firesnakearies
Explorer
I read a lot of posts about the issue of encouraging the players not to rest too often, but to actually do several encounters in a row, as the game is intended to work. It got me to thinking about how I would handle this in my own campaign. I hate being artificially heavy-handed and throwing things into the storyline or game events merely to punish players. I like giving the players as much freedom as possible, but also enforcing real and fair consequences.
So I came up with this system, which I intend to use in my games. It's two separate systems, actually, and either could be used independent of the other. But I like them together.
I'd love to hear some comments, feedback, suggested changes, etc. Also, if anyone else wants to use this or something based on it, I'd be honored!
So without further ado, here it is:
1. Encounter XP by Number of Encounters Per Day:
Encounter XP is awarded at the end of each extended rest, based on all encounters since the last extended rest. This is also when levelling up will take place. The following modifier applies to the TOTAL experience earned for that "day":
1 encounter: 25% of normal award
2 encounters: 50% of normal award
3 encounters: 75% of normal award
4 encounters: 100% of normal award
5 encounters: 125% of normal award
6 encounters: 150% of normal award
7 encounters: 175% of normal award
8 encounters: 200% of normal award
...and so on, with +25% more bonus XP per additional encounter defeated before resting.
Encounters which the DM has flagged as "Hard" will be worth 2 encounters for the day.
The "Final" or "Main Boss" encounter of an adventure will be worth 3 encounters for the day.
The penalties for completing less than 4 encounters only apply if there were additional encounters remaining in the current adventure area, and the PCs were not prevented from proceeding by storyline or circumstance beyond their control. Only if they choose to stop and rest early when they COULD go on to more encounters will they be penalized.
Extra XP awards for quest completion, in-game achievements, roleplaying, or anything else besides encounters will be awarded in consolidated batches each time the PCs "return to town" to fully rest and resupply, starting a new "chapter" of the game. These awards will not be affected by the above system at all.
2. Momentum:
In addition to the above, I will be using another system of penalty/reward for number of encounters per rest period. The idea is called Momentum, and it is a sliding numerical score which increases and decreases according to the PCs cumulative successes and boldness, or failures and overcaution. It represents the effect of growing or shrinking morale, adrenaline or lassitude, and even the approval or disapproval of the gods in the heroism (or lack thereof) of the party.
The PCs start an adventure with 0 Momentum, which does not affect them in any way. Each encounter they complete raises their Momentum by 1 point, or 2 for a "Hard" encounter, or a colossal 4 points for a "Final Boss" encounter. Defeating an appropriately-challenging encounter with extreme dominance, in the DM's opinion, will grant a bonus 1 point of Momentum. Fleeing completely from an encounter will deduct 1 point, with no minimum. However, going back and defeating that same encounter that routed the PCs before will award one BONUS point of Momentum, as they revel in the thrill of vindication. (In other words, they get back the point that they lost by running.)
Stopping for any extended period of time begins to drain the party's Momentum, at a rate of 1 point per hour after the first, to a minimum of 0 (or, a minimum of the highest level of Momentum achieved by the PCs that day, if lower than 0). What activities constitute "stopping" (versus "non-combat adventuring" which may not result in diminishing Momentum) are completely determined, on a case-by-case basis, by the DM.
After an extended rest, Momentum defaults to -4 for the new day, but this is offset by any positive Momentum score which the PCs may have had when they made camp for the day. This can result in the PCs starting a new day with greater than 0 Momentum. If the party had negative Momentum when they made camp, only HALF of that negative value is added to the base -4 for the day.
The Momentum score will not reset to starting at 0 until the PCs leave the adventure area and "return to town" (see above).
Some abilities or items may appear in the game which affect Momentum, one way or the other, as the DM sees fit. The PCs may also gain or lose Momentum dynamically in response to certain highly dramatic events, at the DM's discretion, but this will be a rare occurance. It is also likely that I will create some PC-selectable feat(s) and/or power(s) usable by Warlords and Clerics (and possibly Paladins) which will aid the party's Momentum somehow.
The benefits and detriments of the Momentum score are as follows:
Momentum (+/-) 1 to 4: The PCs reduce or increase their maximum Hit Points by the Momentum score, and gain a bonus or penalty to the FIRST attack made in each new encounter equal to the Momentum score.
Momentum (+/-) 5 to 6: The above, plus a 1-point bonus or penalty to all defenses and saving throws.
Momentum (+/-) 7 to 8: The above, plus a bonus or penalty to the FIRST healing surge used in each new encounter equal to HALF of the Momentum score (rounded down), with a minimum surge result of 1.
Momentum (+/-) 9 to 10: The above, plus the PC can either use ONE encounter power an additional time automatically in each new encounter (if positive) OR is unable to use ONE encounter power (player's choice) in each new encounter.
