3e XP: how fast is too fast?

[Sir Edgar]

Does anyone here who DM's make adjustments for XP downward for players because you think they are progressing too fast in leveling? Just curious.

 

[Mr Fidgit]

not me. as a DM, i control what the PCs face. i'm not going to penalize them for being successful!

 

[LostSoul]

Sometimes. Then again, sometimes I think they progress too slowly.

In the end, it's all up to what you and your group think is fun.

 

[Crothian]

Ya, I do. Sometime and encounter of CR 5 when they should be facing CR 3 just turns out to easy. So, I adjust upward and downward to keep pace for how they are actually challenged.

 

[Phowett]

Off and on I do.

 

[howandwhy99]

Comparing my experience from how we used to play 2nd ed back in college and how my new group is faring under 3rd edition, the pace of advancement is seems greatly accelerated under D20 rules. While this is easily fixed by slowing XP (and commensurate gold), most players really want to push up to the teens in levels. I don't know, but I remember it took a long time to be able to play just competently after 12th level in 2nd edition Even though 3rd has balanced things lvls 1-20 (I hear) I know that story possibilities and flavor vastly change as characters go up in levels.
I like how organic the game changed in the early 70's & 80's. The original 5 box sets seemed to state that each level of game was different. You were a hero, but at Expert or Master level, you were no longer roaming the country side, but stood side to side with the big movers and shakers in the game. You made history. If I ran an epic adventure that allowed 10 levels of advancement, those characters comes out on the other side as substantially recognised cultural icons, if not for their talents, but for the speed of their growth!

 

[Sir Edgar]

It just seems kind of crazy to me, for a party of adventurers to progress from say level 6 to level 14 at the end of a dungeon crawl. I don't want to spend half of my character's time in a single dungeon. That's just me though! I always thought you generally gain one level (IF THAT) after each adventure, not two, three, four, or EIGHT! Again, my opinion, not yours.

 

[Crothian]

It just seems kind of crazy to me, for a party of adventurers to progress from say level 6 to level 14 at the end of a dungeon crawl. I don't want to spend half of my character's time in a single dungeon. That's just me though! I always thought you generally gain one level (IF THAT) after each adventure, not two, three, four, or EIGHT! Again, my opinion, not yours.

That would depend on the Dungeon Crawl. Some of these epic (in scoop, not level) dungeon crawls that will take 20 gaming session or more to get through I can see people advancing more then one level at a time. But for the run of the mill dungeon type module, at most I see PCs gaining one level.

 

[LostSoul]

It just seems kind of crazy to me, for a party of adventurers to progress from say level 6 to level 14 at the end of a dungeon crawl.

It doesn't make sense if everyone can do this, but the PCs are special. And they are special because they can rise from level 6 to 14 in a matter of months. If you let your players know that they are special, they will (I think) enjoy the game more.

 

[MerricB]

I reduce XP, based on the following system:

Character Level: XP relative to normal awards
1st-3rd: none
4th-6th: three-quarters
7th-9th: one half
10th-12th: one third
13th+: one quarter

Cheers!