U_K!
Actually, I have some questions concerning Ascension. I think I (or someone else) had asked some of these long ago, but a lengthy search produced no results.
I may be soon in be running a 3.5E IH game. It'll be sandbox-y romp through the forgotten realms, and a giant train wreck of awesome. The PCs will be starting at level 1, and the game will go on as long as the PCs live or care to continue. (I can't conceive they'd get higher level than Greater God, but who knows) Given this brand of insanity, I have some questions on the 3E Ascension rules, rulings, and interpretations.
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1. Effects. I get that taking an effect 1-4 times produced one potent effect, or several lesser ones, but the fifth time grants all the effects at full power, and the sixth makes them 'friendly-fire safe'. Also, you included some rulings on 'combining effects' where if I wanted to use both a Fire Beam and a Lightning Beam, I would apply some ratio of the effect's power together, for the end result. If a deity is in the position to be able to use two different kinds of effects in the same turn or round, should this ratio-limit apply? For example:
Bob has Uncanny Fire Mastery, and Uncanny Lightning Mastery. On Bob's turn, Bob already has his Fire Storm aura active. Can he then ALSO shoot a Lightning Beam at full strength? What if later in the round, he takes damage, can he use either of his Blood effects on his attacker?
Further, If a deity has a 'rank 5/6' effect, can they use it to use all of their effects in a single round, or would they need to split their HD for it, or just limited to one at a time? (difficult to adjudicate blood/Immolation in this case, since they are reactionary)
2. Ascension. Basically, since I don't want this game to drag, I plan on completely ignoring that rule about '1 level per adventure' If the Level 1 PCs earn 800k Xp in their first adventure, some how, well darn it they are level 20-something now. (there is a lot of content in the realms as far as potential adventures, but not ~80 some levels of it) Along the way, I will also be tracking any Worship Points, Power, etc the PC will have accumulated. Given that adventures are greedy, power-hungry psychopaths regardless of alignment, they will likely have a few deities in the party pretty quick. (Maybe a few disciples/prophets early on) Do you have any advice concerning administering portfolio trials? I plan to work some of the easier ones into the adventures themselves, but Ascension is pretty vague on the concept other than you do them when you first become a god to earn your portfolios.
3. Virtual Size Categories. What to do about them? The consensus was, if I am not mistaken, that they can get out of hand pretty easily. (I recall an example where a hypothetical Greater God of Strength could tack on far, far too many and sunder the omniverse; actually, I think you fixed that issue when you re-wrote the portfolios, but you know players: If they see an advantage, they will abuse it) At the levels of play where the game mechanics still vaguely apply (1-40), they probably won't be a problem. (And in fact, will help rebalance the gap between casters and non-casters)
4. Pantheons. Specifically, the insanely massive Forgotten Realms Pantheon. I know it's a giant train-wreck, but I want to keep everything as 'Forgotten-realms cannon' as possible. The realms has the most unbalanced Pantheon ever. More greater Gods than anything else, and certain portfolios (*Cough*Magic*Cough*) are more 'valuable' in the in setting context. Short of ret-coning deities' ranks, any suggestions? I can 'spell-plague' about half of them out of existence, but that only goes so far...
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