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Environment Survival - Suggested Rules
http://www.libraryofhiabuor.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=326
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Author:  wimlach [ Sun Feb 25, 2018 9:47 pm ]
Post subject:  Environment Survival - Suggested Rules

Another set of rules should the players find themselves in harsh conditions. Mother nature is crueler than any wicked dragon. Like my Disease rules, based on actual real world effects.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QHq ... sp=sharing

Author:  Starkad [ Sun Feb 25, 2018 10:00 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Environment Survival - Suggested Rules

Excellent! And just in time for my group to visit the Principalities of the Crusades too!

(Deus vult!)

Author:  Acoma [ Mon Feb 26, 2018 7:25 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Environment Survival - Suggested Rules

Starkad wrote:
Excellent! And just in time for my group to visit the Principalities of the Crusades too!


*Evil laugh* :twisted:

Author:  Kharille [ Mon Feb 26, 2018 7:33 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Environment Survival - Suggested Rules

Strength seems to be related to all aspects of drowning, suffocation and resisting poisons. I think there should be a health point bonus, possibly recurring for 16-18, maybe +1 health at all ranks. I know it makes it overwhelmingly strong compared to other stats, but until we do a dragwars revised edition with another system...


I have thought of 'ability rolls' based on health points. Perhaps starting health could be used in other ways, and barbarians naturally have the highest health point scores....


Not sure but maybe another system where declining health also reduces strength scores. Might be complex, but easy to implement on excel. That way a severely wounded character has reduced strength and therefor ATTACK/DEFENCE scores. I figure if you have a strength of 3-8 you should naturally have reduced damage and armour bypass. And -2 damage/armour bypass for 1-2 strength.

Author:  Starkad [ Mon Feb 26, 2018 8:10 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Environment Survival - Suggested Rules

Quote:
Not sure but maybe another system where declining health also reduces strength scores.

I had a system where if the characters didn't eat good food on a fairly regular basis their Strength* would decrease (over the course of several weeks). This was brought about by players who, at the time, simply didn't want to spend a copper piece on anything they considered unnecessary. That quickly changed, so I no longer needed the system... No I've no idea where my notes are.
(But it's an idea for someone else if they want to run with it?)

* Possibly their maximum Health Points too, but I can't remember too well. It was a long time ago.

Author:  Cobwebbed Dragon [ Thu Mar 01, 2018 1:21 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Environment Survival - Suggested Rules

Kharille wrote:
Not sure but maybe another system where declining health also reduces strength scores. Might be complex, but easy to implement on excel. That way a severely wounded character has reduced strength and therefor ATTACK/DEFENCE scores. I figure if you have a strength of 3-8 you should naturally have reduced damage and armour bypass. And -2 damage/armour bypass for 1-2 strength.

Were I to go down this route, I'd probably suggest a simpler system whereby your effective Strength is the lower of either your Strength characteristic, as rolled, or three times your current Health Points.

It's not perfect, but it's simple, which is Dragon Warriors all over :).

Author:  Cobwebbed Dragon [ Thu Mar 01, 2018 1:25 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Environment Survival - Suggested Rules

Starkad wrote:
Quote:
Not sure but maybe another system where declining health also reduces strength scores.

I had a system where if the characters didn't eat good food on a fairly regular basis their Strength* would decrease (over the course of several weeks). This was brought about by players who, at the time, simply didn't want to spend a copper piece on anything they considered unnecessary. That quickly changed, so I no longer needed the system... No I've no idea where my notes are.
(But it's an idea for someone else if they want to run with it?)

I think that's what happens when role-players are brought up on a diet of video games, in which such simple necessities are often overlooked in favour of the more cinematic experience of video games.

My own hunger rules a quite simple:

"Every other day after the first without food incurs a Handicap of –1. If the character continues to go without food for a number of days equal to his Strength score, he then begins to lose 1 from each of his primary characteristics per day. Each day of eating properly restores three days’ worth of hunger damage."

Handicap being a broad (and cumulative) penalty to all of the character's actions and can be built up in a number of ways, not just hunger.

