History TookALevelInBadass / TabletopGames

** One famous example in Dungeons & Dragons cosmology is the case of Glasya, the daughter of Asmodeus, the Overlord of Hell. Originally portrayed as a glorified [[HornyDevils erinyes]] with the attitude of a rebellious teenager (and, at times, a SpoiledBrat), sometime during the 3.5 Edition she came to an understanding with her father, was granted a great deal more power, and gained the rulership of the sixth layer of Hell. Now, she's as powerful and cruel as any other ruler of Hell, and truly is [[DaddysLittleVillain her father's child...]]

** The whole bard class took one between 3.5 and 5th edition. While classes fluctuating in power between editions is nothing new. Bards went from a class that required multiple books and good game knowledge to utilize well (which is to say about mid tier), to what's often considerd the best class in the game. First they became full-casters (which allows them to cast spells up to level 9 instead of being limited to spells of level 5 and below), then they got magical secrets, a feature that allows them to take a couple of spells from [[MinMaxersDelight any other classes spell lists]]. Combine that with having a lot of skill proficincies and a feature that let's them get a bonus to ability checks they are not proficient in (which includes things that a character can never be proficient with like initiative),a powerful buff that isn't magic based, and a group of subclasses that let's them specialize a bit (like shoring up the classes mostly mediocre physical fighting skills or getting them even more spells to use) while not losing their inherent versatility and you have a class that can literally do anything when built well and still a massive asset when built poorly. a far cry from the MasterOfNone that many used to consider the class to be.

** Heir of Siberys -- TabletopGame/{{Eberron}} dragonmark, turned UpToEleven.

* Most any RPG character will level up through the course of the game.
* If you're playing ''TabletopGame/{{Deadlands}}'', ''death'' can be step one to taking that level. Just ask [[spoiler: Abe Lincoln]] who came back from the dead to run the Union's monster-hunting agency.
* ''[[TabletopGame/{{Warhammer40000}} Warhammer 40K]]'' - the original Space Marines took a Level in Badass and a Level in Kindness. When they started in Rogue Trader, the Space Marines were said to be the mightiest warriors in the Imperium and much feared throughout the galaxy as unstoppable, cannibalistic, psychopathic savages in graffiti-ridden armor with pointy noses. In reality, they had an underwhelming Toughness of 3! That meant they were no tougher than your average human or eldar or whatnot. Their "Beaky" power armour was also weaker, it was 4+ compared to the current 3+ (though you could buff it to a 3 if your Space Marine found some Flak armour to put under it back then). Also every character had to roll to see what equipment they received, if I remember correctly - your Space Marine could end up packing a measly lasgun or autopistol if he rolled low enough. Finally Space Marine stats topped out at 6 in everything, the same level of potential any ordinary human could achieve in a career of almost the same amount of time and Marines would lose out in comparison with quite a lot of aliens. Now Warhammer 40k has made Space Marines distinctly superhuman in stats (especially in the RPG-oriented games) with alot better equipment, not mention that they're nobler, more disciplined and have gold-trimmed armor with more intimidating helms.
** The [[RedshirtArmy Imperial Guard]] took a whole bunch of levels in bad ass this year after they got a new codex that's actually good. Also an example of ThrowTheDogABone since IG and IG players were Games Workshop's favorite ButtMonkey.
** Space Marines also took a few levels in badass with their Fifth Edition Codex, the most notable being the Captain's Weapon Skill boost and the Chapter Master's Call Orbital Bombardment ability.
** The Eldar got a significant boost with the rules changes in the Fifth Edition rulebook that combine with existing powers to make their [[GlassCannon Falcons]] tougher than [[SuperToughness Land Raiders]].
** The recent wave of updates to extremely old codexes (most notably the Dark Eldar, who have not received a new book in over a decade) resulted in many taking several levels in badass. Most notably the Grey Knights, going from an extremely small and elite group of special forces space marine taking massive death tolls to banish even the smallest of greater daemons to badass demonhunters whose very existence can make demons cower (and their leader carved his name into the chest of a daemon primarch). Some of these were considered well deserved and long overdue (notably the Dark Eldar, which was praised as being both flavorful and balanced) others were not.
** InUniverse, the Tau. When first found by the Imperium, they were plains-dwelling stone-age hunters. Imperial standard doctrine is to eliminate any native Xenos species to prepare the planet for human settlement, but a huge warp storm destroyed the fleet and cut off T'au from Imperial contact for 6000 years. When the warp storm cleared, the Tau were found to be a highly-advanced spacefaring species with a small empire. The Exterminatus order still stands, but as for actually ''doing it''...
* ''TabletopGame/WarhammerAgeOfSigmar'': The Lizardmen have taken about a million of these since the destruction of the Old World. Being muscular reptilian killing machines, they were always quite awesome, but now they're "daemons of order" made of pure Azyr magic. The Slann, with their ability to see everything that goes on in the Mortal Realms (something not even ''Tzeentch'' can do), have turned the entire Realmgate Wars into a gigantic chess match between the Seraphon and the Chaos Gods. The Seraphon are TheDreaded to the newly daemonic Skaven because during the End Times, the Horned Rat went up Sotek the Snake God and got smacked down so hard that individual Skaven have nightmares about how the Lizardmen used to inflict genocides and atrocities on them, as a form of racial memory.

