D&D 5E True Polymorph - Too powerful?

[Dausuul]

As a DM, you sometimes need to add rules to the game when the players step outside the expected rules. If PCs were doing this in my game, I'd have the extra heads wither away after a few hours, for example. There is no reason to have this in place for a monster description that is expected to be slain when first met - but it makes sense for it to be there now as otherwise there would by hydras biting their heads off to become unstoppable like this somewhere along the line.

This, exactly.

OP, your buddy is bending the D&D rules to the point of absurdity. This is where you need to step in and say, "Sorry, hydras don't work that way. You can't grow a thousand-plus heads." Put some kind of reasonable limit in place and stick to it. If your buddy has a problem with that, then the problem is on his side, not yours. A DM must be able to say no to the players.

(And I would have a real problem with the jokes. Maybe once is funny, but repeatedly... not cool. Have you actually asked your wife how she felt about that?)

 

[Teemu]

Just cap the number of fully functioning heads at triple the starting heads or something. Maybe after a point the new heads that grow are smaller and smaller and eventually just simple nubs that don’t contribute mechanically.

 

[TaranTheWanderer]

Hi,

Is this True Polymorph, the 9th level spell?

True Polymorph is concentration. If he's attacked any number of times, there's a chance that he'll lose the spell. It also only lasts 1 hour. So, they will have to be within 1 hour travel of the lair of Boss before they start their cutting off heads trick. The more heads they want, the more time it takes and the closer to the lair they need to be. It only regains 1 extra head PER TURN. Not one head for every head that is cut off. 10 heads in a minute, 600 heads in an hour.

Then he will have to succeed every single Constitution save for each attack. Then the time to get there to the boss. I mean. The boss has minions, right? At least one of them will see a multi-headed hydra and run away to tell the boss. All he has to do is delay them for an hour. Spell is over, 9th level slot used.

 

[TaranTheWanderer]

Double post:

Logistically, this sounds like a terrible plan. A hydra is a huge sized creature. All you need is a medium sized door and the hydra can't fit through the door to access the fight. Maybe they need to walk down a 50 foot hallway that's only 5 feet wide.

 

[Dausuul]

Hi,

Is this True Polymorph, the 9th level spell?

True Polymorph is concentration. If he's attacked any number of times, there's a chance that he'll lose the spell. It also only lasts 1 hour. So, they will have to be within 1 hour travel of the lair of Boss before they start their cutting off heads trick. The more heads they want, the more time it takes and the closer to the lair they need to be. It only regains 1 extra head PER TURN. Not one head for every head that is cut off. 10 heads in a minute, 600 heads in an hour.

Then he will have to succeed every single Constitution save for each attack. Then the time to get there to the boss. I mean. The boss has minions, right? At least one of them will see a multi-headed hydra and run away to tell the boss. All he has to do is delay them for an hour. Spell is over, 9th level slot used.

True polymorph becomes permanent if maintained for the full duration, which the caster has done.

By a super-technical reading of the rules, this trick works. But one of the reasons we have DMs is to step in when players find a loophole of this sort.

(There are, of course, counters that the bad guy can use; dispel magic has already been pointed out, and simply flying out of reach will also work... or using mind control spells and taking advantage of the hydra's abysmal Int/Wis saves. But it will be much better in the long run to tackle this problem at the source.)

 

[TaranTheWanderer]

Oh yes, I forgot it became permanent. This still seems like a bad idea.

"If the spell becomes permanent, you no longer control the creature. It might remain friendly to you, depending on how you have treated it."

So...the player loses control of their character and the hydra probably won't remain friendly because they keep attacking it. Then the logistics of trying to get an INT 2 monster, that you can't control, to follow you into a fight.

Edit: this pertains to Object into a creature. hence the strikethrough...

Still

This is a terrible, terrible idea.

 

[GMMichael]

It's still only got 30 feet movement, though obviously that can be buffed, so any reasonably mobile foe can just maintain distance.

Wrong. Movement speed is 5 or 0 when you have 1000+ heads.

 

[MarkB]

Wrong. Movement speed is 5 or 0 when you have 1000+ heads.

I could imagine it writhing along the ground on its mass of necks, its vestigial body dangling uselessly above.

 

[MonsterEnvy]

At this point, it lasts until someone dispels it or until the hydra form is reduced to 0 hit points.

No then the person who is now permanently a Hydra is making Death Saving Throws or dead.

 

[MonsterEnvy]

Also like that Order of the Stick comic (That linked to the wrong page.) The Hydra would not have enough blood for so many heads.