Alternate experience thread (awarding x.p.s)

slimykuotoan · Post by **slimykuotoan** » Wed Jul 16, 2008 12:53 pm

Anyone award x.p. differently, or alter experience tracks so characters go up faster/slower?
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serleran · Post by **serleran** » Wed Jul 16, 2008 1:01 pm

Yes. I do not use XP at all.

clavis123 · Post by **clavis123** » Wed Jul 16, 2008 1:22 pm

I give a flat XP award per session played, regardless of what the characters do in that session. If the player doesn't show up for a session, their PC only gets half XP for the session. I started out with sessions worth 300 XP each, and I double it every 3 - 5 sessions. When I want the PCs to advance more slowly, I simply continue to award the same XP. So far it's worked out great, since the players know they won't get screwed for XP if they fail to kill everything and steal every last gp. Furthermore, our group does a lot of scenes where only 1 or 2 PCs are active, and the remaining players take the parts of NPCs or monsters. In that kind of situation, standard XP award systems would create unfair results. I prefer still using XP (rather than using advancement by fiat) since it makes playing a class with low XP requirements a meaningful choice.

serleran · Post by **serleran** » Wed Jul 16, 2008 1:35 pm

My system is not done by fiat -- every character has in-game goals. When that goal is achieved, the character levels up. The goal has to be approved, and cannot be something simple, like "get a date" but, "assassinate the king" qualifies. Rogues tend to have the easiest goals, naturally, because they tend to involve obtaining loot, but it also forces me to keep treasure down so its win-win. These do not have to pertain to a specific class function, either -- they are things you want our character to accomplish; if they are relatively minor ("I want to start a farm") they don't count.

Luther · Post by **Luther** » Wed Jul 16, 2008 3:21 pm

WFRP uses a flat XP reward system, 100xp per 3-4 hours of play, and that encourages smarter play on the part of the characters. It is based on the concept that every experience is valuable and failure is often a better teacher than success.

Back when 3e first came out, I planned all of my games around the concept of 'this many adventures to this level.' No matter what happened, as long as they survived and achieved the goal, they got the full xp for that adventure. It worked out a bit like the WFRP system and the characters were more concerned with accompliching their goals instead of killing everything in sight. The problem with doing it this way in C&C is the progression system is too variable.

So I'd definately go with some sort of hybrid WFRP/C&C system where each session nets the characters so many xp. 300xp, as mentioned by Clavis above, seems a good starting point, although I'd use a set progression.

By my calculations, at an average of (4) 4-hour sessions per adventure, tthe following progression or per session awards will shoot the PCs through the first 4 or 5 levels within the same number of adventures. After that advancement slows so that the characters stay in the sweet spot longer. See below:

Number of Adventures / XP Per Session/ Levels Achieved (Paladin - Theif)

5 / 500xp /L3-4

10 / 1000xp /L5-6

15 / 5000xp /L7-9

20 / 10,000xp /L8-11

25 / 20,000xp /L10-14

30 / 30,000xp /L12-19

35 / 30,000xp /L14-21

40 / 30,000xp /L16-28

45 / 30,000xp /L18-33

50 / 30,000xp /L20-38

In the end, by the time a Paladin reaches 20th level, everyone else is averaging level 30, with the thief reaching the highest level of 38. I'm assuming that the chances of the campaign surviving that long (roughly 200 4 hour sessions, which if played weekly, means around 4 years of real time) are pretty slim unless you have a very devoted bunch, but then I think the system is really designed for most characters to 'retire' at the 12-19 level.

If you really want to speed up the campaign, just double the above XP rewards. You could be a 20th level Paladin in less than a year and a half.

My brain hurts...

Eisenmann · Post by **Eisenmann** » Wed Jul 16, 2008 11:46 pm

serleran wrote:
My system is not done by fiat -- every character has in-game goals. When that goal is achieved, the character levels up. The goal has to be approved, and cannot be something simple, like "get a date" but, "assassinate the king" qualifies. Rogues tend to have the easiest goals, naturally, because they tend to involve obtaining loot, but it also forces me to keep treasure down so its win-win. These do not have to pertain to a specific class function, either -- they are things you want our character to accomplish; if they are relatively minor ("I want to start a farm") they don't count.

Very nice approach.

Lurker · Post by **Lurker** » Thu Jul 17, 2008 1:22 am

Serl

I've heard you mention before you don't use exp. Now that you explain it that way it kind of makes scene especially in a character development/role-playing way.
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LordSeurek · Post by **LordSeurek** » Thu Oct 23, 2008 5:04 pm

As you are aware Slimy, I disagree with the slow progression thru the levels in c&c. This is not from wanting to 'level up' each session, but as we have seen from your game some time back, my character Navarra was 7th level for well over a year, and we were at the time, playing every week!

Well, I have taken a different approach to awarding XP. I readjusted the class progression tables for 35 classes. Yourself, Lurker, and Tree have seen them, and I never heard anything negative about it, so I think they work. Things do go a bit skew however when you reach levels 11+ in my tables, as they tend to do a more linear increase.

I also dont award 1gp = 1xp. I just think its dumb. A game I played in one time. We were low level, fight a critter and got like 30 xp. No problem. In the module was an item worth 12k so we got 12 k in experience for picking up and keeping the item? Regardless of class, I think it ruins things. Hell, break into a store, take all the items in a magic shop, move up 10 levels and bring the items back.
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Go0gleplex · Post by **Go0gleplex** » Thu Oct 23, 2008 6:55 pm

I give xp for magic items and monsters...not for coin or other loot. Should the PC do something "iconic" in nature (paladin diving off a cliff in full plate to the sea below trying to save some peasant lass who just jumped) then I'll give bonus xp.
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Omote · Post by **Omote** » Thu Oct 23, 2008 8:15 pm

I use the XP as provided in the M&T for muunsters, and add XP to the totals at the end of the session as I deem fit. If players do good/cool/awesome things then they get XP.

To be frank, other then the individule XP for monsters, I award XP pretty much straight out of Palladium Books EXP Award System 'cus it's mo betta'.

-O
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RLW · Post by **RLW** » Thu Oct 23, 2008 10:15 pm

Omote wrote:
ITo be frank, other then the individule XP for monsters, I award XP pretty much straight out of Palladium Books EXP Award System 'cus it's mo betta'.

Could you give a summary of how this works?

Lord Dynel · Post by **Lord Dynel** » Thu Oct 23, 2008 10:21 pm

One DM I know simply advances the players after a set amount of sessions (I think its two sessions for him). So in a way, he doesn't keep track of XP at all. He's never had a problem with it, apparently, as none of his players take advantage of it.