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<blockquote data-quote="Cap'n Kobold" data-source="post: 8729535" data-attributes="member: 6802951">Unless your DM just flat-out throws an effect that one-shots you (which as you note is rarer in 5e than in early editions), losing HP in much more incremental and has options that give you at least the illusion of a fighting chance over the rounds in which you take it until you go down. You are able to interact and participate in the game, and there may be things you can do to reduce that damage. I personally would include magic that just deals HP damage in the same &quot;less frustrating&quot; category as weapon users.Compare that with getting stomped by non-HP magic: you're out. You might get just a single roll, and bad odds of making it. It is entirely possible at higher levels that there was no chance of resisting it.You're out of the fight. Maybe you get to roll a die to try to break out on your turns, maybe your party can break you out. Maybe the DC is too high and/or they cannot. Either way you don't get to still interact or try different strategies: You're just on hold until you're allowed back into the D&amp;D game.The outcome might have been just as inevitable. But the fight that you lost through HP damage will probably have been much more fun, and much less frustrating than the one you lost by just rolling average on a single D20 roll.&nbsp;Not all effects that require saving throws deal HP damage.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Cap'n Kobold, post: 8729535, member: 6802951"] Unless your DM just flat-out throws an effect that one-shots you (which as you note is rarer in 5e than in early editions), losing HP in much more incremental and has options that give you at least the illusion of a fighting chance over the rounds in which you take it until you go down. You are able to interact and participate in the game, and there may be things you can do to reduce that damage. I personally would include magic that just deals HP damage in the same "less frustrating" category as weapon users. Compare that with getting stomped by non-HP magic: you're out. You might get just a single roll, and bad odds of making it. It is entirely possible at higher levels that there was no chance of resisting it. You're out of the fight. Maybe you get to roll a die to try to break out on your turns, maybe your party can break you out. Maybe the DC is too high and/or they cannot. Either way you don't get to still interact or try different strategies: You're just on hold until you're allowed back into the D&D game. The outcome might have been just as inevitable. But the fight that you lost through HP damage will probably have been much more fun, and much less frustrating than the one you lost by just rolling average on a single D20 roll. Not all effects that require saving throws deal HP damage. [/QUOTE]

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