D&D 4E 4e Healing - Is This Right?

[HeavenShallBurn]

If you can talk about "simulating" someone with 50 arrows sticking out of him, you can just as easily talk about "simulating"...

... someone whose wounds close up when he uses a second wind.

... someone who is out cold at -10 hp and suddenly gets up again.

... someone who is at 1 hp after being beaten down by orcs, but still has perfect hair.

It's all to do with how metal you are, right?

And if I were going to move to 4e that's EXACTLY how I would describe and play HP.

I have no problem with over-the-top. I've played in high level D&D campaigns that exceed Exalted in the OOT meter. My issue is just the people who complain "oh nobody could survive that it's not realistic so clearly it must be abstract" and refuse to examine the rules systemically with their "realism" glasses off. When doing so would show that the mechanics don't match the fluff they've constructed.

The final issue turning me away from 4e were changes to the magic system, not HP. In making the HP system that abstracted they've actually made it just as easy to go my way as the opposite.

 

[hong]

And if I were going to move to 4e that's EXACTLY how I would describe and play HP.

I have no problem with over-the-top. I've played in high level D&D campaigns that exceed Exalted in the OOT meter. My issue is just the people who complain "oh nobody could survive that it's not realistic so clearly it must be abstract" and refuse to examine the rules systemically with their "realism" glasses off. When doing so would show that the mechanics don't match the fluff they've constructed.

The advantage of abstract is that it allows different visualisations depending on taste.

Legolas never loses his perfect hair. Aragorn by contrast is always covered in mud and blood. Some people prefer to imagine their characters as Legolas, others prefer Aragorn. By keeping things unspecified, you can let both groups of people imagine things the way they like, possibly even in the same campaign.

Besides, a lot of people will say that having 50 arrows sticking out of you is more silly than being able to dodge them using your ablative mojo factor. And hence, mojo factor it is.

 

[HeavenShallBurn]

The advantage of abstract is that it allows different visualisations depending on taste.

Not arguing with you on that account. Note this section of my last post.

In making the HP system that abstracted they've actually made it just as easy to go my way as the opposite.

I was aiming at their claims regarding earlier edition HP, where the division between fluff and system mechanics was blatant. The claims that 1e/2e/3e were abstract too matched with the vaguely worded fluff text but not with the mechanical structure of those editions. 4e appears to be following through with a mechanical abstraction large enough that both my and Lurker's end of the spectrum are accommodated with equal ease and that's fine with me. HP aren't why I'm not moving to 4e.

 

[WhatGravitas]

... someone whose wounds close up when he uses a second wind.

WHILE RIPPING OUT 50 ARROWS FROM YOUR CHEST! RAWR!

Oh - I get the urge to do this exactly that way!

Cheers, LT.

 

[HeavenShallBurn]

WHILE RIPPING OUT 50 ARROWS FROM YOUR CHEST! RAWR!

Oh - I get the urge to do this exactly that way!

It's fun really just try to visualize it as if you were editing a 300 trailer about killing Cthulu with a spork and a pair of pliers while dropping LSD and smoking crack at the same time.

 

[ShinHakkaider]

Find me a rule that says a horse cannot have maximum ranks in Heal!

This would be an awesome sig.

 

[kennew142]

I have no problem with over-the-top. I've played in high level D&D campaigns that exceed Exalted in the OOT meter. My issue is just the people who complain "oh nobody could survive that it's not realistic so clearly it must be abstract" and refuse to examine the rules systemically with their "realism" glasses off. When doing so would show that the mechanics don't match the fluff they've constructed.

The final issue turning me away from 4e were changes to the magic system, not HP. In making the HP system that abstracted they've actually made it just as easy to go my way as the opposite.

It's funny that I was just making this same exact point in another thread. Some folks like their hp to be purely abstract. Others like them to be purely physical. I fall somewhere in the middle. All these styles of play are valid, and it looks like (HP-wise, at least) 4e could be all things to all people.