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Message: <blockquote data-quote="77IM" data-source="post: 4586859" data-attributes="member: 12377">So I was thinking about the issue some more from a high level and have another idea.Let us assume that surges are a resource that is meant to be used.  Let us further assume that surges are meant to be replenished at the same rate that they are used.  The "interesting decision" comes about because the player can choose when to spend a surge (second wind, healing word, etc.) but not when surges replenish (you need to kill all the monsters and then find a safe place to rest -- not a guaranteed possibility).Here are two house rules based on this premise, provided to spark discussion.1.Let us assume that PCs are expected to use up 1/3 of their surges per fight -- more for a hard fight, less for an easy fight.  After every encounter, during a short rest, each PC rolls 1d6 per spent surge.  On a roll of 5 or 6, they get that surge back.  (You can just roll a big pool of d6s, one per spend surge, and count the 5s and 6s.)  You can also make this roll during an extended rest (you don't automatically regain all surges during an extended rest).Effect:  As you complete encounters, your surges decrease gradually (since you get some back after every fight -- you might get them all back if you are lucky).  Even if you blow through ALL of your surges, you are likely to get back 1/3 of them, which leaves you ready for the next fight.  Unless it's a very difficult fight that requires more than 1/3 of your surges; this provides incentive to conserve surges, as an easy fight (or non-combat encounter) might actually earn you surges.  Also, extended rest has been reduced in importance since it is no more beneficial (surge-wise) than a non-combat encounter.2.Assume that the PCs are meant to spend 1/4 of their surges per fight.  This house Rule #2 is the same as #1 above, except that you roll 1d6 per REMAINING surge, and recover a surge per 5 or 6 result.  (If you have no surges, you get one back automatically, without rolling.)Effect:  This version rewards players who conserve surges.  If you play smart and only spend at most 1/4 of your surges per fight, you are likely to be at full surges indefinitely.  OTOH, if you get low on surges, it takes longer to get back up to full (possibly multiple extended rests). -- 77IM</blockquote>

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