Motivation for Play

Some thoughts on leveling up inspired by The Blackest of Deaths
The Blackest of Deaths has me thinking about the leveling up mechanic which is an idea that forms a groundbreaking part of the original fantasy role-playing game and is often attributed to Dave Arneson, an idea that is incorporated into many later tabletop, computer and console games and is almost synonymous with role-playing games to this day. For many players, leveling up their character is a major goal and motivation for the decisions made during play. The Blackest of Deaths seems to abandon the well established levels troupe. Without a mechanic for leveling up or improving the player's character, I wonder what the goal of play may become.
Riffing off of an idea from the Index Card Role-Playing Game by Runehammer, I have thought about the acquisition of gear as a possible motive for adventuring. In other thoughts, the King Arthur Pendragon RPG uses earning and improving Glory as the goal that motivates play. With the proper ways to spend it, just accumulating character wealth can be an incentive (I suppose). The Burning Wheel urges players to follow their character Beliefs and play often results in characters being changed in interesting ways. In RuneQuest play, acquiring and mastering mythical runes is a motivational goal of play. Epic fantasy is about saving the world and gritty swords & sorcery stories are often focused on survival. These can also be motives in game play.
Survival may be a challenge in The Blackest of Deaths, and for a one-off session that may be sufficient motivation. Scenario design can also be centered on accomplishing a mission through a referee statement, such as, "your mission today is to recover the Ring of Thoth". Fun and challenge are after-all their own rewards and ultimately we play tabletop games for amusement and fellowship. Perhaps that is all the motivation needed.
The Blackest of Deaths posits some interesting game dynamics by abandoning character improvement via leveling up or skill advancement (such as with GURPS and BRP systems). Without levels, all the spells listed in the Blackest of Deaths are available to a starting out character of a caster class, though they must choose a limited number of spells. Acquiring more magic spells is not expressly forbidden, so that could be one motive for casters to adventure. Wealth in terms of coin can be spent to purchase equipment upgrades and presumably other in-world valuables such as real estate and social rank. Monsters in the Blackest of Deaths are what they are and challenge levels don't come into play. Some are way tougher than others and without the prospect of your character getting more powerful, one may ask how will characters ever tackle the strongest foes? Perhaps by resulting to trickery and deceit? A cleverly executed plan may prevail where brute strength cannot.
To be sure, "kicking in the door and wrecking some monsters" can be a fun part of the game, but old school play (in which players are not guaranteed level appropriate challenges that are always beatable) often teaches a hard lesson when the adventurers come up against something that is stronger than they can handle with a straight-out charge forward into battle. What to do when lightning bolts and swords cannot solve the problem? Player skill. If the answer isn't on the character sheet, start thinking imaginatively.
I think Eric Bloat may be on to something important with his new game the Blackest of Deaths. It is a  thing somewhat subtle because the rules don't just spell it out - they are too busy setting the deadly tone. Blackest of Deaths is not about character death, it's not just about survival in a grim and dark world. It is also about creative problem solving, thinking outside the box. It is a game about survival, which is very old school, but more than that, it is a game about discovery. It is a game where one player, the referee sets up a challenge and the players test themselves as players and discover a story through the process. The reward is learning something about yourself, and about your friends through playing a game that places your characters into diverse situations and asks the open question, "What will you do?"