Hey there folks!
Back before our last game we sent out an email that talked about introducing an XP cap in the near future. This generated some spirited debate, both on the player discord and the team one, and we now have some follow up information about our plans, drawing on the concerns and suggestions that came up.
Instead of a hard XP cap, we plan to implement what we’re calling a character progression slowdown. What this means is that the cost of all feats will increase when you reach certain thresholds. Those thresholds are:
| Experience Earned | Approx Time Played | Cost of New Feats | # of Open Feats |
| 0XP to 12XP | 4 years | 1XP | 9 – 21 |
| 13XP to 18XP | 6 years | 2XP | 22 – 24 |
| 19 to 24XP | 8 years | 3XP | 25-26 |
| 25 to 28XP | 9.3 years | 4XP | 27 |
| 29 to 33XP | 11 years | 5XP | 28 |
| 34 XP + | > 11 years | 6XP | 29+ |
For reference, the most experienced Galloglaigh in the band will be earning their 9th experience point at this coming event, so while this will technically come into place immediately, it won’t actually have a material impact until after the first game of 2026. And no one will be in the final band until the first game of 2033 – at which point they won’t get to spend XP until the end of 2034.
It’s our hope that this alleviates some of the concerns raised around characters feeling “dead ended”, by never actually turning off the incoming XP/feats, and also is far enough in the future to not feel like too much of a rugpull.
Something else we’ve discussed is the fact that while this does provide some incentive to let characters’ stories end through retirement, it does still do it in a very “stick” manner, so we also wanted to highlight some “carrot” elements we’re bringing in as well.
Firstly, we’re going to start having the world take Particular Notice of those characters who have moved out of the first row of the table above. The more expensive feats are for you, the more powerful you’ve become, and the more powerful the enemies and allies you’ll attract. It’s our hope this will provide interesting ways to find endings for stories.
Secondly, we’re going to bring in an element of passing XP to your next character. If your character dies, your new character will start with a third of their XP, rounded down. But if your character retires, you’ll instead start with half their XP, rounded down. This won’t include the XP for their last game, which already goes to your next character.
It’s our hope this will encourage people to let their characters ride off into the sunset, instead of searching for a Bolivian Army Ending.
The above will apply retroactively. So if you’ve lost or retired a character, go ahead and check the database, as your new XP should be with you within 24 hours of this post going live. Please wait until after that time has elapsed to email us if you think we forgot about you.
While we expect there will be mixed feelings about this change, we do hope you understand why it’s coming and are satisfied with it. Above all, though, we really do want to thank you all for the engagement we got on this subject, as it very much has shaped the way these rules work, which we hope is obvious.
See you all in the field,
The Five Oaths Team