I really like the idea of loss of experience for anyone who\'s a (noticably) lower level... It punishes people who prey on the weak, but at the same time, if some little bastard is being annoying enough to be worth the EXP hit... This means you still have to avoid pissing off people who are vastly more powerfull than you, even though they\'d rather not waste their time with you. It allows for inter-player conflict, but doesn\'t reward it too much... The scale should be roughly (what it is for monsters) / (some constant) - (some other constant).... It\'ll always be a better application of resources to kill a monster of a given CR than to take on a player, and \"dedicated\" PKs won\'t be getting experience as fast as people who go slay some monsters, which means others can kick their ass for it if they\'re picking on people. Also, guards should definately step in where it makes gameworld sense for them to. It\'d be rediculous for them not to. However, that\'d only be if they see it or hear it or hear about it. They shouldn\'t be omniscient (I guess scrying is an option... but do PCs have any way of viewing what happened in a specific location at a specific time in the past?), nor omnipresent. It should also, in certain instances, take the guards a while to get there... Oh, and the idea of an Arena is a good one... Normal exp values would apply there... Oh, and maybe you could get the normal exp value if there\'s a bounty on someone\'s head... (Bounties would additionally discourage PKing... and those with a taste for it can have fun killing the bounty hunters coming after them
) Oh, and if a group teams up on a more powerfull character, it should IDEALLY calculate exp based on the overall strength of the group, not of the characters individually... They should all get exp, and should all be taken into account in determining how much there is.
A side bonus: This method would alow for magistrates... possibly a detective skill or something that helps you figure out whodunnit... Then you could place bounties, if you\'re in the right social position... The idea of dispersing bounties gradually is a good one, too.
I think the key point is that it is a roleplaying game. Having characters PK when their characters actually would shouldn\'t be a problem. The problem is when people don\'t get into their character and just kill other players randomly, or with too little provocation. The problem is that they are not in character, or if they are, society has come up with ways to deal with those kinds of people that work very nicely... The key element is to focus on allowing society to take it\'s course. The occasional psychopath or whatever probably should exist. The thing is that pretty soon someone will come along with a bigger gun and better aim, and put a stop to them. What we need to do is to make sure that those who follow the rules can more easily improve their characters, such that there are always strong people available to deal with those who can\'t see their way clear to actually playing fair. I think that the reduced EXP system does this nicely, if scaled properly. It ensures that, if two people have been playing the game the same amount of time, the player who has been following the rules will be far more powerful. The problem should deal with itself. I think ultimately most PKers of the variety that detract from the game are more interested in power (and exercising said power) than anything else, so making it a quicker climb to observe proper etiquette will quickly convert them into constructive members of society. The few that don\'t can make interesting sidequests, but shouldn\'t be a major problem.
