Myriad Legends GMs are welcome to use either method of awarding experience points:

• Classic. XP is awarded as per the 5e rules. Characters gain XP from individual challenges they overcome.
• Goal-Based. Characters earn XP by succeeding at adventure goals, instead of earning XP on a per-challenge basis. The adventure level and adventure type determine how much XP is earned. See the Goal-Based XP Guidelines below.

New Characters

Each new character begins at 1st level, with 0 XP.

If you permanently lose a character, see Death and Bonus XP.

Adventure Level

A general rating of an adventure's ideal character level. Characters of this level should find the adventure challenging—neither impossibly lethal nor too easy.

Adventure Type

• One-Shot. A one-session adventure with a small number of challenges: 2–3 medium or hard encounters, or 1 deadly encounter.
• Full Adventure. A multi-session adventure with enough challenges for an entire level: 8–12 medium or hard encounters (deadly encounters count for double).

Terms in 5.5e rules use "low difficulty" for medium, "moderate difficulty" for hard, and "high difficulty" for deadly.

Encounter Building Website

Here is a practical site for encounter building (2024 version is recommended).

—Goal-Based XP Guidelines—

Success. If the party successfully completes the adventure goal, each character earns the XP reward. This includes characters who died but contributed to the success.

Midway Success. If the party makes it at least midway through an adventure, but ends up defeated, fleeing, or otherwise incomplete, each character earns half the XP reward. This includes characters who died but contributed to the midway success.

Failure. Less than a midway success. The characters earn no XP.

Example Adventure Goals

Survive a dungeon, navigate through a stretch of dangerous wilderness to reach a town, defeat a certain monster, solve a mystery, recover an important item, rescue an NPC

Customization

• Fitting a full adventure’s encounters into a one-shot or two-shot. This requires nonstop challenges and a fast pace, such as in Gauntlet Runner. Characters can earn a full adventure’s XP reward.
• A full adventure that is story and roleplay heavy, and has fewer encounters than usual. Use two one-shot adventures’ encounters and XP, with a full adventure's length.
• XP for challenges outside the adventure goals. If the characters take on a side quest or defeat challenges that were not part of the adventure goals, the GM can award XP in the classic method.