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From: chenr@tilt.FUN (The 1200 baud hacker)
Newsgroups: net.games.frp
Subject: Re: Play Balance  (The Philsophy behind High-level D&D)
Message-ID: <197@tilt.FUN>
Date: Sun, 4-Nov-84 02:06:33 EST
Article-I.D.: tilt.197
Posted: Sun Nov  4 02:06:33 1984
Date-Received: Tue, 6-Nov-84 06:24:34 EST
References: <1897@ucla-cs.ARPA>
Organization: Princeton University EECS Dept
Lines: 51

This is meant as (hopefully) a clarifying article on what I consider
to be a valid, well-run, high-level D&D campaign and why they can be fun.

A valid high-level campaign is one in which play-balancing occurs beyond the
point that many people would consider "retirement level" and in which it is
possible, although not necessary, to reach those levels in a reasonable amount
of time.  Thus, a PC is no longer required to retire into NPChood upon reaching
a certain level of power.  The result is a campaign in which power progression
can take place at a variety of paces, depending on the willingness of the
party to undertake high-(some would say suicidal)-risk, high-reward adventures,
and in which players can retire their characters at any level.

Play-balancing at the higher levels often takes the form of unusual, or hyped
monsters, high-powered NPCs/NPC groups, or getting the PC's involved in more
non-violent (political) matters.  Usually it ends being a combination of all
three.

I find playing at the higher levels of such a campaign (once I get there)
appealing due to the facts that first, it is easier to get involved
in politics (by say, establishing a city).  Second, when adventuring, teamwork
becomes very criticle.  Split-second timing often decides a battle.  Third,
due to the fact that the PC is more powerful, it becomes easier to do some
serious role-playing.  An example of this is the hobbit (not my character,
by the way) who became Hobbit King and decided he didn't want people stomping
on hobbits anymore.  He started up Hobbit Scholarships to fund promising
adventuresome hobbits, passed out a few +5 arrows to each hobbit village,
and did a variety of other things which made hobbits a force to be reckoned
with.  Being a hobbit, he also liked eating and throwing feasts so he
built the most "hobbit-like" hobbit-hole/feasthall you've ever seen and
hired a 20th level magician to do nothing but research cooking spells.

My highest-level character was a bit different.  He was an elf who was
never really into adventuring, anyway, so after he he became very powerful
and had tried his hand at a variety of things, he decided to retire to a plane
for 1000 years or so and develop his latent physical and psionic abilities
and do general research into the fundamental aspects of psionic power (he
probably should have been a monk).  Eventually, he accumlated a group of
followers and fellow-researchers and they ended up forming the core of a
Psionics Guild.

I guess the moral of the story is that a high level D&D campaign doesn't
exclude the possibilities of playing a low-level campaign in the same
world.  I just like playing high-level characters that I've worked up
because I think there's just as much challenge and more opportunity.

--

"When are we leaving?"  "REAL SOON !!!"

		Ray Chen
		princeton!tilt!chenr