D&D 3.5 - XP for Absent Players?

[FyoraSilverwolf]

I'm a new DM. This is actually my first time running a campaign. (3 out of 4 of my players have actually DMed more times than I have played.)

All of my players have jobs in real life, and two of them have grad school as well. I, on the other hand, am still finishing up my Bachelor's degree, and only have two in-person classes because I'm doing an undergraduate thesis, and I don't have a job. Therefore, my schedule is really open, but theirs aren't.

We figured out a schedule to where two players would each miss 1 out of every 4 sessions. (Thus meaning two sessions per four where there are only 3 players, but any given player only misses one session per four. And we have to do weekly sessions if at all possible, it was decided that bi-weekly is not enough.)

My problem is, I don't want the two players who have to miss the sessions to fall behind as a result. Nor do I want the players who can come to all the sessions to feel like they may as well not come to the sessions because I still give them all XP as long as there is a session.

Any ideas?

[epiclevelwarrior]

FyoraSilverwolf

Nor do I want the players who can come to all the sessions to feel like they may as well not come to the sessions because I still give them all XP as long as there is a session.

If the only reason your players are showing up is the XP you have bigger problems than potential forced absences.

The game is supposed to be fun and desirable in and of itself. I suspect that, if your players are anything like any roleplayer I've ever met, you do not need to worry about players feeling like there's no reason to show up if they get XP either way.

[FyoraSilverwolf]

epiclevelwarrior

FyoraSilverwolf

Nor do I want the players who can come to all the sessions to feel like they may as well not come to the sessions because I still give them all XP as long as there is a session.

If the only reason your players are showing up is the XP you have bigger problems than potential forced absences.

The game is supposed to be fun and desirable in and of itself. I suspect that, if your players are anything like any roleplayer I've ever met, you do not need to worry about players feeling like there's no reason to show up if they get XP either way.

Well, I think I mis-stated that.

I'm mostly concerned that one particular player (actually one of the ones that will be missing sessions) is going to make a big deal out of it if I just give out XP without making the players "work" for it, and his complaining is somewhat likely to be infectious to at least one other player, one who isn't missing any of the sessions.

And how would I determine how much? Logically the party should get more XP if it's just the 3 of them going around that session, but at the same time, what about the absent person's XP?

[ThePhantomSquee]

One strategy I've seen advocated recently is to do away with XP altogether and simply have the entire party level up at whatever times you deem appropriate to the narrative. You might try running that by your players and see if they're okay with it.

[FyoraSilverwolf]

ThePhantomSquee

One strategy I've seen advocated recently is to do away with XP altogether and simply have the entire party level up at whatever times you deem appropriate to the narrative. You might try running that by your players and see if they're okay with it.

The only real problem with that is making things/using spells that cost experience. :/ A couple of my players are big about crafting when they get the chance, so they need to have XP that they can "spend."

I also like crunching the numbers, which is why I prefer it when I have a combat/trap-filled session rather than a session that is lots of roleplay stuff (even though both are just as fun) because I can't quantify the roleplay stuff well at all.

[Tralk]

The way I run it is like this. I divey out the exp divided by the number of players currently attending the session. Everyone shares the same exp total. I understand that sometimes people may need to miss a session, and I find it unfair to leave them behind if it was something that couldn't be helped.

[MerlinsMage]

A few of the suggestions were good, like that last post. Another alternative is to do Roleplay Points.You can set how many players get for good roleplay or interesting choices, good conversations, etc. Then the players can turn around and convert them to Exp, Gold, Re-rolls(limit them to say 3/session, ect) at the cost of these RPP. That way when they're not there, they can catch up the next session by spending these points to gain EXP.

For instance: Bob is playing a Cleric and Joe is playing a Paladin. Joe doesn't get very into his character, preferring to just kill things and get loot(not very Paladin-y). Bob however has tried, unsuccessfully to convert no less than 10 people within the last two hours of playing. He's successfully converted 3 and has a few others questioning religion all together. When his turn in combat comes up, he doesn't just "swing his sword" at the enemy, but he describes how he would attack and how he sees a potential enemy reaction. You award Joe 10 RPP(Roleplay Points) for showing up and participating in the game(he did have a conversation with a few NPCs after all!) but Bob would get 10/conversion attempt(giving him 150) and 50 for selflessness(he took hits to heal Jim the Fighter so that they day could be saved) and so on and so forth.

The way the DM who introduced me to this ran it, if you DMed and he was there and physically watched or even participated in the campaign, you got 100 RPP/session DMed. This would solve your problem if they ever DM between YOUR sessions.

[FyoraSilverwolf]

MerlinsMage

A few of the suggestions were good, like that last post. Another alternative is to do Roleplay Points.You can set how many players get for good roleplay or interesting choices, good conversations, etc. Then the players can turn around and convert them to Exp, Gold, Re-rolls(limit them to say 3/session, ect) at the cost of these RPP. That way when they're not there, they can catch up the next session by spending these points to gain EXP.

For instance: Bob is playing a Cleric and Joe is playing a Paladin. Joe doesn't get very into his character, preferring to just kill things and get loot(not very Paladin-y). Bob however has tried, unsuccessfully to convert no less than 10 people within the last two hours of playing. He's successfully converted 3 and has a few others questioning religion all together. When his turn in combat comes up, he doesn't just "swing his sword" at the enemy, but he describes how he would attack and how he sees a potential enemy reaction. You award Joe 10 RPP(Roleplay Points) for showing up and participating in the game(he did have a conversation with a few NPCs after all!) but Bob would get 10/conversion attempt(giving him 150) and 50 for selflessness(he took hits to heal Jim the Fighter so that they day could be saved) and so on and so forth.

