Spending Gold for XP

JB aka B/X Blackrazor has made two excellent posts stimulating debate about how XP should be allocated to characters. This is the comment I made on his post:

The Jovial Priest said...

I have been thinking about this 'problem' with B/X but for a different reason. I am old, with a family - I and my friends can't play often or for long - but we want to advance in level. I intend to allow the spending of gold to give XP. This will be for or a single item, donation or service and must be in accordance to alignment (DM final arbitrator). For example a 1st level character buys a silver arrow (5gp) and gains 5 XP. Higher level characters will require a higher minimum and only a maximum of 50% of a level can be gained this way. Thus characters get XP for gold taken from the dungeon and then again for the same XP when spent. Hopefully leads to rapid advancement and hungry for more gold characters.

I want to elaborate a bit further.


XP is gained for spending gold but it must be in accordance to alignment. For those of Lawful and Chaotic alignment this is more restrictive and may involve donations to the church, or for Chaotics investing in some heinous activities, although spending on one’s own personal protection will usually be acceptable. Following on from my previous post about being unaligned, unaligned characters can justify their spending and thus the XP gained, more easily and may well rise in level quicker.  

Spending gold for XP

Level	Minimum Gold
1	1
2	10
3	100
4	400
5	500
6	600
7	700
8	800
9	900
10+	1000

This is for a single item, donation or service. For example a 1^st level character buys a silver arrow (5gp) and gains 5 XP. To gain XP for spending gold it must be spent in accordance to alignment (DM final arbitrator). No more than 50% of the XP needed to advance a level can be gained from spending gold. The gold must be from the character’s personal wealth he cannot merely be administering the gold or spending someone else’s. Though theft of gold for Chaotic character is appropriate and in accordance of Alignment and might even be considered essential (DM discretion) at higher levels to gain XP!

How can one justify giving XP twice for the same gold - once for acquiring gold and once for spending gold. For me, I want my players engaged in the world I am creating. Buying a silver arrow for a 1st level character is a big deal - usually the first items a character buys is role-played. This is good and makes the encounter memorable and instructional - experiential one might even say. At higher levels buying arrows is like changing underpants - hence at higher levels the minimum for XP from spending gold is increased.

Spending gold for XP must be 'on screen'. No role play, no XP. 

The spending should also influence the characters relationship with the world. A big donation to the church will be remembered. A massive full on party with free alcohol and dancing girls will alter the reactions, for good or ill, of the community around the character.

Spending gold for XP will also keep characters poor and as I said in my comment to JB's post - hungry for more gold. And that's gotta be good.