this post was submitted on 01 Dec 2025
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I've become increasingly convinced that people don't want to play low level characters. Level 1 characters are neophyte adventurers. Their backstory shouldn't include significant a mounts of adventure, combat, or heroics, because it introduces a significant amount of ludo-narrative dissonance into the campaign.
Unless there's a reason they've been de-leveled.
Yes. That's one reason that the Fate system basically disallows characters ever being low level. Low level starts aren't actually particularly fun, and they can prevent characters from having diverse epic shared backstory.
ensignwashout@startrek.website I don't know, zero-to-hero is one of the best story tropes out there. Totally nullifying it seems kind of wild to me. But you have to know who you're playing, and if you're playing a highly skilled veteran with a rich history of great deeds, you need to understand that that is not a Level 1 character.
Counterpoint: I love rugged nobody adventurer types. I love the point in the campaign when you still have to use your brain to solve problems and when wild animals still pose a significant threat. This may be one of the reasons I stopped playing DnD altogether.
It's not fun at low levels because your characters have absolutely no skills whatsoever and it sucks at high levels because over time you only get a bunch of instant-problem-solvers like Tiny Hut, Fly and Teleport.
Good points. I feel like Fate does a better job staying in the interesting in-between for longer, and also supports "epic" stories a bit better (than other systems I have played).
But I haven't tried to force Fate to support the newbie to epic growth, because the rulebook calls out that the Fate rules intentionally ignore supporting the ability to play as a helpless nobody.