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<blockquote data-quote="kigmatzomat" data-source="post: 2572937" data-attributes="member: 9254">IMC, currently at 18th level played from 1st level, the party gets into combat about every other session.&nbsp; In part it is b/c combat takes a lot of RL time vs. game time but also to keep the game as much about the plot as possible and still be D&amp;D. Some months we'll got 3-4 sessions between fights. Many times because the players decide to deal with things socially before leaping forward with blades drawn.&nbsp; (I love my players)&nbsp; Other times there are 2-3 combat sessions in a row, usually when diplomacy fails or is useless.&nbsp; I don't feel that I am more challenged now than when I began.&nbsp; This campaign started with 1st level characters ~3 months after 3.0 was released.&nbsp; It's been a continuous learning curve since the beginning, so each level now is just like each level before; some new tricks, new powers, and a challenge to both DM and player.&nbsp; There were times when I'd look at spells 2-3 levels higher than the campaign and not be sure if I could run that right.&nbsp; So when the normal game was on hold due to holidays, people out of town, etc, I'd run one shots with characters at higher levels than the campaign.&nbsp; Players would make something fun to play and I'd run something simple and full of scary monsters with powers I wanted to check out.&nbsp; We'd debate the rules, try those tactics that lurk in the back of our minds, and generally hash things out.&nbsp; When the campaign hit the higher levels the players had a grasp on what they could and couldn't do and felt more comfortable about my calls in-game.&nbsp; We've ran various one-shots up to 27th level and I am confident I can maintain the plot and sanity of the setting to at least that level.&nbsp; I can understand DMs not being comfortable when the power level increases a lot, possibly due to the players using a great tactic to defeat a BBEG letting the level faster than expected.&nbsp; But why kill off a good campaign?&nbsp; Take a break, run a module out of Dragon at those higher levels with secondary characters.&nbsp; The players won't have the emotional investment so they won't be as difficult to deal with and your campaign's plot and setting are safe so you are more relaxed.&nbsp;&nbsp; When you hit another power plateau, pull out those secondary characters, add a few levels and some more loot and run another one-shot.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="kigmatzomat, post: 2572937, member: 9254"] IMC, currently at 18th level played from 1st level, the party gets into combat about every other session. In part it is b/c combat takes a lot of RL time vs. game time but also to keep the game as much about the plot as possible and still be D&D. Some months we'll got 3-4 sessions between fights. Many times because the players decide to deal with things socially before leaping forward with blades drawn. (I love my players) Other times there are 2-3 combat sessions in a row, usually when diplomacy fails or is useless. I don't feel that I am more challenged now than when I began. This campaign started with 1st level characters ~3 months after 3.0 was released. It's been a continuous learning curve since the beginning, so each level now is just like each level before; some new tricks, new powers, and a challenge to both DM and player. There were times when I'd look at spells 2-3 levels higher than the campaign and not be sure if I could run that right. So when the normal game was on hold due to holidays, people out of town, etc, I'd run one shots with characters at higher levels than the campaign. Players would make something fun to play and I'd run something simple and full of scary monsters with powers I wanted to check out. We'd debate the rules, try those tactics that lurk in the back of our minds, and generally hash things out. When the campaign hit the higher levels the players had a grasp on what they could and couldn't do and felt more comfortable about my calls in-game. We've ran various one-shots up to 27th level and I am confident I can maintain the plot and sanity of the setting to at least that level. I can understand DMs not being comfortable when the power level increases a lot, possibly due to the players using a great tactic to defeat a BBEG letting the level faster than expected. But why kill off a good campaign? Take a break, run a module out of Dragon at those higher levels with secondary characters. The players won't have the emotional investment so they won't be as difficult to deal with and your campaign's plot and setting are safe so you are more relaxed. When you hit another power plateau, pull out those secondary characters, add a few levels and some more loot and run another one-shot. [/QUOTE]

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