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View Full Version : Complete Overhaul of DR and Energy Resistance [PEACH]



Amechra
2012-04-26, 08:06 PM
Quite frankly, DR doesn't work at all. It is far too low in most cases, and having a DR of 100000000/Magic is useless, while it is much harder to bypass Energy Resistance (without Homebrew, the only energy resistances you can bypass completely while not changing energy types are Fire and Cold. LAME.)

So, here is a "fix" (not really, since I have less of an idea about whether or not this is balanced than I normally do.)

All right, I shall make a table for a summary:

{table=head]Strength of Resistance|Damage Type takes|Effect Type Gains against the Effect
Immunity|-100%|Improved Mettle, Save
Tolerance|-50%, Nonlethal|Mettle, Save
Normal|+0%|Nothing
Allergic|+50%|Receives -4 to Saving Throw[/table]

Nonlethal means that a creature may not be reduced below 0 HP by that type of damage; any excess damage is dealt as nonlethal damage. If a creature would be destroyed at 0 HP, they instead cannot be reduced below 1 HP.

Save means that a creature with that level of Resistance will always receive a Save to Negate against an effect of the type they have Resistance against, using the listed save type (listed with the effects below).

Every creature has at least 1 Fault; if that Fault is exploited (for example, by making weapons out of a given material or by adding said material as a focus component to spells), any Resistances that creature has are treated as lower by one grade, to a minimum of Normal. Many creatures will also have an additional Fault that is more difficult to pull off, which specifically can be used to bump a creature's Resistances down into the Allergy grade, bringing about swift death.

A Fault may also be exploited to make a normal attack roll as a touch attack.

Types of Damage
Acid, Bludgeoning, City, Cold, Dessication, Electricity, Fire, Force, Negative Energy, Piercing, Positive Energy, Precision*, Slashing, Sonic, and Vile.

Types of Effects
I need help finding all of them and splitting them between Fort saves and Will saves.

Optional Additional Rule
-If you are wearing a suit of armor that exploits a Fault of your enemy, you gain Tolerance to any damage they deal (except for Untyped, Divine, Holy, and Unholy) and to any Effect they use against you. If you happen to exploit their specific "difficult" Fault as well, you are Immune to any damage they deal (except for the before-mentioned energy types), and to any Effect they use against you. You may reduce the grade of your Resistance against them to force them to roll Touch Attacks against your Non-Touch Armor Class.

The reasoning for preventing a creature from dying if they have at least Tolerance is partially a metagame idea (namely, I don't want you to be able to just beat on something until it dies. That removes all the tactical nature from it.), and a fluff point (it makes sense that a creature that is "resistant" to an effect is actually pretty much impossible to kill through that means; any specific techniques you may use count as Faults, by the way.

Xechon
2012-04-26, 08:34 PM
First of all, you should still be able to kill monsters with an attack that deals damage they are resistant to. Eventually, a club will just rip the zombie's head off, and that's that.

Secondly, I don't understand. Creatures could always have DR, or immunity, in exactly the same manner you are talking (considering a leniant DM for the bypass methods). Are you planning on giving players these scores? That would require a balance shift for CRs, but could work. However, how will you hand these out, and how will you limit it to a reasonable level (no immunity to all).

Also, I see a lack of sonic. If you just rolled it in with force, that's fine if you're set on it, but force is considered forward kinetic energy, while sound is waves that attempt to match vibration frequencies and tear it apart from within. Just sayin...

Amechra
2012-04-26, 11:02 PM
I... forgot Sonic. Ouch, that was silly of me.

And I parallel posted this on Minmaxboards as well, and I got a different idea from the suggestions over there, which I will edit the OP to reflect.

Amechra
2012-04-27, 12:41 AM
Updated OP. Please, take a look at it.

And, to give a concise summary, this is what DR and ER look like when you remove all their silly differences and numbers away.

An example of a Fault is pretty much anything the DM can think of; that Vampire? Happens to be Tolerant of practically all Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing damage... except for when it is delivered with a Stake. Preferably to the heart, of course.

