Yes, yes it is...Well, technically.

Level drain attacks reduce your hit die. Simples.

This results is reduced natural healing, representing the draining of your life-force.

Mid to high level Cleric spell restores level drained hit die. Simples.

No arithmatic or rubbing out hit points required.

If your hit die is reduced to zero by level drain, you no longer heal naturally and if you are then killed by the beastie you rise as a spawn of that creature.

Example 1: Pod the Fighter has 3 hit die and has used none for healing today. He gets drained of 2 hit die by a wight. He now only has 1 hit die for healing per day until his hit die is restored.

Example 2: Pud the Thief has 3 hit die. He has used 2 for healing before he gets struck by a wight and drained of 2 hit die. This wipes out all of the healing he has available for today and sets his hit die to 1 for future days.

Um, that's not how it says it works in Next.  The wight's draining attack drains 5 hp from your max until your next full rest.  Nothing about draining hit dice.

Quote from: One Horse Town;592423Yes, yes it is...Well, technically.

Level drain attacks reduce your hit die. Simples.

This results is reduced natural healing, representing the draining of your life-force.

Mid to high level Cleric spell restores level drained hit die. Simples.

No arithmatic or rubbing out hit points required.

If your hit die is reduced to zero by level drain, you no longer heal naturally and if you are then killed by the beastie you rise as a spawn of that creature.

Example 1: Pod the Fighter has 3 hit die and has used none for healing today. He gets drained of 2 hit die by a wight. He now only has 1 hit die for healing per day until his hit die is restored.

Example 2: Pud the Thief has 3 hit die. He has used 2 for healing before he gets struck by a wight and drained of 2 hit die. This wipes out all of the healing he has available for today and sets his hit die to 1 for future days.

Wow, this means that the healing hit dice in the setting are an actual setting/physical *thing*, not an abstract healing mechanic like surges were in 4E, right?

Sorry, i should clarify that if you want a more old-school level-drain, then this is a way to do it.

I'm not saying that this is how it is officially done. :rolleyes:

Damn Dan, you had me thinking 5e was looking up.

The system you used actually makes sense and plugs in very nicely with the healing system.

The actual stuff Sac mentioned is typical braindead WotC crap, a MMOG debuff w/cooldown.

Quote from: CRKrueger;592437Damn Dan, you had me thinking 5e was looking up.

The system you used actually makes sense and plugs in very nicely with the healing system.

The actual stuff Sac mentioned is typical braindead WotC crap, a MMOG debuff w/cooldown.

It's a lot better than it was, when it was just an 1d8+2 energy drain.  At least now a couple hits from a wight will have serious ramifications when your 3rd level fighter only has a max 3 hp until he gets a chance to rest for 8+ hours.

Although I do like the simplicity of OHT's method.

Level-drain is always going to be one of the great debates of any edition war; which I think is kind of silly, because on the part of the grognards its the classic example of a "stand on principle", rather than anything truly important.  Yes, I agree, the wimping-down of level-draining is a sign of the general wussiness of later editions, but this is not to me the worthy place in which to break your lance; a much worthier thing to take a stand on is stuff like healing rates, which are much more central to the game.

In other words, you could get rid of undeads having level-drain and it'd still be old-school D&D. You can run an old school D&D campaign without ever including a wraith or wight, for example.

RPGPundit

Here i was thinking i was being helpful in providing a possible alternative!

Quote from: One Horse Town;593203Here i was thinking i was being helpful in providing a possible alternative!

I appreciate your work, but had little else to add. If it's any consolation.

Quote from: One Horse Town;592423Level drain attacks reduce your hit die. Simples.

I like it.

I might try this as a replacement for the currently god awful Stirge rules.

Quote from: One Horse Town;593203Here i was thinking i was being helpful in providing a possible alternative!

Alternatives are fine; its the attitude of "this isn't real D&D if you don't have something draining two levels per hit" that I find questionable.

RPGPundit

Quote from: RPGPundit;593432Alternatives are fine; its the attitude of "this isn't real D&D if you don't have something draining two levels per hit" that I find questionable.

RPGPundit

Lucky you see nothing in this thread of that sort then.

Quote from: One Horse Town;593473Lucky you see nothing in this thread of that sort then.

I do see it, because I started talking about it!

RPGPundit

Quote from: RPGPundit;593706I do see it, because I started talking about it!

RPGPundit

That's just the voices in your head.

What I meant to say is that I feel its something worth adding to the conversation.

RPGPundit