Fatigue and Exhaustion

Kerrick · Apr 28, 2005

I've got a couple questions about fatigue and exhaustion. I've looked through the PHB and DMG, all over the WotC site, and even to the FAQ, and I can't find what I need. Now, I know the effects of both, but what causes them in the first place? The description for exhaustion says that "a fatigued character becomes exhausted by doing something else that would normally cause fatigue." Well gee, that's helpful. I mean, I can reasonably assume that going without sleep for long periods of time, engaging in strenuous activity for long periods without a break, and the spell waves of fatigue all cause fatigue... but what else makes someone fatigued? What would cause them to become exhausted? Can I cast a spell while fatigued (and if so, shouldn't there be a penalty)? Engage in ranged combat (melee combat's pretty obviously strenuous)? How long/far can I walk before becoming exhausted?

Lasher Dragon · Apr 28, 2005

Can I cast a spell while fatigued (and if so, shouldn't there be a penalty)? Yes, and no penalty apart from the possible penalty to hit because of the -2 Str/Dex.

Engage in ranged combat (melee combat's pretty obviously strenuous)? Yes, but again the -2 Dex will affect to-hit. Nothing prevents melee, but there is the -2 Str.

How long/far can I walk before becoming exhausted? I'm no expert on the marching rules, but I believe they go off of your Con score. Also there are different "walks" - forced march to mosey I believe. Try looking up "Forced March" in the DMG/PH for the area about how fatigue sets in from walking/marching.

dcollins · Apr 28, 2005

Some things that cause fatigue or exhaustion:
- Armor (sleeping in armor)
- Starvation and thirst
- Heat dangers
- Cold dangers

Note that neither forced marches nor running officially cause fatigue.

TheGemini · Apr 28, 2005

Any mention of length-of-combat and fatigue/exhaustion? I mean, 3 combats in a day, plus travel, etc....you're asking for a cramp.

AuraSeer · Apr 29, 2005

Common stuff that causes fatigue:
- Sleeping in Medium or Heavy armor
- Lack of food or water
- Extreme temperatures (heat or cold)
- Some magic spells (like touch of fatigue)
- The aftermath of Barbarian Rage
- Failing a Constitution check during a forced march
- Hustling for more than one hour between sleep cycles

If you are fatigued, you cannot Charge or Run, but you can still do anything else you want. You can still cast spells, make ranged attacks, fight in melee, and otherwise continue to be a badass adventurer type. The only penalty you suffer is the -2 to Strength and Dexterity.

If you become exhausted you take an additional -4 penalty to Str and Dex (total of -6 each), and you move at half speed. But as long as that doesn't reduce a stat to 0, you can still take any actions you want.

The book does not provide for fatigue due to ordinary combat; strictly by the RAW, you can fight in melee nonstop for a full day and not suffer the Fatigued condition. However, in an exceptional case such as that, it's up to the DM to assign penalties if appropriate.

devilish · Apr 29, 2005

Yep -- combat forever unless the DM rules it.

This annoyed me a while back because I was watching an episode
of Samurai Jack where he and the Scotsman fight on the bridge
for an entire night .... they start off swinging hard but by the
next morning they're just patting away at each other.

I thought this would be cool to have as a combat arena challenge to see
who would drop first. But alas, that would be a house rule.

Demoquin · Apr 29, 2005

gah i hate that show ... its all crap for the first 20 mins then at the end ... in one hit with his 'magic' sword .... all the bad guys die. LAME

Tonguez · Apr 29, 2005

AuraSeer said:
Common stuff that causes fatigue:
- Sleeping in Medium or Heavy armor
.

This always cracked me up! You can go without sleep in DnD and not be fatigued (unless you hustle) but if you DO sleep in armour you get fatigued!

Darth Malakh · Apr 30, 2005

For all of those who live by the d&d rules (yes, you guys do have a lawful alignment...ever tried the monkish way?):
common sense and some experience in real world physical activity should help you a lot to being able to approximate some on the fly-ruling for fatigue and exhaustion.
Ever done any up-hill-fighting on a LARP? King of the Hill is not a title easily wrought out of someboby else's grip. I definetly prefer achtivity on level terrain. Must be my CON of about 10

Malakh
Smoking gives you CON Penalties for sure :\