Belkar's HP total

Everyone assumes that Belkar has only 15ish hit points or less. That may be correct. But it is also possible to be quite wrong.

By the letter of the law, hit points are calculated per die. Let's assume I am a 10th level ranger with a set of dice rolls of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 for hit points. What happens when my Con is 1? That -5 mod is applied per each die, with a minimum of one always. My hit points are actually 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. That totals to 20.

So, in Belkar's case, the expected total is roughly 30, assuming 15th(?) level. And let's not forget that getting lucky with a barbarian level can make a big difference, but on average contribute +1. Also, if Belkar is a PC, he rolled a 10 for his first level, which adds +3 to the average.

Where does that put us? 34 hit points when Belkar has Con 1.

Furthermore, we do not know for a fact that Belkar has a Con of 1. We assume so because of his swooning and Roy's comment about being one bolt away from going down. Roy could be wrong.

If Belkar actually has a Con 2 (because Durkon stopped sucking a moment sooner), then Belkar's expected hit point total swells to 49.

Not saying 49 is correct, because I do not expect the Giant to care about these calculations (an observation, not a criticism). But I am saying that the RAW implies a greater range of possible hit points than most readers are assuming.

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Originally Posted by Snails

By the letter of the law, hit points are calculated per die. Let's assume I am a 10th level ranger with a set of dice rolls of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 for hit points.

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But...Rangers have only d8?

I'm too lazy to do the recalculation myself :smalltongue:

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Originally Posted by 2323mike

But...Rangers have only d8?

I'm too lazy to do the recalculation myself :smalltongue:

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Thanks! I have not played a Ranger since 3.0. :)

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 --> 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 3 --> average = 1.375

We could make a very good argument that because he could only only run for one round before collapsing, that he does indeed have a CON of 1.

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Run

You can run as a full-round action. (If you do, you do not also get a 5-foot step.) When you run, you can move up to four times your speed in a straight line (or three times your speed if you’re in heavy armor). You lose any Dexterity bonus to AC unless you have the Run feat.

You can run for a number of rounds equal to your Constitution score, but after that you must make a DC 10 Constitution check to continue running. You must check again each round in which you continue to run, and the DC of this check increases by 1 for each check you have made. When you fail this check, you must stop running. A character who has run to his limit must rest for 1 minute (10 rounds) before running again. During a rest period, a character can move no faster than a normal move action.

You can’t run across difficult terrain or if you can’t see where you’re going.

A run represents a speed of about 12 miles per hour for an unencumbered human.

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My bolding. Belkar fell down almost immeditaely after running. He got winded another time after running for one round (he rolled lucky?). Strong enough evidence for me that he has a CON of one.

More to the point, everyone in the comic is acting as if Belkar is one violent sneeze away from death. So I'll take their word for it. :smallwink:

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Originally Posted by Snails

Everyone assumes that Belkar has only 15ish hit points or less. That may be correct. But it is also possible to be quite wrong.

By the letter of the law, hit points are calculated per die. Let's assume I am a 10th level ranger with a set of dice rolls of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 for hit points. What happens when my Con is 1? That -5 mod is applied per each die, with a minimum of one always. My hit points are actually 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. That totals to 20.

So, in Belkar's case, the expected total is roughly 30, assuming 15th(?) level. And let's not forget that getting lucky with a barbarian level can make a big difference, but on average contribute +1. Also, if Belkar is a PC, he rolled a 10 for his first level, which adds +3 to the average.

Where does that put us? 34 hit points when Belkar has Con 1.

Furthermore, we do not know for a fact that Belkar has a Con of 1. We assume so because of his swooning and Roy's comment about being one bolt away from going down. Roy could be wrong.

If Belkar actually has a Con 2 (because Durkon stopped sucking a moment sooner), then Belkar's expected hit point total swells to 49.

Not saying 49 is correct, because I do not expect the Giant to care about these calculations (an observation, not a criticism). But I am saying that the RAW implies a greater range of possible hit points than most readers are assuming.

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So if this is the case, when will Belkar be back up and running normally?

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Originally Posted by Tylorious

So if this is the case, when will Belkar be back up and running normally?

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When he receives a restoration spell. It won't go back on its own.

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Originally Posted by Snails

Thanks! I have not played a Ranger since 3.0. :)

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 --> 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 3 --> average = 1.375

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Not to ruin everyone's day, but Belkar also has 1-4 levels of barbarian (d12).

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Originally Posted by AKA_Bait

Not to ruin everyone's day, but Belkar also has 1-4 levels of barbarian (d12).

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Yep. Average of 6.5 hit points per level.

He also got max hit points at first level, due to being a PC. Which with his current CON mod, gave him 3 hit points.

He has an absolute minimum of 17 hit points if he rolled somewhat unlucky on his ranger levels (no 7's or 8's) and unlucky his few barbarian levels (no 7's 8's 9's 10's 11's 12's). He probably has no more than 25 though.

Which in a combat situation such as this is a bad thing. :smalltongue:

Don't forget him being level drained, that is hurting his HP maximum as well.

Also I don't think most people track their hit die roll for each level separately. so rather than saying "3-5, 2-5, 6-5, 8-5" (minum one each) resulting in 6, you'd see "19-20" resulting in the minimum value of 4.

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Originally Posted by Seerow

Don't forget him being level drained, that is hurting his HP maximum as well.

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Yeah, I believe it is -5 hp for every negative level. That probably makes up the difference.

He has as many hitpoints as the plot demands... The series is based off of a game system yes, but it's outlived (and outgrown) that system (and its replacement). I do not believe that knowing the rules of the game is an effective means of predicting plot outcomes. If he says he'll drop in 'like one hit', I'll just take that at face value. Let's just hope he survives the Psion's attack, if Belkar dies before the end of the story I would guess it would happen close to the end to really raise the stakes and increase the dramatic tension. Otherwise, you're throwing away a lot of comedy gold.

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Originally Posted by MtlGuy

He has as many hitpoints as the plot demands... The series is based off of a game system yes, but it's outlived (and outgrown) that system (and its replacement). I do not believe that knowing the rules of the game is an effective means of predicting plot outcomes. If he says he'll drop in 'like one hit', I'll just take that at face value. Let's just hope he survives the Psion's attack, if Belkar dies before the end of the story I would guess it would happen close to the end to really raise the stakes and increase the dramatic tension. Otherwise, you're throwing away a lot of comedy gold.

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Shh! Stop spoiling things:smalltongue: