Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
The
VOIDRUNNER'S CODEX
is LIVE! Explore new worlds, fight oppressive empires, fend off fearsome aliens, and wield deadly psionics with this comprehensive boxed set expansion for 5E and A5E!
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
D&D Older Editions
4E vs 5E: Monsters and bounded accuracy
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Ilbranteloth" data-source="post: 6906815" data-attributes="member: 6778044"><p>I sort of answered this already, but I think I understand your point better.</p><p></p><p>You're talking about a high level character being able to one-shot a lower level character.</p><p></p><p>So to begin with, the mechanics are human(oid) centric. So a one-shot killing blow is something you can measure best against that standard. Such as the commoner NPC. So there are a lot of monsters, traps, and even a critical hit from another 1st level character that can one-shot pretty much any person in the world except for those with more extensive combat training (that is, a character of higher than 1st level).</p><p></p><p>As characters get to be higher levels, there are two primary mechanics in play for increasing martial damage: </p><p></p><p>Scaling damage, like the rogue's sneak attack, and additional attacks, like the fighter. The barbarian and Ranger (Hunter) have a bit of both. Rogues have a higher chance of a one-shot kill. But the fighter-types have a better overall chance in combat.</p><p></p><p>I would recommend adding the System Shock rule (DMG pg273) which gives you a 30% chance of a one-shot kill if you do at least half their hit point maximum in a single shot.</p><p></p><p>As I've mentioned elsewhere, I do have mechanics for one-shot kills, and I think it largely addresses your concern, because it works best against targets of lower level than you.</p><p></p><p><strong> Called Shot</strong>: You attack with disadvantage. If you already have disadvantage, you cannot attempt a called shot. If your attack hits, the target gets a saving throw with a DC of 8 + your attack modifier. Many of the called shots allow the target to make an opportunity attack against you if your called shot fails.</p><p></p><p>· <strong>Sever.*</strong> You can attempt to decapitate your target, or amputate a limb. The target must make a Dexterity or Constitution saving throw (their choice).</p><p> There is no special effect unless they fail their saving throw by 10 or more, in which case the limb is severed, throat slit, etc. If your attack is a critical hit, they only have to fail their save by 5 or more to lose the limb.</p><p> Certain creatures are more susceptible to this attack, such as hydras, ropers, and most creatures with tentacles, in which case the attack is successful if they fail their saving throw. </p><p></p><p>The most important warning I can give about any rules like this is that if you have the option for doing it, so does the monster. So at some point, this <em>will</em> happen to a PC. It's just a matter of simple math. If the chance is 1%, then along the course of several sessions you'll roll that 1 in 100 chance. So you want it to be hard, and you want it to be something that most monsters won't attempt because they have better options.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Ilbranteloth, post: 6906815, member: 6778044"] I sort of answered this already, but I think I understand your point better. You're talking about a high level character being able to one-shot a lower level character. So to begin with, the mechanics are human(oid) centric. So a one-shot killing blow is something you can measure best against that standard. Such as the commoner NPC. So there are a lot of monsters, traps, and even a critical hit from another 1st level character that can one-shot pretty much any person in the world except for those with more extensive combat training (that is, a character of higher than 1st level). As characters get to be higher levels, there are two primary mechanics in play for increasing martial damage: Scaling damage, like the rogue's sneak attack, and additional attacks, like the fighter. The barbarian and Ranger (Hunter) have a bit of both. Rogues have a higher chance of a one-shot kill. But the fighter-types have a better overall chance in combat. I would recommend adding the System Shock rule (DMG pg273) which gives you a 30% chance of a one-shot kill if you do at least half their hit point maximum in a single shot. As I've mentioned elsewhere, I do have mechanics for one-shot kills, and I think it largely addresses your concern, because it works best against targets of lower level than you. [B] Called Shot[/B]: You attack with disadvantage. If you already have disadvantage, you cannot attempt a called shot. If your attack hits, the target gets a saving throw with a DC of 8 + your attack modifier. Many of the called shots allow the target to make an opportunity attack against you if your called shot fails. · [B]Sever.*[/B] You can attempt to decapitate your target, or amputate a limb. The target must make a Dexterity or Constitution saving throw (their choice). There is no special effect unless they fail their saving throw by 10 or more, in which case the limb is severed, throat slit, etc. If your attack is a critical hit, they only have to fail their save by 5 or more to lose the limb. Certain creatures are more susceptible to this attack, such as hydras, ropers, and most creatures with tentacles, in which case the attack is successful if they fail their saving throw. The most important warning I can give about any rules like this is that if you have the option for doing it, so does the monster. So at some point, this [I]will[/I] happen to a PC. It's just a matter of simple math. If the chance is 1%, then along the course of several sessions you'll roll that 1 in 100 chance. So you want it to be hard, and you want it to be something that most monsters won't attempt because they have better options. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
D&D Older Editions
4E vs 5E: Monsters and bounded accuracy
Top