Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 Awie Sep 10, 2014 8:43:56	Is it just me or is poison not explained very well?   it explains the poisoned condition which is pretty cool   my problem comes with using poisons   the only poison you can buy or make i suppose is the 1d4 poison in the equipment list   but what about more powerful poisons?   my second concern is the total mess with creatures who have poison   some creatures deal poison damage and doesnt say anything about people being poisoned by it while others do, and the dice used for poison varies alot too   discuss
#2 onceMoreIntoBreech Sep 10, 2014 9:15:27	There is no curare equivalent in most of D&D history (that I've read; it might exist). That is: there is no poison so potent that a simple nick introducing the poison into the blood guarentees paralysis (and probably death).
#3 Awie Sep 10, 2014 9:29:03	taht is not what i am saying, but making poison from a killed wyvern for example should do more damage than 1d4 etc   and also why does some creatures attack which have poison say deals x amount of poison damage and other say y amount and target becomes poisoned..... poison should always poison you?   im pretty sure that in earlier versions wyvern poison would kill you if you failed your check, that is too powerful for players obviusly
#4 AaronOfBarbaria Sep 10, 2014 9:54:51	Some poisons deal damage, but do not cause the poisoned condition, because they do not hinder the functions of the body in any way represented by the game mechanics (except if they cause unconsciousness or death as a result of the damage they deal).   Other poisons cause the poisoned condition, but do deal damage, because they hinder the functions of the body but are not considered to be potentially immediately lethal.   Other poisons still both cause damage and the poisoned condition because they are both potentially immediately lethal and hinder the functions of the body even if they aren't lethal.   And there is still room for poisons that cause effects other than damage or the poisoned condition (or alongside one or both of those), such as blinding the victim.   As for the amount of damage dealt by a poison - that is entirely a representation of how likely that poison is to cause unconsciousness or death, so that a scorpion might have poison that causes some risk of death (1d8 damage with a DC 9 save for half), and a wyvern has an extremely dangerou poison (7d6 damage with a DC 15 save for half).
#5 Joe_the_Rat Sep 10, 2014 10:27:04	I suppose you could look at poisons like they were neurotoxins (poisoned condition) or hemotoxins (damage). It's not a perfect match by any means, but it gives you a way to conceptualize the different conditions as different modes of afflcition.   onceMoreIntoBreech wrote:
#6 Awie Sep 10, 2014 10:55:07	i see your point there aarron but shouldnt poison that only deal damage be damage over time?   i just dont see poison as being "complete" and more as an after thought
#7 Timborama Sep 10, 2014 12:50:34	Awie wrote:
#8 AaronOfBarbaria Sep 10, 2014 12:07:02	Hit points are abstract enough in what they represent that the in-character explanation (poison coursing through your veins that affects you over time) and the game mechanic representation (a one-time loss of HP) are not actually at odds with each other.   To phrase that differently: just because you lose HP in a lump sum due to poison doesn't mean that the way poison works in-setting description terms is actually different from the real world. It just means you take care of the paperwork in the quickest and simplest manner possible.
(Reply to #5) onceMoreIntoBreech	Joe_the_Rat wrote:
#10 Saelorn Sep 10, 2014 12:39:31	This seems like something that will be covered in the DMG.
#11 Timmee Sep 10, 2014 20:03:33	I was playing around with my own. However, I feel poisons should represent more of a threat than as is. So far, just made this one and it turned out to be very effective. The charcater lived through it and got to get revenge on the person who poisoned him. Quite fun. Anyhoo, have at you.     Arsenic Initial Save DC 14: success = poisoned until short rest, feeling of stiffness failure = 2d6 damage and restrained On turn can use action to make save or automatic fail success = safe with level 1 exhaustion failure = 2d6 damage and paralyzed Ongoing success = safe with level 2 exhaustion failure = 0 hit points and dying Dying RAW, but on natural 20, level 3 exhaustion in addition to consciousness and 1 hp. As an action someone can make a Wisdom (Healing) check DC 14 to grant advantage on a save.
#12 Overpromises Sep 10, 2014 20:24:53	Awie wrote:
#13 Awie Sep 10, 2014 22:34:42	yeah i hope therei s gonna be a variant addon thingy to make poisons more of a complete thing... right now its kinda weak... but it is nice to have a conversation about this with civilized people :D   i guess i can always house rule it until something comes out on the subject, but i like to avoid house ruling anything if possible...