D&D 5E Called Shots: Aiming at specific body parts rule and discussion.

[Erechel]

The short and long answer to Called Shots is no.

Without any arguments. You just shut the window and call it a day. Just because. Have you even read the post?

I tend to agree. Having played in systems that allow them (and add'l damage or effects because of them) it seems that all combat just becomes an exchange of called shots to the head. D&D already has a mechanic that allows for similar effects - critical blows. Also I think it's important in 5e to accept that combat is an abstraction and that changing it to allow for more complexity just means more time in adjudicating combat to little gain in the play experience.

That would be an awfully long combat with this mini system. Ready action, disadvantage and half cover AC for... 1d6+Str damage and the possibility of stunning the rival for 1-3 rounds. I purposefully don't go away from the HP system. I didn't gave extra damage (crits do it). Right now the melee combat is an exchange of blows to render the rival to 0 hp (my build have moar DPR!). Unless someone is a spellcaster, and apply conditions nearly at will.

There is always the possibility to abuse the rules as there are rules (fiend warlock + Devotion paladin multiclass!!). But I didn't see this as broken as the simplest spell (like Sleep), as it has a huge tradeoff, not simply the expenditure of a renewable resource.

 

[MonkeyWrench]

I think keeping the conditions a negotiation between DM and player is good. Obviously, you'd only use these house rules with players you know and trust, so it's okay to be a little more flexible with the rules.

I also think having the effects last until the end of the player's next initiative count is the way to go.

 

[Sadras]

Without any arguments. You just shut the window and call it a day. Just because.

The interwebs, including the 6-monthly-reoccuring thread on Enworld, are filled with reasons, and in ways more eloquently than I could ever display, as to why the Called Shots answer is a resounding no. You might disagree and that is fine.
As for calling it a day, well it was long Monday at work

 

[jaelis]

As for called shots, all's fair in my book, as long as the monsters get to do it too

 

[schnee]

Groin has half cover and disadvantage .

DM: You're up, what do you do?
Monk: What do you think?
DM: No.
Monk: Flurry of -
DM: DON'T
Monk: Flurry of blows to -
DM: I'm warning you!
Monk: Flurry of blows to THE YARBLES

DM:
Monk:

 

[77IM]

I had a house rule about called shots --

AIMING
You can spend an action to aim at a creature, or if you are capable of multiple attacks, you can give up one of your attacks to aim. After your aim, your next attack against that creature gains a special benefit.

You lose the benefit if you lose sight of the creature, take an action other than attacking, make an attack against a different creature, or if your next attack has disadvantage or is with a spell that is not a cantrip. If you are using a heavy weapon, you take a -5 on the attack.

Aiming for the weak spot. You try to attack a creature's vital organs, or a chink in its armor. Some creatures may have no such weak spot, and for exotic monsters, the DM may require you to make an ability check to notice the weak spot or identify it as such. If your attack hits, you roll your weapon damage dice twice and add your ability modifier twice.

Aiming for a body part. You can aim at a specific body part such as a limb or eye. If you hit, you deal normal damage, and the enemy must succeed on a Constitution saving throw (DC = 10 + 1/5 the damage you dealt) or be unable to use that body part. Unless you scored a critical hit, the creature can repeat the save at the end of each of its turns; on a success, it recovers use of the body part. The exact effects of a disabled body part are up to the DM, but as a guideline, a creature can't attack with a disabled limb, has its speed reduced for a disabled leg, can't see with a disabled eye or hear with a disabled ear, has its flying speed reduced for a disabled wing, etc.
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I've never playtested this and eventually removed the rule because it turns out my players don't care.

I've now incorporated called shots into my generalized stunt system: TL;DR make an ability check as part of your action; if you succeed you get some benefit, and if you fail you suffer some consequence. In the case of a called shot, I'd call it a Wisdom (Perception) check, DC 15-20 based on target body part size. On a success you get bonus damage or condition should your attack hit, and on a failure your attack misses.

 

[Fanaelialae]

I don't care for it, mainly because making it a readied action disincentivizes called shots for the classes that ought to get the most mileage out of it, the high level warriors. A cleric who uses this mechanic gets the same number of attacks he usually gets [one], whereas a 5th level or higher fighter loses one or more attacks.

What I do is apply disadvantage (can't be done if you have disadvantage from another source). Depending on what you want to achieve, you must deal somewhere between half and one eighth the creature's max hp (this damage is cumulative, so you can continue making called shots if you don't get it on the first try). The damage also applies to the creature's normal hp. This way, a high level fighter is great at called shots because he can make several a round (and might need to).

 

[Croesus]

Ok, maybe I missed it in the earlier posts, but has anyone considered what this does to a standard party attacked my a horde of mooks? The mooks should all make called shots - sure disadvantage hurts, but each hit forces a save. Eventually PCs are going to miss saves, and if half the party or more are incapacitated in some way, that could easily be a TPK.

In another thread, a poster wanted advice on a 1E creature he was converting to 5E. The creatures all had hold person as a spell, and he wanted to send 20 against a 6th level party. Someone pointed out that each creature would simply throw out hold person spells the first two rounds, then slit the PCs throats (the average party isn't saving against 40 hold person spells). Called shots could easily turn into the same situation.

 

[Ristamar]

Ok, maybe I missed it in the earlier posts, but has anyone considered what this does to a standard party attacked my a horde of mooks? The mooks should all make called shots - sure disadvantage hurts, but each hit forces a save. Eventually PCs are going to miss saves, and if half the party or more are incapacitated in some way, that could easily be a TPK.

While the classic "what's good for the goose" argument is always something that should be considered, it shouldn't be the definitive reason to not allow a PC to take advantage of a special ability or exceptional mechanic. If you page through the Monster Manual and other official books, plenty of skilled NPC warriors don't have access to abilities like Action Surge or Second Wind. Most NPC casters don't have the beneficial abilities representative of a school of wizardry or the domain of a cleric. Many enemies and NPCs simply don't have access to the same options as PCs. This helps streamline play and makes the players feel special when they get to use their cool powers.

 

[mflayermonk]

DM: You're up, what do you do?
Monk: What do you think?
DM: No.
Monk: Flurry of -
DM: DON'T
Monk: Flurry of blows to -
DM: I'm warning you!
Monk: Flurry of blows to THE YARBLES

DM:
Monk:

Don't be so hard on yourself monk, how could you know that was Iron Balls McGinty.