D&D General What house-rules or techniques do you use to make 5e grittier?

[Xenolith234]

Remove multi saves. Like Flesh to Stone, one save failed and you are stone

Remove Death Saves. Use like -4 is death. Bleeding at -1 per round when below 0

Cut HP by like a third or half. Do it for the monsters as well.

Do you have anything like Concentration on those save spells, where it can be broken and free the character from its effect?

 

[DarkCrisis]

Do you have anything like Concentration on those save spells, where it can be broken and free the character from its effect?

Nope. That’s what magic is for. Uncurse them or cart them back to town and pay a caster to fix it.

 

[Xenolith234]

Remove multi saves. Like Flesh to Stone, one save failed and you are stone

Remove Death Saves. Use like -4 is death. Bleeding at -1 per round when below 0

Cut HP by like a third or half. Do it for the monsters as well.

Is ½ enemy HP and 2x the enemy damage too extreme?

 

[DarkCrisis]

Is ½ enemy HP and 2x the enemy damage too extreme?

Wont know until you try

 

[TwoSix]

I have thrown a bag of sand onto the table.

The DM got salty about his <airquote>Two thousand dollar video screen </airquote>. Whatever.

 

[Laurefindel]

I have thrown a bag of sand onto the table.

The DM got salty about his <airquote>Two thousand dollar video screen </airquote>. Whatever.

That certainly is a technique to bring grit to the table... and to ensure the DM makes life more difficult for players thereafter!

 

[Laurefindel]

Also, an easy non-rule to make D&D gritty is simply to keep it at levels 1-7 (ish) without pulling punches from the opposition (in terms of CR). PCs don't always have to be the biggest captains in the sky...

 

[MichaelSomething]

Is gritty anything besides lowering PC recovery capabilities???

 

[CreamCloud0]

Is gritty anything besides lowering PC recovery capabilities???

I would say it’s also improving the need and importance to properly prepare? and taking away the kind of things that sidestep that process, like goodberry, light and tiny hut? Which includes the ease of the recovery process

 

[tetrasodium]

Is gritty anything besides lowering PC recovery capabilities???

Throwing out death saves & replacing them with something less in the style of loony toons Wile E. Coyote and meaningfully functional carrying capacities like older editions had can be important secondary concerns. There is so much focus on recovery because 5e's recovery actively works to thwart all other efforts & is so deeply rooted to so much.