Author:  Starkad [ Thu Mar 01, 2018 9:37 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Environment Survival - Suggested Rules

Quote:
I think that's what happens when role-players are brought up on a diet of video games, in which such simple necessities are often overlooked in favour of the more cinematic experience of video games.

Video games, films... Or even games like AD&D - where every penny (gold piece) would go towards better armour, weapons, etc.

Quote:
My own hunger rules a quite simple:
"Every other day after the first without food incurs a Handicap of –1. If the character continues to go without food for a number of days equal to his Strength score, he then begins to lose 1 from each of his primary characteristics per day. Each day of eating properly restores three days’ worth of hunger damage."
Handicap being a broad (and cumulative) penalty to all of the character's actions and can be built up in a number of ways, not just hunger.

That's simple enough and works when characters have no food...

...I was dealing with a situation where the players ensured their characters ate,* but what they ate was as cheap as possible (so their characters would subsist on trail rations for weeks, if not months, on end). Sooner or later, the character's health would suffer; thus I started thinking of a long-term "permanent" Attribute reduction.**
* My players weren't stupid - they knew what would happen if they avoided food altogether! ;)
** Not really "permanent" as good eating can see the attribute(s) recover.

Reasoning that it is actually possible to subsist for a very long time on a scarce diet (thinking of some students I knew, or even the very impoverished in certain parts of the world), but that fitness deteriorates over time in such circumstances; I determined that living on such a reduced diet would reduce Attributes down to the maximum "average" value (i.e. 12). There may have been further reduction possible, but I'd have to find my notes! :roll: The idea here is that it is perfectly possible for a person (i.e. character) to subsist on a poor diet, but they wouldn't be able to compete in terms of fitness with someone who was well fed.

As characters with "average" Attributes are not at a great advantage in DW, I think I chose to leave these alone and target those whose Attributes were above average. Thus it would be the "strong men" of the party that would suffer, slowly losing their combat bonuses as their Strength slowly withers away.

A friend of mine had a similar concept, but included that persistently "roughing it" (i.e. sleeping in very poor conditions - floors, etc.) affects sleep, so this would also reduce Strength.

As I recall, we both applied penalties exclusively to Strength as this appears to be used as the equivalent for "Constitution" in DW (q.v. poison rules, for example). It takes proper starvation before someone's reactions (i.e. Reflexes) are reduced and the same goes for Intelligence - so we avoided that (also kept the rules simple).

Historically, rich people (who ate and slept better) were healthier than their poor counterparts. If characters insist on living in poverty (just so they can buy better armour and other kit) deserve to lose their fitness...

Author:  Cobwebbed Dragon [ Thu Mar 01, 2018 10:17 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Environment Survival - Suggested Rules

Starkad wrote:
...I was dealing with a situation where the players ensured their characters ate,* but what they ate was as cheap as possible (so their characters would subsist on trail rations for weeks, if not months, on end). Sooner or later, the character's health would suffer; thus I started thinking of a long-term "permanent" Attribute reduction.**
* My players weren't stupid - they knew what would happen if they avoided food altogether! ;)
** Not really "permanent" as good eating can see the attribute(s) recover.

Ouch. Sounds like you had a real group of meta-gamers rather than role-players. I feel for you. In those situations, if players need a rule that punishes their character with malnutrition handicaps because they don't think their characters would take the opportunity to eat good food every now and again, then there's probably not much hope for them...

Author:  Starkad [ Thu Mar 01, 2018 10:28 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Environment Survival - Suggested Rules

Quote:
Ouch. Sounds like you had a real group of meta-gamers rather than role-players. I feel for you. In those situations, if players need a rule that punishes their character with malnutrition handicaps because they don't think their characters would take the opportunity to eat good food every now and again, then there's probably not much hope for them...

I think they simply needed the incentive... Like I said, once I'd suggested the rule I never had to implement it (and so my notes got relegated to the - erm - "archive").

It did get me thinking about the wider society of Legend as a whole though, and whether "average" would be the same for peasants as for nobles and/or fighting classes (knights, barbarians). Thus it might not be unreasonable to encounter ranked NPCs with slightly higher attributes (and thus, Combat or social bonuses), but this would be rarer among the peasantry.*
* Exceptions might include blacksmiths (STR) and a few others, of course.

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