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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Consonant Dude" data-source="post: 5816217" data-attributes="member: 6688791">I think the primary reason a lot of DnD players have such a hard time with Save or Die is because it is almost the antithesis of hit points. Hit points are very much canonical to DnD. You have this gauge. As long as your gauge doesn't reach X (0, or -10, or whatever) you are still in the game. So here's the thing. Since very few people start threads titled "Dying by loss of hit points sucks or is unfair or blah blah blah" we must look at what happens there. Why is dying by HP loss OK?To lose hit points, a series of pulse-pounding steps must happen. They usually include determining init-surprise, then exchanging blows. The more HPs you get, the more flexibility you have when it comes to pacing yourself in a combat encounter. As the combat is prolonged, there is excitement as you see it unfold and the probabilities (plus the DM's description of the situation) become a way for the player to see how the combat is going and "gamble" with his life or strategically retreat. Every time you are hit, you see that little HP gauge change.By contrast, many save-or-die situations are sudden. A ceiling suddenly falling or that tasty stew being poisoned are things your PC probably never saw coming. Then, mechanically it gets worse because instead of a series of steps, you have one roll determining the character's fate. I don't think there's much that can be done about situations. Certainly, I think there is room for sudden happenings such as a cavern ceiling coming down or tasty poisoned stew. But mechanically, there may be ways to change the single step (roll once. If you fail you die) into several steps. At least in certain situations. Maybe in certain instances, save-or-die could be changed to some kind of consecutive saves VS HP loss, for example.</blockquote>

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