How would you defend against this?

[Nail]

Is this a "Rules" discussion, or something more appropriate for the "General" forum?

...Given the circumstance, Obscuring Mist or Daylight (on some throwable object) would be the way to go.

...Given a typical player's response: "I charge to the left, torch held high!"

 

[Pielorinho]

I'm with James, actually.
Unless you're level 1 or 2 or so, that first arrow from the archer is best described as something that just rattled off your shield or helm. Scary stuff.

Note that this has the unfortunate effect of making it easier for low-level characters to respond to an ambush than high-level characters.

There are ways to describe the injuries usefully without having arrows piercing vital organs. The arrow might graze the PC, leaving a nice little red line behind that points back toward the archer. It might thud into a shield. It might ping off armor, leaving a dent behind. It might get caught in clothing, or else pass directly through clothing.

Given how much leeway the DM has here, and combined with the perception on most players' ends that HP loss represents getting hit (that is, after all, what it's called -- a hit), I would strongly advise DMs to make the hit yield useful information in this situation.

Daniel

 

[James McMurray]

I should clarify: I wasn't trying to imply that the arrow's direction shouldn't be known. Id probably give it to them (at the least the one that got hit) within a small arc (45 degrees max, 30 degrees minimum, probably based off a spot check.

I was only saying that taking damage doesn't mean you "have an arrow sticking out of your belly."

 

[Pielorinho]

Fair enough, James; for myself, I was just pointing out that high-level characters ought to get at least as much information out of the arrow as first-level characters . I do recognize that what you're saying is right.

Daniel