Stuck in the lower levels.
- Thread starter Mistwell
- Start date
Henry
Autoexreginated
Mistwell, it looks like the only way to solve that is going to be to DM it yourself, to show the group that lower levels is not the hassle that it is perceived to be.
I would suggest when it comes time for you to run a new campaign, start them at 5th level (nice level, still in the range of what you are used to, but allows prestige classes and whatnot at next level), and play with a definite goal in mind, one that will top the party out at 10th. That way, you have a definite story in mind, one with a beginning, middle, and end, and you give them a taste of what higher levels are about. Most groups will want to finish out a story that has an ending, in my experience.
Good luck!
P.S. My advice is NOT to rush the Arcana Unearthed game. Take this one since you will be a player to enjoy the game, enjoying all the roleplaying goodness Monte has baked into it. It's not good in my opinion to rush new game systems, but enjoy this one from level 1 on up - just REMEMBER the lower amount of healing spells in this game!!!!
I would suggest when it comes time for you to run a new campaign, start them at 5th level (nice level, still in the range of what you are used to, but allows prestige classes and whatnot at next level), and play with a definite goal in mind, one that will top the party out at 10th. That way, you have a definite story in mind, one with a beginning, middle, and end, and you give them a taste of what higher levels are about. Most groups will want to finish out a story that has an ending, in my experience.
Good luck!
P.S. My advice is NOT to rush the Arcana Unearthed game. Take this one since you will be a player to enjoy the game, enjoying all the roleplaying goodness Monte has baked into it. It's not good in my opinion to rush new game systems, but enjoy this one from level 1 on up - just REMEMBER the lower amount of healing spells in this game!!!!
Rel
Liquid Awesome
This issue is present in our game group too. I hesitate to call it a "problem" because most of us seem to like the relatively low levels and always have. But we are starting to want to play at some of the higher levels too and it has dawned on us that there are huge swaths of the game books (spells higher than 4th level for example) that are simply never used.
The reason for this is no big mystery. We rotate GM's and it is typical for each GM to run the game for anwhere between 4 and 9 months before we wrap up a given campaign and start fresh. It is almost never an issue that we are sick and tired of a given campaign, more that we are just ready for a break from that setting for a while.
In almost every case, we end the campaign at a good stopping place, but always with enough loose ends that we could go back and pick it up at a later time if we chose to. We almost always pay lip service to the idea that when it rotates back around to that GM that he might just pick up the previous campaign with the same characters and keep rolling with it.
What usually happens is that, by the time it is that GM's turn again, he has a cool new idea for the sort of game he wants to run. Everybody gets excited about the new game and we forego the opportunity to resume the previous campaign. Everybody makes new characters and off we go again.
As I said, this may be about to change. My first 3E campaign ran for about 9 months and was concluded with most of the players having really enjoyed their characters. Now that my turn to GM is rolling around again, I'm going to see if they want to pick up that campaign once again.
Alternately, we might just head off in a completely new direction and start the D20 Modern Space: 1889 game that I've been mulling over. We'll have fun either way, I'm sure.
The reason for this is no big mystery. We rotate GM's and it is typical for each GM to run the game for anwhere between 4 and 9 months before we wrap up a given campaign and start fresh. It is almost never an issue that we are sick and tired of a given campaign, more that we are just ready for a break from that setting for a while.
In almost every case, we end the campaign at a good stopping place, but always with enough loose ends that we could go back and pick it up at a later time if we chose to. We almost always pay lip service to the idea that when it rotates back around to that GM that he might just pick up the previous campaign with the same characters and keep rolling with it.
What usually happens is that, by the time it is that GM's turn again, he has a cool new idea for the sort of game he wants to run. Everybody gets excited about the new game and we forego the opportunity to resume the previous campaign. Everybody makes new characters and off we go again.
As I said, this may be about to change. My first 3E campaign ran for about 9 months and was concluded with most of the players having really enjoyed their characters. Now that my turn to GM is rolling around again, I'm going to see if they want to pick up that campaign once again.
Alternately, we might just head off in a completely new direction and start the D20 Modern Space: 1889 game that I've been mulling over. We'll have fun either way, I'm sure.
Plane Sailing
Astral Admin - Mwahahaha!
I run my campaign once a month, and there are several interleaved campaigns going on at once. The party are now levels 11, 10, 10, 9, 8, 8 and I've got to tell you that the party has been much more fragile since passing about 6th level... The buffer zone between alive and dead gets bypassed much more quickly by high CR encounters IME.
Even with a house rule to reduce mortality there has been 17 PC deaths since the campaign begun (!!)
