Hussar
Legend
And you apparently missed my point, even though I used the same wording that you did!
Yes, you can describe HP loss as physical damage, just like you can describe it as fatigue or luck or plot armor or whatever. Then you keep saying that HP=Meat lost. But that is not true, nor is the opposite true. You can describe all damage as some sort of physical affliction and the game works just as well.
The trap I did not fall into is saying that those who think that HPs are not meat lost. They didn't. They can still play their way with the 5e rules and it won't even be a house rule. What I did say was that those who say that HPs are not equal to meat lost, because they did. HPs can be meat. Or they can not be. They can be either. To say that one or the other lost is not true.
So no, I don't need to keep trying. I can describe HP loss however I and my group wish. Or we can ignore the description of HPs altogether and just not worry about it.
I will admit that I believe Damage on a Miss is an abomination. The ability to truly fail is what makes success that much sweeter. DOAM dilutes that sweetness. This is pure opinion though and I understand others will disagree. Probably best if we don't open that can of worms any farther.
See, the thing is, the HP=Meat crowd doesn't agree with you. The point that is being made by that crowd is that HP loss is always a physical wound. That's what was lost in 5e. It can be, or it might not be. The rules don't actually tell you. Which means that HP =/= Meat. It might mean meat, or it might not. It's abstract. Describe it however you like, but, you cannot tell anyone else that they are wrong for describing it differently. Which means in the context of this thread, that many of the points being raised are based on a flawed understanding of what 5e says HP are.
All you can actually say, with any certainty is that a successful attack caused you to lose HP. That's it. What that actually means in the game world is 100% up to the group/DM, not the rules.
Which nicely opens the door for all sorts of goodies, like non-magical healing, non-attack damage, and, yup, damage on a miss. Because once you admit that HP are whatever the group wants them to be, then you don't really have any leg to stand on to argue against these things. Don't like them? Fine, don't use them. They conflict with your interpretation of HP? Fair enough, you don't have to use them. But, you don't get to hold up chapter and verse and tell everyone else that they are wrong for wanting these things.