Experience Point Awards
Solo Kills
This award is for characters who defeat their opponents by themselves through combat, magic or some other way. It must be truly a solo kill; for example a fighter who slays an orc by himself in combat would be eligible for the award, but the same fighter who kills an orc who has been paralyzed by a hold person spell cast by the party’s cleric would not be.
A character who puts his companions at risk just to earn solo kills should not be awarded the bonus. PCs should never be awarded for greed, at least not those of good alignment.
The bonus is this: a base award of XPs multiplied by the monster’s Hit Dice, multiplied again by the character’s level, up to a maximum of the monster’s Experience Point Value. As the character increases in levels (and the more XPs the character needs to advance to the next level), the higher the bonus.
PC Level XP Base Award
1-5 10 xp times Hit Dice, times PC level
6-7 25 xp times Hit Dice, times PC level
8-9 50 xp times Hit Dice, times PC level
10+ 100 xp times Hit Dice, times PC level
Spells Cast by PCs
For each spell a PC casts, he receives an XP awarded with a base figure, multiplied by the level of the spell that was cast. Of course, there has to be a specific purpose to why the spell is being cast, and determination of the award is left to the DM. For example, casting a spell just to clear the spell-caster’s mind of that spell in order to memorize another one would not apply for the award.
PC Level XP Award
1-5 25xp times spell level
6-7 50xp times spell level
8-9 75xp times spell level
10+ 100xp times spell level
Class Awards
Each class has special abilities and awards, and the DM should award the player for using them as the situation warrants. While a good deal of class abilities can and normally are used in combat, there are quite a few that are good to be used in a role-playing situation. Each time a PC uses a special ability not given to him by a magic item, he earns an XP award. The list is as follows:
Ranger
Each successful use of Tracking ability: 50 xp
Influencing potentially hostile animals: 100 xp
Each successful use of Move Silently/Hide in Shadows: 100 xp
Paladin
Use of Laying on of Hands on one in more need than himself: 100 xp
Turning of Undead: 50 xp per Turning, destroyed undead count as solo kills
Cure Disease on others: 100 xp
Detect Evil: 25 xp
Thief
Per successful use of thieving abilities: 200 xp
Per gold piece of treasure “obtained”: 2 xp
Per successful use of 10th level ability to read any written magical device: 200 xp
Bard
Per successful use of thieving abilities: 100 xp
Per gold piece of treasure “obtained”: 1 xp
For each significant performance of the bard’s entertaining talents: 100 xp
For each major performance of the bard’s entertaining talents: 500 xp
Per successful use of a special benefit: 150 xp
Per successful use of 10th level ability to read any written magical device: 200 xp
Wizard
Researching a new spell: 100 xp times the level of the spell
Creating a magic item: XP value of the item as listed in the Dungeon Master’s Guide or Encyclopedia Magica.
Martial Artist/Monk
Successful use of a class special ability: 100 xp
Successful use of a martial art special maneuver: 50 xp
Successful use of a granted power: 100 xp
Priest/Cleric/Druid
Per successful use of a granted power: 100 xp
Turning of Undead: 50 xp per successful Turning, destroyed undead count as solo kills.
Spells cast to directly further the ethos of the religion: As spells cast above, but base values are doubled.
Role-Playing
When a player plays his character’s personality, class(es) and alignment properly, they should be justly rewarded. The character receives a base amount of XPs per session, depending on the nature and depth of the role-playing, multiplied by the character’s level, which is then graded by the DM on a scale of 1 to 4 (1 being worst, and 4 being best) , which will also be the multiplier of the base amount.
The formula is: base amount x DM modifier x Character’s current level.
PC Level Base Amount
1-3 25 xp
4-6 50 xp
7-9 100 xp
10+ 125 xp
Thus, a 10th level fighter, whose player role-played him brilliantly, the DM giving the max rating of 4, would get 5,000 xp for good role-playing (125xp x 4 = 500, x10 is 5,000). NPCs, in order to stay on a par with PCs if the DM wishes it, can award half of the amount to their NPCs. These of course, are NPCs that are a fixture to the party, not a one-shot NPC.
Story Awards
When the party accomplishes a major goal or completes an adventure, they should be awarded XP for accomplishing it. Depending on the PC’s level, they are reward a base amount of XP which is multiplied by the PC’s current level of experience. This amount can be penalized by the DM if the PCs accomplish the task, but cause some kind of harm or something similar (“Okay guys, you get an XP award for slaying the dragon, but seeing how it burned down the town you were sworn to protect, I think I might have to take it back....”). NPCs, in order to stay on a par with PCs if the DM wishes it, can award half or even a full share of the amount to their NPCs. These of course, are NPCs that are a fixture to the party, not a one-shot NPC.
PC Level Base Amount
1-3 250 xp
4-6 500 xp
7-9 1,000 xp
10+ 2,000 xp
I’ve got some rules for awarding XPs around here somewhere, but they’re not as well defined as these. Good foundational XP rules.