Grod_The_Giant
2016-06-12, 09:12 AM
So probably my least favorite aspect of D&D is hit points. Having spent a while with games like Fate and M&M, going back to 5e leaves me grumpy about the need for healing. Especially since 5e has so little consequence to losing HP-- there's no wounds or anything of the like, you just fight at full power as long as you're not actively unconscious, at which point a single blip of a healing spell brings you back. So anyway, here's my thoughts on making health a bit more interesting.
You recover all lost hit points during a Short Rest, along with one Hit Die
Add a new action: Recover: Expend a charge of a Healer's Kit to spend as many Hit Dice as you'd like, which works as normal. If you're Proficient in Heal, you add your Proficiency Bonus to the amount you heal. Afterwards, attacks against you have Advantage until the start of your next turn. You may also use a Recover action on another character's behalf-- they spend their own hit dice, but attacks against both of you have Advantage until the start of that character's turn.
Lose one Hit Die whenever you take a critical hit, damage equal to or greater than half your maximum hit points, when you are reduced to zero hit points, or when you fail a Death Save?.
If you would be forced to lose a Hit Die and have no remaining Hit Dice, instead take a level of Exhaustion, representing a serious wound.
Any healing effect restores one Hit Die for every 10 hit points it cures. The Lesser Restoration spell removes one level of Exhaustion, and Greater Restoration removes up to three. During a Long Rest, a DC 15 Heal check lets you recover from two levels of Exhaustion instead of one.
What do you all think? I'm not sure if "on a failed Death Save" is too punitive.
You recover all lost hit points during a Short Rest, along with one Hit Die
Add a new action: Recover: Expend a charge of a Healer's Kit to spend as many Hit Dice as you'd like, which works as normal. If you're Proficient in Heal, you add your Proficiency Bonus to the amount you heal. Afterwards, attacks against you have Advantage until the start of your next turn. You may also use a Recover action on another character's behalf-- they spend their own hit dice, but attacks against both of you have Advantage until the start of that character's turn.
Lose one Hit Die whenever you take a critical hit, damage equal to or greater than half your maximum hit points, when you are reduced to zero hit points, or when you fail a Death Save?.
If you would be forced to lose a Hit Die and have no remaining Hit Dice, instead take a level of Exhaustion, representing a serious wound.
Any healing effect restores one Hit Die for every 10 hit points it cures. The Lesser Restoration spell removes one level of Exhaustion, and Greater Restoration removes up to three. During a Long Rest, a DC 15 Heal check lets you recover from two levels of Exhaustion instead of one.
What do you all think? I'm not sure if "on a failed Death Save" is too punitive.