The way the DM who introduced me to this ran it, if you DMed and he was there and physically watched or even participated in the campaign, you got 100 RPP/session DMed. This would solve your problem if they ever DM between YOUR sessions.

You have just given me a plausible method to allow us to do the "Musical DMs" thing we've been wanting to do for a while. (i.e. having a new DM after a short time period, perhaps even as short as a week.) o.o It wouldn't necessarily be for this particular campaign, though.

[FyoraSilverwolf]

What I've had suggested to me is that I award about 75% of the experience everyone else is getting.

I figured out to award those present with the XP as appropriate to the number and level of people in attendance, but to award the missing person XP as if the whole party had been present. (With a 3-4 person party, it means the missing person gets about 25% less than what others get.)

[Rockwarrior v2.0]

well my DM only gives XP to those who play UNLESS you let him know beforehand you cannot make it. Since you know who will not make it before hand it is kind of a lost cause on that. So What i would is something different.
When I DM I do A LOT with the roleplay aspect and I am actually Incorporated that throughout the campaign. I do however have a new system i am wanting to try that has to do with not rewarding XP openly. instead i keep track of all XP. and Let the players know when they can level up. And some can level up earlier than other due to how well they roleplay. I reward them on everything they do (Kinda. I mean i'm not gonna give XP for walking into a tavern. However if you jump out a window on the second story bouncing off a market overhead and roll onto the ground to avoid a gang after you.. You succeed the rolls and you get XP.

I admit this may not be what you are looking for but you should try a new system if you are worried. If the players not showing because regardless they get XP. Then as stated you have bigger issues.

[LiaThistle]

My policy has always been, if you can't make the session and you know in advance at least a day, you get the same exp as the person who attended and got the lowest exp (I don't hand out uniform exp rewards). If you tell me less than that, you take a percentage loss that can go up to 100%, depending on how little notice and for what reason.

I had that policy - publicly announced at the start of the campaigns - for three years, and had 0 complaints. About ten or so people played through those campaigns, so it wasn't just a small group.

[MerlinsMage]

I would also say that you could toy with the idea of them joining by phone if it would work for you, but if it's Undergrad or Work keeping them from it, probably not. My old DM did it though. He would call, put us on speakerphone and let us play that way...we just had to pick someone to roll for us. We still got to join in, still got a chance at playing and the only thing different is that it's harder to assert yourself to an a*****e player. lol. It worked out great for me since I was sick for an entire summer of play.

[Lazarous]

If they want to work for it, tell them that they can have the exp if they do something for it outside of the sessions.

Say you leave one of their characters at a small village while the party members present go off to the regularly scheduled dungeon. The missing player might draw a picture or a comic strip of their character cutting wood for an elderly villager. Or they write a short story about how they catch the hooligan that's been beating the village dogs. Or they write a little character background, or they write some of their character's thoughts on what's been going on.

Stuff like that. It doesn't force them to do something, but it adds value for the GM and coincidentally perhaps some introspection about their own character.

[FyoraSilverwolf]

MerlinsMage

I would also say that you could toy with the idea of them joining by phone if it would work for you, but if it's Undergrad or Work keeping them from it, probably not. My old DM did it though. He would call, put us on speakerphone and let us play that way...we just had to pick someone to roll for us. We still got to join in, still got a chance at playing and the only thing different is that it's harder to assert yourself to an a*****e player. lol. It worked out great for me since I was sick for an entire summer of play.

We've used Skype before and had good experience with that, but one of the players in question is at work, and the other is in class, I think.

Lazarous

If they want to work for it, tell them that they can have the exp if they do something for it outside of the sessions.

Say you leave one of their characters at a small village while the party members present go off to the regularly scheduled dungeon. The missing player might draw a picture or a comic strip of their character cutting wood for an elderly villager. Or they write a short story about how they catch the hooligan that's been beating the village dogs. Or they write a little character background, or they write some of their character's thoughts on what's been going on.

Stuff like that. It doesn't force them to do something, but it adds value for the GM and coincidentally perhaps some introspection about their own character.

We give extra credit XP in the form of posting things like that (with a given "homework assignment" from me so that if I want specific information to guide the next session or something, then I can get it easily.) on a forum site that the previous DM set up because he knows how to do things like that. (I don't.) It doesn't usually add up to enough to make up for what the missing characters would miss, though, so I'd have to give them their own special things. Which I could do, but one had mentioned specifically "I don't want to have to write a novel every time I miss so I can catch up."

Rockwarrior v2.0

LiaThistle

The previous DM used to not give uniform XP, and I don't think 3/4 of the players would mind not getting uniform XP, but one of them would probably complain incessantly about it if I didn't give him at least as much as everybody else (even though, for example, last session he fell asleep for an hour or so mid-session because he felt that one of the other characters was making his character un-usable). So I'd have to keep it secret, and that makes trouble for people wanting to craft things. :/

I would probably also get accused of favoritism, even moreso if I keep it secret, because one of the players is my boyfriend. Regardless of the fact that he's one of the better players (though last session I would put him at 3rd place, because two of the players got in a fight in-character over whether or not to kill the Gargoyle, since one has taken Vow of Nonviolence & Vow of Peace and the other is a LG Paladin of Heironeous) I worry that any time I would tell him to level, at least one of the other players will question if he's leveling just because he's my boyfriend. :/

[Laertes Ursus]

If the missing players buy pizza for everyone, they get full XP.