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Halcyon_Dax
2007-01-10, 12:01 AM
I am partial to the No-XP, giving out levels as I feel they are earned.
This system has worked fantastically for me so far; when a PC uses a spell or effect that would cost XP, i put a little mark next to their name and delay their level appropriately.

However, there is one situation that is a bit to complex for any of these means to work flawlessly, yet somehow it hasnt come up yet in any of my games (come to think of it, thats kindof weird): PCs wanting to use Item creation feats.


A... Buh... whaaa?

Item creation is balanced because of XP expenditure, in my games in the past, my players have THANKED ME for taking the burden of XP off of their hands. Now I find myself without the XP currency to use in these creations!


Any suggestions?

Zvendels
2007-01-10, 12:05 AM
You can simply calculate the current XP each Pc has, sholdn't be to hard.

Or just try to delay the characters for as long as you think you need.
I personally don't use Exp, but my Pcs don't like spending Exp anyways :smallsmile:

Mewtarthio
2007-01-10, 12:08 AM
Options:

A) Ban item creation feats altogether. That may make a few people very unhappy, or it may turn out that item creation was just some short-term whim that crossed their minds.
B) Go back to the XP system. You probably don't want that.
C) Treat it like casting a spell with an XP cost.

Bears With Lasers
2007-01-10, 12:12 AM
Basically, award XP instead of levels. "Okay, everyone gains a thousand XP." Just don't base it on monster CRs and such.

Diggorian
2007-01-10, 12:21 AM
I'd stay with your current system. Place more marks by they're name when they create something to delay their level up longer, maybe an extra session or two.

Thomas
2007-01-10, 01:45 AM
Seems like awarding XP (keep it secret if you want) without consulting any silly CR-XP tables is the best option. The system does exist for a reason. It's the only way to actually be fair and consistent here.

pestilenceawaits
2007-01-10, 10:04 AM
You might try to balance out the item creation feat use with a certain task. for example the character wants to create a +2 flaming sword so to balance out the XP it would have cost him he needs to travel to the volcano of hot bubbly rock and retrieve a sample of lava (fighting salamanders on the way) to work into the process any others that help get normal advancement he gets the sword.

MrNexx
2007-01-10, 10:10 AM
One option might be to replace the XP costs with GP costs; not perfect, but I believe it's a listed option in the DMG.

Shhalahr Windrider
2007-01-10, 10:44 AM
You could implement a variant Craft Point (http://www.systemreferencedocuments.org/35/sovelior_sage/unearthedCraftPoints.html) system. Instead of spending points to speed up creation time, you spend points in place of XP. You'd have to figure out how many points to award at each level though. It would require some trial an error.

Alternatively, you could decide that the XP cost doesn't mean that much. In a game that stays close to recommended wealth by level, available gold is a greater limiting factor on item creation. For example, over the course of his or her first level, a human wizard is expected to gain enough XP to make 1,000 scrolls of 1st-level spells, but only enough gold for 72 of them, a very significant difference. Combine this with the fact that the XP system has an automatic catch-up mechanism, and the wizard is never behind for more than one session (or other such XP-period). Indeed, if the numbers fall just right, it's possible for the wizard to wind up with more XP than his or her compatriots due to this mechanism. You could decide that these factors mean you can safely ignore the XP costs.

Scorpina
2007-01-10, 11:02 AM
My old group tended to ignore XP costs across the board. Of course, this probably made casters 'win' more than they already do, and of course made spellcasting 'broken' I have no dobut...

Still, worked for us.

Matthew
2007-01-10, 12:17 PM
Shhalahr is right. Experience Point cost for Item creation is already secondary to the amount of Gold in a default game because of the way experience is awarded. Use other limitations, such as time and availability of resources.

MrNexx
2007-01-10, 12:18 PM
Like I said... just convert XP costs to gold costs. The end result is that making an item costs about what buying it does, but it can be made to order.

Shhalahr Windrider
2007-01-10, 12:23 PM
Like I said... just convert XP costs to gold costs. The end result is that making an item costs about what buying it does, but it can be made to order.
Seems like that kind of cost makes Item Creation feats next to worthless. Especially if you have access to NPCs from which you can comission your items anyway.

The standard XP to Gold conversion is 1 XP == 5 gold. Using that conversion, we'd wind up with an extra 20% of the market price tacked on. Added to the starting 50%, that would give us a total of 70% market price for crafting. I'd still consider the feats worthwhile with that cost.

MrNexx
2007-01-10, 12:26 PM
The standard XP to Gold conversion is 1 XP == 5 gold. Using that conversion, we'd wind up with an extra 20% of the market price tacked on. Added to the starting 50%, that would give us a total of 70% market price for crafting. I'd still consider the feats worthwhile with that cost.


That's the numbers. At work, I couldn't check.

Matthew
2007-01-10, 12:29 PM
Knowledge should also play a role. "I don't know how to make a friggin' +4 Icy Burst Scimitar, alright? All I have ever made are Potions and Shields so stop asking me!"