D&D (2024) Should there be variable recovery with a long rest?

[tetrasodium]

Can't say I like the rest-per-level idea.

But it's easy enough to make it 3 per level if you want more time each level. Or 4.

Nor I. My games tend to advance in levels much more slowly than most (deliberately) & the per level thing would put rather extreme pressure on advancement or making the gm normalize frequent rests. It would have the upside of creating a lot of room (maybe too much) for scrolls/magic items/wands to fill the gap but it seems like it would create more problems than it solves in the long run.

 

[TerraDave]

For a while I have used a restiness rule. Unless an area is “resty”, there is a 50% of benefiting from a short rest instead of a long rest. The % can very depending on the place chosen to overnight.

 

[Minigiant]

I'm a fan of 2 Axis.


One axis is Time. How long you rest.

• Quick- 5 Minutes
• Short- 1 hour
• Long- 8 hours
• Full- 1 day
• Extended- 3 days

The other axis is Location. How safe you rest and how many recovery and relaxation facilities the area has.

• Respite- Downtime in an actively hostile and dangerous environment.
• Break- Downtime in a potentially dangerous environment or actively upsetting
• Rest- Downtime in a safe environment
• Holiday- Downtime in a safe environment designed for healing, recovery, and relaxation

The two are combined to determine your recovery.

 

[FallenRX]

Id rather they just go back to the old 3.5e resting standards, as the 4E resting standards do not work for the type of 3e-style game this is.

8 Hours for a short rest.

24 hours for a long rest.

The main issue with how they did it in 3.5e was it didnt affect casters because casting recovery was still 8 hours seperated from the rest system(because wasnt a thing until 4e). It was a hold over from 2e, but 2e's resting doesnt work with spellcasting buffed like it was in 3e, where its not as limited and all can be done in a action.

But this is not a issue in 5e, simply going back to this(making the current resting rules a variant), would address a lot of the issues with the pacing and style of game 5e is, as tying casters back to it address the balance issue/handwaving issue of the 3.5e era, as they werent back then.

 

[Clint_L]

When all rests are short rests, except two per level become long rests, the math works out the same. With regard to spells: short rest is that, long rest is that. Such as Warlock versus Wizard.

The difference is, the DM can create any number of narratives they want. A level might happen in a single day with door-to-door dungeon combat encounters. Or stretch out across months while sailing on a ship with occasional encounters. Or be in a social campaign with many social encounter challenges. If the effort to overcome the challenge feels worth an encounter, it counts as an encounter.

Roughly, there are about 9 encounters per level, but it depends on which level, and tier 5-8 is more like 15 encounters per level.

Where the math (hilariously) assumes about 7 encounters per day (6-8), the math anticipates about two long rests per about every 14 encounters.

Whence two long rests per level works well.

These long rests can happen at ANY time during the level.

You're making a lot of assumptions about other people's campaigns. I don't understand what advantage is gained by tying rests to level progression. Those things are unrelated.

 

[Yaarel]

You're making a lot of assumptions about other people's campaigns. I don't understand what advantage is gained by tying rests to level progression. Those things are unrelated.

The short rest is the normal rest.

The long rest represents the "refresh", the "rally", the "second wind", the "hope", the "renewal of energy" to push on.

These refreshes can potentially happen at any time, but are unusual cannot happen every time.

Importantly, the flexibility of when it happens, allows the DM to focus on the story and stop worrying about time-compressing the story.

In this context, there is the "rest" (short rest) and the "refresh" (long rest) or deep rest.

The long (deep) rest can be 1 hour, 8 hours, whatever rest makes sense in the narrative context.

 

[mellored]

Nor I. My games tend to advance in levels much more slowly than most (deliberately) & the per level thing would put rather extreme pressure on advancement or making the gm normalize frequent rests. It would have the upside of creating a lot of room (maybe too much) for scrolls/magic items/wands to fill the gap but it seems like it would create more problems than it solves in the long run.

The 2 main issues IMO.

1. That you need to know ahead of time how long your spend at each level. I mean, players don't always follow the plot, and could get side tracked for a while. Or they might bypass several encounters with some cleverness and end the boss in a day.
2. It just doesn't work narrativly that you could spend a week resting in town and not heal, but spend a night in a damp dungeon and get everything back.

As far as balance goes, milestones do work well to keep a set ratio of short and long rest. But I would rather have some imbalances and a better story.

 

[mellored]

I like where OP is going but would probably just simpliy it to "uncomfortable long rest" (might call it partial long rest instead) and long rest.

Middle rest was also suggested.

I definitely wouldn't go for the luxury rest option; too cheap and easy for a significant advantage (and makes MMM, already a great spell, into a must-have so that every single mid-upper level party will need someone who can cast it every night). I don't want every adventuring day to end with "and then we all go into Mordenkainen's Magnificent Mansion for another amazing evening." Kinda kills the drama.

Consider you need to end the day with a level 7 spell slot (not a ritual) and not use it to cast force cage, i think it's plenty balanced. Or compared to say... a level 4 aid spell. Or some potions of heroism.

I'm not committed to the luxury rest or anything. But I'm ok if MMM has a few more advantages over casting leomunds tiny hut as a ritual.

 

[mellored]

Hmmm...
What if recovery was a die roll?

I.e.
Make an Arcana check when you take a long rest. You regain a number of spell levels equal to half the roll (minimum 1).
The DM may declare a penalty or bonus to the roll depending on the resting conditions. With extremely poor resting getting a -5, up to a +5 if you have access to your wizards tower or similar.

 

[rules.mechanic]

I think the Xanathar's Guide to Everything long rest rules are pretty reasonable. Can impose rest as if in medium/heavy armor for bad rest. Exhaustion if no rest.