Fatigue Effects - long term effects of random encounters and traveling

[Obergnom]

Fatigue Effects

Fatigue Effects are similar to diseases. They can be used as negative effects to help simulate travel and exploration wear on the group.
The group acquires fatigue effects as a result of failed skill challenges and individuals can suffer them after certain conditions in combat are met.
If you suffer from a fatigue effect and gain the same effect again, its level is raised by one.
To remove a fatigue effect, make a saving throw for each different kind of effect you are currently suffering from after an extended rest. A successful save lowers the effects level by one. Fatigue effects on equipment can't be removed like this.
The help entry describes what might remove the effect. Partial means, you recive a +2 saving throw bonus. Full means, the effect is removed.

Update: Added the Corrosion effect.

Crushed Armor [untyped, thunder]
The hill giants powerful blows dented your armor, the tigers claws shredded your robe and the tumbling boulders smashed your shield.
Cause: You suffered one or more critical hits during an encounter. Make a save at the end of the encounter. If you fail, your armor or shield becomes damaged.
Effect: The armor bonus granted by affected armors or shields is lowered by the level of this effect.
Help(full): Make Whole Ritual , Armorsmith

Exhaustion
With the last bit of strength you can muster, you draw yourself up the mountain top.
Cause: A fight that takes more than 12 rounds of combat could exhaust the group. Each character makes a saving throw or becomes exhausted.
Effect: Level 1 - you can't spent action points, Level 2 - You loose a move action, Level 3 - you are dazed, Level 4 - you are dazed and immobilized.
Help(partial): Spend a day comfortably resting

Injured
The ogres club smashed your arm, the Cave Bear crushed your ribs and falling down that chasm you broke your leg.
Cause: You have been ruduced to 0 hit points during an encounter. Make a save at the end of the encounter. If you fail, you are injured.
Effect: You can't recover all of your hit points. Your maximum Hit Points are reduced by 25% per level of this fatigue effect.
Help(partial): Healing Skill

Poisoned [poison]
The spider venoms effect takes time to wear of.
Cause: You suffered ongoing poison damage during a single encounter for 3 or more rounds or suffered a critical hit from a poison attack. Make a save at the end of the encounter. If you fail, you are poisoned.
Effect: The poison reduces your stamina. You loose 1 point of fortitude defense per level of this fatigue effect.
Help(partial): Nature Skill, Healing Skill

Burned [fire]
The dragons breath seriously burned your skin. These wounds will take time to recover.
Cause: You suffered ongoing fire damage during a single encounter for 3 or more rounds or suffered a critical hit from a fire attack. Make a save at the end of the encounter. If you fail, you are burned.
Effect: The burns reduce your reflexes. You loose 1 point of reflex defense per level of this fatigue effect.
Help(partial): Healing Skill

Corrosion [acid]
The green slime stuck to your sword for to long, causing serious damage to its edge!
Cause: You suffered ongoing acid damage during a single encounter for 3 or more rounds or suffered a critical hit from an acid attack. Make a save at the end of the encounter. If you fail, one of your weapons or implements becomes corroded.
Effect: The weapon or implement gets the corroded effect. If you deal damage with an attack using a corroded piece of equipment reroll all dice that show maximum damage. If you score a critical hit using a corroded weapon or implement, there is a chance it will break. Roll a d6, if the result is lower than the level of the corrosion effect, it breaks.
Help(full): Make Whole Ritual, Weaponsmith

Mindflayed [psychic]
The intellect devourers attacks echo in your mind days after the fight.
Cause: You suffered ongoing psychic damage during a single encounter for 3 or more rounds or suffered a critical hit from a psychic attack. Make a save at the end of the encounter. If you fail, you are mindflayed.
Effect: The headaches reduce your willpower. You loose 1 point of will defense per level of this fatigue effect.
Help(partial): Arcana Skill

Necrosis [necrotic]
Something cold seems to devour you from the inside, since that wraith attacked you.
Cause: You suffered ongoing necrotic damage during a single encounter for 3 or more rounds or suffered a critical hit from a necrotic attack. Make a save at the end of the encounter. If you fail, you suffer from necrosis.
Effect: The lingering energy of the Shadowfell reduces your healing capabilities. Your healing surge value is reduced by 25% per level of this fatigue effect. (rounded down)
Help(partial): Religion Skill

