The Incarnates: Icly or oocly?

Ok so me and a buuuunch of people had a big discussion today.

about Incarnates....in RP.

well, yes.....typically, if someone was like "oh hai I'm an incarnate" they would kind of be....overplaying themselves, and potentially submitting themselves towards a more god-mode scenario.



My question to you: Do you RP your character as an incarnate now? did you add an interesting twist to it? or are you simply ignoring it?




For Me: My character has been absent for about a month and a half, In character, I've made it to where he joined a circle of mages that chose members to turn into PARTIAL incarnates. What they do is take a fragment of an artifact that belonged to a god or a diety/higher power, and they forge it into something personal for that mage, and then bond it to them. My character magisterum was crafted a silver rosary out of a Fragment of the goddess frigg's circlet. Because of this, it's just a fragment, yeah he can do ALOT more now than he could before, but I didn't actually write it to where it made him more powerful.


so...discuss?

It depends on the character. For some I don't ICly acknowledge it, it's just them getting better at what they do. If/when they get that AoE upgrade, I'll think of some non-incarnate reason for it. I would say most of my characters will end up like this, their new powers having nothing to do with incarnates at all.

But some I could see going with it. Actually getting the power of the Well and using it to their advantage, finding shards, the whole thing.

I got into a discussion, and I came to one conclusion...it's a no win situation, no matter which way you go with it.

On the path to incarnate VS those who arent. On the path would be more powerful than those not on it, but in RP land, one has to give and take and play it fair so both sides are equal.

Then you run into the level 5 "But I'm a god! I just haven't gotten to that story arc" or "But I'm just that good, but I've only just gotten onto the scene"

As for how I'm playing it...I always saw my main, not as an incarnate per se, but rather someone who can play on that field and give them a run for the money. where they raise an eyebrow and go, "She shouldn't beable to do this!" then possibly still lose, or pull out the win.

Honestly, as much as I hate the idea of accepting a bunch of special snowflakes that want to be the sons and daughters of Hades because of their new connection to the well... it's inevitable.

One also has to remember, no one is actually an incarnate yet. They're working towards that step in the (at the end of the) story arc, not becoming one.

I wish to hear peoples' opinions.

yup, for most people I ignore it, I just always had that my character had a fragment of frigg's circlet that he used to draw his magic from, so I guess that's really the only explanation I can give to him getting stronger in any way.

It's really not important to me either way.
I don't see being an Incarnate as the only way for characters (players and NPCs alike) to be extremely powerful and I don't really think anything has changed along those lines.
Each and every character origin is equally terrible and great, so I'm not going to judge, hehe.

As for my own characters thus far...

I do not plan to include the Incarnate lore into their powers.
Since it's been a solo ride through it, for the most part, I can decide on my own what I want to include and/or discard.

It was interesting... As I was making my first run through the arc with my main, the Electric-Knight, I had trouble soloing the Honoree (After taking out Holtz) and called in two SG mates for some help.
While doing it, one mentioned to the Electric-Knight something along the lines of asking him if he was going for the power of the incarnates as well...

Without missing much of a beat, the Electric-Knight shrugged and said, "Well, this mender guy seems to think so...".

He doesn't really trust the credibility of the Menders nor such outlandish stories involving himself.
What the truth ends up being... I guess we'll see!

I share a bit of E-K's doubts, to be honest

As for growing in power...
When that actually happens to a significant degree, I may come up with something else... But, thus far, Electric-Knight has constantly been growing in power as he gains more control and experience with his powers.
So far, nothing has changed along those lines.
(He did have a bit of a lull in gaining greater power the past year or so... but that worked out perfectly as he had some major story arc stuff take him down several pegs for an extended period of time)


So... I tend not to delve into these things between characters. I don't assume that someone is taking all aspects of certain story arcs into play exactly as how the game states things.

Inspirations can mean many different things to different characters just as anything else within the game, as far as I am concerned.

If someone wants to talk about Incarnates from their perspective, that's fine with me... but all unwritten (and oft-typed ones as well) rules of engagement apply just the same as beforehand.

To me... the Incarnate System is the video game's end game system... And mandates nothing more. When they announced the End Game system, they said the working title was the Incarnate System... I was a little disappointed when they decided to stick with that, but I understand why they did and I think the story works out okay.
I just have never believed in everyone needing to stick to such things for their own characters.

