D&D General Hit Points are a great mechanic

[jdrakeh]

So great that I used them in my most recent little game! Seriously, though, they're great at what they do in that they are a simple way to convey health/stamina and get out of the way quickly.

 

[UnplayedRanger]

Honestly, same. Condition trackers are an immediate turn off these days on games for me. While HP bloat can certainly be annoying, HP itself is not the issue. Don’t fix what ain’t broke.

 

[W'rkncacnter]

There's a flipside to that. Getting a crit on the enemy just to realize that the enemy didn't notice is a bit of a buzzkill.

or horrific. depends on the energy.

 

[zarionofarabel]

They are a decent abstract way of measuring injuries. The bloat found in many games is the biggest issue I have with them. I'm not a huge fan of games where someone can get stabbed 145 times with a sword and still be perfectly fine, kinda doesn't line up with reality at all.

 

[Gorck]

Easy to keep track off and doesn't hurt the brain.

…unless you take Psychic damage.

 

[NotAYakk]

They are a decent abstract way of measuring injuries. The bloat found in many games is the biggest issue I have with them. I'm not a huge fan of games where someone can get stabbed 145 times with a sword and still be perfectly fine, kinda doesn't line up with reality at all.

I've tried to swap HP out with "why didn't I die points".

As an example, take D&D and replace HP with HD. Whenever you take damage, you roll your HD until it beats the damage. Maybe you have to attach an attribute to the roll (why you didn't die), with some limit on how often you can use a given attribute per turn?

So if you want to just soak the blow with your pecs/armor, you'd add Constitution. If you wanted to dodge it, Dexterity. Block or Parry? Strength. Plan it so the blow misses? Intelligence. Trick the enemy into missing? Charisma. See the attack coming? Wisdom.

It does make damage resolution take a bit longer. But it generates a narrative. And if you limit each stat to being used once per turn, it even generates a varied narrative.

You could in 5e even use skills this way.

 

[AlViking]

There's a reason most video games use HP, even if a few also grant a version of regenerating temp HP. It's simple, easy to track and good enough. Even when you do that crit for massive damage and the DM says "Yeah, it felt that but it's still not very hurt" can add to the tension of the game. On the other hand how much damage crits do is another topic.

 

[Laurefindel]

I've tried to swap HP out with "why didn't I die points".

As an example, take D&D and replace HP with HD. Whenever you take damage, you roll your HD until it beats the damage. Maybe you have to attach an attribute to the roll (why you didn't die), with some limit on how often you can use a given attribute per turn?

So if you want to just soak the blow with your pecs/armor, you'd add Constitution. If you wanted to dodge it, Dexterity. Block or Parry? Strength. Plan it so the blow misses? Intelligence. Trick the enemy into missing? Charisma. See the attack coming? Wisdom.

It does make damage resolution take a bit longer. But it generates a narrative. And if you limit each stat to being used once per turn, it even generates a varied narrative.

That is how I tend to view hit points in the first place. It’s an elaborate version of the classic « pow! pow! You’re dead! », « Nuh-uh, I dodged it! »

« pow! pow! I deal 16 you’re-dead-points »
« I spend 16 I-dodged-it-points to not be dead »

 

[kermit4karate]

There's a flipside to that. Getting a crit on the enemy just to realize that the enemy didn't notice is a bit of a buzzkill.

Agreed there. That's why I have always -- since the late-'80s -- incorporated a house rule to add the mathematical possibility of unlimited damage.

For every damage die where max is rolled, roll the die again and add to the total.

So a farmer wielding a 1d4 pitchfork who manages to hit a dragon rolls a 4, then rolls a 4 again, then again, then again, 100 times could conceivably kill the dragon.

IMO, it lines up better with so many works of fiction than the standard damage mechanic, and before I get dragged into the enworld public square for ritual flogging, I've successfully been using this house rule, sometimes with slight modifications, for more than 1,000 hours of DM'ing. Some may absolutely hate it, but it works for me.

 

[Bae'zel]

I don't mind HP when they're unambiguously "meat points". Personal taste and all that.

Instead of critical hits, I'm toying with the idea of "exploding" damage dice.