This is how I distribute XP to my PC's. I thought I'd share it with you in case someone is a bit unsure and can use this as a template

Now I lead my group of PC's through a narrative and long campaign which does not include any pre-written scenarios, which has lead me to put up this list.

1 Session (8hours) = 150-225xp depending on how they generally perform (this includes narrative travel, shooting regular baddies and so on, the neutral state of play)

Minor Boss Encounter = 35-75xp depending on how dangerous etc

Medium Boss Encounter = 75-125xp depending on how dangerous etc

Major Boss Encounter = 125-250xp depending on how dangerous etc

Insane Boss Encounter = 250-500xp depending on how dangerous etc

Victorious Arch Nemesis Encounter = 500-1000xp depending on how dangerous etc

All boss encounters include all stages, meaning; if it's a Major Boss encounter which includes 2 minor bosses they do not gain extra XP for the minor ones, they gain xp for the whole encounter not individual bosses.

Complete an Encounter = 15-75xp an encounter is a pre-planned event which pits the PC's against foes, a difficult obstacle etc

Complete an Act = 750-1500xp

An act stretches across several sessions and contains multiple encounters and ends with a Boss Encounter, an act can contain several of the various boss encounters.

I have no set amount of sessions for each Act, it depends on the players how well they solve the various encounters they face.

Completed a Story Arc = 1500-2000xp A story arc is built of several Acts and ends with an Arch Nemesis Encounter

Good Role Playing = 25-75xp did they chat alot in character amongst themselves during the session? Did they act according to their characters upon facing problems?

Cinematic Stunts = 25-50xp Did someone leap over a chasm, grabbed the rope which was hanging in the middle of the chasm and swung to the other side to activate the bridge?

Web Of Mysteries = 25xp per player and additional 25xp for the person who solved the mystery. The Web Of Mysteries is my own term for solving riddles and questions I have plotted into their campaign. An example would be to unveil the true identity of a person, sticking a name with a face and moving onwards in the larger picture.

Achieve a PC goal 25-75xp: If the player successfully achieve a goal he has put for his character, such as getting his dirty little hands on a bolt gun or learning forbidden lore etc, the player gets a reward for pursuing his goal and complete it.

Bribe the GM: 5-10xp Bring the GM cookies and he shall reward you. I am not more but a man Emperor save me.

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This is how I distribute XP, feel free to use it as it is or as a template.

On an average my players gain somewhere between 250-400 xp / session, the highest anyone of them has got so far is 550xp but that was exceptional. They are now approaching level 4 with some 5-6 sessions behind them. (I have just recently begun to use this method of giving them xp so I have not been consistent in the past). And are approaching the end of an Act which will put them on The Valiant Star, a 1.5km long Trade Ship fighting through throngs of cultists as they chase the heretic Mechanicus Priest Belim Joz.

That's a lot of detailing to calculate xp. My questions is: Why?

Sister Callidia said:

Mainly to give my players a sense of progress even though they perhaps did very little, that everything counts towards their character development. To reward good role playing, puzzle solving. It might not be the most perfect system out there but it works for me and my players (who come from a very power gaming background). I also like lists, charts and statistics.

Given his mention of several people of powergamer origin in his group it is a good idea to incentivise well rounded gameplay. If the person actively solving puzzles and mysteries, making efforts at roleplaying, taking dramatic actions "because they are cool" instead of "because it gives me a +10" and so on is rewarded by some bonus XP then maybe the guy sitting next to him with "My boltgun is my skill list" mentality might give some of the more esoteric activities a try once in a while.

ZillaPrime said:

I completely agree with this sentiment. I like games that are a little more story heavy than hack-and-slash, and so I tend to run my games along those lines. If, on the other hand, the group wants to do the grim dark equivalent of dungeon-crawling, then using XP for actions that advance the plot or just look cool is an excellent incentive. That way they won't be looking to pick fights with hive gangers for a dribble of XP.

CthonicProteus said:

Heck, if I had players pick a fight with gangers for this sort of reason and it ended up negatively impacting their overall mission (by say, tipping off the baddies that a heavily armed pack of oddballs was poking around their area of operations and kicking doors down) they would earn a big fat healthy dose of LESS XP. They would likewise find either a foe that is now VERY prepared for them coming or get to taste the frustration of banging open the doors on a secret hideout only to find that the place is abandoned and has been stripped clean (and someone took a meltabomb to the cogitator too... No info to be had there anymore). Considering hive gangers are for the most part beneath the notice of even the Adeptus Arbites (being more the province of Magistratum enforcers and the local guilds) Agents who make a habit of compromising Inquisition missions for such petty reasons will have some SERIOUS explaining to do to their less-than-amused boss.