Healing Surges innate Blessed band aids

[hong]

Well, I do apologize if I put words in your mouth. I thought I saw you post something like that somewhere, but I could have gotten it mixed up with someone else.

No, no, don't apologise. You gave me another opportunity to pimp myself! These don't appear everyday, you know.

 

[Dragonblade]

Hey, I like simulation. I like having a in-world explanation for things that happen in the game. I encourage my players to create such explanations, and I push myself to do the same. It's when simulation trumps fun that I start to have a problem with it.

I'd rather the in-game descriptions allowed for rapid recovery, to be honest. I don't want one guy's "realistic" injuries grinding the game down. I also don't want it so realistic that after the raid on the Caves of Chaos, everyone has to retire due to health issues.

That said, I agree wholeheartedly that dissonance occurs when a particular rules element doesn't match the overarching principle. I had that problem with more than one 3e mechanic, or mechanics in other games. I rarely let the dissonance ruin my fun, though. That's my point. I do regret that the dissonance makes it more difficult for some to enjoy the game.

I think this sort of dissonance is hard to purge from any really complex system. In this case, the complex system is the game rules and the large number of people that have input into them.

Thanks for your thoughts, Chris.

 

[D'karr]

The problem is self inflicted. Nothing in the description of the Goblin Picador says that he impales the target through the head, spine, leg or clothing. As a matter of fact, in all editions of D&D, critical hit tables and target locations where added usually as addendums or player options, if you wanted to play that way.

In the case of the goblin picador some DMs and players are assigning the actual target (spine, leg, clothing). For those that assigned a target that should not heal easily (spine) then the healing surge becomes a conundrum. But the conundrum is still self-inflicted. The problem is not what HP are or are not. The problem lies in the explanation that some want to paint themselves into a corner with.

20+ years ago I remember watching the movie "Rambo: First Blood". In it there is a scene where Rambo finds himself at the end of a cliff with his chasers closing in. He takes the Peter Pan route and jumps. He splatters his body in all kinds of wonderful ways as he smashes into tree branches that break his fall. He lands on the ground, bruised, cut and limping. The next scene you see him open up the hilt of his Trusty Knife (tm). He pulls out some suture material and goes to town fixing his wounds.

I remember watching that and saying to a friend of mine, Rambo is a high level fighter. That was when we were playing 1st edition.

Now I can easily see him taking his short rest and expending several healing surges to continue on. I've chosen not to paint myself into a corner, because the rules obviously do not.

 

[Wormwood]

I remember watching that and saying to a friend of mine, Rambo is a high level fighter. That was when we were playing 1st edition.

And in 4e, Rambo could be a first-level fighter if you wanted him to be.

edit: which seems like an advantage to me.

 

[D'karr]

And in 4e, Rambo could be a first-level fighter if you wanted him to be.

edit: which seems like an advantage to me.

Yes, he could and I agree that it is an advantage. It models the way my group plays much better. However, that was a nasty fall. He'd still have to be conscious to use any of his healing surges, so the survivability factor is important and a fall like that is nothing to scoff at.

BTW, did anyone else notice that falling damage was d10's now? At least that is how they were doing it at DDXP.

 

[DM_Blake]

I played a cyberpunk (I think) game where the group had a limited amount of time to stop somebody from doing something. One of the players got shot up badly and lost a leg. Very simulationist, it's what happens when you don't take cover well enough and catch 30 M16 rounds to the leg. Unfortuneately it meant that the character was out for weeks while he healed and legless until the party could put together the 8 grand or whatever to buy a replacement leg. This is gamistly terrible, it's going to suck to be that guy for the rest of the adventure.

It seems to me that there is a middle ground.

A game system where damage is painful, dibilitating, and, well, damaging.

But also where access to healing is readily available, and the guy who loses a leg will be up walking around in real-life minutes thanks to the availability of healing magic (or in cyberpunk, regenerative and/or cybernetic technology).

HP don't have to be abstracted to "Well, it might be damage, unless you get it back by resting, or it might be exhaustion unless a cleric heals you, or it might just be your luck running out unless you get it back by any means, or it might be something else entirely - we just don't know what it is, so I guess it's a little red bar floating in the air overy your characters head that gets shorter when you get hurt/tired/unlucky and longer when you get healed/rested/more lucky."

To me, that seems like going too far.

 

[D'karr]

It seems to me that there is a middle ground.

A game system where damage is painful, dibilitating, and, well, damaging.

Propose one.

we just don't know what it is, so I guess it's a little red bar floating in the air overy your characters head that gets shorter when you get hurt/tired/unlucky and longer when you get healed/rested/more lucky."

To me, that seems like going too far.

See you had a good point until there. Close but no cigar.

 

[Storm-Bringer]

Yes, IMO. If you want to use that kind of descriptions, even if you know that your character is mechanically able to function, then it's your narrative choice. It reminds me of John McLane from Die Hard, Marve from Sin City or William Wallace in Braveheart (the scene where he runs around with two arrows in his chest).

So, you would consider these characters 1st level or so?

 

[D'karr]

So, you would consider these characters 1st level or so?

Is it important what level they are?

 

[Lacyon]

So, you would consider these characters 1st level or so?

They're probably not past heroic tier.