TOASTER_TEAM'S PROFILE

Well that was my point :). It probably looks better at original size is all I'm saying.

You know there are other engines out there than rpg maker if you don't want to deal with certain limitations. :)

That's not grinding or an easy way to overcome the boss, though. That's just for skillful players that enjoy trying out different combinations. It's not a good replacement for grinding.

Yeah, I agree with that.

I forgot another one. Limit the amount of battles, like in Superhero League of Hoboken. Then again, it's sort of like adaptive XP.

And another one:
No XP system but enemies drop things which can be used as crafting material to boost your character.

What I don't like about RPG Maker is that levels are permanently displayed (I think?) and there's no way to remove them. So you're forced to have a level system. Which means I also want to use methods to make levels vary between party member because it's weird if everyone has the same level and if everyone levels up at the same time. Because in that case the party should have a level instead of each individual character. This can be problematic in games where you have the same 3-4 characters for the entire duration of the game since they all gain the exact same amount of exp for the entire game, making individual exp counts redundant.

Or you could do away with levels as a concept entirely.

1 and 2 are essentially the same, right? Normally, higher levels require more exp, which is in effect the same as if enemies gave less exp.

Not really because with adaptive xp it gets to the point where if the level difference is too big, the weaker enemies give no xp at all. This means a player can't grind to beat a boss by overpowering him level-wise.

With 1. you could stay at the same spot and grind until you're level 99 in theory.

@Craze: It's mostly a discussion about character development. The poll is mostly secondary.

EDIT: Another thing to note with Adaptive is that even when you get to a certain point, you never stop gaining something minimal. Paper Mario and the early .hack games would at least give you 1 XP if you beat some measly twerp. That's a good idea in general. If the player kills a creature they should get at least something for it. So in the hypothetical system I just suggested, I'd probably drop 1 XP after the max is reached.

The solution you suggested in your message is adaptive. In Mario RPG on the N64 (or was it called paper mario) you actually got to a point where you got nothing at all from killing weaker foes.

Regarding my game, your attack power is determined by the vocabulary cards. So if you stick to the same cards, you won't be able to best the stronger opponents. This forces the player to continuously learn new, more powerful cards to be able to best stronger opponents.

I'm definitely aiming towards adaptive at the moment. I just wish I could use a new, fresh idea for character development rather than sticking to the same old conservative ideas. Try something new I mean.

One thing I like is XP modifier which is fairly rare surprisingly. You get a bonus XP depending on your performance in combat.