Do monsters do extra damage on a crit?

[Flipguarder]

IMHO, the fact that most monsters do not gain much benefit from crit is a good thing and a big improvement in 4e.

Once, in a low-level 3.5e game, I used a lot of first-level commoners with Scythe (just after the first DDM was released, and I had the Human commoner minis a lot). I nearly killed 2 PCs with full hps, due to my lucky rolls. Such incidents are no good for both players and DMs.

I think there's a big difference between quadrupling the amount of damage they get on a crit and adding any to their max damage.

 

[Mahali]

I know. I've always felt that they should get +50% damage or something with a crit. I don't know how many times I've critted with a minion, telling the PC they got critted and then following that up with, take X damage where X is what they took every other time from that guy!

Of course you get about a 4-1 crit ratio with minions compared to a single creature too which is another reason to not add more damage to them.

 

[Dr_Sage]

Of course you get about a 4-1 crit ratio with minions compared to a single creature too which is another reason to not add more damage to them.

Agree.

Thats why minions are dungerous in numbers. Imagine if every single orc/uruk that attacked the Fellowship had the chance to seriouly crit? Poor Aragorn... ^^

 

[Minigiant]

Most monsters (non-brutes and non-lurkers) are intended to have near static damage.

A major aspect of the game is that monsters aim to hit while PC aim to damage. Monsters are more damage sacks, the difficulty in slaying them comes in how many resources (daily powers, items, action points) the players are willing to use. Monster HP drop based on how aggressive the players are. It can go down in stages via at-will power spam OR drop like a rock via a daily power nova.

Monsters on the other hand just want to hit. Players have 20-30& less HP and rely on healing than them once you get past the beginning stages. Each hit the Players take hurts since Death has a shorter leash on them. Player's health is supposed to go down in stages. Player hp doesn't drop like a rock often unless they walk into poor tactics.

 

[GMforPowergamers]

Yeah, I recall that in 3.x, a 1st level orc barbarian with a non-magical greataxe could trigger a save vs. death by massive damage on a crit.

Cheers, -- N

in 3.0 they had great axes, and I belive +4 from str (might be higher remeber x1.5 two handed)

1d12+4 crit would be back then 3d12+12...min 15.

a barbarian with a 20 con not rageing had 17 hp...a wizard with a 14 con had 6...almost garantee to kill (ie -10) a wizard or rouge, and on avrage 6.5*3= 19.5+12=31...killing even that barb...

 

[-Avalon-]

Agree.

Thats why minions are dungerous in numbers. Imagine if every single orc/uruk that attacked the Fellowship had the chance to seriouly crit? Poor Aragorn... ^^

Actually, that scenario would have been played out using the MERP (Middle Earth Role-Playing) system, which surprises me completely how ANY of the fellowship survived... (check out the crit system in MERP, you will understand)