Power Tier and Playstyle - Printable Version

Power Tier and Playstyle - Printable Version

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Power Tier and Playstyle - Zaz - 05-28-2020

For several reasons, I have decided to make a power tiering system of sorts, categorizing characters into one of several tiers of power. This is in no way a list to determine who's better than who, or even who's more powerful than who. The purpose of this list is to categorize characters into types, ranging from characters more akin to regular people to those likened to demigods. Many people enjoy physical conflict in their character's story and this list serves as a guide to those people, allowing them to easily see where other characters stand compared to their own. This does not mean that said conflict needs to be nonsensical or inorganic, however, the list merely acts as a signpost, leaving everything after for you and them to plot out. Aside from physical conflict, many people feel more comfortable roleplaying with characters of similar power to their own. Roleplaying with characters too far above them can make them feel unimportant, and roleplaying with characters too far below them can make them feel like they have nothing to gain. This list also serves as a guide to these people, letting them more easily choose characters within their comfort zone to seek threads with. I have decided to make five tiers of power, representing common people to legendary beings. These tiers are Commonfolk, Adventurer, Chosen, Monster, and Legend. Keep in mind that these tiers apply equally to all characters, so a Legend-tier dragon would be comparable to a Legend-tier human, as well as a Legend-tier anything else.

Commonfolk: Most of these are casual characters. No special powers or strange destinies to fulfill, you'll usually find these characters in more peaceful settings. However, that doesn't necessarily mean that they're any less interesting. Though unlikely to become involved in any world conflict, these characters can have deep and meaningful conflicts of their own and are an excellent choice to tell a story without so much supernatural pizzazz getting in the way. These are essentially normal people in a supernatural world, with all the drama that mortality brings with it.

Adventurer: While for the most part still casual, these characters come closer to pushing the envelope. This is usually the tier where meaningful physical conflict first enters a character's story. Be they a wandering knight or an apprentice mage, these characters have, while perhaps limited, at least some combat ability, whether natural or trained. Most characters of innately magical races will at least fall into this tier unless the character is purposefully designed to be weaker than is normal, as will the vast majority of characters who participate in any meaningful combat.

Chosen: This is the tier where natural limits are first exceeded, and where physical conflict tends to become much more common in a character's story. While characters can get in this tier simply by being of certain magical races, most who get here have done so because they're beyond what is considered normal. Whether it be destiny, responsibility, or some other calling, it is common for characters of this tier to become involved in things greater than just themselves. Though there are still those more powerful, characters of this tier can often majorly influence the world around them.

Monster: These characters are to others what this tier labels them as. Beyond pushing the envelope, these characters have achieved power enough that NPC interaction usually isn't enough to pose a threat to them anymore. When faced with an army, they can still hold their own while surrounded and outnumbered. While characters of lower tiers can very well participate in events, characters in this tier and higher are the ones who usually start and potentially even control them. Very few races can provide free passage to this tier, for it is a tier of those who have surpassed mortal limits.

Legend: Characters of this tier are the pinnacle of a world, and more than a handful existing at a time can threaten to make any conflict between lower-tier characters meaningless. These are the characters who can shape the world around them the easiest, and nearly all of them will be in a position of overarching plot relevance. NPC interaction can very well cease to have any meaning for these characters, making them occasionally frustrating to play. However, they can serve to drive events and overarching plot forward should either stagnate, and they tend to keep a world in order.

Unquantified: This is an extra tier, devoted to characters who, for whatever reason, cannot be placed into another tier. The most common reason for a character to be put into this tier is because they lack detail. Characters seemingly intended to be of Legend-tier but with no logical explanation or coherent reasoning will be placed in this tier, as will characters whose abilities are excessively vague. Characters whose lack of coherent writing makes them hard to understand will very likely be placed in this tier as well. If your character is placed in this tier, please take the time to fix them.

Players Not Participating:

If a character of yours is placed in a tier that you do not agree with, simply leave a post mentioning this and explain why you think they were placed wrongly. Keep in mind that a lack of detail can lead to placement into a tier they were not intended for, and I may ask you to add more detail to a character's abilities if they're too vague to place properly. I highly recommend participation in this tiering system. While it may not help absolutely everyone, it is designed to do absolutely no harm. It provides information and does nothing more. However, for whatever reason, if you are still uncomfortable with having your characters included in this list, simply leave a reply stating so and I will remove them all, adding you to the list of players not participating.
Players who I know to be inactive may be placed here temporarily until their return.

In addition to the above guide to characters you may want to thread with, I thought to make a guide on players you may want to thread with, in a basic sense. I'm separating the playstyles of the roleplayers here into three categories based on the general differences in how they like to plot out a story. I thought to do this because I've observed before that players using opposing styles tend to have difficulty threading with one another, at least enjoyably, so this section is to make it easier to find roleplayers of similar style. Please note that no playstyle is superior to another and that each is simply a preferred method of telling a character's story, and also that each is not entirely restrictive, as it is very possible for someone who prefers one of them to occasionally dabble in the others.

Lawful: Roleplayers in this category like to have a story fully outlined before setting off to fulfill it. They most often prefer events to be predetermined, having their characters act out a story already planned and laid out carefully. They will usually prefer to outline a thread beforehand, discussing the beginning, middle, and end, and then have your and their characters play it out accordingly.

Chaotic: Roleplayers in this category like to have a story evolve moment to moment, their characters reacting to whatever stimuli currently affect them. They most often prefer not to plan, throwing their characters into the thick of things, and seeing how things turn out. They will usually prefer to set a starting point and let the natural reactions of their characters play out the story from there.

Neutral: Roleplayers in this category tend to use a bit of both lawful and chaotic tendencies in their stories. They may lay out key plot points beforehand, letting the in-between change naturally as characters interact. Should too much change occur, they may rethink the plot points they have previously set, or work to turn the direction of a thread back on track to fulfill their original plan.

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Legend

Monster

Alexander, Human -Zaz

Chosen

Adventurer

Commonfolk

Unquantified

Lawful:

Chaotic: Zaz

Neutral: