D&D 5E (2014) The Power of Poison: A little math

BryonD · Jul 15, 2014

I started a thread on this a few days back and there didn't seem to be much knowledge yet.
I infer that not all poisons inflict the "poisoned" condition.

Stalker0 · Jul 16, 2014

BryonD said:
I started a thread on this a few days back and there didn't seem to be much knowledge yet.
I infer that not all poisons inflict the "poisoned" condition.

The one example we have is a spider whose poison specifically inflicts the condition. My take would be basic poison does not.

SatanasOz · Jul 16, 2014

Interesting 50/50. My gut would have gone for the 'poisoned' path, but I acknoledge that is just that. Gut-feel GM ruling with no underpinning clarity from the rules.

I wonder if that is something that will happen more often - room and relyance on rulings for these cases a bit outside the main part of the game. I guess on this particular piece there will be a bit more once the PHB is out. If only because the playtest assassin had traits around that.

Quartz · Jul 16, 2014

Per p. 105 of the Basic Rules, a poisoned creature has Disadvantage on attack rolls and ability checks. Also, it's only the basic poison that's +1d4 - surely a level 20 poison will have much more serious effects?

Nagol · Jul 16, 2014

Quartz said:
Per p. 105 of the Basic Rules, a poisoned creature has Disadvantage on attack rolls and ability checks. Also, it's only the basic poison that's +1d4 - surely a level 20 poison will have much more serious effects?

According to the downtime section, spending three days recuperating gives a character advantage on a saving throw to remove a poison from their system too.

I somehow doubt the basic poison is expected to give disadvantage for days on end.

I suspect the poison rules we're seeing are incomplete and will be filled out once the monster/DM section hits the basic rules. Likely, the poisoned condition is only granted explicitly (like the one spider example) and the condition lasts either a set period of time (like the spider example) or until thrown off.

ExploderWizard · Jul 16, 2014

I would rule that the poison is only good for 1 minute OR until a hit is scored, with a failed save indicating the poisoned condition. The poisoned condition would last one minute but the victim would get a new save each round.

That way, poison is still a one use item that gives a little bang for the buck.

BryonD · Jul 17, 2014

Stalker0 said:
The one example we have is a spider whose poison specifically inflicts the condition. My take would be basic poison does not.

Yes, I agree.

Sword of Spirit · Jul 17, 2014

Psikerlord# said:
I presume it only applies once, as in every prior edition, and that there will be stronger poisons in phb or dmg.

I wouldn't presume anything that isn't written in the rules. They're trying to make this edition extremely user friendly for new players. When the text isn't clear that a rule works how we are used to it working from prior editions, there's a really good chance it doesn't work that way.

In this case, I expect it works for each successful hit during the entire minute.

I'm not surprised by the math. Even with multiple uses over a minute, it seems weak for $10,000, er, I mean 100gp.

The only time I can think of where it would be worth using is in assassination types of scenarios. A warrior isn't going to poison his blade before a battle. But a rogue lurking in the shadows might very well do so.

Overall, it looks like poison could potentially end up being useful in this edition (depending on what other types they make), since without an expected wealth by level or magic-mart a character might be able to amass a lot of wealth, make his own poison, and end up with a reasonable supply that he doesn't have to give up permanent magical items to pay for.

Again though, it's generally only going to work well in specific planned situations--not as a standard buff.