rewards other than xp and loot

[Gurifu]

I'm likely to be running xp-less games for several weeks while covering for my DM who's taking a break mid-module, and came up with a list of non-xp rewards for players, but I'm not sure if I've balanced them appropriately. Input requested. Characters are level 7. The idea is to give little rewards that feel good but won't affect the group's combat prowess in a significant way so as to not break the module.


Minor (1 point):
You learn a tool proficiency.
You learn a language.
You learn skill proficiency in Arcana, History, Nature, Religion, Performance, or Medicine.
Wizard (or Tome Warlock): you add a new spell to your spellbook.
You gain an additional Background Feature appropriate to your character.
You gain a home/base/safehouse (from a list of a few options).


Moderate (2 points):
Your lowest or second-lowest stat improves by 1.
You gain proficiency in Intelligence or Charisma saves.
You learn a skill proficiency of your choice.
You become proficient in one weapon of your choice.
Spellcaster: you learn a new cantrip from your list.


Major (3 points):
You gain proficiency in light armor.
You gain proficiency in Wisdom, Constitution, Strength, or Dexterity saves.
Spontaneous Caster: you learn a new 1st or 2nd level spell.
Ranger: you get a new Favored Enemy.


I expect to give out a total of about 6 points over two or so months. Ideas/suggestions/criticism? Inappropriate comments about my parentage?

[djreynolds]

I'll give out a free additional background and skills. As a reward.

It last forever, it may incline PCs to perhaps grow in a new direction. If it overlaps with skills they have, oh well.

I like your style.

If you find, say the fighter, is always doing the talking because the PC him/herself always asks the right questions award him a background that has the persuasion skill that fits, guild artisan because he's shrewd with merchants, noble because he's diplomatic with the guards.

I'm not so sure about the ability increases or armor proficiencies, those are powerful. And spells and cantrips as well. There are feats for those.

But the additional backgrounds come with 2 skills and some extras. And it doesn't have to be the background they want. Perhaps outlander itself too powerful, but they could be rewarded the survival skill for when in the underdark because they survived it and perhaps could feed a group of 4 while underground.

You can make these skills and backgrounds to represent what they have experienced and learned and conquered. The fighter gets to use persuasion and insight but only with guards and soldiers. Because he talked his way past so many and perhaps the guards wouldn't converse with the sly bard, or the untrustworthy rogue, or uppity paladin.

I like the idea, IMO, just make it represent what they have accomplished and therefore, limited. They can still expand on it, and perhaps will grow out more. Maybe the fighter says, "hey I'm gonna put 2 ASI into charisma, so I can be better a persuasion." And maybe after, I'll multiclass because now I have a 13 in charisma and bard looks good.

[JellyPooga]

I don't really like a majority of the things on this list.

Is there a reason the game will be xp-less? Most of the things on your list are improvements to character stats in some shape or form; improving character stats is what xp is for. You seem to be taking the horse from the cart and replacing it with a tiger; yeah, you don't technically have a horse there, but you're still trying to achieve the same end-result. Your new method, however, is unpredictable and will probably just turn around and bite you.

What your proposing is a game in which your initial choice of Class has no impact on how your character develops. If the game is short-lived, that's fine. Just don't have the characters develop that way; reward them with story, titles, money, NPCs (both followers and allies), magic items.

The question of why is important for us to help you here. For example; if you're worried about scaling HP; I might suggest you try using an alternative damage system like the Wounds & Vitality method.

Sidenote: Favoured Enemy is soooo not worth 3pts on your list. It's a little better than a bonus language, but nowhere near as good as a Save proficiency.

[Stan]

There are also benefits that are not strictly mechanical:
Someone big owes you a favor
document that allow you to pass through a land without restriction and without paying tolls
a fancy title
free tattoo or piercing
removal of painful memory
low level magic that has little combat effect, such as socks that never get wet

[Sir cryosin]

Give them noncombat feats with out the ability bump.

