Kaelith

I hope this doesn't sound too much like a weird question. But how important are levels? or, what exactly is the levelling like in AoC?

Will someone who is 1 level higher than you have a much greater chance of defeating you in combat? Or can even a small amount of superior skill see of someone 5 levels higher than you?

If a level 10 guy stabbed a level 40 guy in the back, would it seriously injure the level 40 guy, kill him, or feel not much worse than a mosquito bite?

I'm asking because I hate level based games! I understand that levels will determine the characters stats and when it comes to crafting higher levels will be more experienced and more able to make better equipment. But are items level based? Someone tell me please!

And while we're on the subject, how item based is the game? They said it wouldn't be very item based at all.. But I suspect they lie.

Horatious

AoC is a levelbased game, and as such they are more important than anything else really, classbalance/and to some extent professionbalance aside..

3 levels difference is alot, especially if the levelspan is over a tenner in levels(10-20-30 etc), since every 10 lvl you get some extra perks for your character..
With the limited pvp experience i have so far, its impossible to scratch someone 10 levels above you, and someone 5 levels above you can white-damage you to death easily while you throw everything you have on them.. I cant wait til lvl 80, when everyone will be on the same playfield, and skill is all that matters..

What levels do for you; More abailities/combos/spells. More skillpoints to put in your mundane skills (like climbing, bandaging, fast healing, hiding etc etc.. Classdependable what mundane skills you get). Feat points, which in essence are the same as talentpoints in WoW.. And the ability to wear better equipment..

Equipment is levelbased, however, so far into the game (lvl 23 iirc), items has come very naturally thru quests, and i havent had drops that are better than the stuff i pick up from quests.. So i would call it a dynamic gearsystem so far that doesnt have any
omgwtfpwn gear that will cost huge amounts on AH or lead to overfarmed bosses.. I would call AoC so far a game that relies on items, but in a way that ties them together with your characterprogression in general.. Comboexecution and class is 80% of the fight, gear the rest..

What i absolutely love with the gear so far is that the stuff in same levelbrackets have the same skins.. So you dont look ragtag a´la WoW just because you wear the best shit you can for you level.. But morelike you have a customsuit of armor

Leveling so far is very smooth imo.. Very little need for grinding per se, but you can run quests all you want and gain levels.. Apparently the content at mid-high levels (50-60) is somewhat lackluster, but thats only to be expected.. That will come in time.. Intresting quests, the soloparts in the nub-area are very well handled and what sold me the game alot i think.. I woulda loved more solobased questing later on in the game where you search your destiny even more ´

All this said, i think its a great system so far and to some extent a bit exciting every time you get a level and some new toys to play with..
However, the balancing issues are defenitely there.. My class of choise, a Dark Templar (lifedrains ftw ! rawr), is comparatively very weak up til lvl 40, when the feats start to kick in and you get your toys.. On the other hand, a Ranger (that i also have one and leveled up in 1/4th of the time of the DT) is fucking imba dps wise, both ranged and in melee, start to loose their momentum at post-40 and are pretty bleak at the current endgame.. Balance will come, but there will be alot of kicking and screaming during the first year or so on the classforums

Edit: I´ve researched the equipment a bit more, and checked out the various stuff you can buy from npcs.. The store stuff is definitely weaker than what you get thru quests... i have lvl 10 gear thats more pwnage in than storebought lvl 24 stuff..
I´d so far into the game list gearusability like this.. Queststuff > Drops > Vendors.. Its not a complete truth tho, since some of the vendorstuff > Drops aswell..

OS-Jeremias

Well at least at the begining (levels 1-20) actually it is quite easy to kill people who are 7 levels above you, don't know yet if this aplies to game play after let's say lvl 40 (mid point) and in combat even without using combos you actually can beat people just by using regular hits and good moving, I noticed it works pretty well and collision detecion is very lovely to have around ( of course it always depends somewhat on the player).

Yet I hardly recomend always going after people that know how to fight and have 7 levels diffirence over you

Let me play for 5 months and I will tell you real detailed analysis for PvP in this game :P

Horatious

I have to retract my statement and actually agree a bit with Plen here..
Pre 20, levels dont matter that much.. But i do think that it have alot to do with who gets the first blow and the classes involved.. As a DT i have a HARD time to gank people (altho now at 24 my feats start to kick in alot and everything gets easier), and when hit by for example a Conqueror or Shaman i get twoshotted if they execute their highdps combos.. NQA..
Again, i have ganked level 30´s aswell.. But i do think its down to shitty players..

Everything is fair game as the ranger tho.. 6-7 levels above me is no problems at all to kill, harder if they get the first blow ofc..

Classbalance and who gets the first blow means alot at this point it seems.. With more polishing and balancing things will even out.. One huge factor im my K/D ratio is ofc the fact i play on a mid-range system, meaning i get about 20 fps in combatsituations with more than 2 players/mobs.. If we have a gankfest with 10 players, i drop to 5 fps..

WTB a 8800gt asap..