Experience System
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An overview of the Experience Points (XP) distribution affecting player characters (PCs).
Sources of XP
These are:
- Experience points gained through monster killing depending on the creature's challenge rating (CR). Whether dungeoneering, or simply eradicating a local crop rat problem, you gain XP.
- Experience points gained through completion of quests given by NPCs, including but not limited to:
- - Item delivery quests, or the so-called "Fed-Ex" quests, are avaliable to low-level PCs as an alternative of XP gain through monster killing.
- - NPC collectors quests. An example of such a quest would be the situation where an NPC requests you to bring them various items of the same type (books, ammunition). These are usually limited by number of items accepted per week, dependant on character level, etc.
- Experience points gained from succesfully crafting an item (Not to be mistaken with "crafting XP", which is points earned in the respective tradeskill)
- DM awarded experience points:
- - A DM may award your Role-Play with a number of experience points. These are colloquially called DM cookies. DM cookies may be as much as around 50 XP for a one-off event, or a greater number if you are participating in an In-Game event overseen by a DM. This extra experience is dependant on the nature and scale of the event, and the particular DM's judgement.
- - The Role-Player of the Month (RPotM) award is a community choice award for outstanding roleplay, it offers 500 XP per character level for the winner, and 250 XP per character level for the runner-up.
- Token XP: See below.
Maximum XP
Avlis implements the so-called "XP cap", or limitation to the number of experience points a PC can get per week through monster killing. It gives all player characters equal chances of level advancement: Even those who are not dungeoneering-oriented, or whose players are, for one reason or another, playing sporadically. The cap is applied per real life week, as shown in the following table:
| PC
Levels |
XP Cap |
|---|---|
| 1 - 5 | 3,501 |
| 6 - 19 | 7,001 |
| 20 - 29 | 10,001 |
| 30 - 40 | 14,001 |
There is a cap adjustment based on your PC's overall XP gain the previous week (excluding XP gained from DM cookies and RPotM). This will reduce, but not eliminate, other sources of XP if you go over a certain amount. It will not kick in until you have earned more than double your weekly cap. Effectively, this means that there is a monthly cap of 28,000 XP from level 1 - 5, 56,000 from 6 - 19, 80,000 from 20 - 29 and 112,000 from 30 - 40.
The XP Cap Party Discount
When players adventure together in parties, only half the XP earned will count toward their XP cap; the other half is "cap-free." This is known as the "Party Discount" and it means that that your XP cap effectively doubles if you restrict yourself to adventuring in parties. Solo adventuring will continue to have a 1-to-1 ratio against the cap.
NOTE: Players who party together in order to game the system will NOT receive XP for kills they didn't make when in different areas, or when in the same area as the killer but further than 50 meters away.
Low level PCs and the XP Cap
The XP cap and gain rate below level 6 is adjusted so that it is easier for low level characters to hit their cap, but have a reduced cap as a consequence. The intent is to make it much easier to actually hit your XP cap at level 1 - 5, but the actual cap is also lower.
The overall goal of this is to reduce how much "grinding" with monster killing or FedEx quests you have to do at low levels, but instead allow you to spend more time exploring or talking to people. So the end result will be that on the "weekly" scale it will take about a week longer to reach level 5, but as far as actual time spent In-Game, you will probably spend about 1/10th the time "grinding" away at easy quests, increasing the amount of time you have for Role-Play.
XP Gain Rate Change
As of Dec 14th, 2015, the combat XP gain rate for PCs 6th level and higher has been doubled. As explained above with low levels, this also will reduce "grinding" time, allowing more time for other activities, while making it easier to reach the PC's weekly cap. (see: Development Updates).
Minimum XP
Avlis implements a "token XP" or "minimum XP" award. If a character did not use more than 1,000 XP of their last week's cap, they are automatically given 500 XP for that week as rollover XP. This creates an automatic "floor" for character advancement. It also gives some incentive for players who do not get the opportunity to log in very often to continue at least try to play.
This adjustment becomes effective based on last login time, receiving retroactively 500 XP per level each week, and 750 XP per week once reaching epic level (21). This is, again, to make sure people do not feel COMPLETELY left behind, if for some reason they are sporadic players.