Twitches [lightning]
Ever since the wizards lightning bolt hit you, there are times you loose control of your actions
Cause: You suffered ongoing lightning damage during a single encounter for 3 or more rounds or suffered a critical hit from a lightning attack. Make a save at the end of the encounter. If you fail, you suffer twitches.
Effect: Roll a d6 at the begining of your round. If the result is lower than the level of your Twitches condition, you can't act this turn.
Help(partial): Arcana Skill

Frozen Limbs [cold]
You can't seem to shake of the effect of the Frost Titans cold breath.
Cause: You suffered ongoing cold damage during a single encounter for 3 or more rounds or suffered a critical hit from a cold attack. Make a save at the end of the encounter. If you fail, you suffer from frozen limbs.
Effect: Its hard to move fast, when your limbs are cold. Your movement is reduced by the level of this fatigue effect.
Help(partial): Heal Skill

Halos [radiant]
You have been hit by the shining light of creation. It doesn't seem to leave your eyes...
Cause: You suffered ongoing radiant damage during a single encounter for 3 or more rounds or suffered a critical hit from a radiant attack. Make a save at the end of the encounter. If you fail, you suffer from halos.
Effect: Your eyesight is reduced depending on the level of this fatigue effect. Level 1 - 10 squares, level 2 - 5 squares, level 3 - 1 square, level 4 - blind. You suffer a penalty to perception checks equal to this effects level.
Help(Partial): Religion Skill

 

[MortalPlague]

I like the idea behind this; I might even put a few of them to use in my campaign. Most of the effects are pretty good as written, but some of them might be a little too restrictive. Exhaustion, in particular, jumps out at me. Losing a minor action can be a critical thing for a leader class, where for a rogue or fighter, it really doesn't wind up being as big a deal. Also, it seems like an easy condition to rack up; a good fight can last 9 or more rounds on a semi-regular basis.

I might also remove the 'on a critical hit' condition for most of them. Crits have a 5% chance per roll of the die (sometimes more), and with a whole bunch of monsters attacking, it's a pretty good bet this will crop up roughly once or twice per fight. Most attacks fall under one of these categories; the conditions might stack up a little quickly.

Effect-wise, I think the best ones are those that decrease the defenses by one point. It makes you more likely to be hit in some cases, but it doesn't take away your ability to be effective. Other than those ones, Necrosis is my favorite; I'm probably going to use that in my game pretty soon.

Overall, with some tweaks, I think these could really make for some great flavor effects.

 

[Obergnom]

I was trying to find an effect for each damage type, but in the first version cold and fire, acid and poison, lightning and psychic shard one effect (reduced Defense). Acid would work as an AC reducer, too.

Actually, I'm rather unhappy with the acid effect, as it will prolong combats, something I was trying to avoid but I ran out of ideas.

I should have mentioned that I use a 3/4 monster hp rule, the 9 rounds limit for exhausting combats would translate to 12, I guess. It is only meant for truly long fights and exhausting travel.

Considering the criticals, Iwas assuming that combat last for 6 rounds on average, resulting in ca. 30 attacks and thus 1,5 natural 20s (I would apply effects to natural 20s only). As the effected characters receive a saving throw after the combat, you could expect them to carry 0,75 effects each combat (as a result of critical hits only). The non-Equipment effects provide the opportunity for a save after a long rest, reducing what they carry over into the next day further.

Some new ideas:

Alternative Exhaustion

Level 1: you cannot use Action Points
Level 2: you loose the abiliy to use your highest level daily attack power
Level 3: you loose the use of your second highest level daily attack power
Level 4: You can't use daily attack powers

Maybe only removing the level 1 exhaustion effect (loose minor action) and using the new one would create the best one...

Acid

I think acid should be an Equipment effect. Reducing attacks seemed simple, but is also quite boring. Acid should make your equipment less durable, less reliable.

If you deal damage with an attack using a corroded piece of equipment reroll all dice that show maximum damage. If you score a critical hit using a corroded weapon or implement, there is a chance it will break. Roll a d6, if the result is lower than the level of the corrosion effect, it breaks.

