D&D 5E The Gloves Are Off?

[Maxperson]

So you, as DM, are stepping in to help the player save their character by describing what the character does on successful save?

I'm just narrating the result of the action. PC death is what happens if I can't narrate things and the players don't step up.

And if you (or the player) didn't describe the character "dodging behind a pillar", you'd assess full damage on a successful save?

How would they save? What would cause half damage if they are standing out in the full blast and not moving?

 

[Lanefan]

Shield isn't the only thing that can turn a potential hit into a miss in 5e.

As such rather than saying "the orc hits you..." perhaps a better statement would be "the orc will hit unless you can do something about it..." and give the player (or another player who might have an ability) a second to see if there is something they can and wish to do.

Bleah! That's far too reminiscent of playing M:tG against someone playing blue, and having to ask after every single non-land card "can I keep it or are you going to counter it?".

And again, how does the timing work in the fiction here? By the time you realize the Orc's gonna hit you it either already has or is going to within a split second - are these reactions really supposed to happen this fast?

 

[Maxperson]

You can, but in reality is there any guarantee that you will?

No there's not. I give a roll for things like that.

If I'm asleep I'm both unconscious and incapacitated until-unless I wake up and thus both those conditions should apply.

The game dictates certain penalties for those terms, though, and sleep doesn't qualify to receive all of them. It's frustrating when they do things like this, but there's Unconscious(the condition) and unconcious(little c for sleeping).

Now if the game simply assumes sleeping characters always wake up whenever there's a reason to (which isn't realistic in the slightest!) that's one thing, but ideally there should be some sort of rule or guideline as to one's odds of waking up - particularly if the incoming threat is at all stealthy about it.

There's no guideline that I'm aware of. The DM has to make a ruling for it.

 

[Lanefan]

How would they save? What would cause half damage if they are standing out in the full blast and not moving?

Someone upthread posted a few very-unlikely-but-still-plausible ideas including a cool spot in the blast, a lucky puff of air that blows the fire away from you, and so forth. I'm fine with this sort of thing, but at the table it'd reflect as something like "OK, roll a save; and if you get a natural 20 I'll think about it."

 

[Lanefan]

No there's not. I give a roll for things like that.

Me too, but there's nothing codified about it.

The game dictates certain penalties for those terms, though, and sleep doesn't qualify to receive all of them.

I'd be curious to know which ones don't apply. Death saves if Unconscious through damage, I suppose, but that's a special case.

I mean, dunno 'bout you but when I'm asleep I can't speak, move, cast spells, use items, hear noise, perceive things, attack, defend myself, or do anything else that requires conscious thought and-or awareness.

 

[Swarmkeeper]

I'm just narrating the result of the action. PC death is what happens if I can't narrate things and the players don't step up.

How would they save? What would cause half damage if they are standing out in the full blast and not moving?

So, the evil wizard casts fireball and the party rogue and cleric, restrained by web, are standing in the middle of the blast area. Are you saying that you won't give the rogue or the cleric a saving throw in this situation? Keep in mind that obstacles are meaningless to a fireball as it spreads around corners.

 

[Swarmkeeper]

Someone upthread posted a few very-unlikely-but-still-plausible ideas including a cool spot in the blast, a lucky puff of air that blows the fire away from you, and so forth. I'm fine with this sort of thing, but at the table it'd reflect as something like "OK, roll a save; and if you get a natural 20 I'll think about it."

That's... not how saves work in 5e...

 

[Lanefan]

That's... not how saves work in 5e...

Obviously. But it's how I'd rule if someone broke the assumption and said a character specifically wasn't trying to dodge or avoid a fireball or similar.

 

[Voadam]

How so?

The triggering event begins, the AoO happens in response, the AoO is resolved, then the triggering event continues if it can. Time flows forward all the way.

Opportunity attack PH Page 195

"You can make an opportunity attack when a hostile creature that you can see moves out of your reach. To
make the opportunity attack, you use your reaction to make one melee attack against the provoking creature. The attack occurs right before the creature leaves your reach."

It is not when they are "moving" out of your reach, it is when the creature moves out of your reach.

If they are within your reach, that is within your reach and before they move out of your reach.

That is my natural language reading of this 5e rules section

If you hit them with a grapple they are restrained and do not actually move out of your reach.

Except in the fiction the character has no real way of knowing whether the foe's next attack will hit until after it already has! And by that point, it is (or certainly should be) too late to do anything to prevent that attack from hitting.

Except in the fiction reaction spells are just as quick as fighting style interrupt actions. Blocking someone's blow with a quick defensive spell seems as fictionally genre appropriate as blocking someone's swing with a fighting style bodyguard type interrupt action.

 

[Voadam]

And again, how does the timing work in the fiction here? By the time you realize the Orc's gonna hit you it either already has or is going to within a split second - are these reactions really supposed to happen this fast?

Yes.

That seems inherent in making them interrupt type reactions.