Energy Drain Question

[Ogrork the Mighty]

1) Undead bestows 2 negative levels (in one attack) from a 1st-lvl character. The undead gets 5 hp from the first negative level, but does it get 5 hp from the second negative level since the character only has 1 level to drain?

2) Different character gains 2 negative levels and loses 10 hp (5 per level). Character receives a Restoration spell. Does he regain the 10 hp? If not, it gets kinda weird when an undead bestows, say, 10 negative levels (draining 50 hp). The character then gets a Restoration spell that restores all negative levels (but no hp?). Can the undead then bestow another 10 negative levels and gain another 50 hp?

 

[Lawmage]

Lets address #2 first...
Restoration makes the negative level go away. It is the negative level that caused the 5 hp loss. Therefore I would say the character gets those 5 hp's back. Yes, the undead could drain some more levels and gain more hit points.

Now, for #1....This is more problematic as neither 3.0 nor 3.5 use the old style 0-level calculation. The MM does not specificly say that if drained beneath 1st level a character will die. However, the DMG does (p293). I would say that the energy draining undead does not get the benefits of the second level drain, as there was no level to drain...The 1st level drain killed the character...the second was so much icing on the cake.

 

[Ogrork the Mighty]

What if the hp loss from the first negative level killed the character, but the character still had levels that could be drained?

Say a vampire drains 2 levels. The first 5 hp loss and negative level is enough to kill the character. Does the second negative level (and +5 hp to the vampire) still take place?

We've always said that the hp loss from negative levels does not come back when a restoration spell is cast. But a problem arose recently when someone was drained of 12 levels (= 60 hp loss), but was still alive. We deducted the 60 hp and reduced the character's max hp by the same amount. But then a single restoration spell restored all 12 levels in one shot. We restored the max hp to the full amount, but we did not restore the lost 60 hp of damage. The problem with restoring the 60 hp of damage is that the vampire could just come along and drain again (since the vampire doesn't lose the healing it gained from the negative levels). This creates a potentially infinite loop of negative level loss and healing to the vampire. Potentially, an undead creature could bestow negative levels, heal as a result, have someone cast restoration on the character, bestow more negative levels, heal, and on and on and on.

 

[Lawmage]

I suppose that there could be such an infinite loop but it is unlikely to happen...After all, the hit points gained by the draining unded are not new permanent hit points. They last at most for one hour. Perhaps an undead might buff itself this way but again, I doubt it.

Moreover, the 5hp loss suffered by the drainee is the result of the negative level and presumably (though not explicitly) represents the effect of having lost the HD or Level and the associated hit point gain. When the negative level is removed (either via a saving throw or a spell) the effects of the negative level, to include the 5hp loss, disappears. It should be noted that the negative level is NOT a physical wound but rather a reduction in the character's overall life force. THe hit point loss is a way to represent that reduction. It does not make any sense to say that a restoration of the character's life force to full potential (ie removing the negative levels) leaves the character with actual physical wounds (ie the still missing hit points.)

 

[noeuphoria]

What happened to your sig? Did someone translate it and get offended?