Granting Experience Points

I've gotten a couple of emails recently over the Sirac's Point game about how I do XPs for the characters. For this game, I'm simply granting full monster XP for creatures slain, driven off, 'overcome' or defeated in some manner. This is to make up for not granting any XP for treasure at all. Thus far it makes for a moderately fast advancing game, with most of the players gaining 2nd level after about 5 sessions. The fastest advancing classed characters will reach 3rd after about 7-8 sessions, due mostly to the grind that was Session 6. The good use of strategy, missile/2nd rank spear wielders and doorways made most of the fights one-sided (not that I consider this bad either) and only through a couple of critical hits and being paralyzed by a ghast were any player characters in true danger of death. Of course, the group has 2 Clerics and they are exploring a tomb filled with undead, so I fully expect them to have some moderate success dealing with injury and undead. Thus far it has been fun to Referee for them, since they are a group that, while small (there are only 4 players with now 2 hirelings remaining) are as entertaining for me as I hope I am for them.

I digress though, the XP guidelines I'm using are pretty much straight forward as follows:

• Full monster XP for all characters for 'overcome' threats.
• About 1/20 the XP total needed to level for every week, even if not played. It keeps the characters moving, even if slowly, if I have to cancel a game or if a player can't make a game.
• The character's XP adjustment is used on the XP total needed to advance so there is just one calculation each time a PC levels instead of on XP earned each session.
• When the PCs achieve a goal, I grant a bonus XP award (currently, they need to gather enough proof of Haindrad's Tomb and return to Sirac's Point with it to achieve this goal).