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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mesh Hong" data-source="post: 5385454" data-attributes="member: 73463">I have run a game from level 1 to level 30 and personally I loved Epic tier. Epic tier is all about the PCs pushing themselves (or being pushed) to the very limits of their enormous power (physical, mental and social) which finally propels them beyond their wildest dreams into the unknown. The fulfilment of their individual epic destinies should be tantalising and compelling and yet mysterious and uncertain. To me the main thing with Epic tier is that it should be Epic in scope, it should be driven or ridden like a runaway train. There should be no time for pontification or bumbling around, the PCs should either know what they want to achieve and race towards it before they are stopped or it should be coming at them like a juggernaught. In Epic the bad guys aren’t trying to kill them, they are trying to DESTROY them and as a DM you no longer need to concern yourself with the petty concerns of finely balanced encounters or situations. Epic PCs are massive powerhouses capable of withstanding encounters many times larger than you dare dread and they should have the social power to call upon vast resources to help them achieve their goals. Personally another thing that defines Epic tier to me is the struggle or realisation that each PC must go through as they redefine their self image in relation to the world. Lets face it an Epic level characters power is incomprehensible to that of a normal mortal man. As each PC progresses towards their destiny they should start to lose their connection to the mortal world, or fight a desperate mental battle to try and stay connected to it. Everywhere they go they will be recognised and at some level either loved or hated because of who or what they are, this is something that the individual PC can consciously use to achieve their goals, but there are also inherent dangers to a society that occur by the Epic PCs mere presence. Any stray comment or action performed by a PC can send ripples or even waves through a community, their opinion can carry the weight of a Godly decree. Epic PCs are reluctant shepherds (or wolves) amongst sheep. Comments between themselves that they consider usual banter might be overheard with horror or taken as a call to arms or prophetic warning of impending doom. Cults of personality might spring up around a PC whether they encourage them or not, with eager heroes desperate to prove themselves worthy of their idols by interpreting their actions and questing in the name of the Epic. Once the PCs reach the Epic tier the Gods also have to start paying attention to them, they have to try and persuade them to join their own fights and causes because if they don’t another god (or worse) will. If a PC is strong willed enough to avoid the political or emotional web of the God tier then the Gods have to decide what to do about the matter. On completion of their Epic destiny is the PC going to pose a threat to them or their powerbase? Is the PC altering or unbalancing the middle world in such a way that it will effect them? Gods, Primordials, Devil and Demon Lords should all be encountered in Epic tier whether they are directly part of the plot or not. They are simply part of the world that the PCs are growing into and will be their piers come level 30, of course these encounters need not be military. As a DM savour the polite conversation your group has with Dispater, or Asmodeous…… Even battle hardened killing machines who look on the middle world like an ants nest will stop, gulp and mind their manners when a lord of hell drops by in person for a polite chat. Now that’s Epic. Anyway I should stop now to wipe the froth from my face, like I said I loved Epic tier, but your opinions, style and experience may vary.</blockquote>

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