It actually has a really cool little bit in the society section that says.
NPCs Levels:
1-5 nearly all NPCs are in this level range, most have NPC classes.
5-10 these NPCs are rarer and the movers and shakers of the world.
10-15 these NPCS are very rare, their might only be a few in any given region, they are often rulers or the biggest players in their locality.
15+ these are rarer still and only included when the GM needs them, each should have large and sweeping backstory.
Also, You need to re-read Eberron if you think its high level. Magic = High level. Eberron is a lower level setting than even Golarion. Golarion PCs often end paths in the 12-16 range, as epic heroes. In Eberron its not even assume that your PCs will top level ten.
NPCs Levels:
1-5 nearly all NPCs are in this level range, most have NPC classes.
5-10 these NPCs are rarer and the movers and shakers of the world.
10-15 these NPCS are very rare, their might only be a few in any given region, they are often rulers or the biggest players in their locality.
15+ these are rarer still and only included when the GM needs them, each should have large and sweeping backstory.
@Cranewings. Please re-read the quoted section above. There are precious few 20th level PCs, let alone NPCs, running around. Even the "movers and shakers" of the world are generally level 5 to 10.
Yup.
There are very few named characters of such caliber anyway. Its mostly left up to the GM. And furthermore, most of those 15-20 guys are there as foes for your characters, there are no Elminsters here.
Your GM was definately being wacky. Eberron isn't high magic so much as it is a plethora of low magic. There are unicorn races in Sharn, but rivers running backwards and especially 20th level rogues are just, just not Eberron.
Creative Director
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Yeah, the vast majority of characters are 1st-8th with a very few impressive individuals at up to 12th or so. Characters over that basically don't exist except as major villains in an Adventure Path.
Actually... not true. There's actually a fair amount of mid and high level characters in Golarion.
The vast majority of characters are 1st through 10th, but there are a fair amount of 11th-15th level characters as well as a smattering of 16th and higher level characters as well. There's even some characters that are above 20th level. Remember that we do 2 Adventure Paths a year that end at about 15th level for PCs, which means we need PLENTY of villains from levels 10 on up to 17th or higher. That said, most of those villains ARE "quarantined" in the Adventure Path themselves.
In the upcoming Inner Sea Magic, we have a sort of "who's who" of spellcasters in the Inner Sea region. We list 50 spellcasters in all, and they break down in level like this (the actual spread of numbers is still being massaged, so there'll probably be a very minor bit of change to the final numbers in print):
1st–5th level: 1
6th–10th level: 6
11th–15th level: 20
16th–20th level: 7
21st level and above: 16
All that said... we do very much try to avoid having powerful good-guy NPCs as well—that's the job of the PCs. Of the 50 spellcasters we list in Inner Sea Magic, maybe 8 are what I would call "good guys," leaving the rest as villains or, at best, unconcerned third parties.
The spread of non-spellcaster NPCs of note in the Inner Sea Region is comparable to the spellcaster spread, in any case.
PS: This DOES mean that we are finally nailing down classes and levels for a lot of NPCs in the Inner Sea region, such as Abrogail Thrune II and Razmir. Of course, for most of them, we've already set their levels in print. It's gonna be nice to finally have them ALL in print, though, so folks can more easily see how things map out.
PPS: Don't get too excited that this means that Golarion's suddenly a high-level setting! Remember, the spellcasters listed above are the FAMOUS ones, so of course that list is going to skew at high level.
1st–5th level: 1
6th–10th level: 6
11th–15th level: 20
16th–20th level: 7
21st level and above: 16
I'm interpreting this as an indicator of the level distribution of persons who are notable on a continental scale...so 11-15th is abnormally represented (lower levels are not as likely to be important enough on that scale, and higher levels are just too rare).
I haven't really looked at the 'nation' scale books, but would it be fair to say the 6-10th range would be much better represented in those books? (In all cases, I'm assuming few 1-5th lvl characters are documented anywhere, as it is so easy to come up with them on the fly).
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Creative Director
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1st–5th level: 1
6th–10th level: 6
11th–15th level: 20
16th–20th level: 7
21st level and above: 16
I'm interpreting this as an indicator of the level distribution of persons who are notable on a continental scale...so 11-15th is abnormally represented (lower levels are not as likely to be important enough on that scale, and higher levels are just too rare).
I haven't really looked at the 'nation' scale books, but would it be fair to say the 6-10th range would be much better represented in those books? (In all cases, I'm assuming few 1-5th lvl characters are documented anywhere, as it is so easy to come up with them on the fly).
Correct.
In the nation books, levels are more spread out, but probably do skew more toward 6th to 10th for most NPCs. The 11th to 15th level range is kinda the "norm" for rulers and movers/shakers of regions.
