D&D General Filling the Gaps

[Samloyal23]

What are some things you can do in real life that you think should be accounted for in the rules but are missing from the game? What do you see as gaps in the simulation that take you out of the immersion of gameplay, things there should be rules for but aren't?

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

Crafting potions/magic items rules. I get that there is a benefit to these rules not existing so the DM can determine it, but that tends to just make more work for the DM than encourage creativity, IME. Potions of Fire Breath could require red dragon blood, giantslayer weapons could require ground up giant bones, and so on. They don't have to do all of them, but give some more guidelines than just "the DM determines it".

More prices for typical items, like wood, clay, building houses, the costs of a whole town living, etc. Just more rules for taking care of a home base in general.

Better unconsciousness/0 hp rules. When you're reduced to 0 hp, you shouldn't just immediately fall unconscious, you should just be incapable of fighting, possibly staggering on the ground trying to get up. Currently it's very immersion breaking that a troll bites you, so you fall asleep, and then the cleric prays, and you wake up, and then the cycle keeps going until one side is dead.

 

[Seramus]

Moderate social rules.
Moderate invention rules.
Long term spell effects.

I don't want a crunchy system, but I would love a little more support for these nearly barren areas.

 

[Lanefan]

Gaps in the rules:

Someone already hit a big one - the stupid difference between 0 h.p. and 1 h.p. It's somewhat solvable if the designers ever want to do it, but it'd involve changing some major basic assumptions about how 5e works (including adding negative h.p. back in).

Related to that: the game's missing some form of a lingering dying condition where someone can be in what amounts to a steady-state of "dying" (i.e. won't and can't recover any health but won't die either) until either rescued and tended or something else (thirst, usually) acts as a finisher.

Further related to that: the game needs some sort of body-fatigue or wound-vitality overlay on hit points. Yes it adds complication, but it's more than worth it.

Degrading class skills over the long term. This guy was a 10th level Fighter 15 years ago but since then has barely picked up a sword, what codifed means can I use to determine what he's got left now?

Genetics. The offspring of a Half-Elf and a Human should be a 1/4-Elf. Start from that premise. Keep going. There's huge design space in it. Nobody's ever touched it to my knowledge.

Not so much rules-based as setting-design based: the biggest immersion-breaker is when PCs are treated by design as being separate or different from the population around them.

 

[DemoMonkey]

Hit locations, in a way that enables cool actions but doesn't devolve getting wounded into a gruesome torture-porn death spiral, without relying on DM fiat. (Even as a DM)

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

I think that the rules should have downtime rules that would allow the characters to play TTRPGs.

 

[dave2008]

Hit locations, in a way that enables cool actions but doesn't devolve getting wounded into a gruesome torture-porn death spiral, without relying on DM fiat. (Even as a DM)

That is tough one if you ask me. I've tried it a few times and it never adds to the fun, it only detracts from it. I loved the idea at point in my gaming, but it doesn't work well with inherit abstraction required of a TTRPG. And of course the aren't fun.

 

[ninjayeti]

Decent chase rules. Chases are a staple of action movies, but the DMG rules are a halfhearted attempt to make the square peg of the existing tactical movement rules fit in the round hole of a chase.

 

[Grogg of the North]

I'm not sure if this quite fits but here's what I'd like to see:

The degradation of permanent magical effects. I guess that's how you get cursed items but I'm thinking more like what happens to the villain that was turned into stone a hundred years ago. Does the spell slowly lose potency? Could he return? I suppose that could be a campaign premise.

The evolution of long lived and immortal monsters. That vampire has been alive for a thousand years. He hasn't evolved/adapted/whatever some way to overcome his sunlight weakness? 3.5 tried to do something like this with a template that was, frankly, awful. Of course, the GM could just say whatever they want but some sort of guidance would be nice.

 

[GMMichael]

Blocking with weapons. It should be something everyone can do if they're holding a weapon, ergo it should be a factor for any weapon being held.

Why not back up a step? There aren't even rules for blocking with a shield or your armor. Rules for defense would be interesting. As it stands, your AC doesn't have anything to do with blocking - it's just a number that prevents you from losing your "durability, the will to live, and luck" (i.e. hit points). Blocking would prevent armor damage, wounds, and pain. If holding a weapon is effectively holding your durability, will, and luck, then sure; let the weapon add to AC.

 

[jmartkdr2]

Why not back up a step? There aren't even rules for blocking with a shield or your armor. Rules for defense would be interesting. As it stands, your AC doesn't have anything to do with blocking - it's just a number that prevents you from losing your "durability, the will to live, and luck" (i.e. hit points). Blocking would prevent armor damage, wounds, and pain. If holding a weapon is effectively holding your durability, will, and luck, then sure; let the weapon add to AC.

You need to use a lot less luck/durability/will to turn aside a blade with a sword compared to using your forearm. (Unless you're a monk) - so yes: that's exactly what I would like to see.

Somehow. Mechanical details matter, but the lack annoys me.

Edit: for example, something like (assuming 5e):

"When holding a simple melee weapon with which you are proficient, you may set your AC to 11 + the weapon's ability modifier.* When holing a martial melee weapon with which you are proficient, you may set your AC to 12 + the weapon's ability modifier.*

*The weapon's ability modifier is the ability modifier you use for attack rolls with that weapon, normally strength. You can still add applicable modifiers the you AC, such as from shields, spells, magic items, and fighting styles."

Slightly bad for Barbarians (as it makes their Unarmored Defense redundant), might be a little too good for Hexblades as written. But it's not getting you higher numbers than you could already get, just giving you the option of leaning on blocking rather than armor per se.

In 3e/PF1, I'd probably just use a feat tree with really low introductory prereqs or something. For 4e/PF2 I'd either do that or add armor-alternative class features.