D&D 5E Dungeon Exploration for Experience points?

[Charlaquin]

These days I generally award XP for successfully completed encounters (which includes combat, social, and exploration challenges) and objectives (which includes “main quest” and “side quest” content, and can also include personal character goals). I don’t generally award XP for exploration per se, but some encounters are exploration challenges, some objectives may require exploration to successfully complete, and some encounters are only found in out-of-the-way places one would have to explore to find.

 

[cbwjm]

I've never given out xp specifically for exploring a dungeon. I give out xp for combat and for story rewards (such as completing a quest. I also give out xp for overcoming obstacles like traps, though I use traps so rarely it doesn't often come up. I might also give out xp for a good idea leading after it plays out in game. Normally these non-combat rewards are 5-10% of the xp needed to level up.

 

[Reynard]

I ran a megadungeon campaign once where I awarded XP for rooms explored. It worked well enough, but XP for treasure is still the better mechanic. This is a solved problem, and the solution has existed for as long as D&D has.

But 5e introduces a new problem in that money isn't especially necessary or useful for anything, so by the time the PCs hit 6th level they are sitting on an economy busting pile of gold.

 

[iserith]

But 5e introduces a new problem in that money isn't especially necessary or useful for anything, so by the time the PCs hit 6th level they are sitting on an economy busting pile of gold.

Charge them 1 gp per 1 XP for training. Problem solved.

 

[Jack Daniel]

But 5e introduces a new problem in that money isn't especially necessary or useful for anything, so by the time the PCs hit 6th level they are sitting on an economy busting pile of gold.

So you've never had player characters who want a castle, an airship, a private army, or an expensive program of magical research to invent entirely new spells or magical items? Coming up with money sinks is the easy part.

 

[Lanefan]

So you've never had player characters who want a castle, an airship, a private army, or an expensive program of magical research to invent entirely new spells or magical items? Coming up with money sinks is the easy part.

I've had PCs who want all those things; and their answer - being adventurers - for things like a castle or an airship is usually to just go out and steal or conquer one.

As for exploration xp in general, I kind of build that into what I call the "dungeon bonus" (someone upthread used the rather elegant term "quest xp" for, I think, much the same thing) which they get as a block at the end of the adventure.

I've never liked xp for gp, largely for two reasons: one, it makes level-advancement too fast; and two, my players are already more than greedy enough and don't need any more encouragement when it comes to looting!