Leveling Up

As characters complete Expeditions and earn Experience Points they will have the opportunities to level up and advance their class.

Determine if you want to level up

The Westmarches is split into four distinct Tiers of Play which imposes level restrictions on what Expeditions a character can attend. You might prefer lower level Expeditions, or want to continue pursuing an arc that is restricted to a certain tier, or simply prefer to stop at a given level. Whatever the reason, you can choose to stay at your current level.

When you reach enough XP to level up but decide you don't want to go to the next level, any XP overflow becomes Free XP. (e.g. If you had 900 XP and earned 150 during an Expedition, you would be at 1000 EXP with 50 free XP). You can continue playing the character in Expeditions following the normal Tier of Play restrictions. Whenever you would earn XP again on that character, you can once again make the choice to either level up or bank the XP as Free XP.

Plan what features you're taking

Having an idea of what new features you want to take beforehand is best. You can use a variety of tools to help you plan.

• Pathbuilder2e is a great way of seeing which features you have access to and to help theory craft a character. Note: It is recommended (though not required) to purchase the $6 one-time Premium subscription to Pathbuilder in order to enable Proficiency without Level (PWL) and Free Archetype. This subscription does not transfer between the app and the desktop versions, so make sure to purchase the one you would use more.
• Archives of Nethys is the standard Pathfinder 2e wiki where you can find all the information about the mechanics of the game.
• Hard copies or PDFs of rulebooks such as Player Core 1, Player Core 2, and other supplements can be used as a reference. The Westmarches tries to stick as close to Rules as Written (RAW) as possible.
• Character options are available in the FoundryVTT itself, but since the content is not organized by what you can and cannot use, it may be difficult to make a decision using only that. We do not recommend building a character through the Foundry alone unless you know exactly what you want and what is required to take it.

Some points to keep in mind about the Westmarches:

• We use the Proficiency without Level (PWL) variant rule. The numbers for attacks, AC, and abilities will be different in the FoundryVTT than in character builders that don't implement the PWL variant rule. Foundry will calculate proficiency bonus correctly.

Importing your idea into the FoundryVTT

Once you know what features you want to take, navigate to your Character Sheet and begin the process of leveling up.

1. Increment your Level in the top right corner, or press the "+ Add" button that pops up in the chat log when your added experience exceeds the experience threshold. If you increment your level manually, remember to reduce your experience points by 1000 per level.
2. If you leveled up to a new Tier of Play and received Attribute Boosts, navigate to the Character tab and select the glowing 'Edit' button in the 'Attribute Modifiers' section. You'll be able to select your Attribute Boosts here.
3. If you upgraded your Intelligence score, remember to add a new language and to increase a skill from Untrained to Trained - remember, you can use this skill increase to learn a new Lore skill as well! Uncommon and Rare languages are subject to Firekeeper approval, as usual for Uncommon and Rare options.
4. Navigate to the Feats tab. You should see some empty slots that correspond to your new level. Clicking the 'Browse' button on each category will open the Compendium where you can drag and drop your desired feats.
5. If you have access to spells, navigate to the Spellcasting tab and select any new spells you may learn and increase your spell slots based on your class' spellcasting table.
6. If you reach a level where you can boost a skill proficiency, navigate to the Proficiencies tab. Click on the "Untrained", "Trained", etc. button next to your chosen skill to open up a drop-down. Here you can select your new proficiency level.
7. Most things that can be handled automatically, like cantrip scaling, will be done by the system. Make sure to check that this is the case once you finish selecting all your features. If you run into any problems or have any questions, don't hesitate to reach out and ask, either in the Discord or by opening a Ticket.