One thing that strikes me about Layonara compared to all of Bioware's interpretations of DnD is the similarity in "levels" to PnP. You spend a lot of time at a given level. So instead of thinking about your character as a work in progress pending level 20, it is more productive to think in terms of being a Level 8 Wizard, or a Level 12 Paladin. The time spent at each level is long enough that you form your strategy around that rather than where you hope to be in 5 more levels.
That, I think, is much more in line with PnP. Even if people always have the long term in mind, every level forces them to readjust their strategy or they'll never make it to the next one without significant piggybacking on others.
Just food for thought while I mourn the loss of my computer. Just a few more weeks. . .
