Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 jonwes Jul 08, 2014 12:00:22	So, I'm a complete newbie to both D&D and pen and paper RPGs in general. I have the Starter Set and I've read the expanded PDF of the rules. Most of it is making sense, but one thing I can't quite wrap my head around is the passage of time and some related actions.   1.) I get that the passage of time has been kept somewhat nebulous and up to the DM. Other than a round of combat lasting 6 seconds and the concept of a party covering so much space per minute/hour/day depending on their travel speed, it seems like there aren't a lot of exact numbers given and he time scale can vary quite a lot depending on the DM. Do I have that right?   2.) If I do, then I don't understand the actual notion of how rest is done when you're actually playing the game. What does it mean for a party to rest for an hour? What is happening with the players in the room? If one character was resting, I guess I could see that player just doing other stuff while their companions soldier on. But what happens when the whole party rests? Are these normally done between play sessions? Or does the DM just say "An hour has passed" and the only real ramifications are that a DM could move any nearby enemeies closer for a sneak attack or maybe events elsewhere have progressed to the party's detriment?   3.) Similarly, with "down time" I wondered what that actually meant too. This to me read as though we're talking about time between play sessions. I guess the DM just says "Three days have passed" or a "A month has passed" and then people describe what they've been doing (crafting, researching, recuperating, etc) and receive any benefits from that while also paying out gold for lifestyle maintenance?   4.) Finally, I am confused about the notion of "spending" a hit dice for a short rest. What does that mean? That you are down a hit dice after that until you take a long rest?   Thanks! I know some of this probably seems very basic, but some of the mechanics of how some of this is done seems a little vague.
#2 Saelorn Jul 08, 2014 12:31:52	jonwes wrote:
#3 Jiggadias Jul 08, 2014 12:23:22	The Hit Dice system needs a new name really. Basically they are "tokens" that can be used to quickly heal. It doesn't effect the actual hit dice - you just have a number of uses equal to your hit dice.   Resting during a game session is a time for DMs to have a little fun while the group recovers. In actuality, it's just "Ok, you rest up for an hour", but behind the scenes, the DM can set up an encounter that would have been avoided had the party pressed on, or maybe the quest is time sensitive and it has become more urgent to complete,etc.
#4 jonwes Jul 08, 2014 12:48:10	Thanks! That all makes sense to me. Glad I wasn't too far off track on the rest stuff. And the hit dice thing makes more sense now, too! I was wondering how "losing" the ability to roll a die made any sense for a level 1 player! :D
#5 Jiggadias Jul 08, 2014 12:53:00	Yeah, I reread that part a few times, then I was like "Oh...". I plan on giving the players physical tokens to cash in.
#6 alienux Jul 09, 2014 11:50:59	Jiggadias wrote:
(Reply to #6) Jiggadias	alienux wrote:
#8 lawrencehoy Jul 08, 2014 23:44:44	Jiggadias wrote:
#9 Saelorn Jul 09, 2014 10:43:59	lawrencehoy wrote:
#10 jonwes Jul 09, 2014 11:11:10	Yeah, I think people need to realize if you're not immersed in the world of roleplaying or D&D, the term "spending" is not clear on it's own. That was my issue. Not so much that it was called hit dice. I didn't know what "spending" it entailed. When you're entrenched in the lingo, it all sounds perfectly normal I'm sure. Like anything else. LOL.
#11 iserith Jul 09, 2014 11:26:15	jonwes wrote:
#12 mellored Jul 09, 2014 11:56:12	Renaming "hit dice" to "recovery dice" would be better IMO.   Or maybe "hit point reserves".
#13 lawrencehoy Jul 09, 2014 23:03:25	Saelorn wrote:
#14 alienux Jul 10, 2014 5:08:31	lawrencehoy wrote:
#15 Saelorn Jul 10, 2014 16:36:23	lawrencehoy wrote:
#16 Impalpable Jul 10, 2014 14:09:35	jonwes wrote:
#17 VTS Jul 10, 2014 16:32:23	Saelorn wrote:
#18 lawrencehoy Jul 10, 2014 22:46:13	Saelorn wrote:
#19 iserith Jul 11, 2014 5:47:16	VTS wrote:
(Reply to #12) Tichrimo	mellored wrote: