So, I've started playing Project1999 to get me back in the "feel" of things and the experience has reminded me of something. For the Shaman class at least, I remember that there were those key levels that made all the difference (multiples of 5 like level 19, 24, 29, etc) where you got the next spell upgrades and all of a sudden you were the bomb! Then the level before (23, 28, 33, etc) you had to REALLY earn the next level. I hope that this will not be the case here and progression will be a steady, smooth increase.
There will always be new abilities that make more of a difference than incremental improvements to old abilities. At least I hope so. So I would expect some levels will be important to certain classes and life will be easier for them for a while after hitting those levels.
Thus, a pet class getting a significantly better pet. Any class that gets feign death or evac (if such abilities are provided). A much better taunt for a tank. A big nuke for a mage. Things to look forward to. Not necessarily a bad thing.
In a quest-based game, the organization of quests and quest hubs does more to create "hell levels" than character skill progression. But Pantheon will try not to emphasize quests.
Agreed, I love the 5 level spacing of spells EQ had.
Made the leveling much more rewarding.
Also, please please, have items progression very slow, I dont want to see +5 stats on noobie items. It was amazing just having AC on items up until level 15 to 20.. And once you finally got your first +1 to 3 gear you felt like a god.
Keep stat inflation at a minimum :)
I don't necessarily agree with making every 5 levels special rather than having a smoother flow. I definitely agree with having slow gear progression where an upgrade actually means something and a piece of magic armor brings back some of the old D&D thrill from your very first +1 item.
Demostorm said:Agreed, I love the 5 level spacing of spells EQ had.
Made the leveling much more rewarding.
Also, please please, have items progression very slow, I dont want to see +5 stats on noobie items. It was amazing just having AC on items up until level 15 to 20.. And once you finally got your first +1 to 3 gear you felt like a god.
Keep stat inflation at a minimum :)
The main downside in most games is that this creates a balance problem where classes that are more stat dependent end up suffering greatly in the early game. As long as the system is tuned ahead of time for this, it shouldn't be a problem.
zazabar said:The main downside in most games is that this creates a balance problem where classes that are more stat dependent end up suffering greatly in the early game. As long as the system is tuned ahead of time for this, it shouldn't be a problem.
I think the idea here is breaking that stat dependence trend since WoW. In EQ melee stats (and stats in general) were fairly muted until later levels anyway, sure having more strength would let you hit for max damage more often but it wasn't until the upper levels that you'd see it adding much damage to your hits, it was more useful for carry weight allowance in early levels. Same thing with things like intelligence/stamina/et al. sloooowly being more worthwhile as you level up.
Having stats be less important early-mid game makes gear dependence as a whole be much less of an issue for melee classes and skills/teamwork more of a focus for survival and player power.
As for spells, I personally like getting them in bursts every 4 levels or so. It's a nice little carrot on a stick and a more noticable feeling of empowerment for casters when you get to each new plateau.
I would like to see a mixed bag of upgrades while we level up. Combine learning new spells with attribute point accumulation, resistance specialization, racial mastery, etc. So every 10 levels or so, you'd learn 2-3 spells, have 4-5 attribute allocations, 1-2 resistance specializations, and 1 racial mastery selection. Something like:
Level 1) Attribute Allocation
Level 2) New Ability/Spell
Level 3) Attribute Allocation
Level 4) Resistance Specialization
Level 5) Attribute Allocation
Level 6) New Ability/Spell
Level 7) Attribute Allocation
Level 8) Resistance Specialization
Level 9) Attribute Allocation
Level 10) Racial Mastery
Level 11) New Ability/Spell
Level 12) Attribute Allocation
Level 13) Resistance Specialization
Level 14) Attribute Allocation
Level 15) New Ability/Spell
Level 16) Attribute Allocation
Level 17) Resistance Specialization
Level 18) Attribute Allocation
Level 19) New Ability/Spell
Level 20) Racial Mastery
Attribute allocation could literally be a single attribute point to keep power progression in check, if needed. I would prefer to see 2-3 points per attribute accumulation to allow deeper customization. Once you get to level 20, it should be fairly noticeable if a character has been pumping a single stat the entire way or if they are more balanced. You can implement artificial restrictions if needed but I would prefer to see as much customization as possible and perhaps 1 reset per character per expansion (to compensate for potential changes in how stats/resists/acclimation might change over time.)
As for racial mastery, once per 10 levels creates 5 separate masteries per race assuming we'll see a max level cap of 50. This allows even more character customization as it pertains to race/class combos. Perhaps just pick a static racial bonus per 10 levels, or give the player the option between two choices. The racial bonuses don't have to be terribly powerful ... you could just add a pool of 10 traits total and let players choose one every 10 levels, for a maximum of 5/10 and maybe in the order they choose. They could be a combination of attribute allocation, resistance specialization, and new abilities/spells. For example, ogres might see the following for their 10 choices:
Thick Skin: +3 or 3% (whichever is greater) Armor Class
Ogre Girth: +3 or 3% (whichever is greater) STA
Brute Force: +3 or 3% (whichever is greater) STR
Combat Adept: +2 or 2% STR, +1 or 1% AGI (whichever is greater)
Battle Prowess: +2 or 2% AGI, +1 or 1% STA (whichever is greater)
Mental Acuity: +5 or 5% (whichever is greater) Mental Resist
Antibiotic: +5 or 5% (whichever is greater) Disease Resist
Acclimation: (Bonus to a specific acclimation, something hopefully supported by lore)
Tenacity: Ability that grants user stun resistance for 10 seconds.
Giant: Toggled buff that grants user 20% increased size. (Stacks with other size affecting abilities/spells.)
I'm sure plenty of people might not agree with something like this but this is just my personal preference. I like to see power progression be consistent with every level, but have the type of progression fluctuate. I appreciate 2 layers of customization; one that allows me to differentiate from players of the same class/race, and those of different classes/races. Progeny has the potential to make all of this infinitely cooler depending on what kind of traits can be passed down, and just how deep the family tree can go.