# Charge for Advancement

LLMS index: [llms.txt](/dvw/en/llms.txt)

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Players are so pleased when their character has gained enough experience for them to advance a level or skill that they are quite happy to pay virtual coin to seal it. Whether this is through “training” (which for some reason only NPCs seem able to provide) or the acquisition of some expensive item (mithril cross, ebony staff, engraved armor) is not the point: The point is to provide a money sink.

Some designers adopt a “charge for everything” view and make characters pay to enter cities, to cross bridges, to speak to officials, and so on. This can backfire if people find it too tiresome or depressing. By charging for things that don’t happen all the time and that the player is happy about, these negative effects are greatly reduced. Charging for advancement is the perfect example of this idea in action.

Personally, I don’t like charging for advancement; it’s a little too cynical and opportunistic for my tastes. However, with plenty of players trained to accept it by existing virtual worlds, that’s no reason for you to overlook it.