Experience Costs
Training Times
As long as an Exalted character is training downtime, you can mostly ignore training times. But if they spend their time doing something else, they will need to train. Mortals and heroic mortals usually need to spend at least half of the allotted time, or all of it. (Houserule)
Mortals
| Trait Increase | Cost | Training Times |
|---|---|---|
| Attribute | current rating x 4 | (current rating x 2) months |
| Favored Ability | (current rating x 2) – 1 | immediate |
| Other Ability | current rating x 2 | (current rating x 2) weeks |
| †‡Essence (max. 3) | current rating x 20 | (current rating x 2) months |
| Virtue | current rating x 3* | immediate |
| Willpower | current rating x 2 | immediate |
| New Trait | Cost | Training Times |
| Ability | 3 | 6 weeks |
| Specialty | 3** | 6 weeks |
| ‡Terrestrial Circle Sorcery Charm | 15 (12 of Occult is Favored Ab.) | (spell circle x 2) weeks |
| ‡Spell | 15 (12 of Occult is Favored) | (spell circle x 2) weeks |
| Thaumaturgy | Cost | Training Times |
| Initiate Degree in Art | 10 (8 if Occult if Favored) | one month (one week if Occult is Favored) |
| Adept Degree in Art | 10 (8 if Occult if Favored) | two months (two weeks if Occult is Favored) |
| Master Degree in Art | 10 (8 if Occult if Favored) | three months (three weeks if Occult is Favored) |
†Mortals have normally Essence 1, no Essence pool, and they cannot raise their Essence. Those few who can cannot have Essence higher than 3.
* Increasing Virtues after character creation does not increase a character's Willpower
** Max three per Ability, but you can purchase the same specialty multiple times
‡Enlightened mortal only
Initiate Degree requires Occult 1, Adept Degree Occult 3, Master Degree Occult 5.
Solar Exalted
| Trait Increase | Cost | Training Times |
|---|---|---|
| Attribute | current rating x 4 | (current rating) months |
| Favored or Caste Ability | (current rating x 2) – 1 | immediate |
| Out-of-Caste Ability | current rating x 2 | (current rating) weeks |
| Essence (to 3) | current rating x 8 | immediate |
| Essence (above 3) | current rating x 8 | (current rating) months |
| Virtue | current rating x 3* | immediate |
| Willpower | current rating x 2 | immediate |
| New Trait | Cost | Training Times |
| Ability | 3 | 3 weeks |
| Specialty | 3** | 3 weeks |
| Favored/Caste Charm | 8 | (Min. Ability) days |
| Out-of-Caste Charm | 10 | (Min. Ability + Min. Essence) days |
| Non-Solar Charms | 16*** | (Min. Ability + Min. Essence) weeks |
| Spell (Occult Favored/Caste) | 8 | (spell circle) weeks |
| Spell (Out-of-caste Occult) | 10 | (spell circle) weeks |
* Increasing Virtues after character creation does not increase a character's Willpower
** Max three per Ability, but you can purchase the same specialty multiple times
*** Eclipse Caste only: includes spirit Charms and Charms of other Exalted types
For Backgrounds, see Raising Backgrounds.
Changing Specialties in Play
Once a character has three specialties for an Ability, he is barred from purchasing any more. While this certainly helps to define and stake out a character's niche and signature style, further growth in the character may ultimately make the original selection inappropriate or limiting. Characters with three specialties can buy a new specialty at a reduced cost of two experience points, but doing so forfeits one existing specialty for the Ability. Once a story, this swap may be done for free. Learning a new specialty always requires standard training time.
Abyssal Exalted
As dark mirrors of Solars, Abyssals pay the same costs for their Charms and Essence that Solars do (see the table above). While they are outside the Underworld or a shadowland, however, Abyssals need twice the training time to raise any trait except for Caste and Favored Abilities.
The dark power of the Black Exaltation deeply marks the flesh of Abyssals who carry it. First, the power of Oblivion makes it so that Abyssals never age. Only violence, poison or plague can kill them. Second, as an Abyssal increases in power, his features change, either rotting away or becoming inhumanly beautiful. At Essence 4, Abyssals must have an Appearance higher or lower than 2. At Essence 5, Abyssals must either have an Appearance of 0, or higher than 3.
The Abyssal does not make a conscious choice toward beauty or ugliness. It emerges, instead, from his unconscious perception of himself and his connection to Oblivion. A player who decides his character becomes more beautiful must pay the appropriate experience points for the increased Appearance. Training time is waived, though. If the player wants to tie the change in Appearance to the surge in the character's Essence, that's fine; if the player wants to say the change happened more gradually, that's fine too. Sometimes the change in self-image happens gradually; sometimes it happens in one shattering instant. This has no bearing on how or when the player spends the experience points, as long as she keeps her character within the proper limits.
Infernal Exalted
Except as noted in this section, Green Sun Princes gain experience points, spend them and train for new traits at the same rate that Solars do. Note that while they have Favored and Caste Abilities, Green Sun Princes do not have Charms based on those Abilities, and none may purchase demon Charms (save the Fiends, who may do so as part of their innate anima ability). Instead, Green Sun Princes treat their patron and one other Yozi’s Charms as favored.
