I oftentimes hear that high-level campaigns in Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition are nearly nonexistent. I want to challenge this assertion.
Given normal RAW for EXP in #DnD 5e, what's the highest level you've reached with a character who started out at level 1?
— DANIEL D. FOX (@ZweihanderRPG) June 1, 2021
Hmm. So I reached 20th, but that was one (1) character out of all the 5e I've played, and I've been playing since it released. My data is misleading.
Whereas prior, it was the exception rather than the rule that my 3e campaigns didn't hit 20+.
— Dan Dillon (@Dan_Dillon_1) June 1, 2021
In 3.5, I ran a multi-year campaign that hit 13th level, and most of the other 3rd edition games made it to around 7th level or so. The highest level I’ve gotten a character in 5e is 12th, which is also pretty close to the highest level I’ve DMed as well. A multi-year game in 3.5 that only hit 13.
Did you play once ever two months, or did you just, like, not have XP in this game?
No judgement, it's just that a defining characters of 3.5 is a BREAKNECK leveling pace (compared to my 2e roots).
— Dan Dillon (@Dan_Dillon_1) June 2, 2021
I was in an Arcana Evolved (Monte Cook’s 3.5e clone) game that ran something like 10 years and got from 1st to 14th, running 8-hour sessions 6-12 times a year.
I ran a pretty-much-weekly 3.0 game in 2 years of college that went from 1st to 14th. Y'all… we are not the same. 🖤
— Dan Dillon (@Dan_Dillon_1) June 2, 2021