D&D General How Often Should a PC Die in D&D 5e?

[prabe]

It seems weird to argue about how dangerous or deadly 1E versus 5E is when it is demonstrably the case that 1E was more dangerous/deadly simply by virtue of the existence of ubiquitous save or die effects along with energy drain. No other metrics need be considered to make a fair judgement about this. Maybe we can quibble about how much more dangerous, but that is about it.

I've seen more 5e PCs die than 1e ones, so I guess demonstrably 5e is more PC-lethal than 1e was?

 

[prabe]

If you blow your surprise roll (side note: 5e really needs a more 1e-like surprise mechanic) then sometimes you really will die without knowing what hit you.

5e has (or at least had) a perfectly functional surprise rule, and I've had both PCs and monsters dropped "without knowing what hit them."

 

[Imaro]

I've seen more 5e PCs die than 1e ones, so I guess demonstrably 5e is more PC-lethal than 1e was?

Judging from previous posters...that seems to be the only evidence one needs to declare it true...

 

[Micah Sweet]

Kobolds were originally not draconic, orcs were pig-people at some point, but no anymore, and have become more "big brutes" instead of "lowly footsoldiers of evil" over the years. Sizes of the dragons and giants have varied from edition to edition. A lot of the fiction connected to various monsters has subtly changed over the years.

All true, but none of that really changes what they represent in the fiction (with the possible exception of the orcs, who have been largely replaced in this role by the hobgoblins) except in a minor ascetic way. Kobolds are still kobolds whether they're dog-like, dragon-like, or otherwise, for example. Size hasn't really changed the essence of what dragons and giants represent in D&D.

And a pack of ghouls is still a pack of ghouls.

 

[Micah Sweet]

How the people play is not at all relevant to how deadly the game they're playing is? Okely dokely.

Not by the rules it isn't, no.

 

[Micah Sweet]

And I'm talking about how people actually play the game. While there were more options to kill off PCs in 1E, there are still plenty of options in 5E. The rate that they are used is up to the DM and group.

That doesn't mean that the game doesn't tell you, implicitly or explicitly, what they expect that rate to be though. Those expectations are part of the rules.

 

[Micah Sweet]

I've seen more 5e PCs die than 1e ones, so I guess demonstrably 5e is more PC-lethal than 1e was?

From your point of view that would certainly make sense. Have you played much 1e?

 

[Micah Sweet]

Judging from previous posters...that seems to be the only evidence one needs to declare it true...

For an individual, that is all you need. We can only really speak for ourselves, after all.

 

[prabe]

From your point of view that would certainly make sense. Have you played much 1e?

I was playing 1e in the mid-late 1980s, and I didn't stop playing it until well after 3e came out. There were breaks, when I didn't have groups, but I played in more 1e campaigns than I've run 5e (which seems more relevant).

 

[Micah Sweet]

I was playing 1e in the mid-late 1980s, and I didn't stop playing it until well after 3e came out. There were breaks, when I didn't have groups, but I played in more 1e campaigns than I've run 5e (which seems more relevant).

Cool! That's pretty much my history too.