Keep in mind grinders are often not only good because of their OP gear but because they spend a lot of time playing this game. As i started the game 9 Months ago i was one week in nativ and couldn't kill shit. After then playing about 2-3 weeks crpg i made my first kill and told all my friends about it
. I know i am still not one of the best players, but yesterday after playing about 1560 hours this game i played nativ again since a long time. On a nearly full 200 server i managed to get several times in top 5 on battle mode. So my conclusion, while grinding i got better, which hadn't to do with Master Work weapons or higher levels, but the time i spent playing and learning about the game.
The one thing what worries me and i agree on has to be caped is a state where someone can retire every day or several times a day. Not because he personally has then so much heirloomed items, BUT because in the future he could swarm his clan with heirloomed items and those who benefit from it loose the feeling of the worth of heirloomed items. Thats the only thing which concerns me.
If someone has to invest 1200hours or 1800hours to get to lvl 38, which is not really a big advantage, as there is a skill cap already and the skills themselves had been rearranged in their possibilities i don't think that high lvl characters have so much advantages over lesser lvl characters. I for myself can be useful with lvl 1, effectiv after lvl about 16 and deadly after about lvl 20 with any kind of 1h/shield combination of high tear weapons i can afford heirloomed or not heirloomed.
So there are several concerns we have to include
1-5 generation should experience the full awfulness of being peasent, it is fun and frustrating, after gen 5+ it gets sometimes boring being a peasent.
Base XP: 1000
Gen 2: +10%
Gen 3: +10%
...
Gen 10: +10%
Gen 11: +10% (combined xp equals + 100%=2000)
Gen 12: +5%
Gen 13: +5%
Gen 14: +5%
...
Gen 21: +5%(combined xp equals + 150%=2500)
Gen 20+: +0
for grinders like me with that cap at generation 21 and after we need about 1 1/2 to 2 weeks for one generation. Thats ok for getting heirlooms as WE want them too much to just throw them away to distribute them in the clan or in the community.
If you take the Experience gain calculator
http://infinitum.dyndns.org/crpg/calc.htm and have a look at f.e. lvl 38 which is a grinders wet dream lets see what we get there.(gen 42,3x,2500xp)
In my case i want before i go for max lvl another set of armor and perhaps another weapon, that would take me to generation 42 before i can go for max lvl. Pre patch it took me about 4-10 days depending how intensive i was grinding to the next retirement say 7 days. So to 42 are 15 generations and with the decrease lets estimate i only take 5 days in average that would result in 65 days about 2 months before i would have gone to max lvl(now it would take far longer). Then i had to start max lvl grind which would have taken about 1800hours to lvl 38. thats roughly 10 months. But at some time before that i will have a job again at least i hope so
so lets say between 10 and 20 months for lvl 38 for a grind orgasm. Is it worth it, i dont care if some one wants to shoot into his foot it is his body why should i care.
What would be his OP Character then? 8 more lvls perhaps 9 with skill convertions, you dont want to convert more then 2-4 skillpoints though as 1h/shielder you need those. As an agi whore i could get 10 or perhaps 12 athletics ... zoooom ... or same in shield skill 1-3 more hits on my OP shield from a MW Great Axe haha Meow you took long today to break my shield, but ok i cant block shit without it, i am dead, or in wpm
i get my 2 points back i lost through the sitesword nerf "FU devs ;)" my sitesword stays op.
But then again perhaps player skill actual does play a role as i mentioned earlier and those max lvl is just for the fun of it.