Paying for training to level? Is this still a thing?

[Melzarin]

Hey All! I’ve been reading these message boards for the last month or so in preparation for my campaign which started this last Sunday. I’ve been on a little bit of a DMing hiatus – my last active campaign ended in 1992 and I’ve not been involved since. I jumped back in mostly because I had friends who desperately wanted to play and it became obvious that it wasn’t going to happen unless someone took the reins. Anyway, I picked Pathfinder because 3.5 was the last version of D&D I had really bothered to look at even though I wasn’t actively playing or DMing anymore. It’s way different than my old 1st/2nd Edition hybrid I used to run but fun and mostly familiar to me. I should get better session to session.

My questions has to do with the old 1st edition idea that after a character has gained enough xp, he or she usually was involved in some training (and the expenditure of copious amounts of gold) in order to gain their next level. Even in my day, plenty of DMs ignored this but I utilized it (to a small degree) as a way to keep the wealth manageable. I’ve flipped through the core rulebook and can’t say I’ve found any current rules relating to this. I realize it is my campaign and I can do what I’d like but I’m still curious if, officially, this idea has been done away with completely? Are characters generally allowed to level the moment they get the required xp? I started my gang out as firsties so they’ll hit 2nd in the middle of our first adventure more than likely and if this is the current expectation, I can roll with it. I’m just asking for my own edification mostly.

Thanks!

[spalding]

No. It is gone if it ever really existed outside of a subsystem.

[Buri]

In Pathfinder you level immediately when you gain sufficient experience to do so.

[unforgivn]

Beyond the obvious potential for houseruling, paying for training hasn't existed since at least 3.0. I've never played any previous editions, so I can't speak on those.

[Riggler]

Some GMs don't even use XP anymore. They level the party when it "feels" right or an AP (if running published material) calls for it.

[Kolokotroni]

Those rules dont exist in pathfinder, I am pretty sure they didnt exist in 3.5 either, but there were so many supplements for that game I cant be sure.

If you are looking to use it as a mechanism to maintain wealth be careful as the wealth/magic item system of pathfinder (and 3.5) is messy to manage. Take a look at the wealth by level chart in the gamemastering section to get a picture of how much money characters are expected to have in a 'standard' adventure. Though the vast majority of that is expected to be in the form of magic items.

[Melzarin]

Yes, this is a very old 1st Edition notion and if I recall it correctly, it was fairly well buried in the DM's Guide and many, many DMs who hadn't read it cover-to-cover were blissfully unaware. Or just ignored it.

My players haven't collected a single pence yet so I can adjust the wealth as I please. I'm planning this as a true campaign with no other GMs or extemporaneous adventures so I'll be able to exercise control over what falls into their hands.

Thanks for the quick answers, all!

[Artanthos]

There in nothing in RAW regarding training to level. The concept died along with cross-campaign ideas for Gamma World.

Feel free to house rule it if the system is desired.