Fame
Fame
Fame is one of the two reputation variables in the Reputation Title System (the other being Karma). Where Karma measures moral standing, Fame measures renown — how widely the character's deeds are known. Fame is also a prerequisite for the Virtue of Sacrifice: only Fame-bearing characters can spend the accumulated reputation to resurrect fallen allies. Fame is open-ended (0 to 10,000+; functionally 0 to ~32,000 in practice), exponentially scaled, and harder to gain at higher levels. The most visible game-effect of Fame is the "Lord" or "Lady" title awarded at Level 5 — the canonical signal that a character is a veteran. Fame is gained by slaying high-Fame creatures and by completing Bulk Order Deeds (the canonical Fame source for crafters who don't fight). Fame is lost on death without an Ankh resurrection — a hard penalty designed to balance the open-ended scale.
Fame as monster commodity
When attached to a monster, Fame is a commodity: it represents the difficulty/threat tier of the creature. Tougher monsters carry more Fame, and slaying them transfers a fraction of that Fame to the killer's character. This is not 1-for-1 — slaying a single Balron (Fame 24,000) does not award the player 24,000 Fame; only a small percentage of the creature's Fame transfers per kill.
Fame value of a monster is fixed by creature type — it does not vary by spawn instance or shard. The full creature-Fame table is the canonical reference for "how rewarding is this kill."
Fame levels
| Level | Range |
|---|---|
| Level 1 | 0 to 1,249 |
| Level 2 | 1,250 to 2,499 |
| Level 3 | 2,500 to 4,999 |
| Level 4 | 5,000 to 9,999 |
| Level 5 | 10,000 and above (Lord/Lady title) |
The scale is exponential — moving from Level 4 to Level 5 takes substantially longer than moving from Level 1 to Level 2.
Fame titles (Paperdoll display)
| Fame level | Title |
|---|---|
| Level 5 | Lord or Lady (race-and-sex-aware) |
| Level 4 | (no Fame title; Karma title shown alone) |
| Lower levels | (no Fame title; Karma title shown alone) |
The Lord/Lady title appears in three places:
| Surface | Behavior |
|---|---|
| All-names display | Lord/Lady prefixes the character's name |
| Off-screen approach | Lord/Lady appears in the off-screen visibility text |
| Paperdoll | Both Fame title (Lord/Lady) and Karma title (Glorious / Honorable / etc.) shown |
A quest-granted Reputation Title (e.g. "Hero of Britannia") supersedes both Karma and Fame titles in all displays.
Fame from non-combat sources
| Source | Fame mechanic |
|---|---|
| Bulk Order Deeds (BODs) | Completing a BOD awards Fame and Karma — the canonical reputation source for crafters who don't fight |
| Quest completion | Many quests grant Fame as part of the reward chain |
| Powerful pet kills (via Veterinary / Animal Lore proximity) | Indirect Fame from being party-tagged on a pet's kill |
A pure crafter who runs Smith / Tailor BOD chains can reach Level 5 Fame ("Lord") without ever drawing a weapon — the BOD system is explicitly designed to allow this.
Fame on death
A character's Fame is reduced on death unless they are resurrected at an Ankh. The death penalty is tier-dependent and grows steeper at higher Fame levels — losing 1,000 Fame at Level 1 is barely noticeable; losing 5,000 Fame at Level 5 might drop the character back into Level 4 (and lose the Lord/Lady title until the deficit is regained).
This is the balancing mechanism for the open-ended scale — it prevents Fame from snowballing without bound and makes Level 5 a status worth defending.
Creatures with Level 4–5 Fame (key reference)
The full table of high-Fame creatures is the canonical reference for "what to grind for fast Fame."
Level 5 — Fame ≥ 10,000
Level 4 — Fame 5,000 to 9,999
| Fame | Creatures |
|---|---|
| 9,500 | Devourer of Souls [Renowned] |
| 9,000 | Ki-Rin, Unicorn |
| 8,000 | Kaze Kemono, Lich, Meer Mage, Rai-Ju, Rakktavi [Renowned], Vitavi [Renowned] |
| 7,500 | Clan Ribbon Supplicant, Moloch, Raptor, Ratman Mage |
| 7,000 | Clan Chitter Tinkerer, Dryad, Ethereal Warrior, Fire Rabbit, Pixie, Silver Serpent, Toxic Slith |
| 6,500 | Ratman Archer |
| 6,000 | Kepetch, Tikitavi [Renowned] |
| 5,500 | Drake |
| 5,000 | Coral Snake, Fire Ant, High Plains Boura, Wolf Spider |
Fame & Karma interplay
Fame is independent of Karma — a Dread Lord (Karma −5) and a Glorious paladin (Karma +5) can both reach Lord/Lady status. The Karma title appears alongside the Fame title on the paperdoll, producing combinations like:
- The Glorious Lord (max Karma + Lord)
- The Dread Lord Lady (max negative Karma + Lord/Lady)
- The Notorious Lady (low negative Karma + Lord/Lady)
A Reputation Title overrides both — a quest-granted "Hero of Britannia" replaces both displayed titles.
Fame & Sacrifice
The Virtue of Sacrifice is the canonical reason to track Fame on a paladin/Chivalry character. Sacrifice converts Fame into the ability to self-rez or rez others — exhausting the Fame pool to keep allies alive. A high-Fame character has more Sacrifice charges; a low-Fame character has none.
Fame in PvP and faction context
In VvV (Vice vs. Virtue) and the older Factions system, Fame contributes indirectly to rank progression. Faction officers needed minimum Fame thresholds to be elected; some VvV reward tiers gate by combined Fame + Karma value.
Paragon Fame bonus
Ilshenar Paragon (gold-hued) creatures grant 40% additional Fame and Karma over their non-paragon version (unless creature Fame/Karma = 0, in which case the bonus does not apply — see Publish 27). Paragons are the canonical Fame-grind target.
See also
- Karma — partner reputation variable; combined for the Reputation Title System
- Bulk Order Deeds — the crafter's path to Level 5 Fame
- Virtues — the eight Virtues; Sacrifice consumes Fame
- The Harrower — Fame 25,000, the highest non-Putrefier farmable
- Publish 27 — Paragon Fame/Karma bonus
- Factions — Fame-gated officer ranks (Pub86-retired)