** [[VoluntaryShapeshifting Lunars]] - [[TookALevelInKindness Kindness]]. Sort of; they are Stewards, bound to protect, but in Creation GoodIsNotNice...
** [[BackFromTheDead The Abyssals]] and [[DealWithTheDevil The Green Sun Princes]] - [[TookALevelInJerkass Jerkass]]. Well, their job description can be summed to "go murder and/or corrupt Creation".
** The Solars took a collective level in Badass when the Jade Prison broke. For better than 15 centuries, spanning the Shogunate, through the Scarlet Empress's reign, there were roughly twenty Solar Exaltations active in the world at any given time. 2 years after the Scarlet Empress disappeared, that number shot up to 150. All of a sudden, the idea of a Solar Resurgence isn't that crazy, even in the face of the Wyld Hunt.

* The Free Council in ''TabletopGame/MageTheAwakening''. They began as the Nameless, a disorganized bunch of people who didn't fit in with the established Atlantean Orders. Since they were the [[ButtMonkey Butt Monkeys]] of magical society, the [[AncientConspiracy Seers of the Throne]] tried to recruit them with the promise of BetterLivingThroughEvil. The outcome was a lot of dead Seers and the creation of the Free Council as a formal order, and ever since, the Council built up a reputation for innovation and ''really cool'' {{Magitek}}.
* One of the oldest tabletop games in the world: Chess. The pawns, if they reach the other side of the board, immediately become promoted into any piece, most often a queen (sometimes a knight, if need be, although puzzles where a rook or bishop can win but the other pieces cannot are popular and quite clever).

** As of 5th Edition, Bards. Within a single edition, Bards suddenly jumped from strictly trash tier to top tier: they gained the ability to cast 9th level spells (making them full casters like Wizards and Clerics), the unique ability to ''learn spells from other classes' spell lists'', they often have so many skills and proficiencies that they hardly need magic anyway, and their Bardic Inspiration can buff allies and debuff enemies in one go. Bards used to be the ButtMonkey of classes, people used to make jokes about how Bards were of most use to the party when they were dead (as they could then be used as cover); Bards are now considered '''''the best spellcaster class in the entire game'''''.

* One of the oldest tabletop games in the world: Chess. The pawns, if they reach the other side of the board, may become promoted into any piece, most often a queen (sometimes a knight, if need be)

* In the OldWorldOfDarkness:
** MageTheAscension: The [[SpaceCadet Void Engineers]] were forced to take [[CaptainSpaceDefenderOfEarth several levels in badass]], since they were the only members of the Technocracy who could fight [[spoiler:the umbra-corrupted mirror versions of the Technocratic Union [[RecycledInSpace from space]]]].

** Extreme Explorer -- Kind of like being IndianaJones, really.

* Most kinds of [[Exalted Exaltation]] are the epitome of taking a level in Badass, taking a mortal with promise and making them a powerful demigod. There are exceptions, but in those cases (Such as Alchemicals and Liminals) the Exalt comes into existence as an Exalt. Many mix it with something else, though:

* The Solars of {{Exalted}} took a collective level in Badass when the Jade Prison broke. For better than 15 centuries, spanning the Shogunate, through the Scarlet Empress's reign, there were roughly twenty Solar Exaltations active in the world at any given time. 2 years after the Scarlet Empress disappeared, that number shot up to 150. All of a sudden, the idea of a Solar Resurgence isn't that crazy, even in the face of the Wyld Hunt. Likewise considering that any kind of Exaltation is the epitome of taking a level in Badass.
** The [[VoluntaryShapeshifting Lunars]] combines TookALevelInBadass with TookALevelInKindness. By definition, a Lunar is a Steward, he or she lives to protect something as opposed to Solar Lawgivers who live to master something. In Creation, GoodIsNotNice...
** [[BackFromTheDead The Abyssals]] combines TookALevelInBadass with TookALevelInJerkass. Well, their job description can be summed to "go murder Creation".
** [[DealWithTheDevil The Green Sun Princes]] is just like Abyssal, except it's "go make Creation a living hell". It's an even more ([[LightIsNotGood green-]])shining example of taking levels in badass compared to the Solars. While Solars exalted by proving their badassitude, the Infernals are exalted by ''failing to prove'' their badassitude. They sucked so much they had to make a DealWithTheDevil to take levels in badass.
*** Infernals get to take another level with the FaustianRebellion Heresy charms. Want to prove your awesome in a way no other Exalt can? Take the power the Yozis have given you, then use it to break, rewrite or cheat every control measure they've loaded on, then build a charmset that embodies You As A Primordial in the same way that the Malfeas charmset embodies Malfeas, then start spawning ''your own [[DemonLordsAndArchdevils Third Circle Demons]]''.

