CapnZapp
Legend
I know there are a few threads on this subject, but none that actually discusses the practical do's and dont's of an actual such campaign. So let me describe one way to do it, and you can comment on what you think will work well and less well.
This assumes a sandbox type of campaign, where you explore the map and involve yourself wherever you like. And walk away from anything you don't like to do.
The party gains no XP from me, the DM. Instead the rule is:
Every gp spent on carousing gives you 1 xp.
"Carousing" should be taken in its widest sense. I just dislike the term "downtime". So you can spend gold on building a church, or attend fighting school, or build a wizard's tower, or set up a thief's guild. Whatever. Or you can simply buy beers and wenches for thousands of gold, I'm no judge.
Spend 1 gp, gain 1 xp.
This means you don't have to fight the dragon. If you can get away with just stealing its treasure, fine. Don't complain if the dragon burns down the next village if you do, however.
It's not enough to do the looting. If you lose the gold before you get back to the village, you gain no xp. If you never spend your gold, you gain no xp.
The only exception to what you can gain xp for is equipment (services, information etc). If you buy a magic sword or a scroll, that means you get better as an adventurer. If you pay 3000 gold to learn the secret password to the back door into the enemy base, that means you made the next adventure that much easier. You do not gain any xp for this.
So if you actually gain anything for your gold, then you get that something and no xp. It is when you basically "waste" your gold without getting anything in return you gain XP.
Each character decides for herself which is most useful - a new level or a new item.
Edit: crosslink to corresponding Pathfinder 2 discussion:
https://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?660762-XP-for-Gold
This assumes a sandbox type of campaign, where you explore the map and involve yourself wherever you like. And walk away from anything you don't like to do.
The party gains no XP from me, the DM. Instead the rule is:
Every gp spent on carousing gives you 1 xp.
"Carousing" should be taken in its widest sense. I just dislike the term "downtime". So you can spend gold on building a church, or attend fighting school, or build a wizard's tower, or set up a thief's guild. Whatever. Or you can simply buy beers and wenches for thousands of gold, I'm no judge.
Spend 1 gp, gain 1 xp.
This means you don't have to fight the dragon. If you can get away with just stealing its treasure, fine. Don't complain if the dragon burns down the next village if you do, however.
It's not enough to do the looting. If you lose the gold before you get back to the village, you gain no xp. If you never spend your gold, you gain no xp.
The only exception to what you can gain xp for is equipment (services, information etc). If you buy a magic sword or a scroll, that means you get better as an adventurer. If you pay 3000 gold to learn the secret password to the back door into the enemy base, that means you made the next adventure that much easier. You do not gain any xp for this.
So if you actually gain anything for your gold, then you get that something and no xp. It is when you basically "waste" your gold without getting anything in return you gain XP.
Each character decides for herself which is most useful - a new level or a new item.
Edit: crosslink to corresponding Pathfinder 2 discussion:
https://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?660762-XP-for-Gold
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