Experience Points

Experience Points, usually abbreviated as EXP, are a recurring feature in the Final Fantasy series. Like in almost all RPGs, characters are further enhanced by gaining Experience Points. However, the method of gaining experience points can vary. Generally, experience is gained at the end of each successful battle.

Final Fantasy
Experience points make their first appearance in this game. By killing monsters, all members of the party will gain an equal amount of EXP, whether they made an action or not. Petrified and unconscious party members will not gain EXP.

Final Fantasy II
Final Fantasy II does not use the traditional experience and leveling system, instead having different rates for skill, HP, MP, etc.

Final Fantasy III
EXP is gained the same way as in Final Fantasy. This game also features AP which is gained the same way, but instead of leveling up the character it levels up the character's Job Level.

Final Fantasy IV
EXP is gained the same way as in most other games, by winning a battle while not being KO'd or Petrified.

In the DS version, equipping the Augment Level Lust, the EXP gained is doubled for that character as long as the Augment is equipped.

Final Fantasy IV -Interlude-
EXP is gained the same way as in the prequel and most other games in the series.

Final Fantasy IV: The After Years
EXP is once again gained the same way as in its predecessors and most other games in the series.

Final Fantasy V
EXP is gained by winning a battle while not being KO'd, Ejected or Petrified.

AP is gained the same way, but instead of leveling up the characters, it levels up their Job Level, until it is maximized.

Final Fantasy VI
At the end of a battle, all available characters in the party are awarded AP and EXP. AP, Instead of leveling up a character's Job, helps characters learn abilities from their Equipped Espers. AP is not awarded until the first set of Espers are obtained at Zozo.

Equipping the Relic Experience Egg (known as the Growth Egg in the GBA release) will double the amount of experience gained.

Final Fantasy VII
Once a character is classed as a member of the player's party, they will gain experience from won battles, unless they are flagged as knocked out. If the character is a member of the active battle party they receive the full EXP. If they are knocked out, they receive no EXP at all. If they are outside of the battle party, they receive half as much EXP as the members in the active party.

Experience is not divided among the party members, so the player is not penalized on the size of the party. If a party member leaves the party due to a story-related event such that they can no longer be chosen in the PHS menu, they will gain no experience until they rejoin.

Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-
Zack levels up through the Digital Mind Wave, and while it may seem random, it, in fact, isn't. The game utilizes a hidden EXP system, where Zack gains Experience from slain enemies. After meeting certain invisible EXP thresholds, he is eligible for a level up.

Furthermore, the potential level is a factor; for example if Zack is at level 15 and has enough experience to be at level 20, he is considerably more likely to level up than if he only has enough experience to reach level 16.

Final Fantasy VIII
In Final Fantasy VIII the character who lands the killing blow gains the most experience from that particular enemy. Boss Battles do not give EXP. Also, the experience for the next level is always at 1000; enemies always give out the same amount of experience, no matter their level.

Unlike in the other games, in Final Fantasy VIII the player receives EXP from battles even if they escape. The amount of EXP gained from fled battles depends on how much the player reduced the enemies' HP by; if they damage an enemy 50% of their HP, they will get 50% of the EXP the enemy would give when defeated.

Additionally, GF's gain experience and AP at the end of battle provided they are junctioned to a party member prior to combat. Unlike human characters, GF's even gain experience and AP from boss battles.

Final Fantasy IX
Experience is gained in a similar way to Final Fantasy III, the only difference being that AP is used to learn new abilities from equipped equipment. Boss battles grant no EXP but they will give AP.

Final Fantasy X
Final Fantasy X does not use regular EXP, rather only Ability Points (AP), which is used to gain Sphere Levels. Sphere levels equal the amount of steps each character can take on the Sphere Grid, similar to classic board games.

When starting a file two Sphere Grid modes are available and only one can be selected: 'Standard' mode has strict, rarely-diverging routes for each character, but bears more clear nodes (which can be filled with attribute slots later in the game through use of special spheres). 'Expert' mode has less clear spaces, but its layout is considerably less strict, allowing characters to diverge from their traditional routes from the beginning.

