Where did the term saving throw come from?

[molten_dragon]

What it says on the tin basically. I've only be playing D&D since 3rd edition, and I think 4th edition got rid of the term.

I know it's a legacy from earlier editions of D&D, but how did it originally come about? Most of the other D&D terms (Armor class, to-hit bonus, difficulty class, etc.) make sense. Saving throw seems to be an odd term for what is essentially another form of defense.

[Knaight]

Older versions of D&D make a distinction between "rolls" and "throws". They were basically distinct forms of dice rolls, with "rolls" generally being against the environment and "throws" against character stats.

Mathematically there was no real difference, and D&D 3.0 streamlined the math so it all worked the same way, but the terms stuck around.

[CarpeGuitarrem]

A saving throw is something that you roll to save yourself from something bad. It came from (I believe) running into creatures and traps with nasty effects like "you get poisoned" or "you get turned into a newt".

[TheDarkSaint]

*makes his save vs Polymorph*

I got better....

[Ravens_cry]

Well, a throw is another term for rolling the die, so it's a saving throw of the die. Ergo, a saving throw.

[Jay R]

The term "Saving Throw" was first used in the first pamphlet (Men and Magic) of the first book of Dungeons and Dragons, in 1974. The first Saving Throw Matrix appeared on page 20, and the term appears on pages 7&8, in the descriptions of dwarves and hobbits, and in several spell descriptions on pages 23-36.

When I first read the rules, it seemed like a clear, straightforward term for throwing (rolling) a d20 to attempt to save your character from effects of spells, paralyzation, dragon breath, etc.

Throwing or casting dice has meant rolling them for at least 2,000 years, before the English language existed. Caesar is believed to have said "Alea iacta est" when he crossed the Rubicon, which is usually translated as "the die is cast."

[Sith_Happens]

What it says on the tin basically. I've only be playing D&D since 3rd edition, and I think 4th edition got rid of the term.

Nitpick: While 4e doesn't have "saving throws" in the same sense as 1-3 (having switched to static defenses a-la Star Wars SAGA), it does use the term to refer to its "roll once per turn to Iron Heart Surge" mechanic.

[Acatalepsy]

Not sure how accurate this is, but fascinating nonetheless.

[Ravens_cry]

Not sure how accurate this is, but fascinating nonetheless.

That was basically what I was trying to articulate on the recent passive saving throw thread. Even if you keep the numbers the same, the kinaesthetic 'feel' is very different.