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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Someone" data-source="post: 2881801" data-attributes="member: 5656">Snoweel´s analysis depends on the assumption that high-level characters are common enough and at least a good amount of them have an interest on ruling. It´s not unreasonable to think so, but I think people here are focusing the problem wrongly: the OP and other posters affirm that given the power that individuals can archieve in D&D, it´s inevitable that high level characters will rule the land. Their opponents reply that it´d be so difficult for a character alone, no matter how powerful, to hold power and effectively rule that it´s not the case. I think that´s the wrong approach because we´re discussing fantasy settings: they are not real. We use those settings to play, and some would prefer a world with large kingdoms, instead of tiny pieces of land governed by warring super characters. I agree that high level characters and high CR monsters would have in any world an impact that most gaming worlds neglect to mention. In that regard I´d agree with the OP. As written, most settings are unrealistic.However, there are mechanisms we could use to explain how the world arrived at the desired circumstances, say, a large kingdom ruled by a lowish level character.Let´s say that in the primordial chaos of clashing Conan wannabes there´s a powerful character that doesn´t want to rule, but has an interest on the stability of the kingdom. Let´s suppose he´s a wizard. Said wizard puts King Puppet the First on the throne, lets him decide what peasant owns the goat, and dedicates himself to investigation, drawing a generous portion of the microscopic kingdom to finance it.Since Wizard is powerful and everybody knows he´s the power behind the throne, everybody decides it´s better to assault Fighter´s and Barbarian´s kingdoms, and not disturb the one that can teleport away, and then scry and disintegrate you when you´re asleep. King Puppet (by now King Puppet the 2nd) and Wizard live long and prosperous lives. After a while, the kingdom is well proptected by Wizard´s apprentices, who, free from deciding goat ownerships and having a solid stream of gold to spend on investigation, also grew powerful. They fund a magic academy. Now the small kingdom had two generations of ruling stability. That´s neat for the average innkeeper and peasant! imagine living on a world where taxes don´t change every time your ruler is kicked out of the throne, and you don´t have to worry about your new lord instituting a theocrazy just because he´s a cleric of the god of Chaos. King Puppet´s kingdom flourishes, and the magic academy income also increases.Now the powers behind the throne, the wizards, decide it´s time to expand the kingdom´s territory (and the academy´s money) by invading their neighbors. An assorted force of wizards and well equipped fighters teleport into King Cleric´s palace and kick his fat ass out of the throne before he´s able to say "Oh my god", while the superior army of King Puppet is greeted by the population, who´s very happy of not having to build the immense temple King Cleric was building.Now, the kingdom is very resistant to high-level commando attack. If they kill King Puppet, the wizards have only to put King Mannequin in place, after scrapping the would-be usurpers off the walls. They would have to kill the wizards first, and they are relatively many, well organized, and well funded. We can suppose that if Magister in Command dies, he´ll be quickly replaced (after the killer is scrapped off the walls), and his replacement will also be powerful. Those replacement don´t have to interfere with national politics more than having a friendly reminder of what would happen if the stream of gold to the academy diminishes. At this point, national aristocrats, endowed with a vast array of Skill Focus: Diplomacy, Negotiator feats and skills, and actual experience, manage everything, and Magister in Command just has to veto the rulings he doesn´t like.Puppet´s (now Emperor Puppet) lands increase and evolve after this point, in a variety of scenarios left for the reader. Also, other explanation about how high level characters are integrated in the defense of the goverment without being directly involved in ruling can be imagined; because it´s of course impossible to effectively defend against decided high level D&D characters if you can´t count on more of the same.</blockquote>

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