[BNW] Why Experience Doesn't Work for me

[whytcrow@io.com]

The first question anyone must ask themselves when they go about game 
design or tweaking existing game rules is "What results do I want?" 
Experience points are not necessarily going to get me the results I 
want, which is why I want something else.

Now, I know I'm not a typical BNW Gm.   Probalby not even a typical 
GM period.  I understand that.   Given the following are true:

1.  I really like the develop-in-play Tricks (power stunts) of the 
Villians and Vigilantes game that I play in.  While power stunts and 
tricks aren't exactly equal and the overall power level is different, 
I still would like to use this.

2.  I do *not* like anyone being able to do any Tricks just for 
having more successes.  Besides the fact that pg 82 (a hero can use 
any general trick if he gets 3 extra successes) contradicts what is 
said in the Tricks of the Trade chapter (that the hero is out of luck 
if he doesn't know a Trick--and are all non-power-related Tricks 
"General" Tricks, b/c it doesn't call them that anywhere...), I still 
don't like it.  If Tricks are a big part of how you differentiate 
your characters, then they should be something you have to pay for. 
Granted, it's really rare you are going to get that high a roll...

3.  It's a short campaign that I'm running and thus I want more 
concrete rewards for stuff than just experience.

4.  My players would probably be fine with spending permanent DPs if 
they knew they could earn them.  Most of them are long-time Fudge 
players.  Fudge points are earned and spent a little differently, but 
they are non-renewable like DPs (in other words, you spend them, 
they're gone, until you earn more).

5.  Yes, I'll be giving out more DPs than most GMs would, but then 
I'm not giving out XP.

6.  I'm going to let players invent their own Tricks.

Now, exp and whatnot might work for you.  They don't work for me 
right now.  (I'm not a big fan of XP as a reward as a player either. 
I'm strange in that I'd rather build the char the way I want to play 
her and then never worry about skill advance, but I know that's a 
minority feeling and don't forcce that on my players either).

I'm not thinking of permanent DP spending anymore.  That didn't shake 
out right. I'm also trying to get at something without 
over-complicating it.

Quick question:  Other than at char creation, is there a limit on how 
high skills can go?

Jennifer
The White Crow
FUDGE Deryni and the Penn Ar Mor Ars Magica Saga:
http://www.io.com/~whytcrow/rpg.html
"Your destruction is the will of the gods, and we are their 
instrument."  -- Halo