The fallen Pillar ...

[FoamBats4All]

To sum up the future of Alfa, I quote its loudest proponent :
"I want to start my pc at levl 3, no 4, no 5, wait 10! Also I want unlimited PCs, because that is funner. Also walking everywhere takes too long. Also when I start at 3, or 4, or 5, or 10, it takes too damn long to get to 4, 5, 6, or 11 with all our rules." ~ X

now cue the over verbose defense by one of the current tech team members because they need to show that they are smart.

And this kids, is how to get a thread locked.

You're a wonderful person and I value your opinion.

In a proposal for a more polite forum, here, have some chemistry humor:

[Cassiel]

Mik!

You came back and started a flame war*: good times!

* - I know, you didn't really.

[Witchdoctor]

This hardly feels like flames... maybe luke warm bath but flames? nawwww

[Stormseeker]

I think old age is starting to catch up with a lot of us...just don't have the energy to fan the flames that much anymore.*grins*

[Swift]

I still have the energy I once had for them, I just can't be bothered any more

[Mikayla]

Cassiel!! Its great to see you on the boards - I've missed you. I thought you weren't around any longer. Glad you popped back in. I am actually playing again, at least for the moment. Lots of changes these last four years, but still hanging in there. You?

M.

[orangetree]

May I provide a few thoughts for alternative ways the system could go, in order to try and have the best of both worlds? I'm just throwing a few ideas, I'm not sure how they will work in practice, or if indeed anything 'should' change further. This is really just a little brainstorming.

In order to address the possible 'less investment' on alternative characters...

I propose that a player should have one character, until said character achieves a certain level. Essentially all low level characters are following the 1 character per player rule. When that threshold has been reached, the player could qualify to have a second character, thereby reducing stagnation and increasing creativity. The bar should be set quite high though to qualify for this.

An alternative character, would have a bar on how high it can go in levels. This is to make the character accessible and interesting in group play for other low levels. The bar should be low, say... level 3.

The player could then be given a choice to retire the primary character, and allow a measure of XP to go to the new character, if they feel they wish to continue gaining levels in it. If the alternative character dies, they are forbidden from making a new alternative unless retiring the old one, or waiting a period of time of 2 weeks.

If the primary character dies, and they choose to return, reducing their level below the threshold, they have to retire the alternative character.

Just a few random thoughts, I hope it helps. I'm not sure if any of these would work, or maybe one or two of them (or none even) I'm really just trying to help out.

[Stormseeker]

Pretty good ideas, myself i would give up 2 pc's to start the game with a 5th lvl pc that tops out at 8 lvl.(favorite levels to play and my pc's keep dieing)
Or just let me start at 3rd level with a decent amount of gold.....will be 43 this year and i have been making 1st level characters for 32 years, think i can start out at 3rd level and have a good enough line of bs for a background and experience.

[vergin_sacrifice]

Pretty good ideas, myself i would give up 2 pc's to start the game with a 5th lvl pc that tops out at 8 lvl.(favorite levels to play and my pc's keep dieing)
Or just let me start at 3rd level with a decent amount of gold.....will be 43 this year and i have been making 1st level characters for 32 years, think i can start out at 3rd level and have a good enough line of bs for a background and experience.

I myself would be against 3rd level to start. Though a little boost, so say as much as 1500xp would not really bad. Would also make it a little more survivable for those who take the races that require a hit on experience like the deep gnomes and such.

Putting a top cap seems wrong to me, but a boost in the beginning would be good. I am thinking though, instead of 'bong' you have this experience... why not a tutorial area where you can go a half a dozen 'get familiar with the game' quests that give it to you. That way, if you want to be hard core, you can choose to be, or if you want to spend your first day in character getting easy xp you can. Biggest reason would be for newer players to into game and have some help.

Sort of things in the tutorial area (like a castle or small town or something) I would suggest would be:
1: Exp for closing doors, but with a cap. Not for everywhere, but just for that area, teach people to remember to close doors.
2: Some small encounters that would be good experience to show just how frail lowbees are, but have a rescue cleric NPC near by to save them when the go down (ie re spawn, not death), and remind them that such help is not readily available without befriending a cleric and bringing him on your adventures with you.
3: Weapons & Armor Training area, where you can try out different loaners on practice with trainers and dummies, but when you leave the area are automatically removed from inventory, but could be bought at the store near by.
4: A not so trivial trivia game where you can test & improve on knowledge of the realm. With A 'library' of books about history appropriate for people to know in game with ooc references to source books as footnotes.
5: A spot to write in a bio about yourself to get life experience credit.

[Wild Wombat]

Meh, I'm fine with starting at first level with no XP boost, having just gone through it with no heartache. That said, I'm not about to get into a fight over it. Just because I don't see what the big deal with starting at first level is, doesn't mean that I am going to get on my soap box and preach that it would mean the downfall of ALFA.

Actually I can say that it does have one huge thing in its favor, in my opinion: it might get Grand Fromage off his ass and back in the game!

[Swift]

We already have made starting levels as easy as they have ever been and allowed players to play 2 different PCs at a time.

We are already a ways from some of the principles ALFA was founded on in this regard, we don't need to go any further.

Or, if you do, just don't call the place ALFA any more, because that is no longer what it would be.

[Galadorn]

^

[Stormseeker]

Alfa is about rp, and right now you can not rp a older experienced character...Because you have no Experience. Sure you could do the injury,lost memory, divine punishment background...but that's been done how many times? This Alfa we have now is not the one i joined ten years ago. So it is no longer what it use to be.
Look at the numbers of people that do repeat statics to level up/get gold. Yes i do them, don't care about xp but GOLD i do, every pc i make does...WHY? Because they are all homeless vagabonds with no personal wealth and low to non survivability with dm or high level pc group intervention.
Give players the option to start as a member of some family, with a home, some gear, and one of the biggest rp hooks to keep them from doing server hops and repeat statics.
Let someone start out as a low level (5th) magic instructor at the lady's college. They get gear, place to stay, and can not server hop or do statics due to their responsibility's.(unless dm puts them on a quest)

If you really are set on the "pillars" of alfa, maybe we should go back to the rules we had before the "Alfa Quake".

lol by no way am i irritated or do i get mad from people disagreeing with me. After all the reason i am here are because yall are my friends, and friends can and do disagree.

[Rumple C]

After all the reason i am here are because yall are my friends, and friends can and do disagree.

+1

I love you all. Even the unlovable ones.

[Witchdoctor]

I like things the way they are now. Don't mind the suggestions but just throwing mine out there too.

Some of the best sessions I have had here were in the 1-4th lvl range.