Also, the "21st and above" includes Aroden and Iomedae, who are deities now but in life were spellcasters (wizard and paladin, respectively). It also includes a few high CR spellcasting monsters, like the blue dragon Kazavon.
Yeah, the vast majority of characters are 1st-8th with a very few impressive individuals at up to 12th or so. Characters over that basically don't exist except as major villains in an Adventure Path.Actually... not true. There's actually a fair amount of mid and high level characters in Golarion.
James--I think he means in Eberron, as per the post above his. His post is true about Eberron. It's something that always bugged me about the setting, really. "Look at all these high level evil people. There are no good people who can stop any of these evil plans except you. Fortunately, nothing bad is ever happening except the one adventure you happen to be on!" It's really a feel that some folks love, though, and it probably succeeded as much as it did as a reaction to the opposite direction of FR.
I vastly prefer the way it's handled in Golarion to Eberron. A world with plenty of characters of a variety of levels, where you would see rival adventuring parties (as in Rival Guide), friendly clerics who can actually revive you from the dead, if you're willing to journey to a big enough city, and powerful wizards who can call forth outsiders to have your questions answered...for the right price. Viva Golarion!
Correct.
In the nation books, levels are more spread out, but probably do skew more toward 6th to 10th for most NPCs. The 11th to 15th level range is kinda the "norm" for rulers and movers/shakers of regions.
Also, the "21st and above" includes Aroden and Iomedae, who are deities now but in life were spellcasters (wizard and paladin, respectively). It also includes a few high CR spellcasting monsters, like the blue dragon Kazavon.
Aroden is a wizard. Is this the first place thats ever been revealed?
I had never pegged him as a wizard, but it adds a cool edge to his rivalry with Tar-Baphon.
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Creative Director
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Aroden is a wizard. Is this the first place thats ever been revealed?
I had never pegged him as a wizard, but it adds a cool edge to his rivalry with Tar-Baphon.
I'm pretty sure we've mentioned Aroden was a wizard before. His act of raising the starstone and the Isle of Kortos from the bottom of the sea certainly implies he's a spellcaster of some sort.
He was probably MORE than a wizard, though—he uses a shield and a sword after all. He was certainly well over 20th level before he became a god.
Yeah. I think its the sword and shield that threw me off.
I just reckoned he raised the isle by godliness, etc. But of course, he wasnt a demigod until after.
Anyway, should be intersting to see.
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PS: This DOES mean that we are finally nailing down classes and levels for a lot of NPCs in the Inner Sea region, such as Abrogail Thrune II and Razmir. Of course, for most of them, we've already set their levels in print. It's gonna be nice to finally have them ALL in print, though, so folks can more easily see how things map out.
While I did not see the immediate need for this as the setting was being birthed, I must say that IS exciting news!
It actually has a really cool little bit in the society section that says.
NPCs Levels:
1-5 nearly all NPCs are in this level range, most have NPC classes.
5-10 these NPCs are rarer and the movers and shakers of the world.
10-15 these NPCS are very rare, their might only be a few in any given region, they are often rulers or the biggest players in their locality.
15+ these are rarer still and only included when the GM needs them, each should have large and sweeping backstory.Also, You need to re-read Eberron if you think its high level. Magic = High level. Eberron is a lower level setting than even Golarion. Golarion PCs often end paths in the 12-16 range, as epic heroes. In Eberron its not even assume that your PCs will top level ten.
This is pretty much the power structure i've kept within my campaign as well. The Elminster (sp?) of my campaign is a 15th LVL Evoker and is the scariest hero in the campaign, and stands shoulder to shoulder with the 15th level (+/-) undead ring wraith / black guard as the major campaign villian. Most of the "first generation" high level retired PC's are pushing about 12th level, with most kings and generals in the campaign around level 10. The majority of the seasoned adventurers (Seal Team 6 types) are level 6 - 8, and "everyone else" at level 5 or below, with 95% of the world population between level 1 - 3.
COMPARISON: Your "average guy" is of an NPC class. If this dude has more than one class level he would be considered "highly skilled", at 3 or more would be viewed as a leading expert in his field. (Insert rant here: )In my campaigns there is no such thing as a 17th level commoner, what a stupid idea that whole concept was anyway! (Ok, I'm good now, thanks.)
On a comparative note, I also STRONGLY suggest taking a look at the average wealth a level 1 commoner earns over a month (about 3 gold) or year (about 35 gold) as this gives a pretty solid understanding of just how wealthy and powerful a level 5 - 10 - 15 actually is, and thus their relative influence upon the world. Just as in real life, he with the gold makes the rules. Why go risking your neck every time there is a local orc uprising when you can simply offer someone else the opportunity to go die for THEIR noble cause?