208
votes
Accepted
Rolling a D10 (0-9) for hitpoints. What do I get with a zero?
A zero on a d10 counts as 10.
This isn't clearly specified in the 5th edition rules, but is clearer in earlier editions of the game, and widely understood among long-time RPG players. However, we can ...
- 79k
82
votes
Can a zero-HP, unconscious and stable character be woken up prematurely?
The character can spend HD after an hour. (Now confirmed by Jeremy Crawford; as always, take twitter with a grain of salt.)
Just read the "Resting" rules.
A short rest is a period of downtime, at ...
- 101k
80
votes
Accepted
Do monsters rolled with 0 HP get a minimum of 1 HP?
1 is the minimum
Jeremy Crawford tweets that the intended minimum hit points for a given HD is 1, not 0. So your gas spore would have 1 hp.
But it doesn't matter
Although when I get "fencepost&...
- 175k
80
votes
Rolling a D10 (0-9) for hitpoints. What do I get with a zero?
You are correct. Many old school d10s are marked 0-9 but you count the 0 as 10.
If he doesn’t listen to reason, next level use one of the d10s marked 00-90 instead and demand your 45 or so hit ...
- 175k
78
votes
Are commoners actually this squishy?
The game is really designed and balanced towards heroic roleplay - and not towards a realistic simulation. When heroes are in the heroic tier they've got dozens of hitpoints.
When you look at the ...
- 1,279
77
votes
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Is this houserule preventing effects from dropping creatures to below 1 HP if they make their save exploitable or broken?
This is going to be a poor idea
As other answers point out, this is going to make save-targetting spells significantly weaker, but there's also another problem you might not have thought about.
Being ...
- 36.3k
63
votes
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Death by leveling? The effects of 0 max HP and leveling with negative CON
You're not gonna die when you level
With the following release of PHB errata it has been clarified that you will gain a minimum of 1HP when you level:
add the total (minimum of 1).
This new rule ...
- 124k
57
votes
Are commoners actually this squishy?
5th Edition D&D is built with a couple assumptions (the DMG helpfully points out what several of those assumptions are right in the first chapter, under "Core Assumptions"), one of the big ones ...
- 9,947
56
votes
Are hit points non-fungible?
Option 2
This is what the description of the sword says: “Hit points lost to this weapon's damage can be regained only …”. It does not affect hit points lost in other ways, they can be healed normally....
- 207k
55
votes
Can you cast Hellish Rebuke as a reaction to damage that reduces you to zero hit points?
Unfortunately, as awesome as this sounds, by the rules, it doesn't work. Hellish Rebuke is a reaction that you take
in response to being damaged
Not "in response to being hit", or "in response to ...
- 144k
55
votes
Accepted
Can massive damage kill you while at 0 HP?
Yes, Massive Damage can kill you at 0 HP
Damage at 0 Hit Points. If you take any damage while you have 0 hit points, you suffer a death saving throw failure. If the damage is from a critical hit, you ...
- 52.3k
52
votes
Can you polymorph an unconscious creature that is at 0 HP to wake it up?
No.
From the Polymorph spell description:
This spell can't affect a target that has 0 hit points.
Of note: this caveat was added in the Player's Handbook Errata, as pointed out by Thyzer, after the ...
- 12.1k
50
votes
Do Life Drain attacks from wights stack?
Yes, it "stacks".
There is a ruling on combining game features, but that is only talking about ongoing continuous effects. i.e. the effect that is causing ongoing damage rather than the damage itself....
- 27.7k
49
votes
If an elf is stable with 0 HP, do they regain all hit points after a long rest of 8 hours or 4?
A stabilized elf can finish a long rest in 1d4+4 hours.
The rules for “Stabilizing a Creature” state (emphasis mine):
A stable creature doesn't make death saving throws, even though it has 0 hit ...
- 144k
48
votes
Are undead and creatures immune to charm excluded from the HP count of Sleep?
Looking at those two fragments:
Creatures within 20 feet of a point you choose within range are affected(...)
A creature’s hit points must be equal to or less than the remaining total for that ...