Edit: I changed exhausted and corrosion in the original post.

 

[weem]

Very cool idea, I like it and may consider something like this as well. There is a portion of the campaign where a lot of travel will be made, coming soon.

Thanks for sharing!

+XP

 

[sfedi]

I hate how you acquire the conditions.
But I love the effects.

Exhaustion seems a little tricky, but definetly a good one to have to model exhaustion from travel, which is something I'm looking for right now.

 

[Obergnom]

I started creating these conditions as failure effects for skill challenges only, which I use very often. I added the combat aquireing only because in our game playing three or more encounters on a single in game day is often no option, as it translates into two to three sessions of fighting.
It is meant as a not to intrusive way to handle combat drain that lasts for more than a day.

First playtest: We played an encounter with 4 Firelashers, 2 Fire Archon Emberguards and a Veaguld Elementalist (Modified Dragonborn Elementalist, Level 13 Artillery) It was an Ambush Scenario with the creatures trying to capture one of the characters.

At the end of the encounter 2 characters had to save against fatigue: The Tiefling Warlord suffered a critical hit by an Emberguard and the Gnome Wizard has been put below 0 hit points.
The Tieflings armor was damaged, but the Gnome was able to save agianst the wound.

The group spend the next day in town, they were trying to gather informations in the local libary. The halfling sorcerer used some of the Stone Giant skin the party aquired in an earlier encounter and after spending an evening trying to repair the Warlords demonhide armor I had him role a moderate thievery check (catch all craft in our game). He succeded and the the armor got a save +2. Which was sucessful.

So far, it seems to work, though two effects after a single combat seems harsh, they are not that powerful and the group might feel heroic when delving deeper into a dungeon though they are at their limit. Something that rarely happens in our game, as they often have all their daily powers left.

 

[sfedi]

I would definetly use them for Skill Challenges.

But from what you say, maybe I'll try them for combats.

I'm not sure about the bookeeping for criticals though,

 

[Obergnom]

We use Poker Chips I hand out whenever that occures...

 

[Saeviomagy]

Some problems:

1. Balance. This is a system that punishes the PCs and will never ever effect monsters. Keep that in mind.

2. Exhaustion: 72 seconds of combat seems far too short a period of time for exhaustion to start setting in.

3. What does "armorsmith" actually mean? There are no rules for crafting in the game at present.

4. Destroying gear really sucks. Make the gear less operational (to the point where it's not worth using), sure, but don't destroy it.

5. Taking away turns and actions on an ongoing basis really sucks the fun out of a game. Again, reduce the numbers (penalise attack rolls or movement) but don't just say "I'm sorry, you rolled a 2 and don't get to go". The same applies for the "I'm sorry, but your maximum hitpoints are now 0, so you get to lie unconscious until the party gets to rest". Make the minimum 1 so they can at least act.

 

[Obergnom]

hmm...

1 - I do not think this is an issue but the reason I created this system. I wanted combat to be more like in older editions of the game, where the PCs sometimes retreat because some combat went really bad. Also, remember that these effects are not common at all: 1 of these would effect the group as a whole (0.2 per character) after an average combat.

2 - Yeah, I am not that happy with this one either. Maybe I will just use it as a skill challenge effect.

3 - It means, go to an armorsmith in town. We also use sever skills used together to model crafting in a skill challenge. (exp: Metal Weapons/Armor: Dungeoneering, Athletics, Endurance)

4 - With the make whole ritual (and crafting) available, this is a non issue. Of course, if you go into combat using a corroded weapon without back up, it might end really bad but you knwe the risk.

5 - Twitches is to powerful, I see that. I forgot to update here, but I switched exhaustion back to the usual lost skill challenge effect of removing surges per day. A character with 4 injuries is not able to act, but to get to that point he must have really had some bad luck many combats in a row (He can never get more than one effect of a kind per combat).
The group really should take some time and rest in that situation.


I know these houserules are not along some of the basic guidelines the designers seemed to use for 4e, but in our game limited randomness and sometimes harsh situations allways seems to create fun sessions.