D&D 5E Downtime XP farming with animate dead or conjuration spells

[Fenris-77]

I refuse to believe that this is something that would actually be allowed in a campaign run by anyone older that 13. It's silly.

 

[Lanefan]

So no xp for killing summoned Tiamat

If you're fighting something that's capable of summoning Tiamat* I think you've got far bigger problems to worry about.

* - particularly in my game, where in my homebrew cosmology she's not just a deity, but one of the 20 "true" deities of whom all others are merely aspects...

 

[Legatus Legionis]

.

 

[snickersnax]

If you're fighting something that's capable of summoning Tiamat* I think you've got far bigger problems to worry about.

* - particularly in my game, where in my homebrew cosmology she's not just a deity, but one of the 20 "true" deities of whom all others are merely aspects...

I was thinking specifically of Rise of Tiamat/Tyranny of Dragons, but I could have just as easily used OoTA or PoTA as examples

 

[Harzel]

Has anyone else run into this little gem?

1) 5th level necromancer has corpses
2) Casts animate dead on them
3) Orders them to attack him.
4) Slays his own undead for xp.
5) Rinse and repeat
6) Profit to level 20

Also works with conjuration spells, perhaps even better because you can get more xp out of higher level creatures.

To answer your question: No.

But I don't even understand what the point would be. Just gaining levels isn't a thing in D&D IMX. Ok, you are level 20. So what? Might as well just have your PC commit suicide because there is probably little left to do. Is the rest of the group level 20 also? If the group did want to play a high level game, you could just start there.

Really hard to comment without knowing what the actual purpose is.

 

[Salthorae]

So you'd be OK with frenemies? (Two necromancers that send their animated dead to attack the other guy every day?)

Probably not, no.

 

[R_J_K75]

Id allow the player to do it, then immediately inform said player congratulations youre now an NPC.

 

[DEFCON 1]

We're not really talking about the real world we're talking about the NPCs in your fantasy world. Do they not understand that a dagger does less damage than a two handed sword?

A dagger doesn't necessarily do less damage than a two-handed sword.

A dagger that is wielded by a character that has the out-of-game designation of "Rogue" does an out-of-game 1d4 + DEX mod + a whole heap of sneak attack damage.

As far as the "in-game world" is concerned... that character has made a deadly stab with a dagger in just the right place to instantly kill their enemy... whereas there is probably another character in the world standing next to them who has swung a two-handed sword and barely grazed the enemy in front of them.

The two-handed sword isn't by default a "more damaging" weapon than a dagger in the game world... either one depends entirely on the person who wields it. Yes, we out-of-game players have divided up the damage into "weapon die" and "ability modifier" and "class feature" to determine all the bits and bobs of calculated damage... but none of that exists in the game world. In the game world... the person who can wield a dagger effectively does more damage than the great weapon user who can't.

 

[Maxperson]

So you'd be OK with frenemies? (Two necromancers that send their animated dead to attack the other guy every day?)

So it would take two complete morons to actually agree to send enough undead to be a threat to life and limb, which means that the numbers showing up wouldn't be a threat. No threat, no exp. If they are a threat, then one will eventually be up for a Darwin when he dies.

 

[Maxperson]

It boggles my mind that the inhabitants of a world would not be putting in at least some effort to understand their world. I mean they must know something right? bigger swords do more damage? Fireball has more killing power than firebolt? I can't make a potion of invisibility unless I can cast invisibility? Adventuring makes you better at what you do?

That last sentence is very important. Adventuring makes you better. They wouldn't know that it was just combat. They aren't adventuring if they are just sending created undead back and forth. The necromancers would have to go out and actually adventure(play the game).