so i will soon be starting a campaign with 6 PCs and dividing the XP up between them for each encounter seems like it will be slow to level up for them.
i plan to run quite a few encounters but as a PC i dont like playing when its just encounter after encounter. and seeing as how PCs generally only get XP from defeating enemies in encounters i wanted to homebrew a couple XP rules along to help with the level up process for them since as a PC i find it fun to level up.
when Role Playing if the PCs have a good interaction or if the RP their way out of a bad situation i still intend to award half the possible XP to them. if when we start an encounter and the enemy NPC flees, where they werent defeated, i plan to take the challenge rating and divide that by the HP of the creature. ill use Baphomet as example...
challenge rating 50,000/319HP = 157xp per HP, whatever HP they took away from Baphomet in the encounter if Baphomet runs they get that 157xp*HP removed from Baphomet divided amongst the PCs
i feel every encounter deserves some experience because in life every encounter we have gives us experience.
XP for encounters is awarded for simply “overcoming the challenge.” They don’t have to kill the creature to gain the XP, simply overcome whatever challenge it represents. If they sneak or talk their way past a challenge, they should still be awarded full XP.
It's not a bad idea, using the "% of HP remaining" to determine % of XP for the encounter... although I'd suggest only using it in encounters that you've "scripted" to end before the enemy is dead. Modules sometimes have encounters that mention things like, "the creature will fight until it reaches 1/2 of its full HP before flying away," anyway. In a situation like that you've essentially reduced the creature's HP, which would lower its challenge rating. (You could also find a CR calculator online and adjust the XP that way, by modifying the HP and seeing what the new CR would be.)
If, on the other hand, it's the players that do something to end the encounter without a fight to the death, they still "overcame the challenge," as @IamSposta pointed out. It's perfectly valid to give full XP for the encounter in those situations, and with it divided between 6 players it's not likely to level them up too fast.
There are also a few systems for awarding "non-combat XP" if you're into that. For example, I think Matthew Mercer uses a rule where a character gets (their level x15) XP for an RP moment where their character drove the story along. If I remember correctly, the DMG also suggested using the "easy" and "hard" encounter XP numbers for minor and major story-based (rather than combat-based) encounters, although that's a little vague and I don't have my DMG in front of me right now (I might be describing "milestone xp"). Non-combat XP isn't something everybody likes to use, but I've found that even a small amount of it can motivate players to engage more with the story because then they know they're not putting their character advancement totally on hold during story scenes. As always, your results will vary.
I also award additional XP for RP in lieu of Inspiration, that way I can give it out multiple times per session. I have been giving a flat 25 XP per instance, but I think next campaign I’ll make it tiered so they gain 25 XP per instance in Tier-1, 50 in Tier-2, 100 in Tier-3, and 200 per instance in Tier-4. It may not seem like a lot of XP, but when each PC can earn that bump a half a dozen times per session it adds up fairly quickly.
the one thing i heard about giving XP for RP was take the CR of the NPC and just apply that for the earned XP. that is where i plan to start with it but i think depending on the feel and sense of how well the interaction goes i may adjust.
i think for me since ive only ever been a PC going into being DM i as a PC enjoy the playability of a powerful character being able to overcome most obstacles that they come across without so much effort, but the balance i plan for this is to limit the amount of short and long rests the players are going to take. this is going to force their decisions on what actions and spells they use where they need to think about their decisions rather than just beating the challenge, resting, and waiting for the next one.
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so i will soon be starting a campaign with 6 PCs and dividing the XP up between them for each encounter seems like it will be slow to level up for them.
i plan to run quite a few encounters but as a PC i dont like playing when its just encounter after encounter. and seeing as how PCs generally only get XP from defeating enemies in encounters i wanted to homebrew a couple XP rules along to help with the level up process for them since as a PC i find it fun to level up.
when Role Playing if the PCs have a good interaction or if the RP their way out of a bad situation i still intend to award half the possible XP to them. if when we start an encounter and the enemy NPC flees, where they werent defeated, i plan to take the challenge rating and divide that by the HP of the creature. ill use Baphomet as example...
challenge rating 50,000/319HP = 157xp per HP, whatever HP they took away from Baphomet in the encounter if Baphomet runs they get that 157xp*HP removed from Baphomet divided amongst the PCs
i feel every encounter deserves some experience because in life every encounter we have gives us experience.
Mark Hulmes from the liveplay High Rollers uses a really good system for XP.
https://twitter.com/sherlock_hulmes/status/1226204045397962752?lang=en
XP for encounters is awarded for simply “overcoming the challenge.” They don’t have to kill the creature to gain the XP, simply overcome whatever challenge it represents. If they sneak or talk their way past a challenge, they should still be awarded full XP.
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
It's not a bad idea, using the "% of HP remaining" to determine % of XP for the encounter... although I'd suggest only using it in encounters that you've "scripted" to end before the enemy is dead. Modules sometimes have encounters that mention things like, "the creature will fight until it reaches 1/2 of its full HP before flying away," anyway. In a situation like that you've essentially reduced the creature's HP, which would lower its challenge rating. (You could also find a CR calculator online and adjust the XP that way, by modifying the HP and seeing what the new CR would be.)
If, on the other hand, it's the players that do something to end the encounter without a fight to the death, they still "overcame the challenge," as @IamSposta pointed out. It's perfectly valid to give full XP for the encounter in those situations, and with it divided between 6 players it's not likely to level them up too fast.
There are also a few systems for awarding "non-combat XP" if you're into that. For example, I think Matthew Mercer uses a rule where a character gets (their level x15) XP for an RP moment where their character drove the story along. If I remember correctly, the DMG also suggested using the "easy" and "hard" encounter XP numbers for minor and major story-based (rather than combat-based) encounters, although that's a little vague and I don't have my DMG in front of me right now (I might be describing "milestone xp"). Non-combat XP isn't something everybody likes to use, but I've found that even a small amount of it can motivate players to engage more with the story because then they know they're not putting their character advancement totally on hold during story scenes. As always, your results will vary.
I also award additional XP for RP in lieu of Inspiration, that way I can give it out multiple times per session. I have been giving a flat 25 XP per instance, but I think next campaign I’ll make it tiered so they gain 25 XP per instance in Tier-1, 50 in Tier-2, 100 in Tier-3, and 200 per instance in Tier-4. It may not seem like a lot of XP, but when each PC can earn that bump a half a dozen times per session it adds up fairly quickly.
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
the one thing i heard about giving XP for RP was take the CR of the NPC and just apply that for the earned XP. that is where i plan to start with it but i think depending on the feel and sense of how well the interaction goes i may adjust.
i think for me since ive only ever been a PC going into being DM i as a PC enjoy the playability of a powerful character being able to overcome most obstacles that they come across without so much effort, but the balance i plan for this is to limit the amount of short and long rests the players are going to take. this is going to force their decisions on what actions and spells they use where they need to think about their decisions rather than just beating the challenge, resting, and waiting for the next one.