Explaining DR in character

[johnbragg]

My young PCs have just run across a werewolf, and encountered Damage Reduction for the first time. The fighter plugged him with a arrow, rolling 6 on d6 for his damage, and the werewolf was barely scratched. (I cut the DR from 10/silver to 5/silver, because the 1st level PCs cannot mathematically do 10 hp in one attack.)

So next session, the DMPC will explain Damage REduction, but I'm stuck on how to explain in character.

[legomaster00156]

DMPC: "Many monsters in this world have a supernatural ability to turn aside conventional weapons. To combat such enemies, special materials or enchanted weapons are often required."

[LTwerewolf]

Pretty easy. They have magically strong hides, and the only substance that seems to ignore this magical protection i8s silver.

[Telonius]

"Most weapons, they just bounce off. Maybe the strongest guy in town can put some hurt on them, if they hit them just right. But most of the time, it's like they just shrug off whatever the average guard would throw at them. With one exception. For whatever reason, it seems they don't like silver. An adamantine axe won't bother them, but a silver knife would cut through them just like normal. Not just knives, either. Swords, axes, arrows, even silverware if that's all you've got. If it's made of silver, it'll work like usual."

[Âmesang]

"Ages ago… in the dawn of time… the moon up above was corrupted by darkness, and its this corrupt light that gives the dreaded werewolves their strength. Silver reflects the light of the moon before its corruption, a light they can not bear, the light that pierces their dark flesh and strikes at the heart of evil."

…okay, a bit flowery, but that's what happens when you spend all day listening to Manly P. Hall. :smalltongue: That reminds me, from what I've heard the idea that lycanthropes/werewolves are harmed by silver stems from The Wolf Man with Lon Chaney, Jr. Or, at least, it wasn't present in Universal's previous film, Werewolf of London. Likewise I believe combustible vampires comes from Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens.

[Seward]

DR5 feels like slamming into wood.

DR10 feels like slamming into metal.

That's how it feels to the characters who use weapons most of the time. Some DR might be the equivalent of super-fast-healing instead and you can mix it up a bit, but it should be clear that damage is reduced in-character once you experience it.

And yeah, more experienced adventurers can give advice on how to find weapons that strike true. Even a dumb fighter properly briefed that DR can happen can take the approach of just tying out different weapons until one works if the party lacks a know-it-all to tell him which to use.

[Zanos]

Some DR might be the equivalent of super-fast-healing instead and you can mix it up a bit, but it should be clear that damage is reduced in-character once you experience it.
Yep. Even in the rules.

A creature with this special quality ignores damage from most weapons and natural attacks. Wounds heal immediately, or the weapon bounces off harmlessly (in either case, the opponent knows the attack was ineffective)
I've had more than one DM not tell me I was having my damage reduced.

The rules entry for DR gives some examples of how to fluff it. For werewolves I like that normal wounds partially heal, but silver burns them, causing the wound to cauterize and not heal at all.