Essentials line questions, XP, item rewards, resting, food, some general questions.

[talimore1]

Hello Everyone, I think I will just jump into this. I have DMed before and things went pretty well but I want to mix things up and get some opinions on some general DM stuff that I was wondering about. Heres the majority of them:

So I know that each fight is worth X amount of xp but when should I give it. Should I give it at the end of an encounter? The end of a dungeon? End of a quest? When they kill it?

Also, Should I just give them gold after a fight like the essentials book recommends or should I give them some items also? How often should I give them magical equipment and what do they really need gold for?

I know characters need to eat and I usually just say, you spent 1 daily rations after a little while but is there a better way to do this. Also, if the adventures are traveling a long way on a map (between towns) and need to set up a camp, how should I approach this. Should I make them stop and rest and keep an eye out for danger? What kind of ideas or things do you do when characters are resting.

How do you handle level ups? If they level in the middle of a dungeon do you give them all thier new spells and what not, right there? Do you make them wait for a town to "learn" things.

.... I think thats all for now. If I think of anything else I will add it. Thanks in advance for any advice or tips that you may give, I really appreciate them!

 

[Quickleaf]

Hello Everyone, I think I will just jump into this. I have DMed before and things went pretty well but I want to mix things up and get some opinions on some general DM stuff that I was wondering about. Heres the majority of them:

Hi talimore1, all good questions.

So I know that each fight is worth X amount of xp but when should I give it. Should I give it at the end of an encounter? The end of a dungeon? End of a quest? When they kill it?

It depends on what your group prefers, there is no right answer. Personally I give out XP at the end of a session when it doesn't hurt the flow of play to calculate it; though most recently my groups have been very much if the mindset "just tell us when we level up."

Also, Should I just give them gold after a fight like the essentials book recommends or should I give them some items also? How often should I give them magical equipment and what do they really need gold for?

Do you own the Rules Compendium? There are guidelines for random treasure there which are very good. Personally I like to mix it up with very little treasures, nice treasures, and rarely a major windfall. Don't forget non-monetary/magic item rewards!

I know characters need to eat and I usually just say, you spent 1 daily rations after a little while but is there a better way to do this.

You've probably noticed that the costs of food & lodging quickly become a non-issue for 4e characters since they're swimming in wealth eventually. Plus it's a pretty easy Nature/Dungeoneering check to forage for dinner. If you are playing in Dark Sun or another gritty/simulation-based world, then by all means have them keep close track of their rations. Otherwise it's probably not worth paying too much attention to.

Also, if the adventures are traveling a long way on a map (between towns) and need to set up a camp, how should I approach this. Should I make them stop and rest and keep an eye out for danger? What kind of ideas or things do you do when characters are resting.

It depends on your style of game. If you are running a more linear "adventure path" type, often resting can be handwaved as part ofthe travel montage - describe it and move on. If you lean more towards a "sandbox" style then resting is a great time to roll for wandering encounters.

Regardless of your approach it's always a good idea to have a group projde default info on who keeps which watch and wilderness marching order. Just in case, you know...

How do you handle level ups? If they level in the middle of a dungeon do you give them all thier new spells and what not, right there? Do you make them wait for a town to "learn" things.

I always handle level ups outside of game time. It's a precious commodity getting everyone together. When we are at the table it's time to play. Leveling up and working on character builds shouldn't eat into game time.

.... I think thats all for now. If I think of anything else I will add it. Thanks in advance for any advice or tips that you may give, I really appreciate them!

You didn't ask, but if you ever had a moment where the players stare at each other blankly at can't seem to make a decision, ask them "So you're splitting the party?"

Gets 'em every time

 

[talimore1]

You didn't ask, but if you ever had a moment where the players stare at each other blankly at can't seem to make a decision, ask them "So you're splitting the party?"

Gets 'em every time

Heh, thanks. Also what is gold good for. I mean, they buy rations, arrows, ect. but what else is it good for?

Any other tips and suggestions?

 

[Quickleaf]

Heh, thanks. Also what is gold good for. I mean, they buy rations, arrows, ect. but what else is it good for?

