Post/Author/DateTime	Post
thenightlords 03-19-05, 02:18 PM	Hi the group I have been playing in have been kicking around some ideas on house rules. The goal is to have little more risk in the game. We are talking about higher level characters don't have a risk of death in normal game play. Yes when you see the dragon or 10,001 goblins you can die but what about getting in the bar fight or steet fight and some one getting luck and cutting your head off. I know this would rarly happen but it could and we are wanting to add this to the game. We talked about a "called shot crit" so if you took -10 or more to your to hit roll you can get a crit to cutting some ones head off. But this might not work as easy as we hope. Also we talked about adding your level to you damage or just doing max so we don't roll the d4,d6,d8 or what ever. But again not sure how this would work in the long run. Has anyone else thought about this and if so what did you come op with? Stephen
weasel fierce 03-19-05, 02:26 PM	To be honest, you mayu be looking at the wrong game. I'd seek out a copy of an older edition of D&D or AD&D, or maybe a game like GURPS. We've tried similar rules, and they rarely work well
Seeker95 03-19-05, 02:48 PM	If the lack in your game is risk, talk the DM into playing his NPCs/monsters with as much attachment as the players play their PCs. If the DM plays as smart as a player,the PCs are at risk in every single encounter.
thenightlords 03-19-05, 05:49 PM	We (the group I am gaming with now) have played GURPS but as their is so much nice info out for d20 it is hard to pass it up. About half of us(my self included) like the d20 system but being a little risker would not be bad. But the big problem is one guys hates the d20 system but I don't know why. If you say d20 his eyes roll and just starts bad mouthing the system and want give it a try(he has played but not with us). I am sure others have thought about this or had this problem so I would liek to know what you guys/gals do about it. Playing the NPC's or monsters smart is a great idea I have played in to many games where the monsters are there to give the players EXP and not much else. Thanks
Escef 03-20-05, 04:55 AM	Try using the Wound/Vitality point rules found in Star Wars d20 and Unearthed Arcana. It makes low levels more survivable and keeps much of the risk in high levels.
Planar Wanderer 03-20-05, 07:15 AM	Alternatively there is the variant rule in the 3.5 DMG for criticals to insta-kill in certain circumstances I can't decide whether to use it IMC as it might cause too many problems in the game.
Ranger REG 03-21-05, 02:39 AM	Try using the Wound/Vitality point rules found in Star Wars d20 and Unearthed Arcana. It makes low levels more survivable and keeps much of the risk in high levels. That is one option. Another is to use a combination Massive Damage Threshold + Hit Point System, a la d20 Modern.
Escef 03-21-05, 02:50 AM	That is one option. Another is to use a combination Massive Damage Threshold + Hit Point System, a la d20 Modern. That is an option, but not one I encourge given that at higher levels characters often take damage that exceeds their Con scores.
thenightlords 03-21-05, 10:40 AM	I dont' have the star war d20 book but I got out my stargate d20 that i have never used. They have a wound/Vitality points system also it may be the same. But it should fix a lot of problems.
Escef 03-21-05, 10:52 AM	The basics of wound/vitality is that vitality is your normal hp (a combination of luck, skill, and how far you can push yourself before you suffer from physical or mental exhaustion) and wound points equal to your constitiution score (what you can physically take). Once you run out of vitality you take wound damage, once wounded you take penalties. Critical hits damage wounds directly, bypassing vitality. Because of this weapons do not have crit multipliers, just higher threat ranges (an axe would threaten on 19-20 instead of 20/x3, a scythe would threaten 18-20 instead of 20/x4). Once you run out of wounds you go into negative hp as per normal rules. At low levels the benefit is that you effectively get extra hp equal to your con score, at high levels the drawback is that a crit from a dragon, demon, or power attacking warrior can one-shot you with ease. But things do stay dangerous that way.
Ranger REG 03-21-05, 02:57 PM	That is an option, but not one I encourge given that at higher levels characters often take damage that exceeds their Con scores. It does force one to make Fortitude saving throws frequently, which by that time such a high-level character would have a double-digit bonus.
Edymnion 03-21-05, 03:21 PM	To be perfectly honest, by the time you hit lvl 20, you're entering Dragonball Z territory as far as power level goes. And frankly, I don't think a mugger is going to pose much threat to Goku. By the time you get that high up, you SHOULD be danged near unkillable. You've gone toe to toe with dragons and walked away from it, for Pete's sake. You've got sharply honed combat skills that make the Marines look like a bunch of 12 year olds playing Kung Fu, and you still get worried about walking down a dark ally because you might get mugged by a guy with a knife?