I am currently running Curse of Strahd for some friends. Now, one of my players told me early on that he would be busy over the next few months, and that it would be alright for me to have his character "sit out" certain sessions. The problem that leaves me at is that because he has missed a few sessions, his character is level 4 while the rest of the party is level 5, and has had a chance to collect loot and such. I have offered to him to run solo sessions for his character so he has a chance to enjoy the game as well, even if his schedule doesn't align with other players, but sometimes getting those to happen can be difficult as well.
So, if he returns to the party after missing a few sessions, I came up with some options for him to choose from to help give his character something for whatever he was doing while separated from the party (I wouldn't want his character to feel left out, and itd be preferable for him to have SOMETHING since CoS is notoriously deadly).
(for context, the player is a Rogue)
1) Your character spent time along, working on his craft and practicing his skills. Reward: You are now the same level as the rest of the party
2) Your character spent his time up to no good, pulling off small heists in the village. Reward: 100 GP and 3 random trinkets
3) Your character spent his time scouting the surrounding area and listening at the local inn for rumors. Reward: Information on one or two nearby locations and the names a prominent figure from each area. (This information would of course not be everything to an area, but something beyond just the flavor text).
I was wondering if anyone else had handled a similar situation in the past and had similar suggestions. Of course, it would just be easy enough to say his character is now the same level, but I feel like by giving him the option to forgo leveling up in order to take a different reward, it makes the experience more fun for him and more interesting for the party (as having extra information can be incredibly useful).
Anyway, I appreciate any input
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I had a Player have to bow out for about 6 sessions due to real life commitments.
Narratively, it worked out really well - as there was a very good reason why the bad guys would want to kidnap that particular character ( she had sort of started a small war, and could be offered up to the aggressor side as a "peace offering", so the one side kidnapped her to use as a bargaining chip to end the conflict ), which of course gave the rest of the party a goal to work toward: "Rescue Miri!".
The intent all along was to bring her character back at the same level as the rest of her party, when they found her. So, option #1 on your list - or more a "she just IS that level; don't examine it too closely".
In this particular case, the Player came back to the game before the party could find "her" in-game, so she started with a different character to help in rescuing herself.
The rescue of Miri was the capstone of the entire adventure arc - and, much to my surprise, that Player retired both characters, and started up a 3rd.
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I might even pitch it as they level up(because I hate book keeping). how did you hone your skills, no good the gold and trinkets you mentioned, or scouting for info.
In all the games I have played in and even in games that I have planned to run in the future, every character levels up at the same time and even if new players join they are the same level because encounters are made for that level of characters and can be deadly for those who are not the same level. As Vedexent said, don't put too much thought into the leveling up scenario because it's just a hassle and just assume that they are training while they are away. As for items, unless everybody has magic items, normal items aren't that big of an issue, and if everybody does have magic items you throw in an item for them to get the session they come back. I was part of a group a couple of years ago that I had to leave for about 6 months due to school, and when I came back I was made the same level as everybody else.
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Remember this is a game and it's suppose to be fun for everybody. Let's all have fun and kill monsters.
I am going to be going through the same problem as you, I have a player who's job schedule just changed and he's not able to join in on the Wednesday group that I have. There is a possibility that he'll be able to adjust his schedule to join back in at a later date but there's no guarantee.
Currently they're in a forest that they'd recently defeated an evil that resided there. I set up a few things, on the fly, that I could potentially use to excuse him from the group, as well he set in motion some things that I could use as well. I had the trapped spirits moving around at night, a few even attacked the party, there was even a short glimpse of a strange Elven woman moving through the swampy part of the forest. So I could go the route of possession and have his character wander off into the woods. The player convinced a few of the residents in a nearby town to start building him a house, he suggested that he would try to return in a ten-day. I could have him bail on the party to return to town with some obscure reasons. Finally, he's a rogue, we all know how notorious rogue are at just up and vanishing without notice.
While he's gone I can simply move his character to a safe location, build a house, or something like that. When/if he's able to return, I'll simply put him one level behind the other players as this, generally, doesn't create too much of a disparity. After a few games I'll grant him his next level, I do milestone leveling so it won't be a major surprise if he catches up at a random interval.
I think your options look good, and I think giving the player a choice is a great idea. I run a table where it used to be* the case that not everyone could be there every week due to schedules. I developed a rule that the party members always had to be within a 2 level range. So when any player leveled up--say from level 5 to 6--anyone who would then be two levels behind (level 4 in this example), leveled up to one level below the highest member. Similarly, folks who had been away for a while leveled up to one level below the highest level character in the group.
*I say "used to be" because I'm now down to 2 regular players due to the reality of the schedules of high schoolers.
5e is structured by tiers 1-4, 5-10, 11-16 and 17-20 with the power level changing a bit in each tier. If characters are within a level or two within the same tier then in my experience (playing AL mostly) they can quite effectively continue to adventure together and continue making an effective contribution. However, there can be a distinct power bump at 5, 11, and 17. AL provides a mechanism where the character can spend downtime to advance from 4->5, 10->11 and 16->17 if the character likes (this is to allow characters to continue to advance with friends who level out of their tier).
From the sounds of your situation, I think something like this, spending downtime to advance to level 5 would make sense. However, as you advance further into tier 2 it will probably be less necessary since level 5-6 playing with level 7-8 isn't as large a difference in power level as 4->5.