** The Eldar got a significant boost with the rules changes in the Fifth Edition rulebook that combine with existing powers to make their [[GlassCannon Falcons]] tougher than [[MightyGlacier Land Raiders]].

** Risen Martyr -- "Hey look, I died, and now I can do all this awesome shit!" That's right, folks, ''D&D'' includes a prestige class that makes you Jesus.

** Pyrokineticist -- KillItWithFire, well, psionic fire anyway.
** Risen Martyr -- "Hey look, I died, and now I can do all this awesome shit!"
*** Wait, SERIOUSLY? ''D'' includes a prestige class that makes you JESUS? HOLY SHIT!
**** That one was in the book that included the 'saint' template, after all...

** Why there is no mention of Incantatrix, Planar Shepherd, Dweomerkeeper, Ruby Knight Vindicator, Jade '''Phoenix''' Mage...? [[spoiler:Even if they grant a level in badass to ''already'' badass classes]] While on that, why not add [[BadassNormal Survivor]] to the mix?
*** Planar Shepherd deserves special mention for being the only prestige class that's strictly better than just taking more [[GameBreaker Druid]] levels.
** There are too many to list, but here's [[http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=291185 a discussion of particularly badass levels]].

** 4th edition D&D goes so far as to build this into the classes twice over. First, at level 11, you get a Paragon Path that lets you take a level in badass... then, at level 21, you get an Epic Destiny, which is a second level in even ''more'' badass. Epic Destinies include the likes of Master of Moments (you gain control over time), Undying Warrior (there is nothing in the '''multiverse''' that can kill you), Parable (you realise that all of reality is but a story... and you ascend to become its author), World Tree Guardian (you are responsible for protecting the spirit of the world itself from harm), Chosen (your god makes you it's avatar within the world), and ''Demigod'' (you become a lesser god).

* If you're playing ''TabletopGame/{{Deadlands}}'', ''death'' can be step one to taking that level. Just ask [[spoiler: Abe Lincoln]] who came back from the dead to run the Union's monster-hunting agency.

** MageTheAscension: The [[SpaceCadet Void Engineers]] were forced to take [[CaptainSpaceDefenderOfEarth several levels in badass]], since they were the only members of the Technocracy who could fight [[spoiler:the umbra-corrupted mirror versions of the Technocratic Union [[RecycledInSpace from space]]]].

** MageTheAscension: The Void Engineers were forced to take several levels in badass, since they were the only members of the Technocracy who could fight [[spoiler:the umbra-corrupted mirror versions of the Technocratic Union [[RecycledInSpace from space]]]].

*** Infernals get to take another level with the FaustianRebellion Heresy charms. Want to prove your awesome in a way no other Exalt can? Take the power the Yozis have given you, then use it to break, rewrite or cheat every control measure they've loaded on, then build a charmset that embodies You As A Primordial in the same way that the Malfeas charmset embodies Malfeas, then start spawning ''your own [[DemonLordsAndArchdevils Third Circle Demons]]''.

* Any RPG character will level up through the course of the game.

* Warhammer 40K - the original Space Marines took a Level in Badass and a Level in Kindness. When they started in Rogue Trader, the Space Marines were said to be the mightiest warriors in the Imperium and much feared throughout the galaxy as unstoppable, cannibalistic, psychopathic savages in graffiti-ridden armor with pointy noses. In reality, they had an underwhelming Toughness of 3! That meant they were no tougher than your average human or eldar or whatnot. Their "Beaky" power armour was also weaker, it was 4+ compared to the current 3+ (though you could buff it to a 3 if your Space Marine found some Flak armour to put under it back then). Also every character had to roll to see what equipment they received, if I remember correctly - your Space Marine could end up packing a measly lasgun or autopistol if he rolled low enough. Finally Space Marine stats topped out at 6 in everything, the same level of potential any ordinary human could achieve in a career of almost the same amount of time and Marines would lose out in comparison with quite a lot of aliens. Now Warhammer 40k has made Space Marines distinctly superhuman in stats (especially in the RPG-oriented games) with alot better equipment, not mention that they're nobler, more disciplined and have gold-trimmed armor with more intimidating helms.
* The [[TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}} Imperial Guard]] took a whole bunch of levels in bad ass this year after they got a new codex that's actually good. Also an example of ThrowTheDogABone since IG and IG players were Games Workshop's favorite ButtMonkey.