Quote from: Eric Diaz;840176First post!

I have devised two systems for that. The first based on 5e: at 0 HP, death saving throw, failure means you are uncosncious, disabled or dying. Three failures mean death.

For Old School games, I find that this is too forgiving, so I use something like this:

Roll. Effect
1-2. Dying. Roll again every turn.
3-4. Disabled. Roll again if you try any significant effort (moving more than half speed, fighting, etc).
5-6. Unconscious. You can be awakened with ease by other characters, but if you aren't roll again after 10 minutes.

In any case, all dice rolled are kept on the table until you can get decent rest and healing (which usually means recovering HP). Rolling the same number twice means death.

Rules for automatic death still aplly.

(original posts here and here)

EDIT: for less extreme situations, you could use bleeding / tripped / dazed, for example.

I also like Perrin rules (IIRC) where if you want to make someone unconscious, you mak an attack. If it would take 10% of its hit points, it is a 10% chance of knockout instead. And maybe 20% chance of a knockdown?

I guess I would double this probability to make it worthwile (maybe more damage with the right tools, such as blunt weapons). Also, waht about immediate death if rolling doubles, for that added risk of accidental death? Seems easier and more fun than non-lethal damage.

Welcome aboard!

In researching Dark Albion I picked up Fantastic Heroes and Witchery which uses the 0 HP you're unconscious, -1 to -9 HP your dying, -10 HP your dead. It also uses Subdual damage ala 3e which I thought was really good. It also sports a nice long term injury mechanic and rules about long term recovery that I find quite brilliant. If you go unconscious in negatives, you're not just popping back up. You have to rest for a turn or something. You can be healed but you are not just magically re-spawning for more lulz.

I am seriously considering trading this method out in my 5e game because at this point damage/dying is the only thing that really irks me about 5e at the moment.

I also play/run GURPS which has a nice damage system that feels very gritty where you make "death saves" at each negative multiple of your Health, and you make "unconsciousness saves" when you hit negatives each round. When you go out, depending on your HPs determines how long you stay out. Again, no re-spawn popping up like you just recovered from a short rest at a boffer fight.

I prefer systems like above. The whole "fall down, re-spawn, fall back down" syndrome in 5e makes my game feel like a video game. Combat should be scary and people who fight frequently should bear some scars. People beat up really good don't wake up five minutes later to chitty-chat with their friends about how hilariously tough the troll was. If your knocked out from damage or a mighty blow it should have some impact.

Quote from: Arkansan;840304Welcome aboard!

Thanks!

For 3E I use these death and dying house rules. Short version: Characters can have negative hit points equal to the absolute value of their maximum hit points. Once they're at 0 or below, they'll injure themselves by taking strenuous actions and they need to make Fortitude saves. Fail a Fort save and they fall unconscious.

For OD&D I used these house rules. When you hit 0 hp, you have to make a percentile check using the "chance of survival" guidelines in OD&D. If you succeed, you're unconscious. If you fail, you're dead.

If they get knocked to 0 I say they're unconscious. Unless it's more dramatic that they're awake but unable to act. (Too wounded)

If they get KO'd because someone choked them out in a headlock or something their hp stays the same and they just lose consciousness for a while.

Seeing as I run 5e, I use the 5e rules.

Quote from: Christopher Brady;840962Seeing as I run 5e, I use the 5e rules.

I use 5e too. But what do you do if someone gets caught in a headlock and the one doing it is trying to knock them out without killing them.

Once the guy is successfully headlocked, do you just let it happen? Have them roll a save to break out? Make them need to be hit to 0 hp?

Didn't read the OP, but from the topic title, I'd say this:

If someone in my gaming group falls unconscious, we usually laugh at their inability to hold their liquor, and draw on their face with a sharpie.

Quote from: mAcular Chaotic;840970I use 5e too. But what do you do if someone gets caught in a headlock and the one doing it is trying to knock them out without killing them.

Once the guy is successfully headlocked, do you just let it happen? Have them roll a save to break out? Make them need to be hit to 0 hp?

Again, that's outside the purview of defined mechanics and falls into Improvise an Action from the tan box in the Combat section. You get to invent how to resolve that as GM. Do be aware that if it's an easier way to KO targets without chewing through their HP, you'll risk it dominating your game.

