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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Quickleaf" data-source="post: 7033678" data-attributes="member: 20323">1. If I wanted to make sleep based on maximum hit points (instead of current hit points), should the base 5d8 hit points be increased? If so, by how much?2. If I wanted to discourage using sleep for "murder them in their sleep" tactics, how could I do that in a way that's justifiable given the spell? My inspiration here is how creatures have advantage to save vs. charm person's if they're hostile to the caster, but I'm uncertain how to translate that to hit points. Maybe have creatures automatically wake up if a creature with hostile intent moves within 5 feet of them or draws a weapon next to them (you see my difficulty)?3. If I wanted to let a caster make sleep last longer than 1 minute, should that be incorporated as an option for casting at higher levels? If so, what is an appropriate duration-scaling mechanic?Longer explanation:The sleep spell really doesn't work for me for two reasons and I've had trouble getting my house-ruling of it right. Basically, I'd like sleep to feel more fantastical/mystical/magical and less "D&D murder-hobo ridiculous" (which isn't to say there aren't times when D&D's ridiculous is endearing, and there are indeed times when murdering monsters is great fun, but this just isn't one of those).Btw, once I figure out a house rule that works, I also plan on making hypnotic pattern based on a similar mechanic, because <a href="http://dmdavid.com/tag/how-new-changes-created-the-4-most-annoying-spells-in-dungeons-dragons/" target="_blank">how it was redesigned for 5e also leads to defenseless pinata syndrome</a>.Problem #1 – Current HP: The way it's written sleep is best used either against super-weak monsters (e.g. kobolds) or even better as an "encounter ender" once a monster has been badly wounded (i.e. so others in your party can slit its throat or bind it). Using sleep as an "encounter ender" takes me totally out of the game because it feels at odds with how sleep magic is used in fantasy literature / myth, which is typically to avoid something dangerous or as a form of long-lasting curse. You don't see "bludgeon him so we can put him to sleep" in fantasy literature / myth; it's a jarring D&D 5e-ism. Also, murdering incapacitated monsters can be fun as a rare reward for creative play, but not so much as a consistent spell option.Problem #2 – Lowest HP Creature First: Also, given how sleep is written, if it's cast around any commoners or farm animals, it will probably put them to sleep rather than intended targets. Thus, a savvy party expecting to encounter sleep magic could carry around a basket full of 1 hit point chickens or mice (or whatever) and mostly negate sleep magic used against them. Which is totally ridiculous... The greatest challenge to a mighty sorceress putting a peasant family to sleep would be dealing with the chickens and goats. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f61b.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":p" title="Stick out tongue    :p"  data-smilie="7"data-shortname=":p" />EDIT: I'll post my iterative revisions to sleep here as I work on them...Here's my first try, borrowing from flesh to stone and charm person... [SECTION]Sleep (Quickleaf's "fairytale" rewrite)Level: 1 Casting time: 1 Action Range: 100 feet Components: V, S, M (a pinch of fine sand, rose petals, or a cricket) Duration: 1 minute, specialThis spell sends creatures into a magical slumber. All creatures within 20 feet of a point you choose within range must make a Wisdom saving throw. If you and your companions are fighting a creature in the spell's area of effect, it has advantage on its save. A creature failing its saving throw is overcome by drowsiness, suffering disadvantage on any initiative checks it makes, and having to fight to keep its eyes open.A creature made drowsy by this spell must make another Wisdom saving throw at the end of each of its turns. If it successfully saves against this spell three times, the spell ends. If it fails saves three times, it falls unconscious until the spell ends, the sleeper takes damage, or someone uses an action to shake or slap the sleeper awake. The successes and failures don’t need to be consecutive; keep track of both until the target collects three of a kind.When the spell ends, the creature does not necessarily realize you attempted to put it to sleep magically.At higher levels. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 2nd level or higher, for each spell slot above 1st level you may either increase the area of effect by 10 feet (i.e. all creatures within 30 feet of a point you choose for a 2nd level slot) or increase the duration. With a 2nd  level slot, the duration increases to 10 minutes. With a 3rd level slot, the duration increases to 1 hour. With a 4th level slot, the duration increases to 8 hours. With a 5th level slot, the duration increases to 1 day. With a 6th level or higher spell slot, the spell no longer ends on a creature if it takes damage or someone uses an action to shake or slap the creature awake; instead, remove curse awakens the sleeping creature. With a 6th level slot, the duration increases to 1 week. With a 7th level slot, the duration increases to 1 month. With an 8th level slot, the duration increases to one season. With a 9th level slot, the duration changes to until a trigger you define occurs.[/SECTION]</blockquote>

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