Combat flavor based on AC

[Drache64]

When I DM/GM I always like to give players more than you hit, you miss, he hits, he messed etc.

I like to describe how and where they hit, I use the following system let me know what you think:

Roll less than 10, describe how they player completely missed his target.

Roll is less than target touch AC, describe how attack would have hit, but target dodged or moved.

Roll is less than total AC but higher than touch AC, describe how the player hit their target but it didn't find purchase within the armor or bounced off scales etc.

If I'm consistent with this then players can get hints about the targets stats and other interesting strategic information.
For example, if the player rolls a 12 and I explain how he hit, but didn't damage due to armor, he might guess his opponent has a Dex of 11 or less and thus might try a fireball or other attacks that take Dex saves etc.

Anyways I feel like it brings more life and depths to a session without trying too hard.

[Mordaedil]

Usually I flavor it how I imagine it going before me, but if I were to actually do it in a video game flavor, I would determine it as follows.

Lower than 5 miss: Complete whiff.
Lower than 5 hit (even with dexterity of 1 this shouldn't be possible?): The target evades into the attack that would have whiffed
5-10 miss: The target evades the attack.
5-10 hit: The target stumbles and takes the hit.

Above 10 AC, Dexterity and Dodge are added first, and any roll that lands in that area are simply evaded and due to their similarity come first. Shield AC is applied after that as a reactive attempt to push the attack out of the way. Armor AC follows as a last resort to absorb the hit. Natural Armor AC on top of that, as it is something that usually lies under the armor and it has to be pierced before that comes to pass. Deflection AC and other factors come into play last as they represent something outside of your control and serves as that last barrier before you would have been hit.

Maybe others would sort these differently, but this sequence is what makes sense to me at least. I could see an argument for putting deflection AC and others before shield though, but I don't think they imply any active defense on the players part, hence their late application.

[Psyren]

I do this too, and not just for AC - damage reduction, energy resistance and regeneration get this treatment too. Any kind of description that clues the players in that something is up with the bad guy's defenses.