I find, in an RP experience, that I rarely actually look at the person's actual class and level unless it's being called to attention. Or they're not hiding/unsheathing their class' weapon which makes the former kinda obvious. In fact, the only reason I level some characters at all is for the wider spread of clothing options (Judge's outfit is almost exclusively level 50 gear minus the helmet, and the sword I want him to use when he gets DRK leveled is from the Saucer and also level 50). Without it, I would be happily content to only level dudes just enough to get the basic quality of life stuff and that's it.
The only time I personally see the levels mattering is when you're tying mechanical things with the fluff of storytelling. It's much easier to show off you're a powerful caster if you can bust out a Holy or drop Flares. I played a Pirate Captain NPC once that was supposed to be flashy and agile (dressed up a Ninja), but the only effects I could actually display in game was stealth and the dagger spam. I hadn't even unlocked the Mudra to drop the AoE field or the short range teleport jump that would've added to the flair of things. And his "crew" consisted of a low level Lancer and... one other class that escapes me right now.
And yet this group still emoted doing over-the-top things and setting the stage for some more RP. It's all about suspension of disbelief, I suppose. If you cleave close to keeping tabs on the mechanical, it's definitely going to be harder to believe this little CNJ is supposed to be a great healer when all she can do is 200-or-so healing with her Cure I. Nor can she add weight to her words by dropping a 2k Cure II to cement said claim.
However, I'm of the opinion she really doesn't need to - her power should come through her storytelling in an RP scenario more than what her level or gear looks like. If she can convincingly portray that she's a great and powerful healer despite being level 5, then I'm willing to roll with it. On the flip side, it's difficult to take seriously someone who RP's they're a great and powerful master-of-all-things with no explanation beyond them having actually leveled the class to cap.
That all said, I can totally understand the situation since - as mentioned - it's hard to "show, not tell" when you're limited on what you can show based on level and gear restrictions. It's hard to cling to the idea of your character being a durable wall of meat when you get into a party for RP and you have lower health than someone playing a caster class. And it's hard to show how mighty your aetheric skills are when the most powerful thing you can do is summon a basic Carbuncle.
Your only discourse, then, is to rely solely on your writing skills and doing the best with what you have available. I mean, before MCH was added, we still had folks RPing that they used guns... which likely was just as difficult to pull off considering there were no actual usable guns in the game yet.
The only time I personally see the levels mattering is when you're tying mechanical things with the fluff of storytelling. It's much easier to show off you're a powerful caster if you can bust out a Holy or drop Flares. I played a Pirate Captain NPC once that was supposed to be flashy and agile (dressed up a Ninja), but the only effects I could actually display in game was stealth and the dagger spam. I hadn't even unlocked the Mudra to drop the AoE field or the short range teleport jump that would've added to the flair of things. And his "crew" consisted of a low level Lancer and... one other class that escapes me right now.
And yet this group still emoted doing over-the-top things and setting the stage for some more RP. It's all about suspension of disbelief, I suppose. If you cleave close to keeping tabs on the mechanical, it's definitely going to be harder to believe this little CNJ is supposed to be a great healer when all she can do is 200-or-so healing with her Cure I. Nor can she add weight to her words by dropping a 2k Cure II to cement said claim.
However, I'm of the opinion she really doesn't need to - her power should come through her storytelling in an RP scenario more than what her level or gear looks like. If she can convincingly portray that she's a great and powerful healer despite being level 5, then I'm willing to roll with it. On the flip side, it's difficult to take seriously someone who RP's they're a great and powerful master-of-all-things with no explanation beyond them having actually leveled the class to cap.
That all said, I can totally understand the situation since - as mentioned - it's hard to "show, not tell" when you're limited on what you can show based on level and gear restrictions. It's hard to cling to the idea of your character being a durable wall of meat when you get into a party for RP and you have lower health than someone playing a caster class. And it's hard to show how mighty your aetheric skills are when the most powerful thing you can do is summon a basic Carbuncle.
Your only discourse, then, is to rely solely on your writing skills and doing the best with what you have available. I mean, before MCH was added, we still had folks RPing that they used guns... which likely was just as difficult to pull off considering there were no actual usable guns in the game yet.
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