Quest Level Requirements.

[Zip]

"Why, yes. I do intend to join you on your heroic quest. It is, after all, the very sort of thing I have been intending to do, after becoming an adventurer and all."
"Marvelous."
"... Actually, something tells me this is dangerous, perhaps I shouldn't."

Is this a common scene on your server?
Are poor, innocent lowbies - sometimes new to your roleplaying locale, looking for a good time - often left out, because of their small number of experience points?
Don't you think that something should be done?

My name is Zip. And I do. I dream of a world, where the experience point wall has been abolished.

It may have been said before, but I've decided to say it again. I think that in the case of some quests, the level restrictions are ridiculous. Not going up, but rather, for the lower levels. At times, finding people to roleplay with can be tedious, especially in the afternoon hours of the Australian timezone. It grows increasingly irritating when the people you've finally found decide to go on a quest, but your poor new character's level is two low.
And this is only one situation; there are countless others that all lead to the same thing, which is one player being excluded from all our beloved and joyful reindeer games.

Now, why do we have minimum level restrictions?
To keep people from dying? Adventuring is dangerous shizzle. It'd be atmospheric to have someone actually get hurt.
To keep new players from dying? Well, if they're being entertained as opposed to being excluded, it'd be fun regardless, I think. Besides, everyone dies on EfU, and the new setting is likely no different.

I don't believe it should be abolished for all quests, however, merely most. Quests that're like, 5+ only, perhaps they should remain.

I've a few more points I could make, but it's half past midnight.

[I can has fun?]

The problem with letting low levels onto high level quests is that they become high level far too quickly. It's too easy for someone to rush their friends up to ridiculously high levels with little to no danger for the lowbie.

You've identified a serious problem, but I'm not sure that removing the low level restrictions on quests is the solution.

[pyth]

Generally, if you're to low to go on a quest, just contact a DM and they'll let you in so you can go with your group.

[Zip]

The problem with letting low levels onto high level quests is that they become high level far too quickly. It's too easy for someone to rush their friends up to ridiculously high levels with little to no danger for the lowbie.

You've identified a serious problem, but I'm not sure that removing the low level restrictions on quests is the solution.

Thus we keep some of the higher-rewarding quests (say, level 5+ ones) at the standard they are. However, by making the ones with a minimum level of three drop down to not having a minimum level at all, you're just saving people half an hour of deliveries.

And to pyth's point; what about when no DMs are to be found?

[Letsplayforfun]

I used to be annoyed by lvl restrictions, but after a while i just didn't notice them anymore. There are so many quests to be done by any parties (there was even a 3-10 lvl quest on EfU) that i don't think it's really an issue. Besides, when folks begin to know about the quest restrictions, they just skip aside those they can't do in some fashion that everyone understands.

Besides, when you are lvl two in EfUA, it usually means you've just arrived, and who'd want to quest with a beggar anyhow, you know?

[Sr.N]

It's not really hard to get to level 3. There are a few soloable combat quests even, if you don't want to do delivery quests.

I think it's really fine as it is.

[Sorrowful Sonata]

I find it laughable people are complaining about not being able to level up. My PC Meriel, cannot do a fairly large portion of the starting quests, as she will not deal with non elves.
 
Try playing a racist and then say it's too hard to do anything :o
 
 
Though I do not think the OP was complaining about difficulty, but how lame and OOC it is to have to drop party because you don't fall within the limit.
I agree here, but the DMs are always nice enough to help. For balance, I say leave it as is!

[dragonfire9000]

Hmmm... this is quite annoying. I see the side of the author, but also that of Ichf?. I said to a guy ingame two nights ago how incredibly difficult this was to RP without sounding lame. I'm open to suggestions, but this is really an age-old problem. Creative solutions are often the best, but that's situation by situation.

Ideas?

[Snoteye]

This is only a problem if you make it one. It's the same thing for everyone and has been for three years. It's one of the reasons we put constraints in quest giver descriptions, too.

[Mort]

I mean to every scripted system/rules decided from an Out-of-Character perspective, there are flaws.

What is the reasoning for doing quests only once per reset?

What is the reasoning that people in two different group can do the same quest involving the same plot in the same day (Didn't Big Boss Shaman X got killed the first time? Apparently he escaped, yet again.)?

And the list goes on. Lower limits are there as an indicator and also to prevent PC from being almost useless on a quest and getting stomped or staying in the back and receiving XP for actions they are not really participating in.

Sure, there are flaws, but it has worked pretty well so far and we will be adding a greater variety of scripted quests in order to avoid these kinds of incompatibilities in the future so your suggestion is noted and will be addressed, but in a different way.

We, also, have always been favorable/encourage/rewarded PCs who take the time to show new players around and include them in their own plot/group/adventures, etc. in the hopes of avoiding situations where new players are left out. Usually, it's rarely the case that a new player will be left out, but if it is was the case for you, we thank you for bringing that to our attention and we will address it as time permits.

[RIPnogarD]

I believe it also was meant to keep a party of two or three second levelers from entering, err, umm, maybe a hill giant encampment or something. Because if that happened to a neewb then there would be posts complaining that the quests are set to difficult for the entry level PC’s.

[Zip]

Alright, then.

So perhaps it could be made that a few quests have the minimum level of three removed? It seems silly and pointless to me, both with in-character reasoning and out-of-character reasoning.

Although, admittedly, the second time I ran into this problem, a DM was kind enough to push me through the questgiver.

Anyway. From the OOC point of view, it can lead to being excluded. Not so much from plots, but as I stated, in certain hours for certain timezones, it seems next to no one is on. If the people who are on want to quest and you can't, you might as well log out, which leads to that timezone constantly being lower.

From an IC point of view; if you're with a bunch of armed adventurers, why not? Besides, aren't you yourself an adventurer, isn't this the kind of thing you're going to be doing to make a living?

It just seems pointless to have people run bats and scavenge, before they can do anything with non-new character.

[Nightshadow]

In my honest opinion, this is not a problem. If anything were done, I would suggest this: People of level lower than the minimum level receive a message along the lines of "You are too low for the quest, this does not mean you cannot take the quest. All experience you would gain on this quest is reduced to 1/3 normal from killing monsters, and will receive only 1/2 the normal xp upon completion. Any gold dropped on the quest will be reduced to 80% normal" and the things above would be changed. I think this prevents low level characters from going on the, say, Jergalite Mortuary quest, and reaching level 4 from one quest, when they hardly do anything for the group, and they wouldn't suddenly walk away from a quest with more gold than most people twice their level have.

People of level higher than the maximum level should not go on a quest too low level for them without DM approval, in my opinion. After all, what self respecting adventurer would walk into a tower that has rat droppings everywhere unless they had a good reason to (other than 'I am just exploring')?

[Relinquish]

I can see how many PCs ICly and OOCly can be annoyed with having a virtually useless PC along with them on a quest.

[Goblin Butcher]

Theres only like 2~3 quests with a level min higher than 3 I believe right now, so this is a non issue!