What does 'epic' mean to you?

[Neo]

Epic for me has always meant the development of a character beyond simply adventuring.

For example the way I see it Epic already existed back in first edition AD&D, characters reached named level and gained land, title and the scope of thier games shifted from beyond simple dungeonbashing to greater schemes with greatly added responsibilities.

My Ideal epic system for 3.5 would be something that takes the game in a more Birthright style of domain and land management, social rising, politicking, research, and adventures that are more globally affecting rather than simple small objective tasks.

epic from 3.0 turned me off completely it is a munchkins wet dream, but I myself had little interest in super combat beasts or fantasy super heroes to either play or allow in my games.

 

[comrade raoul]

Cosmic-level stakes, where the characters' actions can impact the campaign setting in fundamental ways. I like to think of it in narrative terms: local bards might sing about the exploits of mid-level characters, while high-level characters could be accorded important places in a world's history books, but the deeds of truly epic characters look more like the stuff of mythology.

This generally requires very powerful characters, but it's not really well-modeled by just ramping up the numbers.

 

[Lord Pendragon]

I voted 'Other.'

For me, a game becomes "epic" when the characters start performing actions and becoming heroes that are the stuff of greatness.

For example, the game I currently play became epic at 12th-level, when my PC completed the Trials of Antagon, and earned a place among the Paladins of Antagon. At his investiture, to the shock and dismay of many of the assembled Paladin Lords, the High Priest declared my PC the tenth Illuminated Knight of Pelor, and an angel appeared a moment later to verify his words to the protesting assemblage.

Recently we've defeated an ancient lich-wizard that used the perverted souls of elves to fuel its power. Another party member received an axe crafted from the blood of his friends and his enemies, and consecrated by the life force of the ancient and powerful Sea Hag, and with it slew the Warlord of the orc-nation and claimed that title for himself (he is himself an orc.)

We are epic individuals. In future generations, children will beg traveling bards for stories of Lord Nathan of the White Griffons and his celestial sword, Retribution. Of Crimthann the Fetching, first Warlord of the new Akane Empire. Of Jiffimore, the daughter of the forest who planted a sapling from the World Tree after the Red Queen had destroyed it. Of Georgraphy, Orc-Husband and Bearer of Elbe the Hart Bow.

We're only level 13 now, so we have seven more levels of epic play to enjoy. In my experience, I've found that epic play is difficult to achieve at the very low levels. But once you reach the mid-levels, you have enough mechanical power to fuel truly epic storytelling.

For me, that's the fun of getting to those levels.

 

[Yair]

Epic is the feel of the campaign. It can high or low level, but it it involves a lot more then just the players.

What he said. Particularly the "a lot more then just the player [characters]" part. Things like the fate of nations, or the world, cosmic events and structure, and the like.

I didn't vote.

 

[diaglo]

beyond the scope of normal comprehension. some thing that is so large or nigh impossible to achieve it makes you feel like a grain of sand.

yet, for those individuals who are 'special' they can overcome the obstacles, make the changes, or divert the catastrophes with their deeds and actions.

to me Gandhi was an Epic Level Commoner.
the atom bomb used on Hiroshima was an Epic Level Weapon
penicillin was an Epic Level artifact/discovery.

 

[GrumpyOldMan]

1) Boring,

2) Pretentious,

or,

3) Boring and Pretentious!

Perhaps I've just had bad experience of 'Epics.'

 

[Wombat]

I define "epic" two different ways -- both of these are simply immediate reactions to seeing or hearing the word.

First up, when I see "EPIC" on a rpg chatboard, I immediately thing "over-the-top pointless munchkinism for people who are more interested in numbers than in story -- god-killing at a minimum". I know this is utterly a kneejerk reaction, but this is due to many gamers I have met over my 30 years behind the screen, both in public and at cons, but almost never in my own games. The emphasis is on ego and showing off, outlandish descriptions, no thought towards the implications of one's actions, and of a constant game of oneupsmanship to show each character is more important than the others. The Planes, absolutely, must be involved! There is no real sense of accomplishment or of goal, only of constantly advancing in power into the stratosphere and beyond.

Secondly, I think, due to books that I have read, movies I have seen, and the best campaigns I have been in, of tales that matter -- characters, of almost any level of power, trying to change things for the better (or, in a nod to another thread, occaisionally trying to stop bad things from happening, a la LotR). The phycisal scale of such epics could be very small or very large, but it involves a seachange in the area -- finding the Holy Grail, bringing the gods back to the Shadowed Valley, discovering the name of Lower Corte, revealing the final secret of the Bell of Calebais, etc. You don't need powerful characters for this, but you need to have the characters truly involved in the story. Often this is Campbellian, but not always. Once the object of the epic is complete, so is the game (or book or movie or whathaveyou).

Obviously, I am a fan of #2 and an anti-fan of #1

 

[National Acrobat]

Epic for me is the scope of the story and the journey the campaign takes over time, whether the characters are 1st or 20th level does not matter.

 

[Whisper72]

To me, epic has to do with the interations with the game world. Epic has to do with the scale of the impact of events on the game world. This often involves large amounts of power, but not necissarily so. Epicness to me is that the actions of the PC's have profound impact on the lives of (almost) all NPC's in the game world...

 

[Jeremy E Grenemyer]

For my campaign, 'Epic' has come to mean great, awe-inducing power. It also has come to mean the ability and resources to put down troubles that would (and in my game have) defeated or nearly destroyed iconic Epic Realms NPCs like Kelben Blackstaff.

It also has come to mean 'transition' and ‘story’, in the sense that the PCs position relative to powerful beings in the Realms that they've interacted with in the past has shifted. For example, about 2 1/2 years ago (in RL time) when the PCs in my Realms Campaign were 10th-12th level, Khelben broke in to their villa in Suzail and stole many Shadow-Weave powered magic items that they’d recovered after a run in with the Shadovar at an ancient Netherese ruin in the Anouroch Desert.

When questioned, Blackstaff made no secret that it was him, and his ‘I’m smarter and wiser than you and you just aren’t capable of using these items wisely’ explanation to the PCs really twisted the knife and ticked them off, too.

Fast forward to now, where the PCs are putting down semi=divine Hellspawned fiends with the power to trap Laeral Arunsun in Blackstaff’s tower and mind control the Blackstaff into a fit of randomly-casting-spells-all-over=Waterdeep lunacy.

In game, Khelben’s attitude towards the PCs has changed considerably because of their successful efforts on his and his wife’s behalf.

I think the key to balancing such powerful characters is by always establishing a strong, multi-layered story line early on in the campaign, so that the players are guided by and focus on that as much as they focus on the power of their characters.

J. Grenemyer