A'koss
Explorer
This is a topic which I'm trying to address in a little more "believable" fashion for our new campaign. Although it is a lower magic setting than core D&D, and PC race populations are lot smaller, the world is very rough and tumble and produces a fair number of high level characters.
What do people think the "real life" impact would be of D&D level-based advancement on society? Especially considering a character can advance himself in virtually every conceivable way and essentially without limit...
How do you think the common people feel about high level characters in general?
How would society adapt with the presence of people with such power? Though this question could easily apply to living on a world with numerous other intelligent and powerful races.
Then, what about the character himself?
What goes on in the head of man/woman who was born a weakling commoner but has advanced to the point where they can, quite literally, rip the head off a full-grown man with their bare hands. They can face down collosal monsters with medieval melee weaponry and expect to win! The power they achieve isn't inherent to the race like some outsider - it is a power that has to be earned, and not easily, and I think that would have a deep psychological impact on a person who has transitioned from one extreme (real-life man or woman) to the other (near-god).
Also, this is power that achieved, for the most part, through intense and bloody combat... and plenty of it. How does that reflect on the character and on a society who is very aware of that path to power?
I had some half-formed ideas of my own, but I'm looking more for just some original ideas on the matter (things I hadn't considered) and didn't want to try and take the discussion in any one direction.
Thoughts?
A'koss.
What do people think the "real life" impact would be of D&D level-based advancement on society? Especially considering a character can advance himself in virtually every conceivable way and essentially without limit...
How do you think the common people feel about high level characters in general?
How would society adapt with the presence of people with such power? Though this question could easily apply to living on a world with numerous other intelligent and powerful races.
Then, what about the character himself?
What goes on in the head of man/woman who was born a weakling commoner but has advanced to the point where they can, quite literally, rip the head off a full-grown man with their bare hands. They can face down collosal monsters with medieval melee weaponry and expect to win! The power they achieve isn't inherent to the race like some outsider - it is a power that has to be earned, and not easily, and I think that would have a deep psychological impact on a person who has transitioned from one extreme (real-life man or woman) to the other (near-god).
Also, this is power that achieved, for the most part, through intense and bloody combat... and plenty of it. How does that reflect on the character and on a society who is very aware of that path to power?
I had some half-formed ideas of my own, but I'm looking more for just some original ideas on the matter (things I hadn't considered) and didn't want to try and take the discussion in any one direction.
Thoughts?
A'koss.
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