Your View on Leveling vs Skill Gaining

[Nightfyre]

The current level games are great and all, but they tend to drag to a halt once you get to that max level. And then you're just on the work of getting the best Gear for your character, so it's a gear game then, Or waiting for that expansion with the 10+ more levels.

Everquest did a pretty decent job on adding In AA points to further level your character and give you something to push for.

Ultima Online did pretty well at making a skill game so your working on gaining skill and still being able to group with friends without really worrying about the others level. But then again people took lazy way out by macroing your skills to max.

And City of Heroes/Villians really made it group friendly by allowing people to level up or level down other people so you could group together.

Planetside was neat with the ability to constantly battle others. And you didn't really have to worry about your level to be able to battle other people.

I'll love my Wow or Vanguard eventually but Just gotta feel I need something to constantly work towards. With gaining skills in sword then working on my axe skill so i'm that Master of the Blades or Master of Elemental Magic.

So What's your guys take on this?

[Telicas Silverleaf]

I think there could be a mixture of both.

[Raolinx Aeromancer]

Theres three spheres max them out first with all the uber gear for each sphere. By the time you do that an expansion or two will already have come out. The plan on expansions is 1 a year, with events/live content thruout the year.

Rao

[Pirotess]

I agree an AA/Talent system would be great to see. I've said it elsewhere but I'd also like to see a remort system so your max level character could be reborn as a level 1 character with special abilities and then work its way back up again. I agree that the level cap really kills games in the long run so remorting would keep things fresh and let people revisit content that they didnt have time for the first time through the game or that got added after they already leveled past it.

[Raolinx Aeromancer]

I'm not a huge remorting fan. In single player games its great but in an MMO I think it would suck. Maybe letting you create a toon of the same linage as your original but still keep your original toon would be ok. And You would be able to hand down most items to this toon. Even if they are normally no drop or level restricted (rename them "Handed down" or Handed Down Boots of Ass Stomping. Though undergarments should be disallowed. I wouldn't want my dads Codpiece of Excitement. Or Socks of happiness.

This son or daughter would have roughly the same factions as the parent. Maybe if they pick the same class they get a full spell book, Or a higher skill level in combat skills. (as the parent taught them to them instead of going to a trainer.)

Rao

[Pirotess]

Remorting would be an optional system though, you shouldnt have to take advantage of it. I just prefer to invest all my time into one character instead of making a billion alts.

[Coinspinner]

FFXI had classes, sub classes, levels, and skills. You could max every skill your class had too, there were no builds really, and that was a bit boring. Worse, skilling up had to be done in a group made specifically for that purpose and it still took weeks to catch up a weapon skill that you didn't use much. And those weapon skills were important because they taught you "Weapon Skills" (oh irony) that formed specific skillchains and determined hit rate and damage. If you can't form the right 'chain and hit respectably you're "useless". It was like a fourth, hidden yet mandatory, grind that game hit you with. I was a black mage and did not have that problem, but I had to watch DRK and WAR friends drop like flies in a zapper as they passed level 60.

That was a really punishing combo. Anything but that again, please.

[Raolinx Aeromancer]

Originally Posted by Pirotess

Remorting would be an optional system though, you shouldnt have to take advantage of it. I just prefer to invest all my time into one character instead of making a billion alts.

I understand it would be optional. However What if you do race to the end and do everything before the next expansion. Instead of creating a regular alt you would be able to spawn offspring. Similar to remorting but you get to keep your original toon as well. You would get better bonuses if you follow in your parents footsteps or in a similar field, Tank, hybrid, caster, healer....

Rao

[kuyzat]

Levels have several severe problems and I would like to see at least some attempt at finding an alternative solution that works.

You need to create content for each level and devs spend an enormous time creating low and mid level dungeons/zones but once the server gets older most people are max level and a lot of the game content is very much empty because the only low and mid level characters are latecomers to the server or people's alts or rerolled characters. That makes it frustrating for these people as they have too few people to group with and low and mid level zones look dead and imo boring. Plus, they are then forced to solo and that is not viable for some classes in some games (thing EQ1 warriors) nor fun for a lot of people (I, for one, detest it).

You can delay the time it takes to get to max level by making experience harder to get but then you're making your game for the hardcore crowd with lots of time to invest and that is not necessarily the target gamer your aiming for. It just delays the problem but it wont go away and other problems arise.

Expansions tend to prolong the level grind and at the same time enlarge the world by adding new zones. This further kills the older zones and at some point you wonder whats the point in having those zones anymore and the game feels a lot less "massive multiplayer".


Planetside had a cool system where newbies had just enough skill to go into battle with anyone with simpler weapons and skills and it was perfectly possible to get some kills and exp, you just had less options and abilities. But im not convinced that system would work for an MMORPG... maybe.
You could get something like 20 skill points to spend as you'd like for example on the skills to equip swords and leather armour and a taunt and you would be a basic warrior. As you got exp you would gain more skill points and maybe you could spend them on the chain armour skill and so on. but would you be able to group with other characters with many more skills? would you be able to tank with leather? what mobs? And what about stats?

I am convinced there is a viable skill/talent system out there but dont know what would it be like. Still, i think it is worth trying to find it.

[Mobius]

I like your idea Rao of the handed down gear,talents, spellbook , I can really see a father handing down his sword and his knowledge of fighting and any secrets he learned along the way that would be Uber as heck. This idea does go rather well with diplomacy you would roughly have the same faction as your father back in the old days even now hehe. I did enjoy AA's in EQ they weren't too hard to attain which was nice but they did give you something to work on when you weren't raiding or adventuring.