Paying ransoms
Buying magic items
Vehicles / Mounts (see Adventurer's Vault)
Strongholds
Hirelings (in Dragon magazine, perhaps in print in Mordenkainens Magic Emporium?)
Raise dead emergency funds

Any other tips and suggestions?

Keep posting on EN World! Lots of helpful DMs on here (heck and quite a few game designers too).

 

[talimore1]

So i resubscribed to DnD insider and now 5 hours have passed and I still don't have access. I was billed (my online bank statement has it deducted from my account) but no access.... Please advise me

 

[Quickleaf]

So i resubscribed to DnD insider and now 5 hours have passed and I still don't have access. I was billed (my online bank statement has it deducted from my account) but no access.... Please advise me

This is a question for Wizards Customer Service: Contact information for Wizards Customer Service

I found their well hidden web page by googling "Wizards customer service"

 

[AbdulAlhazred]

Heh, thanks. Also what is gold good for. I mean, they buy rations, arrows, ect. but what else is it good for?

Any other tips and suggestions?

Ritual casting I manage to suck up pretty much all my player's spare cash with it, lol. Well, they also buy a potion or whatnot once in a while too. There aren't a lot of places to get that kind of stuff in my game, but once in a while they run into someone that can sell them something.

I'm sure the players can come up with other ideas before long. Mine always like to buy weird stuff.

 

[SensoryThought]

Once characters get up in level 5+ I ignore the day to day bookkeeping of food, board, drink etc and just have a monthly upkeep cost proportional to a character's lifestyle. They keep track of large sums of money required to pay for expensive rituals (linked portals etc), ritual components, magic item and alchemy components (for the artificer), hirelings, and large bribes. As they are part of the military, I also allow them to add any basic equipment they want whenever at base. Sure all this is poorly simulationist, but it is time saving and works for us.

I used to track xp and say when they level up at the end of a session. But I found myself tweaking xp rewards to have level ups come at story appropriate times. So now I just level everyone up at the end of a 3-4 session adventure. No one has noticed or, if they did, they haven't complained.

 

[mkill]

So I know that each fight is worth X amount of xp but when should I give it. Should I give it at the end of an encounter? The end of a dungeon? End of a quest? When they kill it?

How do you handle level ups? If they level in the middle of a dungeon do you give them all thier new spells and what not, right there? Do you make them wait for a town to "learn" things.

Your XP only matter when you level up, so this boils down to the same question.

Personally, I like to keep game time as playing time, and have players level up their characters at home between sessions. Therefore, I prefer to hand out XP at the end of a session. This is not a book rule, it's just a convenient way to handle things. Whatever works for your group is fine.

So what if the session ends in a cliffhanger? For most PCs, that's not an issue. Sorcerers, for example, can just discover their new abilities on the fly. For Wizards and other PCs who are supposed to learn spells from books, you can ask the player to hold back his new daily or other ability until the PCs are back in the village. Or, you conveniently place a scroll with the spell in the dungeon...

Also, Should I just give them gold after a fight like the essentials book recommends or should I give them some items also? How often should I give them magical equipment and what do they really need gold for?

As a player, I love finding items! There is nothing wrong with just finding gold and buying stuff from a merchant, but it's just more fun if you pry that flaming sword from the cold dead hands of that demon cultist.

I know characters need to eat and I usually just say, you spent 1 daily rations after a little while but is there a better way to do this.

Unless a PC is a cook and loves to describe how he prepares meals, you can just skip it. The PCs eat "off the screen".

Also, if the adventures are traveling a long way on a map (between towns) and need to set up a camp, how should I approach this. Should I make them stop and rest and keep an eye out for danger? What kind of ideas or things do you do when characters are resting.

Well, it's like that family camping trip, just that you need to look out for Dire Bears instead of the usual ones.

If you plan to have something interesting happening on the road, you can play it out in as much detail as you like. However, if the real adventure is awaiting at their destination, feel free to just skip the part and say "ok, one week passes, you arrive".