You could take a cue from the Sleep spell and then work with a cumulative HD system. That way the hold has to be held for some time, especially since rounds are in 6 second increments. This naturally runs the risk of the grappled target just knifing you in the kidneys enough to break the lock.

Try this idea:
• Use Sleep's dice size of d8.
• Require grappler to make an additional action to Subdue, another contested roll.
• Subdue hold can be broken by making subduer unconscious or successful contest roll.
• Subdue does cumulative d8 HP plus STR mod "Subdue damage" per Subdue action on same target.
• Check to see if that Subdue Damage HP number surpasses target's HP, so as to knock unconscious.
• Subdue Damage from the hold stacks but does zero actual damage, it only checks if greater than target's HP to knock Unconscious.
• Once the grapple is broken the Subdue Damage goes away.

Example.
There is a wizard who needs to be choked out. Second lvl fighter with STR 16 keeps rolling contested rolls vs. said wizard. Wizard only has 12 HP.

Fighter uses an action to Grapple, and succeeds. Uses Action Surge to Subdue, rolls d8+3 (Subdue cumulative HD +STR mod), yet cannot knock wizard unconscious this round. Rolls a 4, adds STR to the Subdue damage, deals 7 Subdue damage. Wizard has to choose between trying to escape the Grapple or just stab/spell fighter to death. Thunderwave would be useful about now, if it was prepared.

Second round stuff happens, yet fighter still has his Subdue hold. Fighter takes another Subdue action, his second consecutive one, this time at 2d8+3 HP. He has a decent chance to make the wizard Unconscious now. Rolls 5 & 1, adds his +3 STR mod, total of 9. With the previous 7 and this current 9 subdue damage the total is 16 HP, greater than the wizard's HP.

The wizard goes unconscious, is stable, and is still at 12 HP. Roll 1d4 for how many hours until the wizard wakes. Total subdue time, 12 seconds, somewhere around a carotid restraint hold or similar sleeper hold.

Yes, that means that extra attacking fighters with action surges can be very scary by knocking someone quietly unconscious. Still slower than Sleep spell, though, and in more harm's way.

Quote from: mAcular Chaotic;840970I use 5e too. But what do you do if someone gets caught in a headlock and the one doing it is trying to knock them out without killing them.

Once the guy is successfully headlocked, do you just let it happen? Have them roll a save to break out? Make them need to be hit to 0 hp?

Good point.  Hmm, well, if you're going for a choke, then, and this is me spitballing on the spot, as in coming with a ruling right now, I'd grant the Monks damage bonus for as long as you can maintain the grapple, like 1D4 at early levels.  The higher level, the higher the damage, until HP hits 0, and then you can tell me if you're going for a KO or kill.

Or maybe Unarmed damage directly to Con?  Meaning that the average person can in theory last between 54 to 60 seconds (Con 9 and 10, respectively.)

I dunno, this is me just coming up with stuff off the top of my head, though, some of it's bound to be clunky, yeah.

When someone nods off, we cut off the flow of alcohol...

Oh, you mean in the GAME game...

In AD&D:

If knocked unconscious you wake up in 4 turns (40 min)  +/- your CON modifier, e.g. if you have +1 CON you wake up in 3 turns.

You can concuss somebody if you declare your intention to do so before attacking, by reducing them to 0 hp or scoring a critical hit. Otherwise all armed attacks are assumed to be lethal force.

Characters intentionally rendered unconscious at 0 hp instantly regain 1 HD of hp or the amount they had before the fight started, whichever is lower.

For unarmed combat I use the book rules with temporary damage, plus a critical hit house rule which causes permanent damage.

Quote from: RPGPundit;839285First: is there some point in hit point damage where a person is unconscious but not dead?  Is it at precisely 0 hp? Or do you do something else?

Second, how do you handle something that would knock someone out without necessarily reducing them to 0hp?  what has to happen for someone to be knocked out? How do you determine the length of unconsciousness?

What kind of D&D game am I running? I'm not running high fantasy, but is it swords and sorcery, horror, low fantasy, dark fantasy, urban fantasy, young adult fantasy, more than one of the above?
Unconsciousness rules, being captured and being threatened with a crossbow would have different rules depending on this.

Quote from: Eric Diaz;840176First post!

Welcome to theRPGsite!

Using the Sleep spell as a cue for unconsciousness mechanics would be fairly clever.