Level cap of 8 was introduced on March 10, almost two months ago, as a temporary measure to stop players from 'outpacing' the server development and to give time for PVE content adjustments. The server has come a long way since then; numerous dungeons were added, most of the existing ones were altered and fixed, loot spawning in them was adjusted. All of that is highly appreciated, it has made the server more attractive and interesting to play. That having been said, I believe that the cap should be raised - not completely removed yet, but increased by one or two steps. I will try to elucidate several reasons, even if I'm aware that the perspective of a player is limited and might not fully align with the design decisions made by the staff.
- Motivation: character development takes place in several dimensions, particularly the roleplay angle where the character undergoes changes due to the events in the game. This is not just possible but commonly present on the server; however, the other avenue of progress, the mechanical one, should not be diminished. Leveling up the character and gaining access to more class features is a primary motivation for the player in a role-playing game, and the perspective of such might help with player retention.
- Reward: at the risk of some redundancy with the above, gaining experience is a process that culminates with attaining the higher level, which is the reward. Right now, there is none, which might lead some players to feel discouraged despite their efforts and continued interest. This ties into class progression in several cases. Wizards and clerics gain their fifth circle spells on level 9 (with a 9 minute cooldown). Scouts gain skirmishing stance, one of the key tools for them. Paladins gain an additonal spell and vow feat. In neither case will it make the classes overpowered and negate the existing challenge, but merely expand their skillsets.
- Content: there are several highly difficult areas present in the module already. Some are arguably too strong for the level cap of 8; while they have been successfully cleared, the degree of challenge and thus the organizational difficulty makes them seldom visited. Increased level cap would not trivialize that challenge but could make these places more accessible.
- Time: by design, the leveling progress is meant to be slow through daily RP exp caps, which means the pace of gaining experience is more or less fixed for regular players. The argument here is that even if the level cap was to be raised, there would be several weeks at least before the bulk of the playerbase reaches it. It would not be putting a deadline on the staff.
- Motivation: character development takes place in several dimensions, particularly the roleplay angle where the character undergoes changes due to the events in the game. This is not just possible but commonly present on the server; however, the other avenue of progress, the mechanical one, should not be diminished. Leveling up the character and gaining access to more class features is a primary motivation for the player in a role-playing game, and the perspective of such might help with player retention.
- Reward: at the risk of some redundancy with the above, gaining experience is a process that culminates with attaining the higher level, which is the reward. Right now, there is none, which might lead some players to feel discouraged despite their efforts and continued interest. This ties into class progression in several cases. Wizards and clerics gain their fifth circle spells on level 9 (with a 9 minute cooldown). Scouts gain skirmishing stance, one of the key tools for them. Paladins gain an additonal spell and vow feat. In neither case will it make the classes overpowered and negate the existing challenge, but merely expand their skillsets.
- Content: there are several highly difficult areas present in the module already. Some are arguably too strong for the level cap of 8; while they have been successfully cleared, the degree of challenge and thus the organizational difficulty makes them seldom visited. Increased level cap would not trivialize that challenge but could make these places more accessible.
- Time: by design, the leveling progress is meant to be slow through daily RP exp caps, which means the pace of gaining experience is more or less fixed for regular players. The argument here is that even if the level cap was to be raised, there would be several weeks at least before the bulk of the playerbase reaches it. It would not be putting a deadline on the staff.
