Jar of Doom!

[Incendax]

I feel like spicing up my 4th edition game and decided to implement an amusing idea. After a player makes an attack roll, they may choose to gain a +3 To Hit or to a Skill Check in exchange for drawing from the Jar of Doom! I plan for the Jar of Doom to contain about 40 interesting 'special effects' that are somewhat negative and definitely interesting. The effects might range from the appearance of an imp that tries to barter demonic favors with the player, to being spontaneously covered in crawling insects, to creating bizarre terrain effects.

But I'm short on ideas. Since the 'Jar of Doom' can be made to suit any game system, I figured I should see if the fine people here at ENWorld could brainstorm a few interesting suggestions!

 

[luckless]

Personally I would arrange things in a nice little bell curve that ranges from "Very very bad, you just made a normal botch look like a good thing" to "Very very good, you make 20's jealous", with "random flavour" in the middle.

This adds a little extra spice to it, rather than just being "Ok, I get this bonus, but something bad is going to happen for sure."

 

[Incendax]

Personally I would arrange things in a nice little bell curve that ranges from "Very very bad, you just made a normal botch look like a good thing" to "Very very good, you make 20's jealous", with "random flavour" in the middle.

This adds a little extra spice to it, rather than just being "Ok, I get this bonus, but something bad is going to happen for sure."

That's an excellent idea and I will definitely do so. Of course, I'm mostly asking you guys for creative ideas about what kinds of things should be in the Jar of Doom.

 

[DaveW]

• Your hand gets stuck in the Jar. The Jar does 1d6 + STR Mod damage when you hit an opponent with it. The jar can only be removed at the end of the encounter.
• Something in the Jar bites your hand. You are poisoned.
• The hand that comes out the jar is not yours. It's big and hairy and strong. +1 STR Mod with main hand till your next turn.
• The hand that comes out the jar is not a hand at all. It's a pincer. It does 1d8 damage + STR Mod.
• Your hand comes out facing backwards, palm up. You take -2 to attacks and damage for one round.
• The Jar is full of cool, refreshing water. You heal (whatever the rules are for your game, in 4ed it would be spend a healing surge).

It's an interesting idea.

-Dave

 

[Filcher]

No, i think the JoD is real, not in-game. More along the lines of:

"I need +3 to hit that ogre!"

"Try the JoD, dude!"

"Okay!" Pulls slip from jar. Reads. "What?! I hit, doing double damage but my weapon breaks off in the target?! Noooo!"

"Dude, they don't call it the Jar of Doom for Nothing."

This is a pretty cool idea. Sort of like a perpetually ready Deck of Many Things. I'd bet my group would get addicted to using it.

Some ideas before work:

-Weapons breaks (for both more or less damage)
-Weapon lodges in target (varying Str checks to rip it out of the body)
-Complete self-disarms
-You strike so hard you also hit your nearest ally if within 5'
-Strike so hard you pull a muscle and hurt yourself
-Trip following through attack; land prone at the feet of the foe

Edit: Although reading the OP, I think I am wrong, too. He is looking for more out of the world intersting stuff to happen ....

 

[CharlesRyan]

I really like this idea--perhaps especially because I just had a TPK Saturday night, so I can easily picture a point at which desperate players would be happy to gain a +3 in exchange for future pain.

Because (again, thinking of my TPK) the situations that might prompt a draw from the jar may well be very dire (make a draw or we'll all be dead in another round), I would recommend that at least some of the consequences in the jar are very significant. Not just random and annoying, but life-threatening.

 

[Evilhalfling]

an important question is do you want immediate consequences?
or some delay?

* a stumble in combat provokes an attack of opportunity.
* in the next combat, your first swing is so wild that after the hit you are dazed till end of your next turn.
* after 1d4 attacks by enemies, the next hit on you is an automatic critical.
(may extend into the next fight)
* pulled muscles and adrenal shock result in you needing to spend an extra healing surge after this fight.

 

[Sunseeker]

With a quick google search we find:
D&D 4TH EDITION Totally Random Magic Effects Table 1000 events. | Dungeons & Dragons (4th Edition) | RPGGeek

Which, while it's 1000 effects, is IMO, easy to cut down to say, 40 or so that you really like, next time I make a game, I think I'll use this, though maybe keep it down to 100 or so.

 

[CharlesRyan]

an important question is do you want immediate consequences?
or some delay?

I would argue for a delayed effect. Chances are, if the players are reaching into the jar of doom, they're probably in a fairly desperate situation already. If the effects are immediate, they're likely to skip the jar due to fears of going from the frying pan into the fire--or worse, reach into the jar, and actually go from the frying pan into the fire.

To me, what makes this idea work is that players can get immediate aid when they need it, but have to pay a significant price later.