.
•Exclusive content locked behind a rank that is arbitrarily chosen by people has no history of ever working out well.
•OOC planning is likely increase with such, in many ways that would take its own list to elaborate.
•30 and 40 RPR characters are leaders that cultivate room for others to RP in, they do not necessarily do plots and arcs themselves.
•A higher leveled character popping out will have less room to develop, nobody will know them, and it will be more difficult to make an arc out of it without OOC help.

[msterswrdsmn]

Curious question: Just how many people actually have 40 rpr's right now?

One think I will say about characters and storytelling in general; no one likes Mary Sue. Being the person that randomly shows up and is super awesome at everything is....yeah. Not something I'd want to do.

A good portion of IG relationships my characters make are when they're low level and weak as hell. Being forced to run away from goblins or begging for supplies more or less forces you to interact with other people who are, also, running away from goblins and begging for supplies.

Misery loves company. Conversely, finding lower level characters that are still riding that low to mid level strugglebus and rping with them to give them some badly needed supplies/gold is a good way to meet people. I've spent hours rping with level 3 nobodies that wound up being settlement leaders or influential figures later on.

I'd really miss both of these if the option to "skip" lower levels came into play. Would I take it? Sure, if I could. But i'd miss out on a whole lot of development between point A and B

Edit
Sidenote: Not all the 40's i've met/known were settlement leaders or in charge of grand sweeping plotlines and schemes. Thats definetly a myth that can be debunked. They were just fun to play with, and 95% of the time that crap had nothing to do with what level they were.

What they WERE good at was being able to bring out more from other characters. To the point where players would check the playerlist and go "oh, sweet. John Smith is on? I'm totally logging in on his apprentice and hunting him down". Not just cause it was fun, but because you'd be able to get something (not just lowbie pity-supplies) out of it (furthering your own characters plot/story, realistic interactions, humor, etc)

Edit Edit
Wasn't there something like this WAAAAAAY way back? The DM Coffinpus "special-straight-to-21" character bump where players had to PROMISE they wouldn't level up after 21? It didn't realy contribute much in terms of rp value, so it got taken away.

[flower]

The strongest bonds between characters are done on low levels and are stronger than those made on epic levels.

[Cortex]

By leaders, I do not mean they lead settlements or factions (but it does help), they lead people to RP, be it via their own actions or doings. They take charge of leading the RP somewhere.

[Nitro]

This seems like it'd make it a little rougher on fresh faces, having fewer people to adventure with in the low levels because all the veterans keep popping up as a high level character instantly.

[Tyrantos]

Please dont. I dont think this is a good idea. This means that we'd just have an influx of charathers of high levels- Possibly some that just be made to stomp people. But then again, perhaps i am worried of nothing.

[Baron Saturday]

I basically agree with Peppermint, but will add some more words because I'm stuck at work with nothing to do.

It feels like a shortcut. The most interesting stories grow over time and are shaped organically by the flow of character actions and reactions over a spans of weeks, months, even years. It is this sense of provenance that gives character actions weight. Without it, the stories are... cheapened, almost? That's not quite the word I want, but you hopefully get the idea.

Stemming from this idea of community-driven storytelling is the fact that no character reaches the mid teens/low epics in a void. All are impacted, in some form, by the world around them. I feel that letting players get to these levels without being influenced by the community subverts the whole concept of creating a story together by giving inordinate amounts of control to RPR 30+ players.

[High Primate]

Nah. I think this would just encourage dissatisfaction and resentment among people about RPRs (let's face it, some really excellent roleplayers go for years without getting a 30, and there are some in Arelith's history who have had 30s, or higher, who have been cancerously bad). I think this is a path best untrod.

[gilescorey]

Baron pretty much said what I want to say, except it was more clear & basically superior in every way possible.

[RamblerTeo]

create char
roll
not 5%?

create char
roll






hhmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

[Baron Saturday]

Uh. What?

[Dunshine]

Moved this topic from feedback to Q&A. It being in feedback suggested it this topic is already a thing, which it isn't.

[RamblerTeo]

Uh. What?

AGREE

[yellowcateyes]

create char
roll
not 5%?

create char
roll

To be fair, the suggestion specifies that the characters can't be sacrificed for a reward.

That said, I disagree with the OP's suggestion for reasons already outlined above.

[Durvayas]

Nah. I think this would just encourage dissatisfaction and resentment among people about RPRs (let's face it, some really excellent roleplayers go for years without getting a 30, and there are some in Arelith's history who have had 30s, or higher, who have been cancerously bad). I think this is a path best untrod.

I'm in agreement on these points.