Beyond that, there are no additional effects of Momentum, but numerical effects based upon the Momentum score continue to increase or decrease normally.
Example of both systems in use together:
The party arrives at the shadowy ruins, ready to delve within and cleanse the demonic taint from the ancient site. They have a Momentum of 0, fresh and ready to adventure. Entering within, they cleave their way through the first three encounters without stopping, earning them 3 Momentum. The next encounter, however, proves to be too much for them, and they are forced to retreat to safety. Their Momentum drops to 2. Frustrated, they decide to stop and camp until the next day, so that they can be fresh for the tougher fight ahead. At this point, the party earns the XP for the three encounters which they defeated, but at only 75% of normal award.
In the morning, they wake up feeling decidedly unmotivated, with a Momentum of -2. They will be penalized slightly in their first encounter or two. Steeling themselves, they re-assault the foes who send them packing yesterday, and are victorious. Their Momentum surges back up to 0, things are looking up. Moving on, they absolutely obliterate the next poor enemy group, defeating them so handily that the DM awards a bonus point of Momentum for sheer dominance. Now the party's back up to Momentum 2, and seeing a bonus finally. Emboldened by these successes, they drive onward, defeating an impressive FOUR additional encounters before resting in exhaustion. XP time. The group beat SIX encounters, one of which was "Hard" and thus counts as two, for a total of "seven" encounters for the day. They earn a whopping 175% of the normal amount for all of those encounters.
Day three, the party begins with an impressive Momentum of 4, giving them a nice bonus starting out. They tear into the next three encounters with a gusto, raising their Momentum to 7. Now they have some serious benefits going. Unfortunately, they decide to play it safe before entering the next area, electing to wait several hours for many of the guards ahead to go back to their sleeping chambers. This standing around cuts through their Momentum like a scythe through wheat, leaving them with only 1 lowly point of Momentum when they finally attack. The encounter is Hard, though, and they win, so they end the day with 3 Momentum. Four encounters down, one Hard, for a total of five. Not bad, the party gains 125% XP for the day's work. One PC levels up, and all calculations and adjustments to his character are made at this time.
They didn't go to bed too fired up last night, so today, the party is starting with a rather uninspiring -1 Momentum. A tiny penalty for the first fight, and then they'll be back to neutral. They carve up the first encounter with little trouble, and are feeling better at Momentum 0. Shockingly, however, the next encounter, which isn't even a "Hard" one, nearly crushes them, and they barely escape with their lives. Down another point of Momentum, to -1. Regrouping, they go for it again, and once more FAIL to defeat this pesky challenge, fleeing yet another time. At Momentum -2 and demoralized, they decide after much argument to just hole up for another night. XP is very weak for this day, as they only beat ONE encounter, for which they receive a measly 25% of normal award.
Next say, terrible morale reigns in the camp. Momentum is at -5, the lowest they've had. Still, they go ahead and give it another shot. Sadly, they still haven't gotten this next encounter figured out, and end up fleeing AGAIN! Momentum -6, and the party is seriously considering just going back to town and giving up. They debate the issue in camp, earning no XP for the day.
A new strategy has arisen, and the PCs are excited about it. They think they know how to win, now, so even with their morning Momentum being a dismal -7, they head once more unto the breach. And this time, they blow through the fight EASILY! That new plan worked wonders. Three Momentum points are given: 1 for beating the encounter, 1 for beating a previously fled-from foe, and 1 for total dominance in battle. They're still pretty beat up, at Momentum -4, but they can see light at the end of the tunnel now. Moving through three more encounters, they end the day at a decent Momentum -1. XP for the day is at normal value, as 4 encounters were passed.
For the last day of the adventure, they start, again, with Momentum -4. Note that the penalty -1 from the day before is not applied, as only HALF of previous day's penalty carries over, and it is rounded down. Today, however, is the party's lucky day. They move through the next six encounters as though it were child's play. Two of these are "Hard" and two of the others are such overwhelming victories as to justify the dominance bonus. So after these six fights, the party is sitting at an amazing Momentum 6! Considering that they started at -7 yesterday, this is phenomenal. But they choose not to stop, and roll right into the final encounter of the adventure, against the "Big Boss" himself. The fight is hairy, and it looks like they might have to run a couple of times, but they pull it out, and defeat the overlord of the ruins! Momentum for the walk home is a glorious 10, and the PCs are just waiting for something to get in their way. They make camp halfway back to town, and just as they're pitching tents and starting a fire, one last group of vengeful stragglers from the ruins catches up with them and attacks. Riding on the hefty bonuses of their 10 Momentum, the party dispatches this threat easily. XP award for this day is incredible: The equivalent of TWELVE encounters today, due to the two "Hards" and the Boss fight. That awards the PCs an insane 300% XP for all encounters that day, an amazing achievement!