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I am currently running Curse of Strahd for some friends. Now, one of my players told me early on that he would be busy over the next few months, and that it would be alright for me to have his character "sit out" certain sessions. The problem that leaves me at is that because he has missed a few sessions, his character is level 4 while the rest of the party is level 5, and has had a chance to collect loot and such. I have offered to him to run solo sessions for his character so he has a chance to enjoy the game as well, even if his schedule doesn't align with other players, but sometimes getting those to happen can be difficult as well.
So, if he returns to the party after missing a few sessions, I came up with some options for him to choose from to help give his character something for whatever he was doing while separated from the party (I wouldn't want his character to feel left out, and itd be preferable for him to have SOMETHING since CoS is notoriously deadly).
(for context, the player is a Rogue)
1) Your character spent time along, working on his craft and practicing his skills. Reward: You are now the same level as the rest of the party
2) Your character spent his time up to no good, pulling off small heists in the village. Reward: 100 GP and 3 random trinkets
3) Your character spent his time scouting the surrounding area and listening at the local inn for rumors. Reward: Information on one or two nearby locations and the names a prominent figure from each area. (This information would of course not be everything to an area, but something beyond just the flavor text).
I was wondering if anyone else had handled a similar situation in the past and had similar suggestions. Of course, it would just be easy enough to say his character is now the same level, but I feel like by giving him the option to forgo leveling up in order to take a different reward, it makes the experience more fun for him and more interesting for the party (as having extra information can be incredibly useful).
Anyway, I appreciate any input
Three-time Judge of the Competition of the Finest Brews! Come join us in making fun, unique homebrew and voting for your favorite entries!
I had a Player have to bow out for about 6 sessions due to real life commitments.
Narratively, it worked out really well - as there was a very good reason why the bad guys would want to kidnap that particular character ( she had sort of started a small war, and could be offered up to the aggressor side as a "peace offering", so the one side kidnapped her to use as a bargaining chip to end the conflict ), which of course gave the rest of the party a goal to work toward: "Rescue Miri!".
The intent all along was to bring her character back at the same level as the rest of her party, when they found her. So, option #1 on your list - or more a "she just IS that level; don't examine it too closely".
In this particular case, the Player came back to the game before the party could find "her" in-game, so she started with a different character to help in rescuing herself.
The rescue of Miri was the capstone of the entire adventure arc - and, much to my surprise, that Player retired both characters, and started up a 3rd.
My DM Philosophy, as summed up by other people: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rN5w4-azTq3Kbn0Yvk9nfqQhwQ1R5by1/view
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.
I might even pitch it as they level up(because I hate book keeping). how did you hone your skills, no good the gold and trinkets you mentioned, or scouting for info.
In all the games I have played in and even in games that I have planned to run in the future, every character levels up at the same time and even if new players join they are the same level because encounters are made for that level of characters and can be deadly for those who are not the same level. As Vedexent said, don't put too much thought into the leveling up scenario because it's just a hassle and just assume that they are training while they are away. As for items, unless everybody has magic items, normal items aren't that big of an issue, and if everybody does have magic items you throw in an item for them to get the session they come back. I was part of a group a couple of years ago that I had to leave for about 6 months due to school, and when I came back I was made the same level as everybody else.
Remember this is a game and it's suppose to be fun for everybody. Let's all have fun and kill monsters.
I am going to be going through the same problem as you, I have a player who's job schedule just changed and he's not able to join in on the Wednesday group that I have. There is a possibility that he'll be able to adjust his schedule to join back in at a later date but there's no guarantee.
Currently they're in a forest that they'd recently defeated an evil that resided there. I set up a few things, on the fly, that I could potentially use to excuse him from the group, as well he set in motion some things that I could use as well. I had the trapped spirits moving around at night, a few even attacked the party, there was even a short glimpse of a strange Elven woman moving through the swampy part of the forest. So I could go the route of possession and have his character wander off into the woods. The player convinced a few of the residents in a nearby town to start building him a house, he suggested that he would try to return in a ten-day. I could have him bail on the party to return to town with some obscure reasons. Finally, he's a rogue, we all know how notorious rogue are at just up and vanishing without notice.
While he's gone I can simply move his character to a safe location, build a house, or something like that. When/if he's able to return, I'll simply put him one level behind the other players as this, generally, doesn't create too much of a disparity. After a few games I'll grant him his next level, I do milestone leveling so it won't be a major surprise if he catches up at a random interval.
I think your options look good, and I think giving the player a choice is a great idea. I run a table where it used to be* the case that not everyone could be there every week due to schedules. I developed a rule that the party members always had to be within a 2 level range. So when any player leveled up--say from level 5 to 6--anyone who would then be two levels behind (level 4 in this example), leveled up to one level below the highest member. Similarly, folks who had been away for a while leveled up to one level below the highest level character in the group.
*I say "used to be" because I'm now down to 2 regular players due to the reality of the schedules of high schoolers.
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5e is structured by tiers 1-4, 5-10, 11-16 and 17-20 with the power level changing a bit in each tier. If characters are within a level or two within the same tier then in my experience (playing AL mostly) they can quite effectively continue to adventure together and continue making an effective contribution. However, there can be a distinct power bump at 5, 11, and 17. AL provides a mechanism where the character can spend downtime to advance from 4->5, 10->11 and 16->17 if the character likes (this is to allow characters to continue to advance with friends who level out of their tier).
From the sounds of your situation, I think something like this, spending downtime to advance to level 5 would make sense. However, as you advance further into tier 2 it will probably be less necessary since level 5-6 playing with level 7-8 isn't as large a difference in power level as 4->5.