experience and growth guidelines

[Arkhayne]

Hi,

i'm a returning fan i played the 4th ed  and  took  the 6th,i have a question in the 4th there where guidelines regarding the way experience was  spent. it seems those guidelines are not in the 6th  with my players complaining about it i feel like a tyrant .

 

so i wanted  to ask you how you handle it guys

 

it seems to me that the art behind the system is handling the diferent value  and active point progression  i understant that my players feel constricted  by that since the rules let them spend their xp as they wish .

i also ask my players to stay consistent in their character no point to having spider man develop  optic blast without a good story to implement it  but again my players feel like i'm overdoing it

 

so if any of you is willing to share some advices on how to do it right, i d be gratefull

 

 

Ark

Edited June 14, 2016 by Arkhayne

[Steve Long]

Since this appears to be a request to the board as a whole, and not a rules question, I've moved it to the Discussion board, where anyone can respond.

[DasBroot]

Consistency is key - most people who wanted to play 'Spiderman' wouldn't WANT an optic blast: they'd want to keep increasing his dex, his dcv, learning a new web trick for the multipower, etc.

 

This gives certain 'concepts' a lot more leeway, though - Iron Man and Doctor Strange can basically justify anything that they wish to add to their sheet.  

 

Ultimately a broad concept shouldn't be a significant advantage: If someone is truly feeling 'constrained' by a desire to add something then you should let them add it (so long as it's a power that meets your approval)  - it's your job as GM to make a way for it to make sense if it's important to the game for it making sense to do so (Spider man might get bionic laser eyes or wrist blasters, etc).

[eepjr24]

This one is obviously down to personal taste. For me, if a player can come up with a reasonable explanation for how they are developing said power, I generally don't have big problems with it. But if they guidelines in 4e worked for you.... USE THEM! You are the GM and you need to plan your campaign around rules that work for you. Flip side, make sure that there is enough flexibility in your rules for both you and the players to have fun.

 

- E

[dsatow]

It sounds like you can mitigate some of your problem by asking "Why do you want to buy that?"  If they say, something mechanically related then say, "Its not within your character concept, that's a game mechanic optimization request."

 

Example: Spiderman's player would like to buy an Armor Piercing Autofire +2 Stun 2d6 RKA machine gun because he needs more firepower. "Its not within your character concept, that's a game mechanic optimization request."

 

Example: Spiderman's player would like to buy mental defense because there are a lot of mental attacks in your game.  "Its not within your character concept, that's a game mechanic optimization request."

 

Example: Spiderman's player would like to buy mental defense because there are a lot of mental attacks in your game.  He goes to find Professor X to help train him.  "Ok."  Then devise an adventure or two where he has to find Professor X.

[eepjr24]

I like what dsatow said, just as long as you allow a variety of ways to solve a problem. 

 

Example: Spiderman's player would like to buy mental defense because there are a lot of mental attacks in your game.  He goes to find Professor X to help train him.  "Ok."  Then devise an adventure or two where he has to find Professor X.

 

Or if Peter Parker decided to set up monitors on his hidden cameras to detect the frequency range, etc of the mental waves being used. And then modified his mask to interfere with them: MD, self.

Or if Peter Parker decided to set up monitors on his hidden cameras to detect the frequency range, etc of the mental waves being used. And then modified his web to interfere with them: MD, UBO or self (wrap web around head) plus possibly suppress mental powers (wrap web around the mentalists head). 

 

etc.

 

- E

[Tasha]

Hi,

i'm a returning fan i played the 4th ed  and  took  the 6th,i have a question in the 4th there where guidelines regarding the way experience was  spent. it seems those guidelines are not in the 6th  with my players complaining about it i feel like a tyrant .

 

so i wanted  to ask you how you handle it guys

 

it seems to me that the art behind the system is handling the different value  and active point progression  i understand that my players feel constricted  by that since the rules let them spend their xp as they wish .

i also ask my players to stay consistent in their character no point to having spider man develop  optic blast without a good story to implement it  but again my players feel like i'm overdoing it

 

so if any of you is willing to share some advice on how to do it right, i'd be grateful

 

 

Ark

The exp rewards section is exactly the same table it was in 4e. In the Champions Complete Rulebook it's on PG 130  in 6e Rules Book 2 it lives on pg 292

 

That said I have always tried to award 2-4 exp per session. I sometimes will award target exp beyond the base for epic rolls, new contacts, whatever I think. I try to make sure that players have a reason for new powers and that they fit the PC's theme. That said, I am pretty easy when it comes to explanations. I have been on the player side of GM's that are too controlling of exp spending and it's really annoying. Go with what is fun for everyone. 

[bigdamnhero]

in the 4th there where guidelines regarding the way experience was  spent. it seems those guidelines are not in the 6th

It looks like 6e2 p292-293 includes all the same text as in 4e 206-207, including the bits regarding superheroic campaigns. The section in Champions Complete p130 is necessarily shorter, but covers the same concepts I think.

 

it seems to me that the art behind the system is handling the diferent value  and active point progression  i understant that my players feel constricted  by that since the rules let them spend their xp as they wish

I think you hit the nail on the head here. The way I usually explain it to new players is that in D&D and most similar games, those sorts of restrictions are built into the system. When you level up there are specific things you get; you might have a few options to choose from, but your choices are tightly constrained. This is done to ensure not only game balance, but to enforce campaign and genre conventions. But because they're hard-coded into the rules, no one balks at them. With Hero, the GM has to set those restrictions themself. Without them, the wheels can come off quickly, especially at superheroic power levels.

 

i also ask my players to stay consistent in their character no point to having spider man develop  optic blast without a good story to implement it  but again my players feel like i'm overdoing it

It sometimes helps to remind players that introducing a new, unrelated power set often means "starting over" at a lower AP level. Say my Spider-Guy character has built up high DEX & HtH skills, an MP for my web shooters, etc. If I want to add a Cyclops-style optic blast, well that won't go in my existing MP, so I either need to buy the Blast at full cost, or worse buy a second Framework for it. Maybe I can scrimp enough XP to buy 30 or 40 AP worth? How useful is that going to be compared to my other 60 AP powers? Sometimes you can appeal to their inner munchkin in a good way! And if the player recognizes it will be less powerful but still wants to do it because they think it will be cool, well at least you know they're coming from a perspective of fun, rather than just trying to min-max everything.

 

This gives certain 'concepts' a lot more leeway, though - Iron Man and Doctor Strange can basically justify anything that they wish to add to their sheet. 

Well, in terms of Powers yes. But Iron Man isn't going to start casting spells and Strange isn't going to start wearing power armor. (I'm pretty sure you didn't mean that, but just to be sure.)

 

Or if Peter Parker ...modified his web to interfere with them: MD, UBO or self (wrap web around head) plus possibly suppress mental powers (wrap web around the mentalists head).

Heh, now I'm picturing Spidey with tinfoil-infused webbing on his head. (Actually out of 1300+ issues, I'd be surprised if that hasn't been done already.)