Even with a house rule to reduce mortality there has been 17 PC deaths since the campaign begun (!!)
Desdichado
Hero
I'm in Rel's boat -- we rarely play high levels too, but I don't consider it to be a problem. That said, occasionally we want to run something else too, and we've done a few things.
1) Start at 20th level. Yeah, this one was weird. But fun. More of a one-shot though -- it's confusing to start a character with so many options; you end up forgetting to use more than half of them.
2) Real fast advancement. We did an experiment, which we'll probably actually pick up again, in which we rotated DMs once a week, didn't really prepare much of anything in advance, and advanced one level a session no matter what we actually did.
I guess I don't understand where you're coming from, though. If you're one of the DMs, how can you be having this problem, at least for your own game? Just advance quicker or start higher. Or are you saying you want to play at higher levels for the games you're not DMing?
Either way, sounds like you've talked to your AU DM and got a good solution going.
1) Start at 20th level. Yeah, this one was weird. But fun. More of a one-shot though -- it's confusing to start a character with so many options; you end up forgetting to use more than half of them.
2) Real fast advancement. We did an experiment, which we'll probably actually pick up again, in which we rotated DMs once a week, didn't really prepare much of anything in advance, and advanced one level a session no matter what we actually did.
I guess I don't understand where you're coming from, though. If you're one of the DMs, how can you be having this problem, at least for your own game? Just advance quicker or start higher. Or are you saying you want to play at higher levels for the games you're not DMing?
Either way, sounds like you've talked to your AU DM and got a good solution going.
sithramir
First Post
I'd suggest doing a level every session or every other session until say 6th level.
This way its faster progression and then once people reach that level slow it to normal.
My group that I started was at 6th level when I DM. We played maybe 2 or 3 sessions to get characters learned well and combat abilites of each guy known and everyone understanding who wnad what the others in their group is. Then I level'd them to 7 and up to 8 and up to 9 basically once a session or every other session without calculating xp (assuming they did something at least to get xp still). Now they were at 9th where I really wnated them and we played from there.
I believe I even lowered xp for a session or two to keep them at 9 longer but they didn't mind as they had had several weeks beforehand of leveling. It worked out very well. I'm restarting at the beginning of school the session again and its still 9th. Worked out well and allowed a bit higher levels but with people not having any lcue of what they gave their characters.
This way its faster progression and then once people reach that level slow it to normal.
My group that I started was at 6th level when I DM. We played maybe 2 or 3 sessions to get characters learned well and combat abilites of each guy known and everyone understanding who wnad what the others in their group is. Then I level'd them to 7 and up to 8 and up to 9 basically once a session or every other session without calculating xp (assuming they did something at least to get xp still). Now they were at 9th where I really wnated them and we played from there.
I believe I even lowered xp for a session or two to keep them at 9 longer but they didn't mind as they had had several weeks beforehand of leveling. It worked out very well. I'm restarting at the beginning of school the session again and its still 9th. Worked out well and allowed a bit higher levels but with people not having any lcue of what they gave their characters.
Because of an unfortunate combination of character deaths, slow game play, roleplaying, side conversations and demanding wives we have been 8th to 10th level for the last 5 years.
We are starting to progressive more quickly now. We always used to start new characters at the one level lower than the lowest level in the party. Now we start them at the mean level. If this means that the new character is higher level than an existing character then so be it.
The Dm has tried to compensation for the slow pace by throwing in more difficult encounters. We have less combat than most but each fight generally cost more than the recommended 20% of part resources.
I think the DM might also be slightly inflating the XP reward overall. Not that I mind, he is only accomodating our subtle hints.
We are starting to progressive more quickly now. We always used to start new characters at the one level lower than the lowest level in the party. Now we start them at the mean level. If this means that the new character is higher level than an existing character then so be it.
The Dm has tried to compensation for the slow pace by throwing in more difficult encounters. We have less combat than most but each fight generally cost more than the recommended 20% of part resources.
I think the DM might also be slightly inflating the XP reward overall. Not that I mind, he is only accomodating our subtle hints.
Kastil
Explorer
Mistwell said:
Well this is certainly not true. I have a ranger (8th level when we as a group decided to try something else) who nearly died, as in dropped below 0HPs, several times. Once by a party member possessed by an evil sword. Gutted me in one swing.
In the game I DM (currently on Hiatus) my players are levels 6-8. I have found several challenges for them and have even killed them off (not on purpose!). Maybe DM J likes the critters at the lower levels better ::shrugs:: Even a 12th level character can bite off more than he can chew.
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