D&D 5E Critical Hits Appears to be Next in D&D Archive

[Stalker0]

My favorite thing about this is not only are crits exciting and a bit more frequent, there actually faster to resolve than standard attacks!!

 

[jester47]

If you're already dealing 16 points with the war pick, and possibly some bonus damage from a Strength modifier, is it really worthwhile to dig out a d6 and roll it for an average of 3.5 more points of damage? I'll keep an eye on this one for house-ruling into a flat bonus.

If your enemy has 18-22 hp left...
Yes...
Yes it is.

 

[jester47]

It could be some kind of tiered weapon proficiency, e.g. Weapon Proficiency 1 now covers simple weapons (or simple versions of the various weapon types), Weapon Proficiency 2 covers martial weapons, and Weapon Proficieny 3 covers exotic weapons.

A basic pick might only require Weapon Proficiency 1, for example.

Or maybe its a "slot" system. Wizards get 1 "slots", fighters get 12 or somthing. The weirder and more powerful the weapon the more "slots" it takes.
Maybe?

 

[Raith5]

By this I assume you're wondering if a Nat 20 is still an automatic hit, yes? Doesn't say, but I don't really see any reason they'd change that, especially since they've toned down the damage crits do.

Yes it is strange that they have not indicated whether you can crit when only a 20 can hit. It seems to be a very important detail.

But I agree that given that these new crits deal less damage that all 20s (whether you require a 20 to hit that target or not) will be crits.

I guess the only concern I have about this is the skill of the attacker (in relation to the defender) has no bearing on the incidence of crits. I appreciate that they are trying to cut down the number of rolls per combat, but the confirmation roll of 3ed crits meant crits were not just lucky hits but that the attacker had to be good enough to make the crit stick.

 

[demadog]

Ok, but if a crit simply maxes the die, then with 1d8 longsword I would be doing the same as a crit on 12.5% of all hits. Seems to me to lessen the overall value of crits. Hopefully though, the article implies quite a few bonus events for crits as well. Also, if my impressions are correct, the actual weapon damage may not be as much of factor in determining total damage.

 

[Aloïsius]

It could be some kind of tiered weapon proficiency, e.g. Weapon Proficiency 1 now covers simple weapons (or simple versions of the various weapon types), Weapon Proficiency 2 covers martial weapons, and Weapon Proficieny 3 covers exotic weapons.

A basic pick might only require Weapon Proficiency 1, for example.

It seems useless overcomplication, so I think my explanation is better
Or, rather, I think this is a value, not some kind of index (or else, there won't be a column for it, it would be written as an exposant somewhere, like the various symbols for reach weapon, double damage on a charge weapons and other special rules weapons in PHB 3.x

 

[jester47]

Now I wish I understood how damage works...
Perhaps a critical hit gives you the bloodied condition?

 

[FireLance]

Or maybe its a "slot" system. Wizards get 1 "slots", fighters get 12 or somthing. The weirder and more powerful the weapon the more "slots" it takes.
Maybe?

I hope not. That would require a separate sub-system to track weapon proficiency, which I don't think is worth the effort. I'd rather roll it into feats, as was the case in 3e.

 

[Majoru Oakheart]

Now I wish I understood how damage works...
Perhaps a critical hit gives you the bloodied condition?

No, bloodied was described specifically by one of the designers as a mechanic to determine the halfway point of a combat. They said that in early playtesting that battles felt the same for the whole combat. They wanted the battle to change in feeling as the battle neared its end. So they asked themselves how does one determine the midway point of a battle. The answer? When the monster is at half hit points. So, they invented bloodied: "When the monster is below half its hitpoints it is bloodied." Then they put in mechanics such that certain abilities can only be used against bloodies opponents or have a greater effect against them.

So, during the first half of the combat, you'll be attacking the enemies and trying to bloody them, then during the second half, you'll be finishing them off with "finishing moves" and such.

 

[fuindordm]

Normally I'm a 4e booster, but this column bugs me.

"Because we, like so many players, had rolled crits only to have the confirmation roll miss. And we didn't like it... It keeps the excitement of the 20, and ditches the disappointment of the failure to confirm."

I shed tears for the designers... I really do. But this, I think, is an example where fun has to take a back seat to sense. And the 3e system makes sense. I think it is the best crit system for an RPG I have ever seen, even if I've seen it kill quite a few players.

The 4e system might make sense too, but it would really irritate me if the new version puts everyone on the same footing. Criticals should occur more often for skilled fighters. I think the confirmation roll puts them at just the right level of rarity, and strikes the correct balance in this regard: even mooks can crit (rarely) but fighters can crit often.

I'm all for making the game more fun, but that doesn't mean we have to protect the player from every moment of disappointment!!! Sure, it's a bummer--but hey, you still did damage, didn't you. And the confirmed crit is just that much sweeter for it.