D&D 5E Keepiing Current HP from players...

[FrogReaver]

Rule 1: Monster Damage is hidden from players. Hits will be narrated by the DM but damage numbers not given.
Rule 2: Players will only be told when their hp is at hp maximum so they don't waste resource for nothing at that point. Players will know their hp maximum since their is no way to hide that from them.

So I think it would be fun to run a game this way sometime. Has anyone ever tried? What was your experience? If you haven't would you like playing in a game with these rules or not?

I personally think it would do a lot to give uncertainty and fear to the players for their characters which D&D currently lacks. My hope is it would lead to more immersion by diminishing the unnatural safety net that hp represents for players playing their characters.

 

[MostlyHarmless42]

My immediate concerns with hiding health from the players are three things. The first is a mechanics thing, it's a lot more work on your part as a DM to keep track of player health. Second, these rules really only work if the players are comfortable giving up the agency of knowing how much health they are at. Third, it puts them completely at the mercy of the DM's descriptions. If they are not of adequate quality, I would expect many a question along the lines of "well, *how* close to dead am I?" Or "Would it be tactically sound to charge this dragon after the last three goblins hit me?" Stuff that WILL break the immersion arguably jurist as much. A related note, many players (or at least I certainly do and several of mine do) will often roleplay their character's current health. If I am at 10hp out of 60, typically I'd start to sound a bit winded or like I've been hurt a bit. I can't really gauge this as well if I don't know my current HP.

 

[Tales and Chronicles]

I was just thinking using the same rules, but with the addition of letting the players know when they get under the 50% treshold for my upcoming PotA campaign. Since in D&D HP has no effect unless its at 0, I think its a good idea of going with description only. The only downside I see its that it add more tracking for the DM.

 

[akr71]

That's a big ol' NOPE from me. As a DM or a player I would not enjoy this.

I don't typically tell players opponent HP values and I usually roll them rather than take the average, but they tell me how much damage is dealt.

 

[FrogReaver]

Why would you not enjoy it as a dm? Just the tracking aspect?

Why would you not enjoy it as a player?

That's a big ol' NOPE from me. As a DM or a player I would not enjoy this.

I don't typically tell players opponent HP values and I usually roll them rather than take the average, but they tell me how much damage is dealt.

 

[akr71]

As a DM, yes I've got enough to keep track of.

As a player... I don't know, I get anxious when my character is low in HP - I think being always concerned would change my play style to being overly cautious. I like charging in and trying to be a hero. Throw caution to the wind...

It's a game after all. I don't want lose fun for uncertainty. Just my 2 cp


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[The Crimson Binome]

So I think it would be fun to run a game this way sometime. Has anyone ever tried? What was your experience? If you haven't would you like playing in a game with these rules or not?

This is a not-uncommon idea. I think anyone who played significantly during the eighties or nineties will have tried this at least once. It's not as much fun as it sounds. I've never seen it hold for more than a session before the DM relents.

I personally think it would do a lot to give uncertainty and fear to the players for their characters which D&D currently lacks. My hope is it would lead to more immersion by diminishing the unnatural safety net that hp represents for players playing their characters.

Uncertainty and fear, maybe. Immersion, definitely not.

In order to decide whether to go forward or retreat, to heal or to attack, the player needs to be able to weigh the odds. If you don't tell them how close they are to dropping, then they can't make a meaningful decision, so whatever happens as a result of that decision just feels arbitrary. If a goblin hits them with an arrow, and they drop, then they're less likely to care about what happens since they had no idea that it might happen. It's like dropping due to an ambush, before you even get to act - it happened as a result of the DM denying you information, rather than any real choice you made, so you're not invested in the outcome. And if you do try to get enough information to make a meaningful decision, then it becomes a verbal wrestling match to drag out enough detail to determine whether you should cast Cure Wounds II or Cure Wounds IV.

Not to mention that characters are generally pretty aware of how beaten up they are. A boxer can tell when they're on the ropes, or battered but still energetic, and your current HP value conveys that information far more effectively than mere words of description from the DM.

 

[ccs]

I'd just ask the DM not to waste our time by doing this.
1) I don't have the patience for this crap.
2) It's a game. There's NOTHING you can do to instill any amount of fear in me concerning my character. The uncertainty? That comes from the d20 & whatever damage dice are being rolled. Don't waste the time/effort trying it.
3) There ARE some things that you can do that will annoy the pis out of me & reduce my enjoyment to zero. This is one of them. So, unless this is a passive agresive way of asking me not to play, why do this?

*I'm fine with it if another player wants the damage they're taken described like this. But when you roll against me? Just tell the #s.

 

[Ganymede81]

I would suggest letting them know when they pass certain checkpoints. You could say that they are winded below half and bloodied below one fourth.

 

[pukunui]

As a DM: No thanks, I've got enough to track.

As a player: No thanks. Why would my character not know how badly hurt it is?

This sort of thing reminds me of the stories some of my fellow players tell about a DM they played with years ago who wouldn't even describe the creatures they were fighting unless they made a knowledge roll. One of them likes to quip that his character was killed by a piece of cardboard because he had no idea what it was his PC was fighting.