Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="pemerton" data-source="post: 9115942" data-attributes="member: 42582">Gygax tells us how to handle this, in his DMG: the narration follows the mechanical result. So if the character suffers no poison damage (or, in AD&D, if the player rolls the save vs poison) then the stinger/fang/whatever didn't penetrate. But if the character takes damage (or, in AD&D, if the player fails the saving throw) then there was at least a scratch or puncture, such that some poison entered the victim's system.This does require departing from the literal words of the 5e rules text regarding hit points, but I don't think it's a very demanding departure. Most attacks don't inflict poison damage.This is exactly Gygax's argument against damage types in his DMG: that because no contact is made, it doesn't matter! He uses the same argument against hit locations.Of course this doesn't stop him having creatures, like demons and devils, with various degrees of damage resistance; nor rules for the different AC of bodily locations in some of the MM entries. So he's not entirely consistent!The answer I've always assumed is that if a character is not vulnerable to fire, they are less threatened by fiery attacks and hence do not get as worn down by avoiding/enduring them.Well, the mechanical difference is clear - the degree of hp ablation. In the fiction, an attack that does (more) damage is one that pushes the victim harder, requires greater resolve to resist/avoid/endure, etc.It's self-evident that the narration of that is mere colour, in the sense that the action resolution doesn't care about it. There are combat systems in which it is not mere colour (eg RQ, RM, Burning Wheel) but D&D has never been one of them.My mental image tends to be that the scrapes, scratches etc are not debilitating - hence no penalties suffered - but they might still be visible. Regaining hp doesn't necessarily mean that the scrape, bruise or whatever has healed up. Rather, it means that the character has regained their stamina, resolve etc.Obviously the above narration would not be plausible for broken bones, serious sprains, evisceration etc. That's why I would not include those as part of my mental image, nor as part of my narration.</blockquote>

Verification