Saturday, September 17, 2011

House Rules In Play

So far in the Lost Baronies campaign the house rule for how death is handled has come into play 3 times over the course of 6 sessions. While that may sound like a lethal game, it has not worked out that way, instead keeping the sense of danger while leaving chances for survival.

The success rate is actually above the expected level so far. The first event was when the cleric Samson was dropped by an arrow from orc sentries at the bandit caves. The save vs death failed. The second event was when Seamus the thief was severely mauled by the owlbear. The save vs death was a natural 20 (rolled by that absent player's wife, dude you so owe her flowers for that).

The most recent event was during the goblin ambush when Elanna the elf was brought to exactly zero hit points by two arrows. The house rule is that zero is not immediate risk of death, but instead is incapacitation and unconsciousness. The character could still have died had she been left without treatment. Of course in the game a cleric immediately acted and healed the downed character, but had they retreated it could have lead to death or even capture.

In case anyone is wondering about the potential number of casualties in the campaign only six session into it, keep in mind that the dice do not get fudged.

In other news: Session #7 got cancelled due to player illness. Based on current information we are not likely to have another session until October. If by the end of October we have not managed to get in the seventh session then I may just call a halt to the campaign completely. No point putting in the effort if nobody can make it on dates that were scheduled well in advance and everyone knew about.

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