Not only by the flow of the story, but also by the NPCs they face, as a player gains in renown (or infamy), their skills and abilities become known to the world around them and especially to the foes they have vanquished before. These enemies will come up with new ways of fighting them that will bypass their greatest strengths.
> 1) It's my experience that a player who designs a character with good
> combat skills usually does so because he wants a lot of combat. I
> agree that its good to stretch things and give the character other
> challenges from time to time, but I'd be wary of setting things up so
> that he rarely gets to use his best abilities. Now, it may be I'm off
> base here, since the example of combat characters isn't something I
> can relate to directly as a player, since I don't like playing
> characters who are more than barely competent with weapons (say a
> maximum ability of 20 in Hero Wars). Indeed, my own characters tend to
> be focused towards doing things that don't require skill rolls at all.
> But I haven't noticed this to be common among other players, and most
> seem to enjoy getting to use their best abilities, so I'd be wary of
> constantly finding ways to prevent them from doing so. And if he does
> get to use his best abilities, then we're back to the problem that the
> scenarios where he does so aren't going to be the sort I feel I can GM
> effectively.
Yes, I agree, this can be a problem, I have a player who is combat limited, that is all he really wants to do and as a result due to the way the campaign is going he finds less and less action to please him. I encourage him to choose other directions but this seems to be a difficult concept for him to follow. It may be we loose the player as a result.
> 2) Even if the character is naff at combat because he's focused on
> leadership instead, there's a good bet there's somebody else in the
> party who *is* that good at combat, which brings us back to the
> original situation (unless one wants to keep separating the
> characters, which isn't my style either).
But it becomes increasingly difficult to find reasons for them to stay together at all times as they rise in power. As they become chiefs, kings, high priests etc or warband leaders they all do so in different cults and groups which means that they automatically become seperated. If yo alow a top out at 20w3, that is still above tribal champion level which means each player would have to be a champ of a different tribe, hence seperated.
It is the requirement of responsibility for the players that forces them to use other skills and veer away from being combat monsters.
>The Humakti disciple in your
> game may not be able to solve a border dispute, but does he need to,
> when he's got Argrath to do that kind of thing for him?
Yes he does as he has his own lands and issues. He is remarkably ill suited for this but that is a good thing too as it works well into the plot.
>Vice versa, if the pitchfork-wielding fyrd really does turn up, of course!
Well true but Argrath has a bodyguard with him that could take on a tribe. What do you do then? The player may be clan champ level but what about their following? At 10w3 I'd expect a warrior to have a significant following.
> 3) There's still the problem that, at the end of the day, they are
> that good. There may be other things they have to worry about, but
> they don't have to worry about the fyrd, which is the sort of thing I
> damn well want them to have to worry about.
Even at 15w2, I'd say a fyrd is beyond most groups to worry about. Say 6 players all 15w2 in combat, they could each take on and most likely beat the champ of a clan and all six could move and kill faster than the fyrd could assemble against them in one place. Once players hit this level they become beyond clan politics. It would take the tribal king, all his best priests and the local hero to show to give them a bad day.
It is like the old joke about the gaming bar fight. Eventually the entire Zolanthi Martial Arts Olympic team has to be having a beer in the pub for the players to have a decent bar fight. My answer is that when someone gets that important, they go to banquets not bars and have way to many responsibilities to be that dumb. Except Harrek of course.
Give em lands! Give em a mortgage! Give em wives and kids! Give em Sacred duties!
"I'm the best swordsman in the world!"
"Yes dear, but you forgot to pay the gas bill, now go and do the dishes."
Martin Laurie
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