D&D 5E Nova Damage

[dave2008]

"Nova" is rooted back in a translation of "Lord of the Rings"'s famous line from Gandalf: "You Shall Not Pass". It was translated in Spanish to "No Va", and this was taken by gamers to mean going all out when you don't want the monster to survive.


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I am not saying that it is, but that really sounds like an Urban Legend. I always assumed it was related to the concept of a supernova as mentioned earlier in this thread. I am pretty sure that is how every gamer I have encountered and use the term understood it.

 

[Yunru]

I am not saying that it is, but that really sounds like an Urban Legend. I always assumed it was related to the concept of a supernova as mentioned earlier in this thread. I am pretty sure that is how every gamer I have encountered and use the term understood it.

I don't get why this is a discussion, I quoted the dictionary definition earlier in thread!

 

[dave2008]

I don't get why this is a discussion, I quoted the dictionary definition earlier in thread!

Well, you quoted the definition for supernova, not how the term is used in games. They need not be the same, and thus the discussion.Personally, I agree with you definition as I understand how it relates to the game.

However, I don't agree that it has to be the first round as you stated earlier. I have had my players nova a few rounds into a combat before. Typically when they realize the battle will not be won (or will be very costly) with standard tactics.

 

[Yunru]

Oh no, that was just for a regular nova.

 

[Blue]

Nova, by its nature, can only be a single round.

I don't think this is a universal definition. To us, it's just when you are going all out, using up a significant amount limited resources. It can often happen on later rounds of a fight, especially if there are reinforcements or the nature of the encounter becomes clear and you need to step up your game.

I'll go as far and say that "first round only" seems the opposite of how I see others discuss it since it often relies on buffs from previous rounds, such as hex/hunter's mark, haste, etc.

 

[Yunru]

I don't think this is a universal definition. To us, it's just when you are going all out, using up a significant amount limited resources. It can often happen on later rounds of a fight, especially if there are reinforcements or the nature of the encounter becomes clear and you need to step up your game.

I'll go as far and say that "first round only" seems the opposite of how I see others discuss it since it often relies on buffs from previous rounds, such as hex/hunter's mark, haste, etc.

You must of loaded the page just before I finished editing, because you're talking about the post pre-edit, but have quoted it post-edit.

 

[Cap'n Kobold]

How should we best look at NOVA damage in 5e? Should it be damage over the first round? Is a better 5e metric possibly damage over the first 2 rounds? Should we look at prebuffed characters or only what buffs a character can use during a fight. Which classes perform the best at NOVA damage? If you want to increase NOVA damage what are generally the best multiclass dips for doing so or does it vary based on your primary class?

You can't really start judging the capabilities of different classes for nova damage until you decide on how you are defining it.

Once we know and understand the assumptions you are making it terms of what 'nova damage' actually is, we can start qualitatively looking at classes and deciding what they are capable of within those parameters.

 

[Blue]

no,

that would be alpha strike.

Nova would be the round when you deal you maximum possible damage per round if there is a need for it.

But usually it is the first round as you count on to knock out biggest number of opponents before they can retaliate or to force them on the defensive.

It's interesting how some related games handle this. For example, 13th Age starts with the combat math against the players, but an Escalation Die that increases every round from zero to six. So do you go for the most targets or the best chance to get them? It also helps prevent combat grind and is a great pacing tool.

 

[Xeviat]

I am not saying that it is, but that really sounds like an Urban Legend. I always assumed it was related to the concept of a supernova as mentioned earlier in this thread. I am pretty sure that is how every gamer I have encountered and use the term understood it.

I was being playful.

Clearly, "Nova" refers to the stellar event. Or the Chevy.


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