Centaured and Peaceful

 

Dates

How about April?

I'm (currently) free:

Sat 10 / Sun 11

Sat 17 / Sun 18

Sat 24 / Sun 28

The latter two dates might work better for me, but I'm not too precious.

Cheers,

Scott

Hit Points and how to lose them

After our last session, we questioned how 'Hit points' are represented in D&D.

Are the characters, NPCs and monsters just variously sized fleshy meat-bags of HPs?

The Player's handbook defines HPs as: 'The ability to take punishment, luck and the skill to reduce a lethal blow to a less serious one '. 

In game mechanic terms, this means that you're perfectly fine and fully functional until your HPs fall to '0', at which time you're 'Disabled', and at '-1 to -9' when you're 'Unconscious' or '-10' at which point, you're dead.

Interestingly though, there are two provisos to this that add a little nuance.

'Massive damage' is D&Ds way of making falling from a great height or falling into boiling larva more dangerous. If you take more than 50 points of damage in a single instance, you must make a Fortitude save: DC:15 or be killed regardless of how many HPs you'd have left. That'd be dangerous enough to stop me jumping from clifftops regardless of a character having 100+ HPs.

'Helpless' refers to being unable to protect yourself from having your throat slit with a 'Coup de Grace'.

'Coup de Grace' means the attacker, with a 'Full round action' is able to automatically hit and score a 'Critical Hit'. Even if the 'Helpless' victim survives this damage, they must make a Fortitude save: DC: 10 + the damage dealt or die!

'Disabled' means that you can only take one action. If that action is an attack, you lose another HP and become 'Unconscious'.

(The 'range' of just 1 seems a little silly to me but I suppose that's what the 'Die Hard' feat is for.)

'Unconscious' means that you are at -1 to -9 HPs and you lose an additional HP per round until you either 'Stabilise' or die.

You get a 10% chance of naturally 'Stabilising' per round.

A 'Healing' skill check of DC:15 allows another character or NPC to 'Stabilise' an 'Unconscious' character.

Another PC or NPC casting a healing spell or force feeding a 'Cure' potion will also bring the character up to 'Conscious' again with full autonomy or at the very least 'Stabilise' them.

Once a character falls to '-10' HPs, they're dead with their only recourse a 'Raise Dead' spell or equivalent.

This leads to some urgency in tending to the dying.

There is no mention of whether these rules apply to monsters and NPCs though.

The Monster manual does state that monsters heal at a rate of 1 point per Hit Dice per day.

This at least means that they can heal but not whether than can be 'Disabled' or 'Dying'. i.e. Drop below 1HP.

I suppose the question becomes: If your retainer Rifkin gets reduced to '0' HPs or lower, would you expect him to be instantly dead or not?

We could complicate the question further by making a distinction between 'NPCs' and 'Retainers' but that just seems petty.

Ultimately, as a just and kind God DM, I feel everyone should have the same chances at life but generally not necessarily the same opportunity to exploit them. i.e. No-one there to care or with the magic or skill to make a difference.

...

That said, unless you absolutely, one hundred percent know your enemy's dead, they may come back to get you!

;P

To sleep perchance to....

 Fortu rolled desperately aside, the huge warhammer thudding into the blood soaked sand, sending a spray of grit into his eyes. Blinking rapidly he continued to roll, sweat and sand blurring his vision his hand miraculously finding the familiar hilt of a bastard sword. Rising to a crouch and sweeping blindly behind he hears the satisfying crunch as tempered steel tears through skin, muscle and bone. The agonised cry of his attacker heard over the baying crowd.

Coming to his feet he sees the balcony above, the bloated eager face of the owner leering down with anticipation at further bloodshed.

"Shield" he roars sprinting to the base of the wall, the gladiator there instinctively bracing the shield horizontally. Charging towards the balcony he launches himself from the shield, sword thrown aside, he reaches for the balustrade. Pulling himself over the railing he sidesteps the over eager guard and helps him over into the pit.

Hands reach for the owners head, thumbs finding purchase in eye sockets, as he screams. The screams falter as Fortu cracks the head back against the marble wall then brings it forward where his forehead smashes the nose. Blood explodes across the owners face as Fortu again cracks the head back; the pristine white marble now smeared red. Lifting the body above his head....

Fortu jolts awake, the vivid dream fading quickly. All that he can remember is the ruined face of the owner. The face of Lord Briefedel.

