Monday 15 December 2014

[D&D] Death & Dismemberment Tables III - Just when you thought it was safe to go to Death's Door...


Things have been busy of late, so in the interests of posting something I'm going to plonk down a few more links to Death and Disablement tables. Hopefully next post will have some new content.




Daily OSR fix - a super simple DADT with only 4 categories for its inaugural blog post (what a great way to start a blog!)

The Nine and Thirty Kingdoms' Death, Dismemberment and Criticals - roll damage on a dice map to select an attribute which the wound is then based off. Simple, abstract and adaptable.

Deep Delving's Death and Dismemberment rules - a table for when a character is felled and a sub table specifically for dismemberment results. 

Ironlands' Death and Dismemberment table - when hit points drop to zero a player can elect to try and remain conscious but must pay the penalty of a roll on the table. A pretty nasty table and also has armour damage built into the varying wound results. 

Rumor's of War's Death and Dismemberment - inspired by the Fisher/Trollsmyth/Troll and Flame DADT's but tweaked to be compatible with the author's 4E clone (and I'm imagining would be 4E compatible) 

Gelatinous Cubed's Death & Dismemberment table - yet another table in the Fisher/Trollsmyth/T&F mould, but with a separate sub table for dismemberment results. 

Hedgehobbit's Death Chart - Rolling on the chart provides a DC for a CON save to remain conscious (the chart is written for 3E) and an extra effect from what looks very much like a Rolemaster critical chart

System Sans Setting's D20: Yet Another Wound System - If you take enough damage to go to 0 hit points you take a wound (which may allow you to stay conscious if the total damage is not double that needed to reduce you to zero) and roll on the wound table corresponding to slashing, piercing or bludgeoning damage. Has effects for both untreated and unrecovered wounds which is a nice touch.

Metal Earth's 1d4 Wound and Critical Hit table - pretty much what its named, simple and abstract

and...

Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition Dungeon Master's Guide Lingering Injuries - 


The Lingering Injuries table in the new DMG is designed to be used for critical hits, failed Death Saves and when Hit Points are reduced to zero. Whilst this flexibility is great it ultimately means that its effectiveness as a DADT is diminished. Because the table is an add-on to the normal rules for going to zero hit points or below it is essentially a Dismemberment Table only, death can only occur through the usual means in 5E. The table itself is also fairly heavily weighted towards the minor entries such as scarring, there is only a 2 in 20 chance of dismemberment, a 1 in 20 of losing an eye and a 1 in 20 of accruing a permanent limp, but I do quite like the festering wound result. All these complaints aside its a nice thing to see included in the DMG and hopefully it will increase interest in going the whole hog and adopting a DADT in game.
That's another 10 DADT's making 42 (!) between this and the last two posts. Sound like a crazy-too-many amount of tables if you are in the market for one? Yeah it probably is, so in my next post I plan to discuss some of the common design choices in the various tables, and where I'm looking to go with The One Death and Dismemberment Table to Rule Them All when I eventually get the thing polished up to a state worth posting. 

Monday 1 December 2014

[D&D] Death & Dismemberment Tables II - When too many tables are barely enough...


It seems I can't open a web browser at the moment without stumbling across more Death & Dismemberment Tables (DADT's). My last post contained 23 tables, count 'em (including Trollsmyth's second table in the comments). However the D&D blogosphere is swollen like a week old corpse with DADT's, so here's another 10 tables to further whet your appetite for blood, maiming, scarring, and grisly death.



Ten Foot Polemic's Another Death and Dismemberment variant - takes Hack & Slash's highly detailed DADT and simplifies things by using pools of different coloured dice.

Wheel of Samsara's Wound Table - roll 2 d6's, the first for general hit location and the second for the specific wound, then roll 2d6 again to determine if the wound is temporary or permanent.

First Level Mage's Death and Dismemberment - dice drop on the back cover of Vornheim for hit location, then use WHFRP's critical hit tables with the adjustments given here.

Quickly, Quietly, Carefully's Elective Dismemberment Table - when dropping below 0 HP a player can elect to roll on this pretty brutal table (every entry is a form of dismemberment) and stay on 1 HP. Now that's my flavor of narrative control.

Wonders and Witchcraft's Death and Dismemberment Table - looks to be based off the Fisher/Trollsmyth/Troll & Flame model but tweaked for Lamentations of the Flame Princess (a game which frankly I'm surprised has no native DADT). 

The XP Experience's Dismemberment, Dying and Death Table - inspired by the W&W table above only simplified.

Tales of the Grotesque and Dungeonesque's Life's Thread Cut Short Table - a fairly dangerous table based off a flat d20 roll.

Billy Goes To Mordor's An Interesting Death  and Pirate  DADT's - inspired by TOTGAD's table above only deadlier and dismemberier respectively. 

Dispatches from Kickassistan's Death Dice! - a pool of dice accruing every time a PC drops which can result in attribute loss leading to permanent injuries and death.


If you've got a DADT of your own please feel free to link to it in the comments, or message me for posting in the inevitable DADT part III!



To fully appreciate the mindset of the author whilst writing this blog post it is best read whilst listening to:  Gerling - When Young Terrorists Chase the Sun