There was a another poll recently concerning which levels people found most fun to play. I mentioned E6 and E10 in that thread. There were people that had not heard about it, so I thought I would share this for those that are interested.
E6 stands for Epic 6. It is the name of a rules variant which was introduced by [MENTION=8314]Ry[/MENTION] back in 2007 (yeah, 10 years ago).
http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?206323-E6-The-Game-Inside-D-amp-D
u/Thomar posted on Reddit a good take on E6 for 5e, which I will quote here:
Most younger gamers come from the mindset of "the end-game" due to how MMO's work. E6 let's character's continue to grow while not getting ridiculously overpowered, letting people enjoy the end-game for prolonged periods. It also allows new characters to join established character's without there being too much of a power gap.
E6 stands for Epic 6. It is the name of a rules variant which was introduced by [MENTION=8314]Ry[/MENTION] back in 2007 (yeah, 10 years ago).
http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?206323-E6-The-Game-Inside-D-amp-D
u/Thomar posted on Reddit a good take on E6 for 5e, which I will quote here:
E6 in D&D 5e
u/thomar
5e D&D seems to support E6 pretty well, so this document lays out some guidelines for using it.
The whole point of E6 is to declare that certain magical abilities are beyond mortal ken in a setting. Teleportation and bringing the dead back to life are the two greatest offenders, but this also cuts of a good chunk of the "linear warriors, quadratic wizards" problem, which is still around in 5e (although considerably nerfed by spells per day). http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?206323-E6-The-Game-Inside-D-amp-D
Setting level 6 as the barrier is traditional because of the limitations it places on 4th-level and higher spells. Anlysis of different cutoff levels follows. Which one you use is ultimately up to you as a GM and you should discuss the ramifications of it with your players.
Here's how E6 (and similar level restrictions) looks like with the new 5e spell list from the PHB:
E10: Spellcasters can exercise true mind control, shapechange, cure petrification, break curses, spy globally, raise the dead back to life, disguise armies with illusions, set up teleport networks, have conversations with gods, summon outsiders to carry out complex tasks, gift animals and trees with sentience, and erect stone fortifications.
E8: Spellcasters can spy nearby, teleport hundreds of feet, fight invisibly, disguise buildings with illusions, shapechange, hold armies at bay, sink ships, and ask the very gods questions.
E6: Spellcasters can curse their enemies, scry nearby but with an obvious telltale, hold small groups at bay, send messages long distances, see into the past about a day, speak any language, raise undead servants, bring the terminally injured back to life, disobey natural laws like gravity, travel through the air and water, and rapidly travel over land.
E4: Spellcasters can create perfect disguises, hold strong warriors at bay, make warriors significantly stronger, turn invisible, levitate, exercise limited mind control, climb walls, send messages in a limited fashion, survive deadly poison, use magic to make hidden things obvious, and hide their tracks.
E2: Spellcasters can exercise fragile mind control, weave superficial illusions, communicate with animals, use telekinesis, heal moderate injuries, inconvenience warriors, use magic to replace tools and moderately expensive equipment, and partially understand unknown languages.
In an E6 setting, a character with 6,500 XP has reached level 6, the highest possible power level for a mortal. Level advancement stops at 6th level, but characters still progress by improving their ability scores and gaining feats. Every 4,000 XP after attaining 6th level, a level 6 character can raise one ability score by +1 (to the normal maximum of 20). Learning a feat takes the place two +1 ability score increases (or 8,000 XP), so a character who wants to learn a feat should skip the ability score increase when they earn 4,000 XP and wait untill they earn their next 4,000 XP to gain the feat.
Maximum Level./ XP Per +1./ XP Per Feat
10./ 11,000./ 22,000
8./ 6,000./ 12,000
6./ 4,000./ 8,000
4./ 900./ 1,800
2./ 200./ 400
The absence of these magic spells can sometimes detrimentally affect gameplay. The plot might call for the players to teleport to the moon, commune with the spirit of a deceased sage, or maybe one of the players got bitten by a cockatrice and they don't want to roll up a new character. Fortunately, the D&D 5e ritual rules work well in this regard. Many 4th- and 5th-level spells can be converted into rare rituals that the GM can use as rewards for major quests, giving the PCs access to spells they would otherwise be unable to acquire (with rare non-purchasable material components, of course). Good candidates include divination, polymorph, awaken, greater restoration, raise dead, scrying, teleportation circle, reincarnate, wall of stone, etc. Of course, a GM who doesn't want those effects to be possible in their campaign may opt out of using these.
Most younger gamers come from the mindset of "the end-game" due to how MMO's work. E6 let's character's continue to grow while not getting ridiculously overpowered, letting people enjoy the end-game for prolonged periods. It also allows new characters to join established character's without there being too much of a power gap.
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