OD&D [BX/RC] Rolls of 20 and 1?

[cbwjm]

I don't recall using crits/fumbles when I first started playing with the RC but sometime after transitioning to 2e they crept in. Not sure when or why as I can't recall any rules for natural 1s or 20s in 2e.

I may not be recalling it correctly but I think we used double damage if we rolled a 20. A 1 might have been a fumble but I don't know if that was something more detrimental than simply a miss.

 

[Jack Daniel]

I don't recall using crits/fumbles when I first started playing with the RC but sometime after transitioning to 2e they crept in. Not sure when or why as I can't recall any rules for natural 1s or 20s in 2e.

—AD&D 2nd Ed. DMG, pg. 86

 

[pming]

Hiya!

Nope.

Simply used the "20 always hits", "1 always misses". We did contemplate the 'double damage / fumble', but didn't like the problem of "you either always miss, or you crit"...even with the obvious work around of "20 is a crit unless you need a 20 to hit". It just all felt... wrong, somehow.

^_^

Paul L. Ming

 

[cbwjm]

View attachment 130431
—AD&D 2nd Ed. DMG, pg. 86

That must be it then. For the life of me I could not recall the the appearance of the rules, I guess it has been a while though.

 

[Michael Linke]

The weapon mastery rules in RC already give daggers double damage on a 20 (or lower, at higher mastery levels).

I think the effects of a 20 are already well reflected by having it repeat on the to-hit chart. A 20 doesn't deal extra damage, but it potentially hits targets that should've been mathematically invulnerable.

 

[thirdkingdom]

The weapon mastery rules in RC already give daggers double damage on a 20 (or lower, at higher mastery levels).

I think the effects of a 20 are already well reflected by having it repeat on the to-hit chart. A 20 doesn't deal extra damage, but it potentially hits targets that should've been mathematically invulnerable.

So, here's a question. For folks that allow a natural 20 to auto-hit a target, regardless of AC, do you allow it to damage targets that would otherwise be invulnerable to the attack form? In other words, could a character with a non-magical weapon damage a creature only hit by magical weapons if they roll a natural 20?

 

[jgsugden]

From around 1980 on, I used the Critical Hit and Bad Misses column from Dragon magazine on 20s and 1s. We used it whenever we played D&D, including BECMI, although there were few BECMI games played once we started with AD&D. I hand wrote out the tables, with my hand written modifications (which were likely not good, but I can't confirm as I no longer have any copies of it), to hand to players.

As I recall, our rule was: If you roll a 20, you reroll. If it is a hit, you critical hit. If it is a miss on the confirming roll, you still hit, and deal max damage. If you roll a 1, reroll. If the confirming roll is a miss, you roll on the fumble table. If it is a hit, you don't. I had a low level cleric crush the skull of an ally on a fumble - critical hit ally - roll 99 on critical hit table.

 

[Mannahnin]

So, here's a question. For folks that allow a natural 20 to auto-hit a target, regardless of AC, do you allow it to damage targets that would otherwise be invulnerable to the attack form? In other words, could a character with a non-magical weapon damage a creature only hit by magical weapons if they roll a natural 20?

I've never seen or used that as a house rule, no.

 

[Mannahnin]

From around 1980 on, I used the Critical Hit and Bad Misses column from Dragon magazine on 20s and 1s. We used it whenever we played D&D, including BECMI, although there were few BECMI games played once we started with AD&D. I hand wrote out the tables, with my hand written modifications (which were likely not good, but I can't confirm as I no longer have any copies of it), to hand to players.

As I recall, our rule was: If you roll a 20, you reroll. If it is a hit, you critical hit. If it is a miss on the confirming roll, you still hit, and deal max damage. If you roll a 1, reroll. If the confirming roll is a miss, you roll on the fumble table. If it is a hit, you don't. I had a low level cleric crush the skull of an ally on a fumble - critical hit ally - roll 99 on critical hit table.

I really like Dan Collins' tweak on using these rules. It's much simpler than the original fine calculation percentage chance of a critical from the original article.

Critical Hits Tables

Math, history, and design of old-school D&D.

deltasdnd.blogspot.com

 

[embee]

So, here's a question. For folks that allow a natural 20 to auto-hit a target, regardless of AC, do you allow it to damage targets that would otherwise be invulnerable to the attack form? In other words, could a character with a non-magical weapon damage a creature only hit by magical weapons if they roll a natural 20?

Nope.

The plain garden variety sword hits and successfully makes a CLANG! sound.