[@Lumiere][@Vega7][@Darkwatck01][@Celsius][@Rhiven Knight][@Pie Flavor][@unicorgi]
I think I got so carried away trying to make everyone's characters awesome that I forgot about the needs of the story, and more importantly, made Lumiere (rightly) feel cheated and left behind. You all are important to me; I want you guys to be proud of the characters you've created and to have fun with them. So we gotta fix this, and I'll need your help to do it. I have a few proposals that I'd like your input on.

[list]
[*]We leave everything as-is and acknowledge the power differential between Aarkanhan Elzbrn and the other knights, and allow the character a greater story role to compensate. [i]I have mixed feelings about this proposal. I'd like all the characters to be balanced between each other, since they all need to contribute equally to the party, and who's to say they won't turn on each other someday?[/i]
[*]We raise Aarkanhan's magic-power level to everyone else's, and we can let Lumiere decide on the details. [i]The upside is, it efficiently balances the character. The downsides are, it gives Lumiere extra work to do, and it doesn't address the risk that all of us together may be a bit too powerful for the story.[/i]
[*]We drop everyone else's power level to match Aarkanhan's, going back to the core fantasy that this RP establishes. [i]This is the second most work-intensive (and potentially demoralizing) option. Facing down a world-ending power with only your wits and a sword is what this story is all about, and I feel it would be better-served with characters at a more human power level. Lumiere's character won't be so different from everyone else's anymore, but we'll have to undergo extensive character sheet nerfs and reworks to do it.[/i]
[*]Everyone has two versions of their character: the entry-level version they start out with, and the high-level version they upgrade to. Lumiere's character is the entry-level version, and everyone else's is the high-level version. In other words, y'all aren't done yet with your character sheets. [i]This is the most work-intensive option, but less demoralizing than the previous option. I recommend this one.[/i]
[/list]

Your thoughts, everyone?