Each step taken on the Sphere Grid to a new node deducts a single Sphere Level from their total levels, and one level can be expended to move backwards by up to four nodes which have already been crossed. 'Spheres' can be used to activate nodes on the characters' current position or adjacent nodes, most of which raise a certain attribute or teach an ability, but some of which are blank.

Each character has a general path which they are expected to follow but these routes have many branching point, allowing the player to customize characters to their liking, for the most part. Development is limited by the presence of locked nodes, which require a rare 'Key Sphere' of a certain level to open: these range from levels 1 to 4 and generally, higher numbers equal rarer spheres which become available at a later point in the story.

Characters that do nothing in battle gain no AP. Similarly, if one swaps characters out during a battle, all characters that did something, even skipped their turn by the press of the, will gain AP. AP is not split between party members, so no matter how many participants perform actions in any single battle, all will obtain the same value of AP upon victory.

Certain equipment modifications can change the behavior of AP gain, such as Overdrive > AP which speeds up AP gain based on that character's Overdrive setting while reducing Overdrive gain to 0.

Final Fantasy X-2
Final Fantasy X-2 abandons the Sphere Grid and returns to the regular EXP routine, with the characters gaining EXP after battle. The statistical boosts provided on level up for each dressphere are preset, so each character will have identical stats if they are on the same level and using the same dressphere.

Final Fantasy XI
Experience points are earned after an individual enemy is defeated, but is modified by its relative level, size of party, chains, and other factors, and will not be earned if a player is K.O.'d. EXP is earned and tallied separately for each job; further, limit points can be obtained in place of EXP starting at level 75 (automatically switched at maximum EXP) to gain Merit Points.

Special battles (e.g. battlefields, Dynamis, etc.) do not award experience points. However, some events such as Campaign will award EXP at its conclusion based on player's performance. Additionally, particular battlefields reward players with items that grant a random amount of EXP with a set cap, usually named as if it were a lost scroll, passage, or page ripped from an ancient text.

Furthermore, for the first time players are penalized EXP upon K.O. A player at Levels 1-3 will receive no penalty. From Levels 4-24 a player will lose 10% of the amount of EXP required to reach their next level. From Levels 25-67 the penalty is lowered to about an 8% EXP loss. And, after Level 68, the amount of EXP lost upon knockout is always 2400 EXP.

Receiving any of the various Raise spells or Reraise effects will reduce these EXP loss penalties as follows after Level 50 has been obtained:
 * Raise or Reraise: EXP loss from K.O. is reduced by 50% upon revival.
 * Raise II or Reraise II: EXP loss from K.O. is reduced by 75% upon revival.
 * Raise III or Reraise III: EXP loss from K.O. is reduced by 90% upon revival.

If a player has just recently achieved a new level, then becomes knocked out, and the penalty incurred is greater than the amount of total EXP they've amassed for their new level, they will Level Down. Leveling Down can become a serious problem for players, as particular weaponry and armors require particular player Level to equip.

Final Fantasy XII
Experience and License Points are gained whenever an enemy is defeated. EXP is received by all characters in the current party not in KO, Stone or X-Zone status. LP are received by all six party members.

EXP gained can be doubled by equipping the Embroidered Tippet, and LP can be doubled by equipping the Golden Amulet. There also exists a glitch where the player can respawn any opponent if they zone out before the EXP and LP values appear on screen.

''Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings
Revenant Wings is a unique game in the sense that even KOed characters receive EXP after battle as long as the player wins the battle. EXP isn't determined by the number of killed opponents, but is a fixed amount depending on the battle itself. Ashe's Embroidered Tippet accessory boosts the EXP received from battles for all party members.

Final Fantasy XIII
Experience points in Final Fantasy XIII take form as Crystogen Points which can be used on the Crystarium System, which can be considered a version of Final Fantasy X's Sphere Grid; however, every character has a different Crystarium for each role.

