Great idea!
I agree with most of the rules you posted.
However, I think letting people solo(if that's their thing) is fine. I've done Hardcore leagues where I only grouped. And others where it was interspersed with soloing. That's okay. And even soloists might be tempted to interact with the (hopefully) many people on there.
Like you, I too think that the House P buffs are kind of OP. And that ideally- they wouldn't exist, so as to prop up the classes that do get those same abilities, and encourage teamwork. But I am also okay with allowing them for the event- seeing as guild buffs won't be- and since they need to be earned.
Just to confirm regarding quest level - Are you suggesting that something like Proof is in the Poison (base quest level:4. Modified quest level on Elite/R1:6), should be done at level 4? That's pretty hardcore! I personally don't mind it, but maybe for the first iteration of this - it should be running=modified quest level. Hopefully starting out easier, and closer to the actual Hardcore League rules, will drive up participation.
What's the thinking about content people don't have access to? For example - Myth Drannor will be out soon. Is it included as part of the challenge?
I think it would be a good idea for people to indicate in their bio, that they are participating; both to help locate fellow permadeathers, but also so that the locals on Wayfinder can tell at a glance. Similarly - it would be nice to have the chosen heirloom labelled in the bio as well.
Keep spreading the word!
Oh yeah, regarding Proof is in the Poison on Elite at character level 4, yes that's what we're doing. You have to option to avoid the quest, not enter and skip it, it just means less favor for you in the long run (although we're considering a penalty for skipped quests, like -50 total favor points if you leave a quest in the adventure compendium skipped). Again, still writing up the rules and guidelines for this event. But that one would make the weight of the decision much, much heavier, especially at the end of the 30 days and people want to compare their progress for that competitive nature many people have. Also, could you run Proof is in the Poison on R1 or even higher? Sure. I just didn't want people to think that doing Reaper was essential, as I really have no way to set up a leaderboard or track details like that between players and groups. We might also allow players do quests at Normal and Hard difficulties, as some quests tend to be harder for some than others. However, running a quest once per life (campaign style) is going to be part of the rules. The only exception to that would be NPC-turn-in-advancement quests like in Catacombs or Delera's chain or flagging quests like Litany. Devil's Assault is always that super weird one, that scales dramatically with Normal (6) Hard (12) Elite (18) difficulties. That one I'd perhaps allow 1 completion only, but you decide when at level 6 for Normal, level 12 for Hard, or level 18 on Elite. Basically, think of questing in this event like you are sitting down playing PnP D&D as a group. Once you are done, say with a module in a D&D campaign, you move onto the next quest/adventure. The one-and-done kind of philosophy is what we're shooting for. One life to life, run each quest once with your adventuring party.
The BIO note is a great idea, and we'll encourage that, and again, player characters participating in the event will be members of the event guild. So that will be their designation. They will not be grouping with non-guildies, unless we get more than 1,000 guild members and have to open a 2nd+ guild. It'll be very easy to track who is participating and who is not, simply by looking at the guild roster and the name plates.
Myth Drannor is advertised to launch on July 31st. If it launches earlier, people can certainly attempt it if they are of the appropriate level. That's why we made this a July1st - July 30th event, to avoid conflicts with Myth Drannor's estimated launch date.
The Heirloom listed in the BIO makes perfect sense as well, and I'll add that to the rules. One of those, be sure to update your BIOs often, things.