The players have learned, directly and unequivocally, that pushing on pays off big, and stopping to rest unnecessarily is definitely not worth it. Fortune favors the bold!
So that's it. Let me know what you think! Oh, also, this is my first post here, so hi.
So I came up with this system, which I intend to use in my games. It's two separate systems, actually, and either could be used independent of the other. But I like them together.
I'd love to hear some comments, feedback, suggested changes, etc. Also, if anyone else wants to use this or something based on it, I'd be honored!
So without further ado, here it is:
1. Encounter XP by Number of Encounters Per Day:
Encounter XP is awarded at the end of each extended rest, based on all encounters since the last extended rest. This is also when levelling up will take place. The following modifier applies to the TOTAL experience earned for that "day":
1 encounter: 25% of normal award
2 encounters: 50% of normal award
3 encounters: 75% of normal award
4 encounters: 100% of normal award
5 encounters: 125% of normal award
6 encounters: 150% of normal award
7 encounters: 175% of normal award
8 encounters: 200% of normal award
...and so on, with +25% more bonus XP per additional encounter defeated before resting.
Encounters which the DM has flagged as "Hard" will be worth 2 encounters for the day.
The "Final" or "Main Boss" encounter of an adventure will be worth 3 encounters for the day.
The penalties for completing less than 4 encounters only apply if there were additional encounters remaining in the current adventure area, and the PCs were not prevented from proceeding by storyline or circumstance beyond their control. Only if they choose to stop and rest early when they COULD go on to more encounters will they be penalized.
Extra XP awards for quest completion, in-game achievements, roleplaying, or anything else besides encounters will be awarded in consolidated batches each time the PCs "return to town" to fully rest and resupply, starting a new "chapter" of the game. These awards will not be affected by the above system at all.
2. Momentum:
In addition to the above, I will be using another system of penalty/reward for number of encounters per rest period. The idea is called Momentum, and it is a sliding numerical score which increases and decreases according to the PCs cumulative successes and boldness, or failures and overcaution. It represents the effect of growing or shrinking morale, adrenaline or lassitude, and even the approval or disapproval of the gods in the heroism (or lack thereof) of the party.
The PCs start an adventure with 0 Momentum, which does not affect them in any way. Each encounter they complete raises their Momentum by 1 point, or 2 for a "Hard" encounter, or a colossal 4 points for a "Final Boss" encounter. Defeating an appropriately-challenging encounter with extreme dominance, in the DM's opinion, will grant a bonus 1 point of Momentum. Fleeing completely from an encounter will deduct 1 point, with no minimum. However, going back and defeating that same encounter that routed the PCs before will award one BONUS point of Momentum, as they revel in the thrill of vindication. (In other words, they get back the point that they lost by running.)
Stopping for any extended period of time begins to drain the party's Momentum, at a rate of 1 point per hour after the first, to a minimum of 0 (or, a minimum of the highest level of Momentum achieved by the PCs that day, if lower than 0). What activities constitute "stopping" (versus "non-combat adventuring" which may not result in diminishing Momentum) are completely determined, on a case-by-case basis, by the DM.
After an extended rest, Momentum defaults to -4 for the new day, but this is offset by any positive Momentum score which the PCs may have had when they made camp for the day. This can result in the PCs starting a new day with greater than 0 Momentum. If the party had negative Momentum when they made camp, only HALF of that negative value is added to the base -4 for the day.
The Momentum score will not reset to starting at 0 until the PCs leave the adventure area and "return to town" (see above).
Some abilities or items may appear in the game which affect Momentum, one way or the other, as the DM sees fit. The PCs may also gain or lose Momentum dynamically in response to certain highly dramatic events, at the DM's discretion, but this will be a rare occurance. It is also likely that I will create some PC-selectable feat(s) and/or power(s) usable by Warlords and Clerics (and possibly Paladins) which will aid the party's Momentum somehow.
The benefits and detriments of the Momentum score are as follows:
Momentum (+/-) 1 to 4: The PCs reduce or increase their maximum Hit Points by the Momentum score, and gain a bonus or penalty to the FIRST attack made in each new encounter equal to the Momentum score.
Momentum (+/-) 5 to 6: The above, plus a 1-point bonus or penalty to all defenses and saving throws.
Momentum (+/-) 7 to 8: The above, plus a bonus or penalty to the FIRST healing surge used in each new encounter equal to HALF of the Momentum score (rounded down), with a minimum surge result of 1.
Momentum (+/-) 9 to 10: The above, plus the PC can either use ONE encounter power an additional time automatically in each new encounter (if positive) OR is unable to use ONE encounter power (player's choice) in each new encounter.
Beyond that, there are no additional effects of Momentum, but numerical effects based upon the Momentum score continue to increase or decrease normally.
