Players not rolling or recording damage

[Guest taxboy4]

It took me a while to sell it to my players but I roll all damage to /from "monster" and record the players wounds in my gaming laptop Excel file.

 

I describe the wounds to the players - keeps it a bit more in game i find.

 

Thoughts ,commets?

[Kraven Kor]

Re: Players not rolling or recording damage

 

This is a wonderful idea if you have a group that will run with it and a GM who can keep track of it.

 

Too much work for me.

[lazarus]

Re: Players not rolling or recording damage

 

worked well the one D&D game I tried it. Rather, I used the UA of "I know your hitpoints" and let them roll their damage normally.

 

Laz

[Lezentauw]

Re: Players not rolling or recording damage

 

I was in one group that did this, back in my DnD days...

 

It was all because of a roleplay moment that everyone enjoyed. My character jumped down a pit, that's walls were on fire from a Wall of Fire spell. My character happenned to be a cleric with a Protection from Fire spell up, and a Ring of Feather Falling. So needless to say my character made it fine with no damage sustained.

 

The utterly stupid barbarian, watches the pansy priest jump down a burning pit safely. So, he screams "That looks easy!" And, proceeds to jump down the pit. Needless to say, he only had 1 hp left, and fried to a crisp on the way down. Then his dead body crashed into the floor some 100' later.

 

Ever since that time, our group of PCs never knew the numbers involved. We were always given discriptions for how you felt or the damage taken, all depending on the pecentage based upon your characters hps.

[Guzalot]

Re: Players not rolling or recording damage

 

If your players like it then you're golden. I have found that the greatest appeal of the Hero system (in a Champions setting in particular) is that players just love rolling 12d6 + for damage on an attack. The look in a players eyes when a half dozen 6's (or 1's) come up is priceless.

[Guest taxboy4]

Re: Players not rolling or recording damage

 

This is a wonderful idea if you have a group that will run with it and a GM who can keep track of it.

 

Too much work for me.

 

Nah, its none at all, I have an excel workbook open called players with a sheet for each that I use for their wounds and other character notes - esp unknown items / curses etc.

 

They were not that happy re me rolling all damage but they got used to it..

 

It just adds a little mystery and takes some of the mechanics out of it.

[Guest joen00b]

Re: Players not rolling or recording damage

 

I've had mixed resutls with this. In fact, I insisted on using a Body Characteristic in DnD games I ran, and I found many to be less accomodating to the Body Stat than me hiding damage.

 

I say mixed results because of the following. I have 2 players, one is a ranger, one is a fighter specialized in duel wielding. That means they both can use 2 swords at once with no penalties. Of course the fighter will inherantly have a higher HP total than the ranger, but as each were different players, they had different ideas of my descriptions. Each were level 7.

 

I tell the fighter: The mace careens under your guard, catching you in the ribs. it's a stinger, but it didn't knock the wind out of you, you were able to roll with it, but not as well as you liked (about 6 points of damage).

 

I tell the ranger: The orc weapons master was withholding attacks this round, and since you are in range, he opens up a flurry of attacks on you, given his specialization, that means 2 attacks. You've used all your actions and can't parry. He hits both times, one is critical. He nearly hamstrings you with the first strike, and the second hit was a wicked blow across your chest as you fell. You're now prone.

 

Their reactions:

 

The fighter tells me: I am saving all my actions this round for defensive stuff. I'm going to try to back away out of action, but not so fast that I lose AC.

 

Ranger: Um, dude, you're not that hurt, in fact, you can take about 15 more hits like that and still be in good shape. Seriously, this is what you do, it's your forte, you were born to do this!

 

Fighter: Screw that, he hit me hard!

 

Ranger: I got hit hard, hell, I'm hamstrung over here dude... in fact, n00b, can I even stand?

 

Me: Sorry, dude, he cut your tendon, you have a floopy appendage.

 

Ranger: Ok, I'm gonna hamstring him back!

 

Basically, the ranger was do or die, and the Warrior would literally run away at the smallest of wounds. I recall later on, they are in their teens, the Fighter had well over 100 HP's, I hit him for 27 from a Daemon, and he flipped out trying to return throught he dimensional gate.