D&D General An alternative to XP

[DND_Reborn]

Wait, didn't AD&D tie level advancement to something class related? I remember seeing stuff like "if you want to level up as a druid you have to go to your grove and challenge someone for their position", and that looked pretty awesome.

For Druids and Monks IIRC you had to challenge to reach higher levels around 8th to 13th. I'd have to grab my 1E PHB to be certain.

Edit: oh btw I came up with my own answer to exactly that question of how to give them features in between levels, and it's offering feats through NPC trainers. Getting a feat isn't as powerful as a level and there are also many juicy looking feats in terms of RP that don't look all that crazy mechanically, you get to choose which ones you offer after all.

Glad that works for you, but feats increase power creep too much IMO. We do allow skills, as well as the tools and languages normally offered, during downtime.

 

[payn]

Right?

For sure.

 

[HaroldTheHobbit]

My table hasn't use XP since forever. To me as DM XP for specific actions is a boardgamey antique mechanism. Nowadays my players level when the story calls for it or it seems fun, by table consensus. Our current campaign celebrates one year of weekly sessions and the party is level 10, and it's a pace we are comfy with for this specific intrigue-heavy campaign theme.

 

[Nebulous]

I haven't used XP since early 3e probably. It was such a hassle - and arbitrary - that I deemed it a waste of my time to calculate (and I don't like math). We just use milestones and I control the rate of leveling up. Some levels are faster, some slower.

I would only use XP again if it was a resource to gain and spend to upgrade abilities, but I doubt such a mechanic would be introduced to DnD.

 

[Jacob Lewis]

For sure.

Most definitely.

 

[Scruffy nerf herder]

I feel as if the wheel has now been re-invented.

I feel, as usual, incapable of determining when people are being sarcastic.

 

[Charlaquin]

I feel, as usual, incapable of determining when people are being sarcastic.

I think people are just noting that you have independently arrived at a solution that is already in the DMG - what most people are calling “milestone leveling” but the DMG properly calls “story-based advancement.” You seem to be proposing it like it’s a novel concept, but I think it’s how most groups play these days.

Personally, I’ll die on the hill of XP. It isn’t right for every campaign, but I think most campaigns can benefit from it. Sadly, the benefits are not obvious and people really hate having to do math, so here we are.

 

[payn]

Personally, I’ll die on the hill of XP. It isn’t right for every campaign, but I think most campaigns can benefit from it. Sadly, the benefits are not obvious and people really hate having to do math, so here we are.

It's not just lazy folks who dislike XP. It can have an undesirable effect on how players engage the game. For some, its a matter of preference.

 

[Yaarel]

Just count encounters.

It takes about 4 standard encounters to gain enough experience points to reach level 2. So just count the encounters instead. Now it can be any kind of encounter, combat, nonlethal combat, social, exploration, chase, puzzle, whatever.


Number of Encounters: To Reach Next Level

4 encounters: level 1 to 2
7 encounters: level 2 to 3
10 encounters: level 3 to 4
13 encounters: level 4 to 5

16 encounters: levels 5 thru 12

8 encounters: levels 13 thru 20

 

[Morrus]

I'm not sure I understand why it's a problem that D&D is a level based system. My players level up just like any other person playing the game. We simply don't use XP in order to determine when they achieve a new level. They must actually achieve a new level in the narrative, and are rewarded for this.

How does this differ from milestone leveling?