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We might as well jump right into it with the most contentious of the C-Store items. The full retcon is one of the more expensive items in the C-Store, and it is certainly the most worrisome of them all. It also gives us the best look into the motivations of Executive Producer Bill Roper and Cryptic as far as this C-Store concept.
Since its release, the issue of full respecs (called retcons) in Champions Online has been a controversial one. CO has a fully open ability/skill system, which means you can choose any powers, stat boosts, and power advantages you want for your character. There are no paths, templates, classes, or anything of that nature to guide you. The system is very flexible, but it is also extremely easy to ruin your character through a few unfortunate choices. If you do not spend tens of hours studying powers and builds via forums and character builders, you will almost surely make a few level up choices you will regret later.
The only remedy for that is a good respec/retcon system. In Champions Online, changing things you picked recently is not that costly, but going back more than 10 or 15 levels is cost prohibitive. By the time you are level 40, it is easier to simply start a new character from scratch than it is to earn the money you'd need to change something early in your build.
