sorcererlover
2020-03-24, 01:35 AM
By RAW we know this is true. What hd affects is explicitly spelled out in the rules.
But what most people don't know is that it's also true by RAI.
You see, hd is often related to age.
A 8hd PC is years and years younger than his 16hd self.
a 16hd dragon is probably just a young wyrmling at 8hd.
And hd is often related to size as well.
A 42hd Stone Golem is Huge. But a 15hd one is Large.
So does simulacrum create a younger version of the creature you're copying? If I make a simulacrum of myself, do I get one that is 10 years younger than me?
If I make a Simulacrum of a Huge advanced Golem, do I get a shrunken smaller one?
What if we add in race change? If I use a savage species ritual to change my race from human to minotaur, when a simulacrum of me is created, is the simulacrum a human instead of a minotaur?
The answer is no. Your simulacrum is the same size, race, and age as the full hd creature, not its past smaller younger half hd self.
Which means, the half hd is a debuff. Nothing more. Just like how you don't treat a creature with negative levels as if he were his younger self in the past, you don't treat half hd simulacrum as if they are its younger self in the past. Both negative levels and hd has explicit rules on what it affects and what it doesn't. And even when negative levels are turned into true level loss, the victim doesn't get younger! So trying to homebrew a savage species progression of a creature and try to jam that down player's throats to nerf simulacrum is wrong by RAW, RAI, and the attitude and approach of the DM.
Just thought i'd share my musings. Just in case someone misunderstands, I'm not complaining about any DM I had. I only reached high enough level to cast simulacrum only once in my entire d&d career and I made simulacrum of advanced creatures because I used simulacra primarily as beatsticks and the DM didn't mind. But in all the online debates I found, I found a lot of DMs try to use half hd as an excuse to try and rule lawyer Efreeti simulacrums from having free wishes instead of doing the sensible thing and banning Efreeti simulacrums rather than rule lawyer what clearly isn't meant to be.
But what most people don't know is that it's also true by RAI.
You see, hd is often related to age.
A 8hd PC is years and years younger than his 16hd self.
a 16hd dragon is probably just a young wyrmling at 8hd.
And hd is often related to size as well.
A 42hd Stone Golem is Huge. But a 15hd one is Large.
So does simulacrum create a younger version of the creature you're copying? If I make a simulacrum of myself, do I get one that is 10 years younger than me?
If I make a Simulacrum of a Huge advanced Golem, do I get a shrunken smaller one?
What if we add in race change? If I use a savage species ritual to change my race from human to minotaur, when a simulacrum of me is created, is the simulacrum a human instead of a minotaur?
The answer is no. Your simulacrum is the same size, race, and age as the full hd creature, not its past smaller younger half hd self.
Which means, the half hd is a debuff. Nothing more. Just like how you don't treat a creature with negative levels as if he were his younger self in the past, you don't treat half hd simulacrum as if they are its younger self in the past. Both negative levels and hd has explicit rules on what it affects and what it doesn't. And even when negative levels are turned into true level loss, the victim doesn't get younger! So trying to homebrew a savage species progression of a creature and try to jam that down player's throats to nerf simulacrum is wrong by RAW, RAI, and the attitude and approach of the DM.
Just thought i'd share my musings. Just in case someone misunderstands, I'm not complaining about any DM I had. I only reached high enough level to cast simulacrum only once in my entire d&d career and I made simulacrum of advanced creatures because I used simulacra primarily as beatsticks and the DM didn't mind. But in all the online debates I found, I found a lot of DMs try to use half hd as an excuse to try and rule lawyer Efreeti simulacrums from having free wishes instead of doing the sensible thing and banning Efreeti simulacrums rather than rule lawyer what clearly isn't meant to be.