GM says:

Congratulations! It's time for LEVEL UP!

GM FOOTNOTES: 

• Okay, in Bard review notes, I would advocate to allow Bard songs/spells to affect the self OR an ally. Most read  just "ally." I get that it's a support role, but even the Cleric, a classic support role, has the ability to get to the front of the line. 

• I had in my mind that this battle is the fourth full heal-up, marking it a level advancement. Returning to the rules, I find once again find hedging adverbs throughout, making it a frustrating read.  "We generally let the characters advance a level after three or four arcs." First, "we"? Ok, so what should "I" do? Then, "generally"? So it's only a baseline? What makes it so, and when is it not so? And "three or four"? Why? From a player's perspective, I would want three all the time. Give me a firm bedtime, dad. 

• Reading further, I'm questioning if I was I doing stuff wrong or not. I gave incremental advances every time there was a full heal-up. 

  • -- ? Should I only have given them one of these? The book says: "In general, the GM awards the party with an advance just before the last fight before they earn their heal-up." This reads that there should be onely one, and we would have done it during chapter 4.10.  (Again, the book overuses vague words when giving instructions. "In general" is not helpful for me to understand. Give me what's expected, then later tell me it's "in general" when you give me the not-so-generalities that make it conditional.) 

  • -- ? Should I have only given them two of these? In a sidebar, the rules also say: "I tend to award incremental advances only twice a level, not every full heal-up." Does this mean I should do this, too? Why wouldn't I? And if so, is it evenly paced? Is there an award that triggers such? Should I have done it once after 2.20 and once after 3.13? 

  • -- ? Should I have given an unspecified number of them? In the same sidebar, the rules say: "[the other author] is a kinder GM than me" and gives a suggestion that it this means more than two. One could argue that the rules-as-written there is an expectation we can expect less-than-kind GMs as equally as more kindly GMs.? I would think that a kind GM should be the default assumption.