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the_logos · 03-14-2008, 05:08 PM

I don't think you're comparing apples to apples there to be honest, Threshold.

Ranks in an organization are -not- the same thing as player levels as instantiated in D&D and most MUDs with the kinds of 'levels' we're talking about here.

Ranks are an external thing granted by an organization, and they only have any importance if other people recognize them. For instance, start your own one-man organization and bestow the rank of "God Emperor" upon yourself. You won't actually be any more powerful, in any way, since nobody else will recognize it. Ranks, such as military ranks, are nothing more than titles that are backed up solely by the fact that some other people will recognize that rank and respect it (try ordering a fleet around when you're only a major, for instance....nobody is going to respect your rank enough to follow that order as majors don't get to command fleets). Further, a rank may be taken away at any time by the organization that granted it. Even a general can be stripped of his command by a single order. Gaining a rank grants you no instrinsic personal powers. You do not magically become capable of lifting a heavier object or thinking through a brain teaser when your rank changes from lieutenant to captain.

Player levels as used in MUDs, on the other hand, are presented as something intrinsic to a person (in a way that makes sense as a game mechanic, but really seems like a fairly OOC concept). Simply being "level 50" inherently grants you more power than being "level 10", and it is presented as being part of you rather than simply a label. Things intrinsic to you are presented as having suddenly and inexplicably changed when your level changes. Suddenly you can get hit by a sword more often before you die, typically, for example, or suddenly you have the capacity to be more skillful at something or learn more than you did an instant previously. It's pretty hard to see that as anything other than an OOC artifice invented to allow people to measure their achievements easily (something people like doing, but something which is much fuzzier in reality).

03-14-2008, 05:08 PM	#5
the_logos Legend Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Mill Valley, California Posts: 2,305	Re: Guidelines for an RPI mud. I don't think you're comparing apples to apples there to be honest, Threshold. Ranks in an organization are -not- the same thing as player levels as instantiated in D&D and most MUDs with the kinds of 'levels' we're talking about here. Ranks are an external thing granted by an organization, and they only have any importance if other people recognize them. For instance, start your own one-man organization and bestow the rank of "God Emperor" upon yourself. You won't actually be any more powerful, in any way, since nobody else will recognize it. Ranks, such as military ranks, are nothing more than titles that are backed up solely by the fact that some other people will recognize that rank and respect it (try ordering a fleet around when you're only a major, for instance....nobody is going to respect your rank enough to follow that order as majors don't get to command fleets). Further, a rank may be taken away at any time by the organization that granted it. Even a general can be stripped of his command by a single order. Gaining a rank grants you no instrinsic personal powers. You do not magically become capable of lifting a heavier object or thinking through a brain teaser when your rank changes from lieutenant to captain. Player levels as used in MUDs, on the other hand, are presented as something intrinsic to a person (in a way that makes sense as a game mechanic, but really seems like a fairly OOC concept). Simply being "level 50" inherently grants you more power than being "level 10", and it is presented as being part of you rather than simply a label. Things intrinsic to you are presented as having suddenly and inexplicably changed when your level changes. Suddenly you can get hit by a sword more often before you die, typically, for example, or suddenly you have the capacity to be more skillful at something or learn more than you did an instant previously. It's pretty hard to see that as anything other than an OOC artifice invented to allow people to measure their achievements easily (something people like doing, but something which is much fuzzier in reality).