A Twist in the Tale

The big four-legs and the strange tottery creatures were scary but the hot, meaty smell wafting from their camp was simply irresistible.
Creeping ever closer, he sniffs the air but smells danger mixed in with the smokey, burning flesh.
Another smell.. Not a fox... Not a wolf... A dog but a monstrously large one!
His stomach rumbles loudly but he daren't move from his hiding spot.
Maybe they'd leave some tasty tid-bits after they'd finished?
Hours pass and one by one the tottery-two-legs wander away from the sparkling fire to sleep, leaving just the smallest of them awake. The big four-legs are tethered and although the giant dog is lying near the smallest two-legs, he's reassured by the slobbery snoring.
His tail held low to hide its white tip, he slowly edges forward and as soon as the littlest totterer moves away, he bolts forward and snatches up some of the discarded pheasant bones.
There's still plenty of sweet meet on them and, although it might be due to the many days since he was separated from his family and eaten, he'd never tasted anything so delicious.
A flickering shadow to his right and his sharp ears alert him of danger and he's already sprinting, full pelt, back through the bushes, before the totterer was even close.

After his heart beat slows down from its terrified thunder, he shudders and licks his lips. He'd managed to gulp down enough food for the night but he knew he'd be hungry again by tomorrow.

And although that meat was weirdly hot and peppery, he'd never had anything so amazing and had to taste it again.

The next morning, he trails them. Considering the size of the group and his nose, it's not difficult. They travel all day but at a relatively slow pace and set up camp as before.

Repeating his successful plan from the previous night, it all goes well and he has a mouthful of succulent rabbit this time when he hears the small guard.

He's already spinning to flee when he stops suddenly...

Did the that guard just say 'Hello little friend'?

Unconsciously dropping his mouthful, eyes wide, he stares at the strange creature addressing him. He's the smallest but nimblest of the two-legs. 

Confused, all he can think to say is, 'What?'

Squatting down to make himself less threatening, the totterer spreads his hands wide and softly speaks again.

'Come, take your fill. There'll be some for you every night, if you want it.'

Suspiciously, eyes narrowed again, he glances over to the big, slobbery dog. It's awake and watching but still lying where it was.

Tentatively he slinks back up to the fire and gobbles down the rest of the meal as the guard continues.

'All you have to do is look out for other... two-legs like us and come warn us beforehand.'

Tilting his head to the side and running his tongue around his teeth, he considers the proposal for a moment.

'I can do that but first... Please Sir, I want some more.'

Training Montage

Liga Bur sat, gazing into the fire. The flames danced hypnotically and he travelled back in his own mind to when he first taught Mir Hundur how to hunt and fight in battle. 

The tribal drums begin to beat. Quietly at first, but soon reaching a crescendo.

Chicka Chicka Chicka Chicka Chicka Chicka Chicka Chicka Chicka Chicka Chicka Chicka.

Dun. Dun Dun Dun. Dun Dun Dun. Dun Dun DDDUUUUNNNNN.

Dun. Dun Dun Dun. Dun Dun Dun. Dun Dun DDDUUUUNNNNN.

Rising up, back on the plain

Threw a ball, Mir Hundur chased behind it

Jumped up so high he nearly touched the sky

And brought that ball straight back to Liga

He's got the scent, he's hot on the trail

His prey is out of options

Tries to flee, but is cornered

The tribe, eating well again tonight!

It's the eye of Mir Hundur

And he's learning new tricks

Learning how to be a faithful companion

Getting faster and stronger 

With every new day

And he's watching us all with the eye... of Mir Hundur

Running fast, the wind in his hair

Liga Bur is holding on tightly

Snarling and biting, but under control

A fighter true and tested

It's the eye of Mir Hundur

And he's learning new tricks

Learning how to be a faithful companion

Getting faster and stronger 

With every new day

And he's watching us all with the eye... of Mir Hundur

Two become one, it's a cliche for sure 

But the pair are really bonding 

Brave and fearless, and loyal to a fault

Not just a dog, but a companion 

It's the eye of Mir Hundur

And he's learning new tricks

Learning how to be a faithful companion

Getting faster and stronger 

With every new day

And he's watching us all with the eye... of Mir Hundur

The eye of Mir Hundur

The eye of Mir Hundur

The eye of Mir Hundur

The eye of Mir Hundur

Mir Hundur is now Liga Bur's animal companion and has been trained in a bunch of tricks which are... Now I go to look them up, having written all of that, now seem to have vanished from PCGen. FFS.

Dates

Hi chaps,

Have finally gotten myself together enough to look at the diary.

Do any of these dates work for you?

Saturday 27th March 

Saturday 10th April / Sunday 10th April

Saturday 17th April / Sunday 18th April

Saturday 24th April / Sunday 25th April

In all cases I can do my morning (your night the day before) or my evening (your morning of that date). If we do a Sunday evening I'll have a hard stop at a fair sensible time as that will be a school night for me.

Cheers,

Rat King Panpipes

 

Little Fox

 

Egrow the Firestarter

 

In Leggetto

 

Filth Fever!

 

Rifkin Inspiration

 

Vampire DM