Obtaining the Growth Egg in Mission 55 will double any CP gained from enemies.

The equipment upgrade system utilizes Experience Points. EXP can be added to equipment via the upgrade menu accessed at save stations. Organic components add a multiplier, which can be boosted up to 3x to receive triple the regular EXP. Mechanic components add more EXP, but take the multiplier down when used.

Final Fantasy XIII-2
Crystogen Points and the Crystarium System are retained, however, Serah and Noel each have their own individual Crystarium from which all stat boosts and abilities for all roles are accessed. Each role can be leveled to a maximum of 99. Along the Crystarium are a number of larger bonus nodes that grant an additional stat bonus based on the role that is used to access them, allowing a degree of customization. CP is earned after each battle and each time a fragment is obtained. Some fragments grant a massive amount of CP, as much as 30,000.

Activating the Fragment Skill "Rolling in CP" doubles the amount of CP earned after a battle.

Final Fantasy XIV
Experience points allows characters to advance their levels. It is gained via battling monsters, gathering or synthesizing items. In battle, the exact amount gained is based on the difference between your level and the monster's and the size of the party, being granted even if the player is KOed.

Gathering, the amount gained is based on the grade of the gathering spot and your gathering class's level. Also, you only get experience points in a successful attempt. Finally, when synthesizing an item, the amount of experience gained is based on the relative rank of the synth and your current class's rank, and if the synth is related to a local Guildleve or not.

Final Fantasy Mystic Quest
EXP is gained after all non-boss battles; however, unlike most Final Fantasy games, the level cap is 41.

Final Fantasy: The 4 Heroes of Light
EXP is earned from enemies, regular enemies and bosses alike. All surviving characters receive all the EXP from battle, so if someone is KOed at the end of battle the others receive more EXP. The Growth Egg doubles EXP intake from battles.

Final Fantasy Tactics
EXP is gained by a character by using attacks, abilities or spells. It can be gained by doing anything to either friend, foe, or on itself. More EXP is gained when using abilities on higher level units. The ability EXP Boost increases the amount of EXP gained from any action. Another ability, Accrue EXP, allows the unit to gain EXP just by moving to another square. One levels up when their experience reaches one hundred, and the EXP count returns to 0 regardless of how much EXP the unit earns. For instance, if the unit has 99 EXP and earns 10 EXP, the EXP will go to 0 instead of 9. EXP is not gained during multiplayer mode in the PSP version.

EXP does have a small effect on the success of Errands. The more moderate the EXP level, the greater the rewards (not too high of EXP level, and not too low of EXP level).

Final Fantasy Tactics Advance
EXP is gained whenever a unit uses an ability. AP is gained after a battle is won and varies based on several factors.

Final Fantasy Tactics A2
EXP and AP is gained after every battle, in a way identical to the one used in Final Fantasy IX.

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life as a King
EXP is gained by Adventurers when they return from exploring a zone or fighting a boss. The player's character, King Leo, however, does not gain EXP. Instead he gains Elementite, which is collected by Adventurers, for use in building structures in the kingdom and paying for certain battles and events.

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates
EXP is gained by all party members every time an enemy is killed. The amount of EXP is dependent on the enemy. The equipment bonus "Smart Valor" increases the amount of EXP earned. The game gives no indication of how much EXP an enemy gives, nor the exact amount of EXP a character has, only what proportion of the EXP bar is filled towards the next level.

Dissidia Final Fantasy
EXP is awarded when damage is dealt to the opponent's HP. The more damage is done, the more EXP is gained, thus allowing the player to level up even during battle. Additionally, "bonus" EXP is awarded after online battles, or by defeating an enemy with an EX Burst. Most Battle Pieces in Story Mode also reward the player with a fixed bonus when defeated, similar to the usual EXP mechanism in other Final Fantasy games.

When a character reaches level 100, they learn three abilities, which convert EXP to either HP, Brave Points, or EX Force. Each costs 20CP to equip, and 500AP to master. Mastering them reduces the CP cost to zero. A character can only equip one of these abilities at a time.