Ability/Skill/Spell Question

[The Madd Hatter]

I'm sure this has been asked a million and one plus infinity times, but I have some confusion here and I understand others are confused as well.

Is this scenario possible:

I complete a quest/soloquestion in which I obtain a skill/ability/spell and don't level up. Skill/ability/spell is temporarily approved by the judge that rates the thread. I submit a mid-term profile update with the new skill/ability/spell and it gets re-approval by the RoG staff. When I level I submit a level-up profile that includes both my mid-term skill add and the normal updates [upgrade to previous skills or add of a new skill].

Now the question here is, "Is there a reduction of what can be added upon level up if a skill/ability/spell is begotten between levels?"

[grim137]

Yes.

[The Madd Hatter]

Yes to which question?!?

[grim137]

There was more than one question?

Anyways to clarify things. Yes, if you gain an ability/spell/whatever during a quest there will be a reduction on what can be gotten with your level update when you level up. The magnitude of this reduction depends on how many abilities you earned in threads between levels and how powerfull that (those) abilitie(s) was (were).

[The Madd Hatter]

Okay, thank you.

I perfer all of my skills/abilities/spells gotten in quests because just suddenly gaining them at a level up makes no sense in continuity at all. So at level ups, I perfer to just have a tiny increase in my current skills due to experience in them, and any new skills if present added in between levels due to proper events.

[Letho]

Actually, when you make a mid-level update, you can't add new skills and powers nor can you enhance them. Mid-level updates are for people that had something important happen to their character so that their history/appearance/personality has to be updated. You can only add new powers to the profile at level-up.

[The Madd Hatter]

Raven just said the complete opposite of that at the conclusion of Ravenok Kinnes quest. Which is what led to this question.

Confusion among the mods? Interesting.

[Letho]

Raven is not in RoG, so the mistake in this case is equal to me posting a wrong price for something in Bazaar, which means it can happen.

For an example of a mid-level update, check this thread (http://www.althanas.com/world/showthread.php?t=3220).

[Cyrus the virus]

Indeed, the people who've posted here are right. Things are different with items, just so you know. If you are rewarded with a steel sword or something, you can use that before you level up. That isn't quite the same as adding new abilities.

[The Madd Hatter]

What would it take, score-wise, to be rewarded an invulnerable sword that has a million warring souls within and never dulls?

My character will not be able to draw it from the sheath, however, so he can't use it as a weapon, its only an artifact. He will never be able to use it, nor can anyone else. It is a single-owner type thing, and the owner gave it to him so that he would never be able to use it again.

[Daven Logarthu]

I do have a question. Is it possible to gain an ability from a quest and use it only in other quests until the next level up? I don't want to have a plateaued character that only gains things at level ups. Also, if it is only used in quests, it is not going to have any effect on any other character, which is the main problem with gaining abilities outside of level ups. Gradual progression in ability is what I try for.

[Cyrus the virus]

Hatter: 0-100? It's a sword you can never use, sell, or do anything with outside of storyline... So I don't see any reason why you can't have it as long as it's never ever used, ever.

Daven: All characters are bound by the same rules, sorry. If we allowed that sort of thing, we could simply abolish the level system altogether and only award abilities at the end of quests.

Just like you can't have an almighty, unstoppable character just because you'll only use him in quests. I've approved two or three profiles in the past that had iffy abilities because their controllers sword to only use them in quests, but in retrospect, I believe that was a mistake to do.

[grim137]

Wait, so if we gain an ability in a quest we can't use it untill we level up? What hell, since when? I thought that unless an ability earne in a thread had a locked untill level X type limitation we could still use it once it was earned in a quest and approved by the judging mod?

[Cyrus the virus]

Why would you ever think that?

[grim137]

Because as far as I knew thats the way its always been. I've always RP'd abilities I've earned in threads right after they were granted to me by the judging mod and I've never had any problems. When did the rule change?

[Cyrus the virus]

It never did. You just assumed wrong, I guess, and nobody ever called you out on it. Views on the rules have never been very straight, anyway, as if they've never been set. We mods need to hammer it all out and get it posted right in the open, then.

With Letho as admin now, these things should be possible once more. Sorry for the confusion.

