Level

Level	XP to lvl up	Total XP gained
1 The journey begins	1,000	0
2 HP▲	2,000	1,000
3 Level perk! HP▲	3,000	3,000
4 HP▲	4,000	6,000
5 HP▲	5,000	10,000
6 Level perk! HP▲	6,000	15,000
7 HP▲	7,000	21,000
8 HP▲	8,000	28,000
9 Level perk! HP▲	9,000	36,000
10 HP▲	10,000	45,000
11 HP▲	11,000	55,000
12 Level perk! HP▲	12,000	66,000
13 HP▲	13,000	78,000
14 HP▲	14,000	91,000
15 Level perk! HP▲	15,000	105,000
16 HP▲	16,000	120,000
17 HP▲	17,000	136,000
18 Level perk! HP▲	18,000	153,000
19	19,000	171,000
20	20,000	190,000
21 Level perk!	21,000	210,000
22	22,000	231,000
23	23,000	253,000
24 Level perk!	24,000	276,000
25	25,000	300,000
26	26,000	325,000
27 Level perk!	27,000	351,000
28	28,000	378,000
29	29,000	406,000
30 Implants unlock	30,000	435,000
55 First PvE perk!	55,000	1,485,000
250 PvE master perk!	250,000	31,125,000
500 PvE master perk!	500,000	124,750,000
750 PvE master perk!	750,000	280,875,000
1000 PvE master perk!	level cap	499,500,000

Level is a number between 1 and 1000 that reflects your character's overall skill and experience.

Every time you level up, you receive a set number of skill points (based on your Intelligence).

Up to level 18, leveling up increases your hit points (based on your Endurance)

Every three levels up to level 27, you get to choose one level perk to add to your character; select it quickly lest you lose it.

Starting at level 55, you start getting PvE Perks at the rate of one perk every five levels, plus one more for every 5 points of Charisma you have, up to a total of 5 PvE perks every five levels.

Level progression gets progressively harder: each level up imposes an additional penalty of -0.1% on the amount of XP you gain while increasing the XP requirement for reaching the next.

XP needed to go up one level = Current level * 1000

Total XP needed to level up = Current level * [(Current level - 1) * 1000) / 2

Note that the above formulas are not adjusted for the -0.1% XP/level penalty, which always applies as the final step to all XP gains:

Final XP earned = Total XP - [Current Level * 0.1%] * Total XP (note that [Current Level * 0.1%] cannot exceed 99%)

Experience points

Experience points (XP) are a measure of your progression towards the next level. They are rewarded for completing specific tasks, such as quests, or defeating non-player opponents (killing players awards no XP). The higher your current level, the more experience you are going to need to reach the next. For example, you need a total of 1000 XP to get to level 2, but a total of 210,000 (rather than 20,000) to reach level 21.

XP per kill formula

The more powerful the critter you defeat, the higher its XP reward:

Total XP reward = [(HP x 2 + AP x 15 + DR point sum * 3 ) x 2 (if boss)] * XP multiplier, where:
HP = the critter's hit points;
AP = its action points;
DR point sum = its damage resistance values put together;
"Boss" means a critter with the word "BOSS" displayed next to its HP, and XP multiplier is generally either 1 (for humanoids) or 2.5 (for non-humanoids).

Alternative XP sources

If you're tired of massacring NPCs, some amount of XP can also be gained from:

Completing quests Successfully using some of your skills Detecting random encounters on the world map Event participation Reading Cat's Paw Issue #5

XP book

Character XP gain multiplier

Everyone starts with 100% as their base XP gain multiplier.

With each level, you get 0.1% less XP, resulting in less and less of the XP you earn actually making it onto your character sheet. Divide your current level by 10 and your XP gain efficiency is 100 minus the result. At level 1, it's 99.9%; at level 999, 0.1% (increased to the 1% minimum), and at lvl1000 you hit the level cap.

Gradual XP gain efficiency loss

Level	Base XP to lvl up	XP gain efficiency	Real XP to lvl up
100	100,000	90.0%	~111K
249	249,000	75.1%	~331K
499	499,000	50.1%	~996K
570	570,000	43.0%	~1.3M
749	749,000	25.1%	~2.9M
990	990,000	1.0% (cap)	99,000,000

To counteract the gradual loss of XP gain efficiency, consider getting some of the following:

• Loner (trait): +10% XP gained (Regulators get 10 times that!)
• Swift Learner (support perk): +10% XP gained
• Leather Jacket: +5% XP gained
• Charisma: +2% XP gained per point
• Bonus Charisma (armor perk): up to +80% XP gained (or up to +260% for Hubologist)
• Food: +10% XP gained
• EXP (T1 WE stat): +5% XP gained
• S.ULT (T2 WE stat): +5% XP gained
• Bishop family's blessing doubles XP gained for 24 hours

Gear experience

Your equipment receives experience points from kills alongside you, unlocking perks as it levels up. Only your currently equipped armor and active slot weapon are eligible to gain experience. You can view your gear's level progression/perks by left-clicking its inventory screen ("I" by default) icon.

For a complete list of weapon/armor perks, see weapon perks and armor perks respectively.

The amount of experience required for equipment to level up depends on its tier, type and current level.

XP needed to level up = Base XP requirement * XP requirement mod

• See Armor perks#Armor experience for base XP requirements and XP requirement modifiers specific to armor.
• See Weapon perks#Weapon experience for base XP requirements and XP modifiers specific to weapons.

Level books

Book catalogue Tier Title Level limit T1 Basic Survival Guide 1–199 T2 Apprentice's Manual 200–299 T3 Practical Knowledge for Survivors 300–399 T4 Expert's Strategy 400–499 T5 Ultimate Survivalist's Guide 500–599 T6 Guide to Dominating the Wasteland 600–699 T7 Elite Combat Manual 700–799 T8 Tome of the Invincible 800–899 T9 Legend of the Wasteland 900–949 T10 The Final Codex 950–989 T11 Transcendent Survivor's Guide 990–1000

Level Book Not to be confused with Books of Achievement, level books drop from "Infinity" Mines bosses and instantly grant enough XP to go up a level. The catch is that the higher your current level, the higher the Level Book tier required for it to be usable by your character, and the higher the tier of the book you need, the more difficult it is to get your hands on one. Level book drop chance by tier Source T1 T2 T3 T4 T5 T6 T7 T8 T9 T10 T11 Level 1 boss 50% 35% 12% 3% – – – – – – – Level 2 boss 10% 25% 40% 20% 5% – – – – – – Level 3 boss 5% 20% 20% 40% 10% 5% – – – – – Level 4 boss – – 15% 50% 20% 10% 5% – – – – Level 5 boss – – – 30% 30% 25% 10% 5% – – – Level 6 boss – – – – 20% 35% 30% 10% 4.95% 0.04% 0.01%