LogFAQs > #901156439

shadowsword87 posted...

I want to run a More Traditional Dungeons and Dragons game, but with the twist that players decide when to level up, not the GM.

An interesting concept, but in some ways it feels like trying to be different for the sake of being different rather than something that makes total sense from a gameplay perspective.

I could probably come up with a few scenarios, though.



shadowsword87 posted...

The best thing that I can think of, at least theoretically, is handing players exclusively gold and saying gold is XP (or you pay someone to train you to level X+1). Then they can buy magic items that they want, and choose to level up that way.

So bordering on the original recipe rules, where treasure you collected literally equated to XP, so you could essentially "buy" your way up after recovering a particularly sizeable hoard.



shadowsword87 posted...

There are a few problems I'm having with this, one of which being meta-narrative.

You mean justifying that type of leveling via the setting itself?

You could always say that gold expenditure represents the tangible benefits gained from buying better equipment and training, above and beyond the more concrete gains from buying specific armor pieces (ie, assume the adventurers are buying better leather straps for armor, better rations, etc). Or take into account that level gains aren't JUST personal improvement but also include more intangible things (like more favor with your god or local influence), and assume gold is being spent to increase the level of influence and equipment the heroes have within a specific region (ie, sort of combining leveling with stronghold style mechanics, where you spend to level up the base, and leveling up the base levels up the heroes).


---

"Wall of Text'D!" --- oldskoolplayr76
"POwned again." --- blight family