[Daven Logarthu]

That rule is quite idiotic, I must say. It promotes stagnant characters that can only progress when they level up. Just because a judging mod is not an RoG mod does not mean that they are not competant enough to know whether an ability is too powerful. And if they do not know then they could simply lock the ability until the level up, or even communicate with the RoG mods and find out if it is or not.

[Cyrus the virus]

Silver wolves are idiotic too, but should I declare it and make you look/feel like an idiot?

Good. You discuss it amongst yourselves and you can decide it without me. Then we can have a vote on whether characters should be allowed to start with more power than they can now, and we'll see how that goes.

Man, fuck this. I'm taking a vacation.

[Artifex Felicis]

Not being able to use mid skills in quests is kinda dumb in some lights. It's sort of like saying because you're a werewolf now, you don't turn into a werewolf until you hit level X. That's a pretty bad example, so I'll use others.

Grim can now sense things he couldn't before. He senses way to escape jail cell, and exits, and I just read what it actually does. So scratch that, he uses it to track down the person who put him in the cell after blasting his way out like the badass he could be.

Really, I just veiw it story wise. If you need a skill to make a better story, then a skill is made for a better story. For the most part that's how Leon has been working for my case. He learned First Aid from getting hurt so much as one example and used it without leveling up to sop the bloodflow from a wound in his leg in a diffrent quest. I honestly think the Judges need more power in terms of skills than these so called "ROG" mods we keep hearing about. I mean no offense, but I think some of these names are both.

*coughwitchbladecoughcyruscoughlethocoughcoughmost everyotheractivejudgeIcanthinkof**

[Daven Logarthu]

Cyrus, I was not insulting you, I was insulting the rule. You are the enforcer of the rule, not the rule itself. Plus, I said that in the nicest way I could. Likely any word I chose in that cause would have offended you.

[Serilliant]

The moderators and administration have had a quick discussion, and I'm going to clarify our current stance on mid-level upgrades and abilities gained in quests. Anything said prior to this post should be considered voided.

You are allowed to gain new skills, abilities, spells, or anything on quests. A judge must approve of the new addition and certify that the thread was worthy of the spoil. Then, you may post a mid-level upgrade at which point an RoG mod will approve of the ability. While you are free to use the new skill even before you have gained a level, it may be changed at your next level update in the event that your character is no longer balanced.

In other words, once you do gain a level, skills gained mid-level as well as skills added/upgraded at the level will all be considered together. Thus, the answer to the original question, "Is there a reduction of what can be added upon level up if a skill/ability/spell is begotten between levels?" would be 'yes'.

Once again, this is now our official stance. Any questions or comments will be accepted. Thank you for bearing with us during the confusion.

[Séreméla]

The easiest way to see all of these rules in actions was with the link letho used which was my updated profile...As you could see my spell was not awarded because the rules are you can't gain spells or special ablities until you leveled up...as you saw, my appearanced was altered and okayed, my necklace now became a warning beacon...no special ability really just kind of like having a watch dog lol. But my spell was not allowed...the items I quested for with the books, I got but they don't do anything...

Before I created this character I had a ton of characters and really only one of them reached level 1, I had alot of things I gained with that character but as I read the rules it said that any spell or ability may not be used unless approved by an RoG moderator period. It even says in that rule that a spell or ability might be awarded by a judge but not by the RoG mod, when you are dealing with skills and spells they are the final say, because pretty much it's like you are bringing in a new character with X amount of experience and X amount of level...So they look at that just as they look at approving a new profile. That's all. If they don't think you scored high enough to gain the spell or ability then they will tell you to wait on it until you level up. Bottom line is read the rules, you can find it in the RoG area I have read it a billion times, if you don't like a rule that's fine, I don't like the fact that when people piss me off I can't punch them in the face without getting arrested, but we need these rules even if we don't like some.


edit: teehee I don't always read the last page of a discussion so yeah I didn't see the post above me....in other words...yeah what they said! lol

[The Madd Hatter]

I find it interesting how this all developed, but in the end, I am still needing to say 'Thank you' for answering my original question with definition.

And that answer is definitely satisfying. Indeed, thanks, Serilliant and the rest who discussed the priorly stated question.