[CrystikRage]

I think that a biggest part of Eternia's problem is the fact that IC rewards are, to an extent, balanced around OOC balance. Like bog said, they consider what's fair to other players, which is good and bad. On one hand, it makes large characters not feel like an impossible climb to oppose and beat. I do think there really shouldn't be any one unbeatable PC by sheer statwall/ability strength, because that stagnates or forces 2v1s which are wonky at best and soulcrushing endings at worst.

But, rewarding characters around balance means that you will plateau. You'll peak, and you'll peak relatively early in a characters life. It can be hard to find motivation to keep going for 20 IC years when you've peaked in the first two. You might get another ability (maybe), you can app for custom items to throw them in a massive pool of the things that already exists, but fundamentally you don't have any further to go. And at any time, the meta might shift, some new guy rolls up and after a month destroys you with his build because he reached the peak.

I guess it's the problem of a game where your only real rewards are either A; item that make number go brr, B: ability that use number to go brr/aura that makes number go brr, or C: fluff/lore which doesn't stop someone else with bigger brring numbers from throwing you into an early grave. And because of balance, you can't infinitely gain rewards A or B, which cuts off your options.