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Why I dislike Milestone XP
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<blockquote data-quote="Fanaelialae" data-source="post: 7385657" data-attributes="member: 53980"><p>We use milestone XP in one group. I don't mind it. It's simple and the players role play their characters regardless. </p><p></p><p>My other group balked at the idea of using milestones whenever I've proposed it. They love gaining XP; the feeling of steady progression. For them, I came up with a new, simplified system, since I was tired of pulling out the calculator after every combat.</p><p></p><p>The amount of XP required to gain a level is equal to your current level * 100. So, 100 XP to reach level 2, 200 more XP to reach level 3, 300 more XP to reach level 4, and so forth.</p><p></p><p>The reason for this (as opposed to a flat 100 per level, which I considered) is that if a level disparity develops, it allows the lower level character to catch up (because an XP gap of 100 means much less at level 10 than it does at level 2).</p><p></p><p>I reward XP for combat, social, and exploration accomplishments. Combat is self explanatory. Social refers to encounters where characters talk their way through an encounter (convincing an orc warchief to let them pass through the orc tribe's caves to get to whever they're going). Exploration is discovering and overcoming non-combat challenges that advance the adventure (locating the entrance to a dungeon, subverting a dangerous trap, and so on).</p><p></p><p>The reward is on a scale of 1-10, based on the difficulty, multiplied by the level of the encounter, capped at the party's level + 3.</p><p></p><p>I also added a rolling bonus to combats in order to encourage the players to push themselves. The rolling bonus increases by 1 for an easy encounter, 2 for a moderate encounter, and 3 for a difficult encounter. Short rests reduce the rolling bonus by 1, while long rests reset it to 0. After the encounter difficulty is determined, the rolling bonus is added to it before multiplying by the level of the encounter.</p><p></p><p>I also award end game XP, which accounts for good role playing and such. That award is 1 to 5 times 5 times the party level (I like end game to be a sizable chunk of total XP earned).</p><p></p><p>Ultimately, what this means is that if the players are undertaking level appropriate challenges, that the rating of the encounter is the percentage of advancement it bestows. So a challenge rating of 1 is 1% of a level, while a 10 is 10% of a level. </p><p></p><p>There are some circumstances where I rate encounters well below the party level. For example, seeking out a quest giver in the safety of the town is considered a level 1 challenge, meaning that at higher levels it's worth a fraction of a percent (but it's still something).</p><p></p><p>My players have responded well to it. They enjoy the regular influx of XP. They especially like the rolling bonus, since it gives them an incentive to push on when they might otherwise rest.</p><p></p><p>I've only used if for a few sessions so far, so I'm not certain the numbers are precisely as I'd like them, but I'm happy with it overall. The goal is to have them leveling somewhere around every other session.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Fanaelialae, post: 7385657, member: 53980"] We use milestone XP in one group. I don't mind it. It's simple and the players role play their characters regardless. My other group balked at the idea of using milestones whenever I've proposed it. They love gaining XP; the feeling of steady progression. For them, I came up with a new, simplified system, since I was tired of pulling out the calculator after every combat. The amount of XP required to gain a level is equal to your current level * 100. So, 100 XP to reach level 2, 200 more XP to reach level 3, 300 more XP to reach level 4, and so forth. The reason for this (as opposed to a flat 100 per level, which I considered) is that if a level disparity develops, it allows the lower level character to catch up (because an XP gap of 100 means much less at level 10 than it does at level 2). I reward XP for combat, social, and exploration accomplishments. Combat is self explanatory. Social refers to encounters where characters talk their way through an encounter (convincing an orc warchief to let them pass through the orc tribe's caves to get to whever they're going). Exploration is discovering and overcoming non-combat challenges that advance the adventure (locating the entrance to a dungeon, subverting a dangerous trap, and so on). The reward is on a scale of 1-10, based on the difficulty, multiplied by the level of the encounter, capped at the party's level + 3. I also added a rolling bonus to combats in order to encourage the players to push themselves. The rolling bonus increases by 1 for an easy encounter, 2 for a moderate encounter, and 3 for a difficult encounter. Short rests reduce the rolling bonus by 1, while long rests reset it to 0. After the encounter difficulty is determined, the rolling bonus is added to it before multiplying by the level of the encounter. I also award end game XP, which accounts for good role playing and such. That award is 1 to 5 times 5 times the party level (I like end game to be a sizable chunk of total XP earned). Ultimately, what this means is that if the players are undertaking level appropriate challenges, that the rating of the encounter is the percentage of advancement it bestows. So a challenge rating of 1 is 1% of a level, while a 10 is 10% of a level. There are some circumstances where I rate encounters well below the party level. For example, seeking out a quest giver in the safety of the town is considered a level 1 challenge, meaning that at higher levels it's worth a fraction of a percent (but it's still something). My players have responded well to it. They enjoy the regular influx of XP. They especially like the rolling bonus, since it gives them an incentive to push on when they might otherwise rest. I've only used if for a few sessions so far, so I'm not certain the numbers are precisely as I'd like them, but I'm happy with it overall. The goal is to have them leveling somewhere around every other session. [/QUOTE]
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