Casting Shadows

Over the last few years, my group tried out a few alternate rules systems to see if converting from the rules associated with a game could alleviate issues that one or more of us may have had. As those who have gone this route will know, unlike house-ruling or giving the system another chance to prove itself, conversion can produce divergent results. These might be things such as creating gaps the filling of which alters the feel of the character, but more typically it has to do with real or perceived ability.

In this Technical Question, I am curious how you might handle a case like this:

Due to a difference in gradients between the system a character was originally created for, and the one to which they are being converted, the resulting conversion will either be more effective or less effective than they have been throughout the history of the campaign.

A concrete example is for attributes and traits related to fighting skills. In the original system the character was an average combatant, but in the new system the character will either have to accept a decrease in combative ability, or take an increase in combative ability which puts them more on par with the combat-oriented characters in the group. This real difference has the perceived effect of increasing the effectiveness of the character at the expense of the others, as their niche skill is unaffected by the problem of comparison.  The converted character will still shine in their niche skill, but will also seem as capable as those who chose combat as their niche skill, creating a sense of imbalance.

In this case, as a GM what would you opt to do as you processed the conversions?

• What would you want to do as a player of the affected character?
• What would you want to do as the player of one of the other characters?