Fame

[ferrite]

Every character now has a personal fame rating. This rating is derived from your Total Favor x (Heroic Levels + Epic Levels). It is a measure of in-game achievements and personal renown.

It does the following:

-Immediately adds to a guild's current renown and upon a player's recruitment. This additional renown is never reduced from decay, and is completely removed if the player leaves a guild for any reason. This is an additional, separate score from guild renown.

-Gives a slight discount from the various in-game merchants.

-Allows access to special crafting areas and PVP zones.

-Some NPC's will provide additional services for a fee (teleportation, etc). A few will sell additional and unique items to you depending on your fame score.

Possibly additional benefits not yet thought of.

Also, because of the guild renown benefit, the cap of 100 would likely have to be removed on guilds (but not necessarily any extra benefit given beyond 100 except to display a higher number)

Each character's fame score would be publicly visible in the examine menu.

[donfilibuster]

You are describing favor as it is now, plus the "additional benefits".

I'd agree favor needs more than flavor, it was supposed to be a fairly important thing to have in PnP's Eberron.
Granted, a lot of it is in roleplaying but in the end players should want to get favor as much as xp, levels or loot.
(and not just a side gain that merely happens to come along)

In fact a lot of the harbor quests that introduce the various houses hint that you'd want to work for the patrons to have your name known in the city.
Later on the high level quests treat you as if you are already a known hero, favor or not, quests done or not.
Expanding on all of these would not be a bad thing, at the very least is good plot hooks for new packs.
It will also keep Stormreach from staling now that there's competition from lands beyond the beyond.

As far as benefit goes, lots of things can be suggested.
The following ideas can work both for a separate fame stat or for the current favor system.

For guild renown, maybe there can be guild favor, by just taking into account how many members have attained status.
e.g. you can get house related crew members, or discounts, last longer or something.

Say, if x toons are noted in house k you get discount on the kundarak battlemaster.
If enough are commended you get discount on the banker, just to name two.
Maybe have them last longer, or some other minor benefit.

Ofc it may as well be a major benefit, e.g. to have buffs pause outside quests. That'd be an outstanding feature.

These are ship and guild related ideas, then there's the individual benefits.

Dunno about crafting or zones but NPCs and items are not too out of line.
Technically favor access for crafting is already in-game in the form of the cannith marks.
Ofc you can go big and let the twelve suspend their ban on scroll sales and lend access to their magical labs/libraries for crafting.

A new idea would be having special hirelings that are house related, specially now that we have companions in-game.
It'd be a good chance to get Henchmen and Followers into the game, after all, leadership is a form of renown.
Deneith soldiers come to mind for this.

Or can go with the original idea of PnP's favor, where an organization lends you aid, often by giving out information.
It can be made like the Monster Manual but for Lore stuff. You get favor goals both individual and account wide.
You gain pages with info, stories, pictures, maps, etc. and at certain landmarks unlock minor benefits.
(e.g. said special hirelings in a similar way as you gain the spider/bat pets)

Vendors and transportation are ok, those make good benefits.
e.g. the twelve planescaller could send you back to ship from amrath, as an idea.
Or house cannith finally get an airship tower but limit permission for security reasons.
Surely the Argonnessen can allow you to get straight to the Refuge if you are commended.

More importantly, there could be more variety in the rewards not just limit to the same old item or feat every time.
Just like with Argonnessen let you pick between a variety of shards, a hole and a blood of dragons.

Benefits not yet known may include cosmetic gear with the houses emblem, like the phiarlan shield.
Maybe they can have a bonus too, this reminds me of the renown options in certain PnP books.
In one such option your fame will affect those that stand around you, like an aura.
That was more the case with commander auras but it need not be a direct bonus.
e.g. if a NPC takes high diplo, and there's a player that is commended to phiarlan, the NPC will have a lower DC for everyone in the party.
This would be different that just giving out a diplo bonus.
It'd be the benefit of affiliation making NPCs treat the whole party in higher regard.
Since role playing in ddo can use some love this wouldn't be too far fetched.

Enough ideas for now, let's just try the fame idea don't evolve into merely another new system to throw in the bunch.
It can play well with the current favor system as it is, which definitely needs some love.