Hero levels and XP

Heroes level independently. XP is credited to eligible active heroes, then each hero applies its own level-gap adjustment and catch-up state. The reviewed award routine gives the same base award to each eligible hero; it does not divide one XP pool by party size. A hero can gain several levels from one award, subtracting the next-level requirement after every level. The core level cap is 100, and XP is cleared when that configured cap is reached.

Stage level and hero level are different values. A higher stage can change enemy strength, XP income and the penalty for fighting outside the useful level window. Read Combat rules before interpreting a level gap as a flat XP or damage penalty. The World & Maps catalog tracks difficulty, act and stage separately.

XP required for the next level

The current curve is exponential with piecewise multipliers, not a quadratic polynomial. For hero level L, the reviewed rule is:

XP to next = max(1, round(base × 2^(L / doubling interval) × kill factor × ratio product × wall factor)).

The current effective defaults are base 3, doubling interval 10, kill factor 395, and wall factor 1 + 11 × (L / 100)^3.5. Levels 1–9 use the opening ramp 0.18, 0.29, 0.33, 0.43, 0.62, 0.93, 0.96, 0.98, 0.994, multiplied by 1.15^9. From level 10, the opening ratio is capped at 1.15^9; a 1.045 ratio grows over levels 10–30 and a 1.098 ratio over 30–55. After level 90, a further 1.09 ratio grows with every additional level. Each interval exponent stops at its own boundary.

These are next-level requirements, not total XP from level 1 or a promised number of kills. The shipped configuration still contains old fields named linear and quadratico; the reviewed current next-level function does not consume them. The reference table follows the effective exponential rule instead.

Skill points and passive points

Skill point budget = floor(level / 2). Each allocated skill rank costs one point, including prerequisite ranks. An unspent budget does not remove the class tree’s connectivity, tier or prerequisite rules. A level-1 hero therefore starts with zero skill points, and a level-2 hero has one. The number of learned ranks is separate from how many active skills can be equipped.

Passive point budget = hero level. The origin node is free; every selected non-origin node consumes one point. A path to a distant target costs all new nodes along that path. The available count is the level budget minus paid nodes, with a minimum of zero. Compare the passive tree and class skill catalog before spending a path’s full cost.

Account progression and catch-up

The Codex is an account progression system, separate from a hero’s passive tree. Its runes unlock account features and capacities, including hero slots, skill slots, bag slots and stash tabs. Requirements and purchase costs are shown on the rune map; having a high-level hero does not automatically buy the rune.

The native catch-up system compares a lower hero with a reference level drawn from the active party. Its current multiplier is ×1.5 outside the configured 3-level gap; the reference also accounts for which heroes are already catching up. It stops boosting at the catch-up target instead of applying forever. Recruitment can reuse a benched hero, so a class change is not always a fresh level-1 start. See Party and bench.

These rules come from the installed QuestAway 0.8.1 client, revision 6d1e887bd1c0, with shipped settings applied. Runtime balance and server-controlled availability can differ.

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