Energy Drain

[Grisu]

Do I get this right? If a player is "hit" by a negativ level, he loses the level immediately (no save here). If he is not treated he has to make a saving throw for each lost level after 24h.

If he does'nt succeed he still regains the lost abilities, skills and spells, but he looses one level. What does this mean exaclty?

A Level 4 fighter gets hit and does not succeed with his save throws. So all his stats are the same, but he is considerd level 3? Does he lose his feats for level 4? Or his saves? Does he get more xp cause he's level 3? Or does he just count as HD 3 for spells and stuff?

grisu

 

[frankthedm]

Untill the 24 hour mark, the character has a "negative level" If the save is failed after 24 hours, then the XP comes off the charater sheet and the player looses the actual character level.

http://d20srd.org/

Energy Drain And Negative Levels
Some horrible creatures, especially undead monsters, possess a fearsome supernatural ability to drain levels from those they strike in combat. The creature making an energy drain attack draws a portion of its victim’s life force from her. Most energy drain attacks require a successful melee attack roll—mere physical contact is not enough. Each successful energy drain bestows one or more negative levels (the creature’s description specifies how many). If an attack that includes an energy drain scores a critical hit, it drains twice the given amount. A creature gains 5 temporary hit points (10 on a critical hit) for each negative level it bestows (though not if the negative level is caused by a spell or similar effect). These temporary hit points last for a maximum of 1 hour.

A creature takes the following penalties for each negative level it has gained:

-1 on all skill checks and ability checks.
-1 on attack rolls and saving throws.
-5 hit points.
-1 effective level (whenever the creature’s level is used in a die roll or calculation, reduce it by one for each negative level).
If the victim casts spells, she loses access to one spell as if she had cast her highest-level, currently available spell. (If she has more than one spell at her highest level, she chooses which she loses.) In addition, when she next prepares spells or regains spell slots, she gets one less spell slot at her highest spell level. Negative levels remain until 24 hours have passed or until they are removed with a spell, such as restoration. If a negative level is not removed before 24 hours have passed, the affected creature must attempt a Fortitude save (DC 10 + ½ draining creature’s racial HD + draining creature’s Cha modifier; the exact DC is given in the creature’s descriptive text). On a success, the negative level goes away with no harm to the creature. On a failure, the negative level goes away, but the creature’s level is also reduced by one. A separate saving throw is required for each negative level.

A character with negative levels at least equal to her current level, or drained below 1st level, is instantly slain. Depending on the creature that killed her, she may rise the next night as a monster of that kind. If not, she rises as a wight.

 

[Grisu]

yes, but what does "the creature’s level is also reduced by one" mean?

 

[frankthedm]

The players XP goes down to halfway between third level and fourth level. All benefits of that level are lost, HP gained from level up are taken off the characters total, feats gained from level up are lost, skill points from that level are removed from the character and if that was a level where the character got an ability score point, remove that point. It is like the character never gained that XP.

 

[Grisu]

So the "temporary" negative level gets replaced by a permanent one.

 

[frankthedm]

So the "temporary" negative level gets replaced by a permanent one.

If the fort save is failed, Yep.

If a negative level is not removed before 24 hours have passed, the affected creature must attempt a Fortitude save (DC 10 + ½ draining creature’s racial HD + draining creature’s Cha modifier; the exact DC is given in the creature’s descriptive text). On a success, the negative level goes away with no harm to the creature. On a failure, the negative level goes away, but the creature’s level is also reduced by one. A separate saving throw is required for each negative level.

BTW, Many people feel actual level loss is too punishing in the “fun game of accumulation" that D&D is often played as. While very believable since levels do represent life force, having the XP ripped of the character sheet can be a real kill joy for some people. Just a F.Y.I.

 

[Grisu]

BTW, Many people feel actual level loss is too punishing in the “fun game of accumulation" that D&D is often played as. While very believable since levels do represent life force, having the XP ripped of the character sheet can be a real kill joy for some people. Just a F.Y.I.

That's the reason I hesitated to let my players encounter a Vampire Spawn. I'll use some ogres instead...

Thanks for warning me...

 

[MarkB]

That's the reason I hesitated to let my players encounter a Vampire Spawn. I'll use some ogres instead...

Thanks for warning me...

Bear in mind that restoration can remove all negative levels if cast before they turn into actual lost levels, and can also restore one actual lost level per casting, if cast within 1 day per caster level. So if your party has access to restoration, or is within a few days of an appropriate-level cleric, it could still be no more than a temporary setback.

 

[Tiberius]

Bear in mind that restoration can remove all negative levels if cast before they turn into actual lost levels, and can also restore one actual lost level per casting, if cast within 1 day per caster level. So if your party has access to restoration, or is within a few days of an appropriate-level cleric, it could still be no more than a temporary setback.

It's worth noting, though, that even if you get the levels restored you're in for some hurt. Restoration will return the level, but it will restore you to the minimum XP required for the level. So if after your level-draining encounter you're 1 XP away from 4th (5,999 XP), fail your Fort save, then get Restored, you will be returned to 3,000 XP.