Rusty Tincanne wrote:The greedy bastard in me says, "shift the breakpoints because I want a magic item!" but I haven't played enough LL to really speak to the matter.
In all, I really like the workd you are creating and am excited to play alongside everyone here. I know you are planning this to start in May, but when can we start character generation? I will be rolling up a new character from scratch.
I'd like to open characters soon (perhaps within a week); we just need to nail down some of these fundamental decisions first. On the larger timeline, I need to do a little more development on the map and history before the first expedition. I am also moving into a new house next week and my wife has exclusive claim to a large chunk of time.
Those are both drivers for a May start for expeditions.
Breakpoints and Math
If we accept 63 points as the median, I could reset the levels. 62 or below gets 4002xp and 70 or below gets 2001xp. That would set it so that 24% of past characters would've had 4002xp and 32% more would have gotten 2001xp (for 56% of characters). 44% are above-average enough to just get good stats. I also am considering setting the lower bar at 60 and the upper limit at 68, which makes it a bit more rare on both accounts (i.e. less than half of characters have a starting magic item). The magic items drive story, though, and the question is - how unbalancing is it, really? Most characters are likely to have some kind of (better) item before too long, and it is a magic-rich setting.
Is this a new chronicle, or a continuation?
The answer is both, but the balancing is hard. It is definitely a new world with a new setting and new history to discover and to make. Allowing characters to transport in directly with past experience and memory makes it a continuation as well, and raises questions about balance for those starting out versus those continuing... but there are always new PCs entering the sandbox, so that's not as important as I'd otherwise consider it.
If we do the plot-device portal, that becomes a/the major plot point for the beginning of the chronicle. An event like that is monumental and it drives story going forward, defining and changing the game. I can run with that if that's desired. The alternative is that we start the game as the "alternative reality" - allow the characters but fuzz their backstories. From Zhym and Zorroroaster, it seems that would be less desirable because the life events are what made the character, and I understand that. So, do we commit to the plot device and build around it? Who else has a vote?
Allowing items
Zhym wrote:(I mean, the other way you could go is to allow PCs to bring in magic items if they seem reasonable, but that requires DM judgment.)
There are a few concerns have I have about this, all of which I welcome input and discussion on.
First, the aspect of fairness. This was my gut reaction, but as above, could be mitigatable.
Second, the unknowableness of Keehnelf. Many of the items presumably had latent or hidden powers or drawbacks which we do not have insight into. It is impossible for me to adjudicate without better awareness of what was going on.
Third, new setting, new focus. Items and locations are the two main ways in which this new campaign's history and reality will be discovered. I have a vested interest in pushing people towards new items because they'll link to the new setting. Legacy items tied to a world which is lost to you are a different kind of story, and I need to decide how much and how many we want for the good of the story. On one side, I say "these items will never link to our setting." On the other side, I say "these items become RP catalysts for those playing out the dimension-jumper timeline."
Fourth, the "reasonableness" recommendation above. I am hesitant to allow some and not others, or "only the reasonable ones," because I don't have a basis for setting a reasonableness standard. I would instead be making arbitrary judgments as the DM, and that's not a place I like to be on something this important to players.
I'd like to limit the total imported wealth coming into the game at game-start at least somewhat, and so I proposed re-buying your starting equipment in line with the others. We could easily say these goods came with you through the portal as worn.
- If we wanted to allow limited magic items, we could say it allowed one item (the one in your hands at that moment) with you.
- We could allow all items and say that "magic works differently" and that the other items just lost their enchantments on the trip.
- We could drop you all in naked, and you got your new starting gear in the town.
I want something fair that we can move forward with. Please provide inputs.