Can we stop with PvE and PvP ...this isn't WOW its a LARP, if my character wants to attack your character its done on IG actions based on what transpired between them. Also, high level characters don't ruin the game for low level players and I am tired of seeing post about it, opinions are fine but don't make seem like its fact because it isn't, its the person playing said character NOT their level. If you want to discuss about what's wrong with the game then talk about how broken High Magic is.....now back to the same handful of people who have the same discussions on these boards all day.
Hi Octaine, I'm glad to have you join in the conversation. The more people who talk about this civilly the more perspectives we will have. I don't think anyone here is being accusatory against high level players. I know I'm not. I'm speaking from a position of having to craft interesting and challenging encounters for an entire field of combatants from level 1 to over level 40, and their accumulated power disparity. I use PvP and PvE as terms that a large percentage of the people here can use to understand the mechanical underpinnings of our LARP system that can make that very difficult. That's all they are, shorthand. I in no way want to turn this game into Alliance of Warcraft, and I'm pretty confident the rest of the people in this thread don't either.
Secondly, while I may be critical of some of the systems in place, I am generally not critical of the players. I've met exactly one player in my three years of playing Alliance who on a player level exacerbated scaling issues. Even that person wasn't really doing it maliciously, but rather seemed to come from a place where winning/loot was what mattered, and so mulched the monsters sent out to entertain the lower level players. That is an amazing awesome to not-awesome ratio. Thus when I at least am talking about the power disparity of high levels vs low levels, I'm talking about the power disparity of the characters, and not the players. That power disparity would still exist if the two players swapped characters.
Third, I don't think high level characters ruin the game for low level characters. Having the two intermingled in the same combat scene is what makes it difficult mechanically to to use combat as a part of the narrative. If I'm aiming for a scene where the players are pushed to their limit, a card that can do so for the 40th level character will murder a 1st level. Swapped, the 40th level character can swat it in one shot. Because we're a game with an ever increasing power system, that's always going to be an issue to one degree or another. One way of handling that is to change it via a level cap. It's attractive because it's simple. It is a lot simpler than trying to rework an integrated part of our community or ruleset like Ritual Magic or High Magic. (Which seriously, I'd love to hear what you think on it on another topic)
Fourth, I always try to keep in mind that we rules gnomes make up a small percentage of the Alliance population. From what I can tell we do it because it fits our personalities, and love the game we play. I'm generalizing here, but we want the game to be the best it possibly can be for all players, from the old guard to the lady who heard about it from a friend and is showing up at level 1 in a homemade tabard and duct tape boffer. We are vocal, yes, and we do chew on things pretty thoroughly. We have strong opinions sometimes, but all are working to help make the game as good as possible. Which is why we want folks who care, like you, to voice your opinion as well.