Alternative rewards [Archive] - Wizards Community

Alternative rewards [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Ludovico47
03-08-04, 10:33 PM Has anybody ever tried giving players something other than the standard treasure and experience as far as rewards go? For instance, I'm considering, as a reward to helping an order of druids sail to, settle in and briefly help develop a settlement/grove on a far away island, allowing the characters to pick one from a list of skills (handle animal, survival, etc.) to make into a class skill or gain a couple bonus ranks in (which would expand their max ranks in that skill). Has anybody else tried alternative forms of reward, and if so, what were they and how did it turn out?
Oakspar77777
03-09-04, 01:28 AM I often give non-standard rewards, and they work quiet well.

XP should still always be rewarded, non-standard rewards replace the standard treasure rewards.

A good way to do this is to figure out how much gold you are not going to give to the players, and compensate accordingly. This is especially good for lower magic campaigns, where endless magic item rewards don't make sense and endless GP is worthless since it cannot be changed into magic items.

A Feat that the PC gets to choose is worth 26530gp. (The worth of a wish).

A Good Feat that you choose is worth 15-20,000gp. This would include Craft Feats, Martial Feats, Metamagic Feats, etc.

A Lower Feat that you choose is worth 10-15,000gp. This would include non-Combat feats like Endurance and Track, Skill Focus, and +2/+2 Skill Feats.

Skills are a little harder to adjudicate, but this is what I would think.

A free skill point to spend on any of their class skills would be worth about 2500gp worth of omitted treasure.

A skill point in a commonly used or combat worthy skill would be worth 1000 to 1500. (Diplomacy, Sense Motive, Listen, Spot, Search, Hide, Move Silent, etc).

A skill point in a non-combat, less usefull, or esotiric skill would only be worth 1000gp (Knowledge, Craft, Profession, Forgery, Use Rope, etc).

Thus, if you wanted to give them 4 ranks in Handle Animal and the Animal Affinity Feat (+2 to Handle Animal and Ride), you would be looking at arround a 14,000gp worthy prize. If 4 ranks would take them over there level limit (as a class skill), they should recieve the extra points as free ranks in that skill at each level (freeing up skill points for other skills). Thus, you are looking at something fit for a reward for clearing about 4 Encounter Level 8 encounters without traditional treasure.

Of course, my numbers are not absolute, just about where I would keep them. You can feel free to adjust them as you want (ie giving everyone 1 Rank in Knowledge: Nature will not break the game, but is beneficial for enemy identification, so might not be worth the full thousand if you do not inforce the "Use Knowledge to ID creatures" rule).
Hyperion
03-09-04, 02:13 AM That's a really interesting concept, but I don't think my players and I would go for it. We were all very into computer RPGs and love having phat lewts. But that is an interesting alternative to DMs that run a low magic campaign. I've often wondered what they do for the treasure that the players are supposed to recieve. I mean there's only so many masterwork items a PC needs before he has piles of gold mounting up and along comes a dragon and ... wait low magic= no dragons. Why would someone wanna play a low magic campaign again?

Seriously magical gadgets aren't everything, but I can't imagine DnD being nearly as interesting for me if it weren't for the endless combinations that you can have with magical items and a little minmaxing of the characters.

Hyperion
Trillia
03-09-04, 08:19 AM Rewards along the lines of "Well, you just helped out the druids, and now you're owed a favour by a world-wide and potentially very powerful organisation" can be just as useful as treasure, and lots lots more fun. Also, adds potential for more plot later on if the PCs are making friends and contacts all over the place.
bahamut_0
03-09-04, 08:27 AM I sometimes give my players special abilities (like in BG 2). Nothing special, maybe they can cast cure medium wounds once a day or something. I don't just say, you can cast this and that or whatever though, maybe they are given a blessing by a prisetess for helping her cause or something.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Ludovico47 03-08-04, 10:33 PM	Has anybody ever tried giving players something other than the standard treasure and experience as far as rewards go? For instance, I'm considering, as a reward to helping an order of druids sail to, settle in and briefly help develop a settlement/grove on a far away island, allowing the characters to pick one from a list of skills (handle animal, survival, etc.) to make into a class skill or gain a couple bonus ranks in (which would expand their max ranks in that skill). Has anybody else tried alternative forms of reward, and if so, what were they and how did it turn out?
Oakspar77777 03-09-04, 01:28 AM	I often give non-standard rewards, and they work quiet well. XP should still always be rewarded, non-standard rewards replace the standard treasure rewards. A good way to do this is to figure out how much gold you are not going to give to the players, and compensate accordingly. This is especially good for lower magic campaigns, where endless magic item rewards don't make sense and endless GP is worthless since it cannot be changed into magic items. A Feat that the PC gets to choose is worth 26530gp. (The worth of a wish). A Good Feat that you choose is worth 15-20,000gp. This would include Craft Feats, Martial Feats, Metamagic Feats, etc. A Lower Feat that you choose is worth 10-15,000gp. This would include non-Combat feats like Endurance and Track, Skill Focus, and +2/+2 Skill Feats. Skills are a little harder to adjudicate, but this is what I would think. A free skill point to spend on any of their class skills would be worth about 2500gp worth of omitted treasure. A skill point in a commonly used or combat worthy skill would be worth 1000 to 1500. (Diplomacy, Sense Motive, Listen, Spot, Search, Hide, Move Silent, etc). A skill point in a non-combat, less usefull, or esotiric skill would only be worth 1000gp (Knowledge, Craft, Profession, Forgery, Use Rope, etc). Thus, if you wanted to give them 4 ranks in Handle Animal and the Animal Affinity Feat (+2 to Handle Animal and Ride), you would be looking at arround a 14,000gp worthy prize. If 4 ranks would take them over there level limit (as a class skill), they should recieve the extra points as free ranks in that skill at each level (freeing up skill points for other skills). Thus, you are looking at something fit for a reward for clearing about 4 Encounter Level 8 encounters without traditional treasure. Of course, my numbers are not absolute, just about where I would keep them. You can feel free to adjust them as you want (ie giving everyone 1 Rank in Knowledge: Nature will not break the game, but is beneficial for enemy identification, so might not be worth the full thousand if you do not inforce the "Use Knowledge to ID creatures" rule).
Hyperion 03-09-04, 02:13 AM	That's a really interesting concept, but I don't think my players and I would go for it. We were all very into computer RPGs and love having phat lewts. But that is an interesting alternative to DMs that run a low magic campaign. I've often wondered what they do for the treasure that the players are supposed to recieve. I mean there's only so many masterwork items a PC needs before he has piles of gold mounting up and along comes a dragon and ... wait low magic= no dragons. Why would someone wanna play a low magic campaign again? Seriously magical gadgets aren't everything, but I can't imagine DnD being nearly as interesting for me if it weren't for the endless combinations that you can have with magical items and a little minmaxing of the characters. Hyperion
Trillia 03-09-04, 08:19 AM	Rewards along the lines of "Well, you just helped out the druids, and now you're owed a favour by a world-wide and potentially very powerful organisation" can be just as useful as treasure, and lots lots more fun. Also, adds potential for more plot later on if the PCs are making friends and contacts all over the place.
bahamut_0 03-09-04, 08:27 AM	I sometimes give my players special abilities (like in BG 2). Nothing special, maybe they can cast cure medium wounds once a day or something. I don't just say, you can cast this and that or whatever though, maybe they are given a blessing by a prisetess for helping her cause or something.