[MaxWilson]

You know, if someone were covering for me for a few weeks, I'd much rather have them be giving out XP or gold than permanently changing the rules of the campaign behind my back.

If you were the permanent DM I'd suggest things like introducing reputation as a form of reward, but in your case I'd simply challenge your assumption: why not just give out XP as usual?

[comk59]

Ale and whores?

[Thrudd]

Rewards not described by XP/level advancement and loot would include things like gaining allies, followers or henchmen; gaining honor/reputation/fame/infamy within a certain community; connected to that might be gaining a title or given authority within a place or organization; also related would be the ability to call in a favor from someone powerful or ask your underlings to do some task; being given the map to someplace full of loot and xp

If this is literally a game without XP, then the rewards are gaining levels and getting loot. Or are you trying to do an E6 type thing, where no more levels are gained but new abilities are added? In that case, just do that. No more HP, proficiency bonuses don't go up, no new spell slots. But instead of getting levels, characters do get to add new abilities their class normally gets, learn new spells for the spell book, gain feats, etc. You just remain capped in the other areas so that characters don't become HP tanks and never get high level spells and don't have such high bonuses that they never fail at anything.

[The Shadowdove]

Make their roleplay actions have an impact.

Keep track of npcs they leave good and bad impressions on.

If they leave a particularly good one, to the point of it being obvious, let them know they have a reliable contact and what they might be able to gain from it.

If they save a kobald, perhaps it comes back and saves them in turn. Or turns into a reoccurring NPC/ally/or even a follower.

[Gurifu]

To clarify/reiterate, I'm just taking over a campaign for a few weeks/months. The campaign is a pre-written module, and I don't want to make the party overpowered for the module, so I'm looking for ways to provide character improvement without improving raw power in the way that gold, magic items, and levels will do. I also have some desire to provide an opportunity for a little bit of character customization and broadening of competence in ways that the 5e system doesn't allow without gimping your character. So, my goals specifically are:

1: Players should feel like their characters are improving to compensate for the danger of death or permanent damage while adventuring.
2: The party, whose current item-and-optimization-adjusted ECL is about 8, should still have an ECL of about 8 at the end of my tenure.
3: The roles that each character plays in the party shouldn't change.

From the responses, I'm thinking that I should back away from my initial idea of points-based rewards and focus more on non-mechanical benefits. I like the idea of contacts. And mechanically useless magic items. Everdry socks, animated armor-polishing kits, instant coffee that doesn't taste like mud...

I still want to do some small mechanical or semi-mechanical benefits, though, although I think it'd be better to award them explicitly rather than giving people points and a list of options. One thing that comes to mind is writing them down on notecards with "recommended for: Character Name" on them, then letting the players decide whether they want "theirs" or would rather trade with someone else.

It's not like I'm doing anything behind the GM's back, anyway.

[MaxWilson]

To clarify/reiterate, I'm just taking over a campaign for a few weeks/months. The campaign is a pre-written module, and I don't want to make the party overpowered for the module, so I'm looking for ways to provide character improvement without improving raw power in the way that gold, magic items, and levels will do. I also have some desire to provide an opportunity for a little bit of character customization and broadening of competence in ways that the 5e system doesn't allow without gimping your character. So, my goals specifically are:

1: Players should feel like their characters are improving to compensate for the danger of death or permanent damage while adventuring.
2: The party, whose current item-and-optimization-adjusted ECL is about 8, should still have an ECL of about 8 at the end of my tenure.
3: The roles that each character plays in the party shouldn't change.

From the responses, I'm thinking that I should back away from my initial idea of points-based rewards and focus more on non-mechanical benefits. I like the idea of contacts. And mechanically useless magic items. Everdry socks, animated armor-polishing kits, instant coffee that doesn't taste like mud...

I still want to do some small mechanical or semi-mechanical benefits, though, although I think it'd be better to award them explicitly rather than giving people points and a list of options. One thing that comes to mind is writing them down on notecards with "recommended for: Character Name" on them, then letting the players decide whether they want "theirs" or would rather trade with someone else.

