Designers Help! D20 Variant - HardCore

[punkorange]

for a fantasy version of this, you might look at star war's vitality system, where your HP is equal to your con and traditional HP is represented as vitality. Critical hits deal vitality and hp damage.

 

[Runesong42]

To Frukathka

Will do. I'm running my Sidewinder game tomorrow night. I'll let you know how it goes.

Just wondering if you tried out my alternate "shoot or die" rules in your Sidewinder game, and how it went...?

 

[Plane Sailing]

It occurs to me that since you are using d20modern, that already has MDT = CON and thus the biggest bit of your option is actually allowing more opportunities to those who are dying (-1 hp or less) and a greater period during which they are disabled.

So if you ditch your hp=con idea, keep the d20 modern MDT=con and then use your own method for disabled/dying I think you will end up with a combat which is just as quick to take people down (from big single shots, lots of 1-6 damage hits wouldn't do it of course... but is that what you want to model?) but those who would otherwise be 'taken out' are more likely to get a bit of extra fun keeping in the game with an extended disabled range.

Cheers

 

[Angel Tarragon]

Just wondering if you tried out my alternate "shoot or die" rules in your Sidewinder game, and how it went...?

You know what I ran the game but completely forgot about this thread. Sorry. Anyway, I had the players roll up characters for a one shot game using your system. I must say, it took the players a good ten minute to their heads wrapped around the basis, but they did get it. The game ran smoothly and had plenty of encounters and all of them survived every encounter up until the last one. I had them fight a tough gunslinger that had a hidden posse of roughnecks. Anyway, the game ended a bad note. Even though the players knew it was a one shot, they thought that the system you worked up is pretty sour. They only survived the previous encounters because half the time they had to fall back and regroup. They told me that you need to expand on the injury and death rules and that there needs to be another option on increasing hit points.

I'd say a feat like greater toughness should be allowed, where the character gets and additional amount of hit points equal to twice their Con modifier or 3 + Con Modifier, whichever is higher, when they level up.

 

[Runesong42]

Frukathka,
Thanks for trying the system out.

What level were the PC's you used for the one-shot? It seems to me if they were level 1, they shouldn't have had any complaints about the HP system. I mean, 10 HP for a 10 CON seems more than adequate for 1st level. If they were higher level, then it seems that the system I had in place accomplished the goal I had intended - your PC's had to fall back and re-group, meaning they couldn't just wade into combat, soak HP damage and come out on top just because they're the heroes.

My original concept was to make combat more difficult so that my players would attempt more peaceful means of problem resolution before running and gunning into combat.

See, I used to play GURPS, and in that system, you never got any increases in HP unless you spent points to increase your health stat or flat out bought extra hp. This is the feel I was trying to duplicate - a sort of gritty, more lethal system where anyone could be dropped with a lucky shot and any melee struggle was a life or death struggle. If your players didn't dig that, then so be it.

As a DM, do you find the sysyem "works", based on the criteria I've presented, or is it just going to piss off more people than it's worth?

 

[Angel Tarragon]

What level were the PC's you used for the one-shot?

I had them play 8th level characters.

If they were higher level, then it seems that the system I had in place accomplished the goal I had intended - your PC's had to fall back and re-group, meaning they couldn't just wade into combat, soak HP damage and come out on top just because they're the heroes.

You definetely succeeded in that. I told my players to expect anything. They were peturbed that they couldn't do what they usually do (absorbing damage, as you blutnly put it). They caught on fast and decided that if they couldn't win that theyd fall back. 'Tis better to flee an and live to fight another day.

My original concept was to make combat more difficult so that my players would attempt more peaceful means of problem resolution before running and gunning into combat.

For a game where this is what you want, it would definetely a good idea to tell your players this.

As a DM, do you find the sysyem "works", based on the criteria I've presented, or is it just going to piss off more people than it's worth?

If you inform your players about the system and what it is upposed to accomplish, they will tell you if they want to be a part of it or not. Less pissed off players this way