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Oh snap!
lol
On a similar note, know of any Benchmark Handbook so people have a fair idea of what to expect to need by what level? Even if there's no said handbook, when do you expect people need these things?
Continual flight, preferably extraordinary flight:
Teleportation:
Reliable interplanar travel:
Party revival capability:
True seeing when you need it, preferably continuously:
Death ward when you need it, preferably continuously:
Freedom of movement when you need it, preferably continuously:
Mind blank when you need it, preferably continuously:
Anything else I've missed:
well, lets compare to my highest level party currently actively playing (a group of 8 players, only 4 of which show up reliably, which means a total of 6 pcs all but one of which are 18th level, the remaining one is 16th level) :
continual flight: yes. i've already mentioned options, i won't cover them again here. not a problem.
teleportation: yes - and they couldn't teleport to their next destination because no one had ever been there, and they didn't like the odds on the table, and didn't select builds with access to rerolls and suchlike. so they had to hunt around for a teleport locate, and got embroiled in a side quest. now that they found the locate and can teleport reliably anytime they feel like it, they aren't because they don't feel they can just leave the side quest undone. and they aren't teleporting around the side quest either for the same reason - they don't like the 25% odds that they will fail the 'port. they don't have access to greater teleport yet-the 16th level character is the only one with teleport.
reliable planar travel: no, astral travel or planar travel have not been selected as options.
party revival capability: no, but they found a way around the last time someone died with their contacts. they really need to fix this one.
true seeing: yes, but not continually. besides, it is easy enough to defeat.
death ward: yes, but not continually.
freedom of movement: no, actually. no one has selected these options. it would be more challenging for me if they did. =D
mind blank: no, but a couple of characters could easily get access to it if they chose. besides, this is also defeat-able without too much effort.
anything else: a few, but nothing that i can't handle (and i only do that on an occasional basis so as to not take away the fun of what they have earned/selected, but still remind them to keep on their toes).
so far, nothing has been listed that i would consider 'i can't handle it'. even if the party did have all these listed effects going 24/7, it wouldn't necessitate much change to my plot, encounters, or approach in challenging them. (i think it's important to note here that "beating" the pcs is not required, it's important to let them have fun with power and get away with stuff. there's always a counter, and i save those up so that when a villain or opponent counters them at something, the really feel it, and remember it ever after.) =D
Remember, also, that at least a significant minority of campaigns don't deal with that many instances of leveling up before the campaign ends; surveys taken on this board indicate games that last more than 4 - 5 levels before dying out (for whatever reason) are a minority - and we're fairly invested in the hobby as a rule. That means that a lot of folks can get tunnel vision, looking only at the things their particular character may get or want within a specific band of that character's "adventuring life," never considering options that are unlikely to apply within that time period (doubly so if they're not especially optimization focused, since a lot of optimization involves planning ahead). So, discussions of what folks learn "in the process of leveling up" doesn't necessarily apply in a lot of games, because they don't touch on those levels with those class abilities.
and that is an excellent point, well worth bearing in mind.