I’ve got a neutral stance on this whole subject. As I understand, some “DMs” (DMs being people running the RP) prefer higher levels of power and some don’t. I, personally, alter my level of power depending on the circumstances so that I’m never too powerful nor too weak. I think the power creep comes in when DMs interact their RPs and thus have to clash against other DMs. This means they have to increase their power levels to accommodate for DMs who run more power-demanding RPs, as well as boosting their power so that their in-RP entities can compete. I’m going to circle back to these power-favoring DMs. While some may genuinely prefer DMing and RPing on a more powerful scale, I think an underlying reason for the power requirements is so that the DM can create a feeling of significance; a world destroying threat will better draw in Offtopic better than a low key adventure. Now, I’m not saying that these power-favoring DMs are bad, nor are the more simplistic DMs. To each their own. It would be perfectly possible to be stronger in one RP and weaker in another, but some people don’t want to break the cannon of their less flexible characters. And therein lies the paradoxical problem. Should we favor low-powered RPs, it’s unfair to higher-powered DMs and RPers. Should we favor high-powered RPs, it’s unfair to lower-powered DMs and RPers. Should we favor both levels of RPing, it’s unfair to people with less flexible characters. So, should we force out RP power-levels of one side of the spectrum? Should we force people to use more flexible characters? How can we find a canon-friendly solution to altering levels of power? Discuss. Edit: I’ve gotten a little inspiration from Warlock Holme’s latest post in which he introduces a new character, and this may be a possible solution—multiple characters of varying levels of power. One character could be a servant or affiliate of the stronger, or completely unrelated. I personally like this solution, but some may want to stick with one character. Thoughts?