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ShortQuests -- Pocket Sized Adventures! An all-new collection of digest-sized D&D adventures designed for 1-2 game sessions.

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mulkhoran" data-source="post: 1656138" data-attributes="member: 894">Hmm, it would appear we profoundly disagree <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f609.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=";)" title="Wink    ;)"  data-smilie="2"data-shortname=";)" />I think the myriad possible alternatives and effects you can achieve during the game are what makes the game so great.  True, the single most effective way of ending an armed conflict situation is to reduce the opponent's HP, but then, it's supposed to be.  That's the baseline that makes everything else so interesting.The other situations and abilites aren't there to stand up to HP-reduction, but to add flavor when the situations they're called for come into play.  Grapple *is* a viable means of ending a combat, just as long as the situation calls for it.  True, it's slightly more complicated than "swing, attack, damage", but it's also more flexible.  Last time I gamed, I was in solo combat with an opponent somewhat more powerful than me.  We were in an arena with several dangerous pit traps.  During the combat, I was able to Disarm his weapon onto one of the trap doors, and then, because of the position he was in to retrieve it, Bull Rush him into the pit.   The resulting damage helped to balance the scales and give me a decisive edge.   If we were to go the way of HP-modification for these maneuvers, I'd be dead right now.   <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f631.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":eek:" title="Eek!    :eek:"  data-smilie="9"data-shortname=":eek:" /> The game is moving away, to some degree, from "save-or-die" effects, but that's in specific instances where it's more logical to have a damage progression, to better represent varying levels of power.   The whole of the mechanics, as they are, serve to create a massive variety of potential situations and methods of conflict resolution.   The more you remove these options, the more you remove replayability.  Few people want to go through the same situation week after week, just whittling away at HP of opponent after opponent.   *That* gets boring real quick.I agree, by the way, that the "Fear -> Run Like Hell" thing does lead to some boredom for the "gone for hours" characters, but most of the spells only last a few rounds, effectively taking the character out of the combat for a while until they get back.  It *could* be changed to a different kind of penalty, although I'd lean more towards a condition like Cowering, than a HP-reduction, myself.Thanks! <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f600.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":D" title="Big grin    :D"  data-smilie="8"data-shortname=":D" /></blockquote>

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