Example of both systems in use together:
The party arrives at the shadowy ruins, ready to delve within and cleanse the demonic taint from the ancient site. They have a Momentum of 0, fresh and ready to adventure. Entering within, they cleave their way through the first three encounters without stopping, earning them 3 Momentum. The next encounter, however, proves to be too much for them, and they are forced to retreat to safety. Their Momentum drops to 2. Frustrated, they decide to stop and camp until the next day, so that they can be fresh for the tougher fight ahead. At this point, the party earns the XP for the three encounters which they defeated, but at only 75% of normal award.
In the morning, they wake up feeling decidedly unmotivated, with a Momentum of -2. They will be penalized slightly in their first encounter or two. Steeling themselves, they re-assault the foes who send them packing yesterday, and are victorious. Their Momentum surges back up to 0, things are looking up. Moving on, they absolutely obliterate the next poor enemy group, defeating them so handily that the DM awards a bonus point of Momentum for sheer dominance. Now the party's back up to Momentum 2, and seeing a bonus finally. Emboldened by these successes, they drive onward, defeating an impressive FOUR additional encounters before resting in exhaustion. XP time. The group beat SIX encounters, one of which was "Hard" and thus counts as two, for a total of "seven" encounters for the day. They earn a whopping 175% of the normal amount for all of those encounters.
Day three, the party begins with an impressive Momentum of 4, giving them a nice bonus starting out. They tear into the next three encounters with a gusto, raising their Momentum to 7. Now they have some serious benefits going. Unfortunately, they decide to play it safe before entering the next area, electing to wait several hours for many of the guards ahead to go back to their sleeping chambers. This standing around cuts through their Momentum like a scythe through wheat, leaving them with only 1 lowly point of Momentum when they finally attack. The encounter is Hard, though, and they win, so they end the day with 3 Momentum. Four encounters down, one Hard, for a total of five. Not bad, the party gains 125% XP for the day's work. One PC levels up, and all calculations and adjustments to his character are made at this time.
They didn't go to bed too fired up last night, so today, the party is starting with a rather uninspiring -1 Momentum. A tiny penalty for the first fight, and then they'll be back to neutral. They carve up the first encounter with little trouble, and are feeling better at Momentum 0. Shockingly, however, the next encounter, which isn't even a "Hard" one, nearly crushes them, and they barely escape with their lives. Down another point of Momentum, to -1. Regrouping, they go for it again, and once more FAIL to defeat this pesky challenge, fleeing yet another time. At Momentum -2 and demoralized, they decide after much argument to just hole up for another night. XP is very weak for this day, as they only beat ONE encounter, for which they receive a measly 25% of normal award.
Next say, terrible morale reigns in the camp. Momentum is at -5, the lowest they've had. Still, they go ahead and give it another shot. Sadly, they still haven't gotten this next encounter figured out, and end up fleeing AGAIN! Momentum -6, and the party is seriously considering just going back to town and giving up. They debate the issue in camp, earning no XP for the day.
A new strategy has arisen, and the PCs are excited about it. They think they know how to win, now, so even with their morning Momentum being a dismal -7, they head once more unto the breach. And this time, they blow through the fight EASILY! That new plan worked wonders. Three Momentum points are given: 1 for beating the encounter, 1 for beating a previously fled-from foe, and 1 for total dominance in battle. They're still pretty beat up, at Momentum -4, but they can see light at the end of the tunnel now. Moving through three more encounters, they end the day at a decent Momentum -1. XP for the day is at normal value, as 4 encounters were passed.
For the last day of the adventure, they start, again, with Momentum -4. Note that the penalty -1 from the day before is not applied, as only HALF of previous day's penalty carries over, and it is rounded down. Today, however, is the party's lucky day. They move through the next six encounters as though it were child's play. Two of these are "Hard" and two of the others are such overwhelming victories as to justify the dominance bonus. So after these six fights, the party is sitting at an amazing Momentum 6! Considering that they started at -7 yesterday, this is phenomenal. But they choose not to stop, and roll right into the final encounter of the adventure, against the "Big Boss" himself. The fight is hairy, and it looks like they might have to run a couple of times, but they pull it out, and defeat the overlord of the ruins! Momentum for the walk home is a glorious 10, and the PCs are just waiting for something to get in their way. They make camp halfway back to town, and just as they're pitching tents and starting a fire, one last group of vengeful stragglers from the ruins catches up with them and attacks. Riding on the hefty bonuses of their 10 Momentum, the party dispatches this threat easily. XP award for this day is incredible: The equivalent of TWELVE encounters today, due to the two "Hards" and the Boss fight. That awards the PCs an insane 300% XP for all encounters that day, an amazing achievement!
The players have learned, directly and unequivocally, that pushing on pays off big, and stopping to rest unnecessarily is definitely not worth it. Fortune favors the bold!
So that's it. Let me know what you think! Oh, also, this is my first post here, so hi.
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