- 2,870
44
votes
Accepted
Would striking someone at 0 hit points with an entire Magic Missile spell automatically kill them?
Death by many Magic Missiles
Let's start with when to make Death Saving Throws (PHB, 197)
If you take any damage while you have 0 hit points, you suffer a death saving throw failure.
So any time ...
- 124k
44
votes
Accepted
Does a gargantuan creature still die if only the feet are ever attacked?
Yes, the creature is dead when it reaches 0 hit points.
Basic Rules (p. 79)
When you drop to 0 hit points, you either die outright or fall unconscious...
This can be modified for a monster, but ...
- 142k
44
votes
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Should players know other creatures' HP? How do you deal with players not knowing the opponent's HP if not?
The DMG section on running combat (p.247-248) has this to say:
Most DMs track damage in secret so that their players don't know how many hit points a monster has remaining. Whether you choose to be ...
- 72.8k
42
votes
Accepted
Can you roll for HP at levelup in Adventurers League?
I found it, page 5 of version 7.0 of the AL players guide.
When you gain a level, use the fixed hit point
value in your class entry. You can’t roll your hit points.
Missed that but easily fixed.
- 1,359
42
votes
Accepted
Should players be allowed to be more effective in combat through more specific attack choices
No
Never
Not under any circumstances
D&D is not a simulationist game
Baked into D&D is the concept of hit points - an arrow through the eye that does 5hp damage is in every way eqivalent ...
- 207k
42
votes
Accepted
How does one calculate effects of damage over time if one is taking a long rest?
Frame challenge: don’t let them benefit from a long rest at all.
The rules for a long rest say:
A long rest is a period of extended downtime, at least 8 hours long, during which a character sleeps ...
- 144k
41
votes
Are Constitution changes retroactive when calculating max HP?
CON changes apply retroactively, so it doesn't matter when you increase it.
PHB 177:
If your Constitution modifier changes, your hit point maximum changes as well, as though you had the new ...
- 63.4k
41
votes
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What does "Summoned creature has maximum hit points" actually mean?
It means that the elementals will have 144 Hit Points
If the designers instead wanted the air elementals to have rolled or average hit points they could have said:
Summoned elementals have their ...
- 75.6k
40
votes
Accepted
In what order should one apply max HP reduction and damage?
For the wraith, the damage comes first then HP reduction
There is no general rule that I know of that would determine the order in which these effects would be applied in generally. However, the ...
- 94k
39
votes
Accepted
Does going to 0 hp due to the Immolation spell mean instant death? And is that reasonable?
Going to 0 hp due to the Immolation spell does not mean instant death anymore.
DaveFY's original answer was correct at the time it was written.
However, since November 2017's Errata to Elemental ...
- 5,761
39
votes
Accepted
How do hit points work in 5E at low levels?
Here's an excerpt from the D&D 5e Basic Rules v0.3:
Hit Points and Hit Dice
At 1st level, your character has 1 Hit Die, and the die type is determined by your class. You start with hit ...
- 7,110
37
votes
What is the "+ 75" in these NPC hit point stats?
It's usually based on the creature's Constitution modifier.
5E creatures are often statted as though they have player levels, with effective "levels" and "proficiency bonuses" baked into the final ...
- 52.3k
37
votes
How does the Death Ward spell interact with the Polymorph spell lasting "until the target drops to 0 hit points"?
The Sorcerer retains their Giant Ape form with 1 HP
The death ward spell description specifies the following (emphasis mine):
The first time the target would drop to 0 hit points as a result of ...
- 1,251
37
votes
Accepted
Does a creature die outright if they drop below negative max hit points of their polymorphed form?
No, you transform back before you can be instantly killed
The rule for instant death says:
Massive damage can kill you instantly. When damage reduces you to 0 hit points and there is damage remaining,...
- 94k
37
votes
Accepted
Can you take actions after being healed at 0hp?
The Fighter must wait until round 3
During round two in your scenario, when the Cleric heals the Fighter, the Fighter's turn has already ended for that round, so they would need to wait until the next ...
- 78.6k
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