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Message: <blockquote data-quote="I'm A Banana" data-source="post: 6954884" data-attributes="member: 2067">If you're just changing the PC's hp, you won't get longer combats unless you add more monsters to the mix. All more PC HP will do is make the game seem a bit "easier," since the monsters will still fall just as fast, they just won't be able to threaten the PC's with death as much. Monsters will drop fast, and PC's will sustain slowly, allowing them to tackle more encounters. It'll also be hard to surprise them with a BIG BOOM - a sudden drop in HP probably won't threaten them with death. They'll take it on the chin and continue plugging forward. Monsters with action-denial become more of a hassle. It could make the adventuring day longer, though, if you're looking to fit more encounters in! Just beware of running out of interesting novas.Considering this from the other angle, if you just bump monster HP, you'll get longer - and more lethal - combats. More chances of crits and more changes of recharge abilities and more monster actions in general. If PC's have the same HP, they'll be just as - if not more - under pressure as they were before. You might also throw off some spells and abilities that are designed to end encounters early, which might weight the game in favor of "controlling" effects over "damaging" effects. IE, hypnotic pattern becomes a better idea than fireball because hp loss doesn't work as well to even the odds, but action denial works just as well as it always did. And, indeed, action denial becomes better at saving your party's hide than damage does. Grappling trumps sword-swinging.From the third angle, if you bump everyone's HP, you'll still see that weight toward controlling effects over damaging effects. Action denial becomes more potent the more actions you can deny. The more crits/recharges from monsters will be offset by more HP, but the main thing is that PC's will run out of novas faster. The later in the adventuring day this gets, the more the party is going to be out of "interesting actions."If your goal is longer combats, a less dramatic way to accomplish that goal might just be to phase in a second encounter after the first. PC's can take two encounters in a row without stopping just fine, and phasing them like this extends one combat, but doesn't make individual monsters stick around for any longer.</blockquote>

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