It's not like I'm doing anything behind the GM's back, anyway.

I agree with backing off on the mechanical awards. The ones that really set off my alarm bells were the free stat increases and extra saving throw proficiencies, but I think the new track you're going down with the magic items (an ordinary-looking rock that never misses when you throw it; a painting kit that lets you paint a scene which turns out to be real someday in the near future; a rope that turns to solid iron whenever you touch it) is more promising. Still... that will have some effect on the module even if it's the non-combat portions. And if it turns out to have zero effect on the module, the players will notice it.

The surest way to have zero effect on the module is to split off and play a one-shot with different PCs. Depending on how much time you have, you could even play multiple one-shots. You could play out the story of the Caladonian Boar and see if you get a different ending (maybe Atalanta doesn't have to be the one who scores the victory this time! also throw in lots of other nuisance monsters, like stirges, and make use of lots of random tables to see whether the hunters stumble across the Boar or something else). You could play a Jack and the Beanstalk campaign about stealing magic treasure from giants with mid-level characters. You could do another one-shot with high-level characters against dragons, and one with high-level characters against something the players are currently scared of, so they can see what it's like to smoosh those bad guys (illithids?) like bugs--or maybe they'll discover the opposite and find that illithids are bad news even at 20th level!

I generally recommend doing one-shots on a regular basis anyway, so players can stretch their imagination, get some practice in at tactics and PC-construction in a low-stakes environment (a poor build will punish you for hours, not months), and tell stories that you wouldn't get to tell in a normal campaign. The only thing unusual here is that you'd be doing a lot of one-shots back-to-back.

Think it over.

[Sir cryosin]

If you're following a module the characters should be getting stronger if the encounters are getting harder. It sounds like there will be no real progression.

[The Shadowdove]

Some of the most inspiring and creative items I have seen used by players while playing were from minor trinkets.

Things from the players handbook, dungeon master guide, and the other books that have come out. There is a list in the ravenlofty one of gothic trinkets.

Example. One of our players received a needle that never bends as his trinket upon character creation.

He later did really well when persuading a seamstress. She now never has to worry a little buying new needles again, and does his tailoring for free. Even going as far as to offer free or discounted work on turning his adventure rewards into things like capes or boots.

There are a lot of interesting trinkets with fun magical uses that don't offer any physical benefit to players until they find a creative way to incorporate them.

-Dove

[Thrudd]

To clarify/reiterate, I'm just taking over a campaign for a few weeks/months. The campaign is a pre-written module, and I don't want to make the party overpowered for the module, so I'm looking for ways to provide character improvement without improving raw power in the way that gold, magic items, and levels will do. I also have some desire to provide an opportunity for a little bit of character customization and broadening of competence in ways that the 5e system doesn't allow without gimping your character. So, my goals specifically are:

1: Players should feel like their characters are improving to compensate for the danger of death or permanent damage while adventuring.
2: The party, whose current item-and-optimization-adjusted ECL is about 8, should still have an ECL of about 8 at the end of my tenure.
3: The roles that each character plays in the party shouldn't change.

From the responses, I'm thinking that I should back away from my initial idea of points-based rewards and focus more on non-mechanical benefits. I like the idea of contacts. And mechanically useless magic items. Everdry socks, animated armor-polishing kits, instant coffee that doesn't taste like mud...

I still want to do some small mechanical or semi-mechanical benefits, though, although I think it'd be better to award them explicitly rather than giving people points and a list of options. One thing that comes to mind is writing them down on notecards with "recommended for: Character Name" on them, then letting the players decide whether they want "theirs" or would rather trade with someone else.

It's not like I'm doing anything behind the GM's back, anyway.

This sounds more like a situation where you should play an entirely different game. Make your own mini adventure that is meant to last just for the three weeks, and have the players make characters specially for it, or make the characters yourself and let the players choose from among them.