The accompanying Green Sun Prince Experience Costs table gives appropriate costs and training times for Green Sun Prince characters when they differ from the main rulebook values.
| Trait Increase | Cost | Training Times |
|---|---|---|
| Attribute | current rating x 4 | (current rating) months |
| Essence (to 3) | current rating x 8 | immediate |
| Essence (to 6 and above) | current rating x 8 | (rating) months |
| New Trait | Cost | Training Times |
| Patron/Favored Yozi Charm | 8 | (Min. Essence) days |
| Non-Patron/Non-Favored Yozi Charm | 10 | (Min. Essence x 2) days |
| Martial Arts Charm (Favored) | 8 | (Min. Ability) days |
| Martial Arts Charm (non-Favored) | 10 | (Min. Ability + Min. Essence) days |
| New Sorcery Spell | 9 | (spell circle) weeks |
Lunar Exalted
This table gives appropriate costs and training times for Lunar characters, when they differ from the Solar Exalted table above.
| Trait Increase | Cost | Training Times |
|---|---|---|
| Attribute | current rating x 4 | (current rating) months |
| Caste/Favored Attribute | current rating x 3 | (current rating x 2) weeks |
| Essence | current rating x 9 | (current rating) months |
| New Trait | Cost | Training Times |
| Caste/Favored Charm | 10 | (Min. Attribute) days |
| Out-of-Caste Charm | 12 | (Min. Attribute + Min. Essence) days |
| New Spell (Caste/Favored) | 10 | (spell circle) weeks |
| New Spell (Out-of-Caste) | 12 | (spell circle) weeks |
| New Knack | 11 | 1 month |
Terrestrial Exalted
Lesser Exalted than the mighty Solars, the Dragon-Blooded suffer from a more imperfect control of their Essence. However focused, contemplative, meditative and otherwise in tune with herself and her surroundings a Dragon-Blood is, it is still harder for her to deepen her natural bond to Creation's elemental Essence. Likewise, shaping this Essence comes less naturally to her. In order to learn a new way to channel it into the magical effects known as Charms or spells, the Dragon-Blood must spend more effort than her Celestial brethren do.
| Trait Increase | Cost | Training Times |
|---|---|---|
| Attribute | current rating x 4 | (current rating) months |
| Favored or Aspect Ability | (current rating x 2) – 1 | immediate |
| Out-of-Aspect Ability | current rating x 2 | (current rating) weeks |
| Essence (to 3) | current rating x 10 | immediate |
| Essence (above 3) | current rating x 10 | (current rating) months |
| Virtue | current rating x 3* | immediate |
| Willpower | current rating x 2 | immediate |
| New Trait | Cost | Training Times |
| Ability | 3 | 3 weeks |
| Specialty | 3** | 3 weeks |
| Favored/Aspect Charm | 10 | (Min. Ability) days |
| Out-of-Aspect Charm | 12 | (Min. Ability + Min. Essence) days |
| Celestial Martial Arts Charm | 12 | (Min. Ability + Min. Essence) weeks |
| (Martial Arts Unfavored) | 15 | (Min. Ability + Min. Essence) weeks |
| Spell (Occult Favored/Aspect) | 8 | (spell circle) weeks |
| Spell (Out-of-caste Occult) | 10 | (spell circle) weeks |
* Increasing Virtues after character creation does not increase a character's Willpower
** Max three per Ability, but you can purchase the same specialty multiple times
For Backgrounds, see Raising Backgrounds.
Changing Specialties in Play
Once a character has three specialties for an Ability, he is barred from purchasing any more. While this certainly helps to define and stake out a character's niche and signature style, further growth in the character may ultimately make the original selection inappropriate or limiting. Characters with three specialties can buy a new specialty at a reduced cost of two experience points, but doing so forfeits one existing specialty for the Ability. Once a story, this swap may be done for free. Learning a new specialty always requires standard training time.
Suggested Houserules
Under consideration.
- General Revisions: All Celestial Exalted may learn Terrestrial Martial Arts at a cost of 4 experience per Charm, and require no tutor to do so. They are intrinsically beyond the Root of the Perfected Lotus even without martial arts training.
- Sidereal Exalted: Sidereal Exalted learn Celestial Martial Arts at a cost of 8 experience per Charm, instead of using native costs. In addition, they learn Terrestrial Martial Arts at a cost of 2 experience per Charm instead of 4. Finally, their native charms cost 9/10 experience favored/unfavored, instead of 10/12.
- Lunar Exalted: Lunar Exalted gain knacks at a cost of 8 experience per knack. Additionally, their native charms cost 9/10 experience favored/unfavored, instead of 10/12.
- Alchemical Exalted: Alchemical Exalted learn martial arts at a cost of 10 experience per charm instead of 11.
- Dragon-Blooded: Terrestrial Exalted native charms cost 10/11 experience points favored/unfavored, and they purchase Celestial Martial Arts at a cost of 11/12 per charm instead of 12/15.