Just my 0.5 cents (tax man took the rest).

I have already started RP'ing Lizzy using her new found incarnate status to intimidate store clerks into giving her great discounts on shoes.

There is nothing you can say to me about this that will make it less hilarious and awesome.

"How much did you say those were again? Really? That seems a tad high to me, I mean I love them and they are like so my color and i bet my feet would look super cute in them but I am just not feeling that your store truly appreciates me choosing to lend my status to your company by purchasing your products... after all, I am an Incarnate now. Really? 98% off, well that does seem more like it. I will take ten pairs, one in each color please."

For the rest of her life she will typically forget she even has this new wealth power... but by god sales people better watch out.

Depends on my view for the character. Some characters, like my Warshade, will use the excuse for an incarnate as actually becoming part Incarnate as it's a new source of power for her. Other characters I may bring through that storyarc will mostly be extracting some hidden powers that were latent inside them and have just started to emerge. Even others will just go through the arc and that's it. They won't be an incarnate at all.

Otherside of the fence is that I don't consider IOs IC. There is absolutely no content in the game that requires you to have IOs slotted. It may make it easier, but it's not forced, unlike Incarnates. You need to be an incarnate to do the Tin Mage or Apex Taskforce, and if the alpha is slotted it makes it easier. Nothing requires you to be all invention origin'd out. Heck, I have a few characters that are levelling on just SOs, because they do the job.

Flea is an Incarnate of himself.

Like he'd trust you damn mammals to do anything right.

In essence he has become bad *** awesome squared.

Implosion pending.

It seems like if you "RP by level", and translate game accomplishments directly into character abilities, then consistency would demand that you accept the claims of godhood of a character with 10 fully slotted out Incarnate powers. But we're not nearly there yet.

Even with several (swappable) Uncommon Boosts, the most a character can claim is "I've unlocked a bit of additional power, not much, but it goes beyond what was previously thought to be the zenith, so that's remarkable in and of itself." The Rares and Ultra Rares will probably be more interesting, since they get into into "my powers go up to 11" territory with the Level Shift.

This is all, of course, assuming you draw a direct line from game level to IC power level. If you don't, then nothing really changes - you'll still be accepting people's claims of godhood based on how well you RP together.

If I wanted to RP my characters as godly superbeings, I probably wouldn't use the Incarnate system as the explanation why.

I'm not changing a thing about any of my characters, whether they go Incarnate or not. I will say, though, that I've always been annoyed by the "BOW BEFORE ME I AM A GOD" crowd.

Really? God is a level 32 Dominator?

Whether level 32 or level 320, all too often gods and their ilk are just an excuse for poor roleplay. It takes talent to pull off all-powerful-deity without looking like plain old all-powerful-horses-butt.

And those are a dime a dozen.

Most of my characters are not going to go through the Incarnate system specifically because I can't really justify the others having or seeking that kind of power; they're "merely" super-powerful beings. The ones who will take it to that next level:

a paragon who rightly should be as powerful as Statesman, given the chance;
a small god (of a single neighborhood), but a god just the same(*);
an ambitious gangsta (a Hellion by any other name) whose answer to every problem(**) is "MORE POWER";
and a psychic with the proven potential to lay waste to an entire world, if he ever lets himself.


(*) Gozer: "Are YOU a GOD?" King: "Yeah. What's it to ya?"
(**) including, of course, the ones that result from the power he already has.

Yeah. So far my widow, who was a remake of my blaster, grew in power not because he wanted it, but because the Gefaren circle of mages wanted him to.

Most of my other characters just wouldn't want it...my atlantean MAY seek it if we wishes to be bonded closer to his lady Aphrodite.

I'm debating whether or not my villain(who's a power-crazed imp) would want it...except that she's technology based.

Also, I can think of some who might ICly start the arc, get to the part where the Well works States and/or Recluse like a puppet, and run as far and as fast as they can in the other direction.

(Heck, that's more or less what one of my characters always expected would someday happen to everyone taking bits of the Hamidon and sticking it in their own bodies... the players would have screamed bloody murder, of course, but it's perfectly in-genre.)