Characters gain XP and levels in the same manner as in DnD, it is up to the players to decide if they want to follow the DnD 3.5 or 4th ed level progression.
Upon achieving a level the character gains 4 + “level achieved” skill points that can be invested in purchasing stats and feats – however only one stat may be increased per level gained, only half the available skill points may be invested in stat purchases, and if a stat point isn’t bought during a level, then that opportunity is lost. Additionally a stat may only be improved by 1 point per level.
Achieving extreme stat values (starting at 6) should additionally be accompanied by appropriate roleplaying that makes the increase plausable (attending a wizard’s academy, soul-searching meditation on a deserted island, etc) – such an endeavour should not be taken lightly, and a GM should typically only allow one such stat increase every 3 levels. On occasion this general rule may be broken as a special reward, for example a visitation by a PC’s god may awaken the potential in a hero such that he or she has the option to invest into a stat at the next level without special additional requirements.
Skill points can be saved over levels and invested at any time, though typically a sensible amount of in-game time should be dedicated to this process. Characters shouldn’t master the intricacies of trap disablement on the fly because they happen to have a trap in front of them and spare skill points. But, conversely, should the PC disable the trap successfully the GM may decide to give the player the option to gain the Trap Disabler feat at a slightly reduced cost at that point in time (it is then up to the player to decide to take the bargain, or save her points for something else).
Additionally, on leveling, a character gains the following:
+5 hitpoints, and an additional +5 for every point the Body stat exceeds 3. (Total of 10 hitpoints gained at Body stat 4, total 15 hitpoints gained with Body stat at 5, etc. The minimum hitpoints gained from a high Body stat is equal to 0.)
+1 skill point for every point the Mind stat exceeds 3. (Total of +1 skill point at Mind stat 4, +2 skill points at Mind stat 5, etc. The minimum skill points gained from Mind stat is equal to 0.)
The basic number of daily action points increases by 2 for each level the character achieves. An additional +1 action point is gained for every two points the Soul stat exceeds 2. (Total of +1 action point at Soul stat 4 or, 5; +2 action points at Soul stat 6 or 7. The minimum action points gained from the Soul stat is equal to 0).
As a GM, the problem I have with some systems (e.g. BESM) is that the monster or enemy creation takes as long as creating a character. It takes too long to make a multitude of interesting foes. So the end result is an army of the same foe with one or two special leaders.
With the current system it seems that you can have a monster with base stats per level. A base enemy. And then alter that enemy to make the enemy harder or easier to deal with.
Comment by avianfoo — 15 August 2008 @ 8:33 am
That’s a pretty interesting point; I don’t think I’ll be addressing that any time soon.
But in terms of character (and monster) creation, templates and feats make a big difference – a lot of new possibilities are made available there, so you might want to wait a bit for that.
Comment by trashcondor — 15 August 2008 @ 9:25 am