Orbits, akin to the traditional "levels", are the measure of a dreamer's overall power. Characters acquire experience points which can then be used to advance in orbit. When a player acquires a certain amount of experience points they are notified that they may advance an orbit. Choosing to advance in orbit will allow the player to increase their attributes (elements) with the new element points gained for the new orbit and/or select a Focus Template (if they meet the particular requirements).
Each time an orbit is gained, the character gains 2 element points to distribute amongst these elements as he sees fit. There are two ways to permanently increase an element.
- You may use the two element points you receive for an Orbit increase. These element points may be applied to any element. Normally you can only place one element point in an element at a time, though there is a special circumstance. The special circumstance allows you to place 2 element points in one element at one time if the following scenario is met: a) Will, Resilience, Lucidity, or Insight are within your Orbit +10 or b) Dreamsoul is within your Orbit +20. Note, the special circumstance restriction only applies when you wish to place 2 points into one element.
Special Circumstance Example:
Tiarn is Orbit 12, with 20 Will, 30 Dreamsoul, 10 Insight, 10 Resilience, and 10 Lucidity. He has enough experience to ascend to Orbit 13, and decides this is the best course of action for him. The ascension provides him with 2 element points to place in his elements. Will, Insight, Resilience and Lucidity are all below the Orbit +10 (Orbit 12 +10 = 22) restriction, and so he can place both element points from the ascension into any of those four elements. If Tiarn wants to increase Dreamsoul, he may also place both element points from ascension in it, because the Dreamsoul restriction is Orbit +20 (Orbit 12 +20 = 32). Once he is done raising his element points, Tiarn becomes an Orbit 13 dreamer.
- You may increase element points via the Personality Point system. You may "purchase" a permanent element point increase at any time you have enough Personality Points (PPs). Note, you can only purchase one element point at a time, but there is no restriction on how many times you purchase one element point as long as the PPs are there.
These gains are usually permanent- though it is possible to permanently lose points of elemental force.
The Reclamation advancement system has no immediate classes. Instead, advancing in level (orbit) gives characters higher elements, and higher elements give the character access to Foci and to more powerful Arts keyed to those elements. Additionally, elements are used to power Art evocations, and certain items require the character to have one or more elements at a certain value to use them.
By linking access to Arts with elements instead of class levels, players have supreme flexibility in advancing a character, without the class constraints of the typical MMORPG class advancement system! A 70th orbit character might be completely focused on one element and have a single very high element and relatively low elements everywhere else; or, he might advance all his elements evenly and be a sort of jack of all trades.
