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Message: <blockquote data-quote="MoogleEmpMog" data-source="post: 1922020" data-attributes="member: 22882">The characters start either as young adolescents with no class levels (EL 1), as rookie adventurers or soldiers or scholars or what not (EL 4) or as typical troops (EL 8).  It depends on where you want to start the game and whether you want the PCs to be immediately thrust into the limelight.A 1st-level character is basically about 13 years old, with no life experience and no serious combat under his belt.  He's probably going to fight nuisance monsters (carrion crawlers, some wild animals) or youths of other races (juvenile orcs on their first human-hunt).  Or, he does things that don't involve serious fighting, like exploring a (truly) abandoned ruin in the hills outside of town.  Or, for that matter, he enters service in a class-teaching organization like the local militia (Fighter, Ranger and Rogue), tribal warrior caste (Barbarian and Ranger), magic academy (Wizard), pickpocket gang (Rogue) or religious order (Cleric, Druid and Paladin).The common soldier could slay 3 ogre teens (CR 2 each) and not break a sweat.  Against a typical ogre WARRIOR (an 8th-level barbarian), he's going to get his rear handed to him more often than not; specifically, about as often as a 1st-level fighter against a levelless ogre.Even an adolescent troll can kill a common soldier who wasn't prepared for its regeneration.  A seasoned troll who has experienced the brutal violence of trollish life will probably be a higher level than his ogre or human counterparts - remember, trolls can literally rip each other to bits in "training."Just like every 1st-level fighter, barbarian, ranger and paladin?  :\  This is a problem with Martial Weapon Proficiency, not with high-level commoners.Heck, it makes some degree of sense.  Roman soldiers trained with their gladii and several types of spears, as well as varying levels of armor, and most were probably at least passably familiar with the cavalry sword (spatha, I believe?) and sling.  Knights learned sword, axe, lance, spear and mace, basically all the martial weapons except ranged weapons, and also grappling.  Samurai trained with two types of sword, lance, bow, unarmed combat, and usually some other secondary weapons.  Modern soldiers learn to use assault rifles, pistols, bayonets, grenades and various types of heavy weaponry.If you had to fight to level, I would agree with you.  But you don't - or, at least, shouldn't.  Training alone should account for your first few levels, and low-level characters thrust into danger should either gang up on a few veteran opponents (four 4th-level PCs swarm a lone orc raider, CR 9), hunt up weak animal-like creatures, or fight other young'uns.I'll also go out on a limb and suggest that most, though not all, already-Epic games use fast levelling.</blockquote>

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