Istaria is an MMORPG.
And as such, is dependent upon keeping players playing as long as possible. In most games this is accomplished by careful control of experience gains by adjusting how much exp a player gets of mobs or quests.
The idea is of course to to keep the game fun, while slowing down progression so that players don't level too quickly and get bored and move on to other games. It can be very tricky to pull this off in any game. Istaria is even more tricky.
I am just going to only talk about adventure classes, since they depent on mob exp, quests and trophies to level. As a biped you can be any class you want, even all classes. Add in to that mix that dragons have only 1 adv class, but also use the same system of mob/quest/trophy to level, this becomes a most difficult thing to balance.
If you allow dragons to level too quickly, they reach the top, and soon tire of nothing else new to do. I have heard MANY dragons say this. On the other hand, Bipeds have 28 classes that they can take to 100, and very few players have less than 4 classes they are working on. These too use the same system as dragons. and there in lies the rub.
To make the game progress for dragons to keep them occupied, artificially slows Bipeds down to such a degree that most of the adventure only players get frustrated with the grind, and move on to other games. Craft centric players will not really mind too much, but that develops other issues... not really problems mind you, just issues.
Ok, so to quickly recap, since all players, dragon and biped alike, use the same system to level adventure, adjusting the drops to allow dragons to progress slower only leads to frustrations for bipeds, and leads towards a more craft centric biped player base as a natural consequence.
So, is there a solution to make everyone happy and NOT require a complete revamp of the game as it is? Looking back over 6+ years of game play, I personally cannot see one. However there are a few things that could be done with current game systems and technology that could allow for better retention of players and even attract more players try it out.
Why not simply even out the trophy drops across mobs so that folks can progress at what ever speed they wish?
Why not help players define themselves in more ways? Like the great start with all the new titles and abilities, continue by allowing for unique titles like back in the dryad event. In this way players can become famous by their actions.
Why not help acknowledge player efforts by creating a simple plaque that can be set outside a built structures like a banner or sign that has a list of the name of anyone that placed resources on it to help complete it.
These are NOT suggestions for the game but honest and humble questions to the team developing this game.
Time has proven that the type of player drawn to Istaria and the ones that stay with it, are not looking for an easy button game. They can handle grind and they are willing to stick with long processes to gain the rewards they enjoy. The fun they have comes from accomplishment in this living world where player actions make a difference.
Please return to the roots of the games and increase the fun by catering to the things that the players actually find enjoyable. If you do this, your only risk is that players will enjoy themselves better, complain less, and even tell their friends how much FUN they have here.
Food for thought...