Do temporary hit points stack ?

[Aloïsius]

I look at them as "negative wounds". Since hit points loss do stack, obviously, I think temporary hit points should stack, too. Hovewer, I' have been unable to find anything in the core rules bout this.

If not, what happens when a vampire stike twice in the same round ? What happens when two different spell effects give you temporary hit point ? I have been unable to come up with a simpler solution than stacking temporary hit points.

 

[Thanee]

IIRC, the last FAQ entry on that matter was, that they stack, as long as they are from different sources (i.e. Aid spell and False Life spell, but not two Aid spells).

Bye
Thanee

 

[Scharlata]

I look at them as "negative wounds". Since hit points loss do stack, obviously, I think temporary hit points should stack, too. Hovewer, I' have been unable to find anything in the core rules bout this.

If not, what happens when a vampire stike twice in the same round ? What happens when two different spell effects give you temporary hit point ? I have been unable to come up with a simpler solution than stacking temporary hit points.

Hi!

Off the top of my head, temporary hit points stack, as you pointed out, like "negative wounds". They are subtracted from your hit point total first. They can't be healed. Normally, they last only for a set duration (see spell durations, like aid).

In the case of temporary hit points that are gained through the use of a successful hit by a ability/energy drain ability (i.e. vampire) there is not set duration. Asides from the fact that a vampire can't energy drain twice per round (see description of energy drain, last sentence, MM) a vampire can energy drain and/or blood drain several victims in advance and bolster his/her hit point total legally.

IMC, my BBEG (a vampire, head of a branch of the thieves guild) blood drained some poor victims in advance to an expected encounter and gained over night over 140 temporary hit points (and some new vampire spawns, too).

Edit: There should be a time limit (say 24 housrs) the temporary hit points last. It shouldn't be possible for an ancient vampire to accumulate thousands of temporary hit points over the ages.


Kind regards

 

[Majoru Oakheart]

IMC, my BBEG (a vampire, head of a branch of the thieves guild) blood drained some poor victims in advance to an expected encounter and gained over night over 140 temporary hit points (and some new vampire spawns, too).

According to the new FAQ, this isn't possible either, at most a vampire can have 10 temporary hit points, since their ability doesn't stack with itself.

 

[Mistwell]

The "same spells do not stack with themselves" rule does apply here, as thanee said. Otherwise, False Life would become even more powerful than it already is.

 

[Scharlata]

According to the new FAQ, this isn't possible either, at most a vampire can have 10 temporary hit points, since their ability doesn't stack with itself.

Ah! I looked it up. Thanx for pointing it out to me.

Hmm, my players sure will punish me...

... better to flee into the mist of the night and suck some blood

Thanx

 

[Hypersmurf]

Amusingly, the ruling on THP in the 3.5 Main FAQ is almost the opposite of the ruling in the 3E Main FAQ, which said that THP didn't stack unless they were from the same source

-Hyp.

 

[Aloïsius]

The "same spells do not stack with themselves" rule does apply here, as thanee said. Otherwise, False Life would become even more powerful than it already is.

Yes, but cure light wound stack with cure light wound, and magic missile stack with magic missile.
I know that THP is not an instant effect however, but...

 

[Caliban]

Yes, but cure light wound stack with cure light wound, and magic missile stack with magic missile.
I know that THP is not an instant effect however, but...

No "but..." That's exactly why they work differently.

 

[Gansk]

There should be a time limit (say 24 housrs) the temporary hit points last. It shouldn't be possible for an ancient vampire to accumulate thousands of temporary hit points over the ages.

I think somewhere it says that the temp hp from energy drain last an hour.