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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Pickaxe" data-source="post: 2184573" data-attributes="member: 10812">Pielorhino, I understand how you came to read the sunder rule in this way, but I have to say that your interpretation sets off my own common sense alarm far more than the alternative.1) The mechanic we are discussing specifically describes weapon (or item) hit points, drawing a direct analogy with creature hit points. The mechanics for creature hit points do not say, "If you do not do enough damage to kill the creature, you fail to do any damage." Thus, by using the term "hit points" for items, the designers are communicating to me a concept that should be familiar from my experience with creatures in the game. If your interpretation is correct, why did the designers bother to use the term "hit points"?2) As much as the designers are maligned in this forum, I generally find that they make at least some attempt to be clear, especially if the point is easily confused. Thus, if your interpretation were correct, I'd expect to see some language to the effect of, "If the damage after hardness is greater than the hit points of the item, it is destroyed or rendered useless; if the damage is less than the item's hit points, it is treated as undamaged with the same number of hit points as it had to begin with." There is no such language describing a mechanic that clearly differs from the use of hit points elsewhere.Note that even Hypersmurf's point about the distinction between hardness and hit points does not weaken these points. Energy and adamantine are still supposed to do damage to the item, just as they do damage to creatures. Why, then, should we expect that hit points for items behave differently than those for creatures?3) Your argument regarding weapons starting with some damage is not compelling. Randomly generated monsters come with full hit points, why shouldn't randomly rolled items? Even with your interpretation of sunder, shouldn't we consider knocking off hit points from items that have been affected not by sunder but by energy spells or other forms of damage? We don't, which is consistent with how we treat creatures; if you want a good reason why the designers made it this way, you've already provided it: easier bookkeeping.--Axe</blockquote>

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