You want to smash a Zombie's head off? Fine; just have the Cleric Turn them so that they are at Normal Grade, and coincidentally, now is the time if you want to try to see if you can scare a Zombie...

An addition I might make to this; Fast Healing works until you die, no matter your HP total (as is, it stops if you are below 0 HP, for some strange reason), but if you exploit a fault, you either give it a penalty to HP, or you turn off its Fast Healing for a round or two. I haven't decided yet.

Xechon
2012-04-27, 07:06 AM
The faults to bypass DR and stop fast healing are fine, but if this is intended to help build or revise monsters, beware. A mischievous DM will use any rules against you, which includes immune to everything unless you do the mocarena upside down while reciting the most complicated arcane scripts, double speed. Sometimes DMs need a power check too.

Now I see armor granting immunity to a creature. While yes, it might be difficult to meet the requirements, not taking any damage at all doesn't seem tactical to me.

While we're on tactics, I suggest more movement techniques and battle options other than hit. Get rid of plot armor, to force them to think twice about wading through a horde of goblins. Things like that are what I think of when people Try to add tactics to D&D.

Not being able to whack off a zombies head without a cleric's aid is going to keep pestering me, but your thread, your say.

Amechra
2012-04-28, 07:45 PM
Well, this is really just part of a Monster Manual rewrite I'm gonna start working on; it will have maneuvers and other cool stuff in addition to this, as well as incorporating some homebrew I find to be AWESOME on these very boards, with a view towards creating balanced, simple-to-run monsters.

Besides that, I will have a generally more intense eye at making each monster feel unique and memorable; sure, there will be filler monsters, but I want Araneas that can do more with their webs than toss them at you as nets, I want Dragons of above a certain age category to not take forever to set up for a DM, and I want animals that actually feel different.

And as for not being able to whack the Zombie's head off... you can, it just doesn't kill them. Turning "binds the negative vita that is powering the corpse closer to its anima" (or whatever), thus allowing the smashing you do to its body to actually hurt the Zombie.

And remember, in this context, "Immunity", while it prevents all damage and makes saves nigh-unfailable, it does serve a sort of campaign-long purpose:

That secondary Fault that lets you bump up your Resistance to Immunity? It won't be something you can come up with by just glancing at that creature; you'll have to work on research and coming up with how to obtain and use said Fault.

To use Zombies as an example (as they are in this thread, quite often):
Primary Fault: Turning* (All Undead have this as a Primary Fault), (Un)Holy Water, the (Un)Holy Symbol (not the item, just the shape) of a deity opposed to Undeath.
Secondary Fault: The birth name of the Necromancer that raised them, incorporated into the use of any of the above.

So Turning is just one way to pierce that Resistance; you could anoint your weapon with Holy Water, incorporate a Holy Symbol into your spells...

And, if you want to truly wreck Zombies animated by a particular Necromancer (he might be a major nemesis to the party, for example, or a rival, or...), you have to discover their birth name (this is why they usually change them; do you think your average necromancer goes by Jon Smathson anymore?), and then incorporate it into the verbal components of your spells, or chant it amidst death threats while sprinkling on the Holy Water, or even just shouting BE DESTROYED, FOUL SERVANTS OF [NAME]! while Turning them.

Of course, against a Troll, Fire and Acid damage might as well pierce their Fast Healing. Congrats, to take advantage from the increased Resistance vs. their attacks, you have to light yourself on fire (which I will also be making a lot less wimpy, by the by.)

And against that Demon-lord you are fighting... you know, you are going to need Kord's tears to anoint your armor with to become immune to his attacks; you do know how hard it is to make Kord cry, right?

So in other words, it comes down to a question of whether or not the party wants to go through the effort of getting the information necessary for the easy route, or whether they just try their luck with blades and fire.

(The one thing I like about the Zombie example: A player could have seen it before, but it won't help them any, except to let them know what information they will need to search for.)

Tl;Dr: I'm trying to capture that kind of knowledgable badassery you see in stuff like Supernatural.