Do Retired Adventurers Maintain Levels?

[taliesin15]

That government thread prompts me to ask this question: if a high lvl adventurer decides to become King/Baron/Chief whatever, should s/he have to continue to adventure to keep his/her skills sharp?

 

[Crothian]

Nope, there is nothing in the rules like this. If though I wanted something like this, I'd require just training and not actual adventureing.

 

[A'koss]

That's right, the only thing that will impact an adventurer's skill is old age (and some even look forward to this...).

 

[Mouseferatu]

By the rules, there's nothing that says a retired adventurer loses levels.

Personally, though, I've played with that idea for some of my characters. For instance, I've run a few characters that were retirees coming back for some great purpose or personal goal. We explained their relatively low levels as time having dulled the edge of their skills and abilities.

 

[Sejs]

That government thread prompts me to ask this question: if a high lvl adventurer decides to become King/Baron/Chief whatever, should s/he have to continue to adventure to keep his/her skills sharp?

Nope, assume they do some things in their downtime from King/Baron/Chief-ing that keeps their skills sharp. Archmages do magical experiments, guildmasters have their fingers in half a dozen pies and they're constantly playing intrigue games amongst their own number, warlords hit the practice field or train members of their retinue in the use of arms, whatever. They don't need to go out, kill things and take their stuff to retain their levels.

Besides, if there was a mechanic of level loss through lack of use that'd open up a whole slew of potential abuses. You mean I can take a vacation for a while and get to re-select my feats, change my spells known, or keep getting my attribute bonus for X level? Score.

Edit/Additional: This is speaking mechanically. If it's a plot thing, by all means, just be aware of the possible disconnects that may arise - if I'm a wizard that's lost some of my zazz from lack of use, what happens to my spellbook, etc?

Plot-wise I've actually been toying with the idea of an elan character that's subjected himself to a grant experiment of sorts. When you undergo the process to become an elan, you get a clean slate. Lose all class levels, etc that you'd previously had. The character keeps going through lifetimes then after a point when he's finally 'got it', he stores a shard of his life and experiences in a specially prepared crystal and then applies the elan process to himself again. Self incarnation, over and over again, lifetime after lifetime, in the hopes of unlocking some grand secret of existance.

 

[Lanefan]

This is a question that's been bugging me for many, many years: how *do* adventuring skills decay? How can the game have a wizard who has let her skills lapse such that she only remembers how to cast 3 spells of the 47 she used to know? How can the rules give us a Thief who at one time could lift your coin purse from a different area code yet has lost his touch such that now he couldn't pick your pocket if you held it open for him? The veteran knight who has run to seed? All these can be found in fantasy, and all can be great NPC's, but how (mechanically) do they get to where they are?

Another reason this becomes relevant is this: Elves live for ages. If they kept advancing in levels (in anything) for all that time they'd all be level 85 by the time they got old, so, realistically, there needs to be a way for them to shed these extra levels...but how?

I've dreamed up several different systems and rules for decaying skills but none have made any sense. Anyone here got any thoughts?

Lanefan

 

[HeapThaumaturgist]

Well I think the idea is the cruicible of adventuring increases life experience by leaps and bounds ... while not adventuring ... doesn't.

So thousand-year-old elves that sit at home end up Commoner 20.

Or something.



Generally, I do whatever I feel like I need to do to explain things. So yea ... if a PC is going to be old, he can be a guy who lost his edge (Is Low Level Now) ... or the Human Archmage (Age 80) is Wiz20. And the Elven Archmage (Age 1100) is ... Wiz20.

--fje

 

[Sejs]

This is a question that's been bugging me for many, many years: how *do* adventuring skills decay? How can the game have a wizard who has let her skills lapse such that she only remembers how to cast 3 spells of the 47 she used to know?

Well, first you make sure your name is Tellah and that your daughter is seeing this nancyboy bard you don't approve of...

Beyond that, go a bit senile. First thing that comes to mind. Or an experiment gone wrong that screws with your memory. That doesn't address the issue of your spellbook though.

How can the rules give us a Thief who at one time could lift your coin purse from a different area code yet has lost his touch such that now he couldn't pick your pocket if you held it open for him? The veteran knight who has run to seed? All these can be found in fantasy, and all can be great NPC's, but how (mechanically) do they get to where they are?

Only thing that I can come up with off the cuff - age penalties. Level drain would do it, but not in the right way.

Another reason this becomes relevant is this: Elves live for ages. If they kept advancing in levels (in anything) for all that time they'd all be level 85 by the time they got old, so, realistically, there needs to be a way for them to shed these extra levels...but how?

The old uberelf assumption works off the idea that elves are out there kicking ass and taking names 24/7, though, and one of the standard fantasy troped regarding elves is that they tend to be the retreating type. Divorced from the normal coming and going of the world unless roused. Not much exp to be had in frolicing in moonlit glades, getting drunk off feywine, and doin' it for endless years. Gez also had a take on the issue that I'm rather fond of. Basically it states that elves naturally gravitate to a wild, feral, fey-like state if left to their own devices long enough, and that the function of their trance (rather than sleep) is to keep reliving their memories in order to stave that backsliding off.

 

[Ranger REG]

That government thread prompts me to ask this question: if a high lvl adventurer decides to become King/Baron/Chief whatever, should s/he have to continue to adventure to keep his/her skills sharp?

If you mean a personal adventure away from his governing duty? That's up to the PC (and player).

GM should provide alternative XP award for managing his realm, especially in a crisis like a call to arms for war or a disaster or defending the realm from invaders. Just like in real life, how you handle crisis can truly spotlight your leadership to your public.

 

[ruleslawyer]

The old uberelf assumption works off the idea that elves are out there kicking ass and taking names 24/7, though, and one of the standard fantasy troped regarding elves is that they tend to be the retreating type. Divorced from the normal coming and going of the world unless roused. Not much exp to be had in frolicing in moonlit glades, getting drunk off feywine, and doin' it for endless years. Gez also had a take on the issue that I'm rather fond of. Basically it states that elves naturally gravitate to a wild, feral, fey-like state if left to their own devices long enough, and that the function of their trance (rather than sleep) is to keep reliving their memories in order to stave that backsliding off.

Also, keep in mind that with 3e rules for level-appropriate encounters, it is unlikely that a high-level NPC is going to run into anything challenging enough to result in a level boost.