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<blockquote data-quote="Ovinomancer" data-source="post: 8103386" data-attributes="member: 16814"><p>You can narrate them any way you like. I'd suggest something that's consistent, so players can make meaningful choices, but it's up to you. I don't have a problem with it.</p><p></p><p>Now, in 5e, you do have a shroedinger's wound at 0 hp. If you drop, and make your death saves, it's not that bad, just a temporarily incapacitating injury, like being knocked out, or having to overcome pain, or being winded and sidelined. If you fail your death saves, then it's a fatal wound. You don't know either way until you get there, so, sure, it does make it hard to narrate in the moment. I usually handle this by not being specific in the narration, like, "the troll appears to stab Bob the Hobbit in the chest, and Bob goes down, unmoving, what do you do?" If Bob makes his death saves, turns out the spear was halted by his chain shirt, but the blow knocked the wind from him and put him down, unable to move. He's got a nasty bruise, but nothing that will really slow him down. If Bob fails, the party turns him over and finds a massive wound in his chest, clearly the cause of death. But, yeah, that's a tricky thing if you're used to narrating in the moment or not having delayed resolution.</p><p></p><p>A fun thing to do with hitpoints, though, is to actually treat them like the plot points they are. When a goblin stabs Bob, you can say, "Bob, the goblin hits you for 7 damage, and stabs you through the heart, killing you." To which Bob can say, "Um, no, I'm spending 7 hit points to negate that killing blow, instead I turn his blade with a deft parry." This goes on until, "Bob, the troll spears you for 28 damage, thrusting his massive spear straight through your ribcage causing instant death." Bob says, "Um, wow, I only have 14 hitpoints left. Uh..." GM: "Cool, I'll take those, and you're still dead." Bob: "No, wait, I'm going to use Death's Door, and make death saves, so I'm not out yet!" GM: "Okay, it's your turn anyway, so let's see the first save. If you fail three, you're dead. If someone gets to you or you make three, your last 14 hitpoints are enough to save you."</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Ovinomancer, post: 8103386, member: 16814"] You can narrate them any way you like. I'd suggest something that's consistent, so players can make meaningful choices, but it's up to you. I don't have a problem with it. Now, in 5e, you do have a shroedinger's wound at 0 hp. If you drop, and make your death saves, it's not that bad, just a temporarily incapacitating injury, like being knocked out, or having to overcome pain, or being winded and sidelined. If you fail your death saves, then it's a fatal wound. You don't know either way until you get there, so, sure, it does make it hard to narrate in the moment. I usually handle this by not being specific in the narration, like, "the troll appears to stab Bob the Hobbit in the chest, and Bob goes down, unmoving, what do you do?" If Bob makes his death saves, turns out the spear was halted by his chain shirt, but the blow knocked the wind from him and put him down, unable to move. He's got a nasty bruise, but nothing that will really slow him down. If Bob fails, the party turns him over and finds a massive wound in his chest, clearly the cause of death. But, yeah, that's a tricky thing if you're used to narrating in the moment or not having delayed resolution. A fun thing to do with hitpoints, though, is to actually treat them like the plot points they are. When a goblin stabs Bob, you can say, "Bob, the goblin hits you for 7 damage, and stabs you through the heart, killing you." To which Bob can say, "Um, no, I'm spending 7 hit points to negate that killing blow, instead I turn his blade with a deft parry." This goes on until, "Bob, the troll spears you for 28 damage, thrusting his massive spear straight through your ribcage causing instant death." Bob says, "Um, wow, I only have 14 hitpoints left. Uh..." GM: "Cool, I'll take those, and you're still dead." Bob: "No, wait, I'm going to use Death's Door, and make death saves, so I'm not out yet!" GM: "Okay, it's your turn anyway, so let's see the first save. If you fail three, you're dead. If someone gets to you or you make three, your last 14 hitpoints are enough to save you." [/QUOTE]
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