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<blockquote data-quote="Aethelstan" data-source="post: 2215918" data-attributes="member: 14304">I'm retaining criticals because they cut both ways.&nbsp; In fact, because PCs generally score more hits than opponents, PCs benefit more from a critical system.&nbsp; I disagree that criticals are not &quot;naturalistic.&quot;&nbsp; A knife thrust to the leg that just happens to hit a major artery is a real life example of a critical.&nbsp; Or for legendary examples, consider Goliath or Achilles.&nbsp; The standard critical rules are one of the few really &quot;gritty&quot; elements of d20 and add a level of dramatic unpredictability to combat.&nbsp; Your reservation seems to be that my system makes combat more lethal.&nbsp; That is, in fact, my intent.&nbsp;&nbsp; As you say, added lethality does raise issues of game balance.&nbsp; Consider this.&nbsp; In standard D&amp;D (or d20), massive magical healing and the non-delibilatating HP damage is countered by opponents that deal equally massive damage and are loaded with debilitating special abilities.&nbsp; In my system, healing is limited and getting wounded really hurts.&nbsp; To maintain balance, I will adjust challenges to reflect the fact that PCs can not easily bounce back from damage.&nbsp; As DM, I am no longer obligated to send wave after wave pumped and tricked out bad guys just to deplete PC healing resources.&nbsp; Every encounter, even from weaker foes, poses a danger because PCs risk losing HP they can't not readily replace.&nbsp; I personally have grown weary of the typical D&amp;D adventure were the PCs rush into fights, often rashly, counting on magical healing to save the day if death looms.&nbsp; In my experience, magical healing and the absence of any inpediments caused major HP loss actually encourages a reckless or lackadasical play.&nbsp;&nbsp; By removing the &quot;crutches&quot; provided by the standard rules, I hope to make players feel a greater sense of peril when in combat.&nbsp; I think an element of mild dread is a good thing in an rpg; it focuses the mind and promotes and rewards solid planning and inspired tactics.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Aethelstan, post: 2215918, member: 14304"] I'm retaining criticals because they cut both ways. In fact, because PCs generally score more hits than opponents, PCs benefit more from a critical system. I disagree that criticals are not "naturalistic." A knife thrust to the leg that just happens to hit a major artery is a real life example of a critical. Or for legendary examples, consider Goliath or Achilles. The standard critical rules are one of the few really "gritty" elements of d20 and add a level of dramatic unpredictability to combat. Your reservation seems to be that my system makes combat more lethal. That is, in fact, my intent. As you say, added lethality does raise issues of game balance. Consider this. In standard D&D (or d20), massive magical healing and the non-delibilatating HP damage is countered by opponents that deal equally massive damage and are loaded with debilitating special abilities. In my system, healing is limited and getting wounded really hurts. To maintain balance, I will adjust challenges to reflect the fact that PCs can not easily bounce back from damage. As DM, I am no longer obligated to send wave after wave pumped and tricked out bad guys just to deplete PC healing resources. Every encounter, even from weaker foes, poses a danger because PCs risk losing HP they can't not readily replace. I personally have grown weary of the typical D&D adventure were the PCs rush into fights, often rashly, counting on magical healing to save the day if death looms. In my experience, magical healing and the absence of any inpediments caused major HP loss actually encourages a reckless or lackadasical play. By removing the "crutches" provided by the standard rules, I hope to make players feel a greater sense of peril when in combat. I think an element of mild dread is a good thing in an rpg; it focuses the mind and promotes and rewards solid planning and inspired tactics. [/QUOTE]

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