Sean Merwin

I think it would still be good. I still like that mechanic. It would just be a little harder to adjudicate. all right so here we go 2024 flair's handbook let's go through one at a time ready blinded pretty much the same uh the wording slightly changed but the the core of it is still the same charmed and deafened pretty much still the same now we get to the good stuff exhausted

exhaustion all right we've talked about this already we but let's do it again in 2014 we had an escalating scale of penalties based on your level of exhaustion so at first level of exhaustion you were you had disadvantage on ability checks at the second level of exhaustion your speed was halved your third level of exhaustion you had disadvantage on attack rolls and saving throws and that's where

exhaustion all right we've talked about this already we but let's do it again in 2014 we had an escalating scale of penalties based on your level of exhaustion so at first level of exhaustion you were you had disadvantage on ability checks at the second level of exhaustion your speed was halved your third level of exhaustion you had disadvantage on attack rolls and saving throws and that's where

If the first didn't really upset you and the second was something you could work around, the third one was generally the one where people started giving up on their character. Then by the fourth level of exhaustion, your maximum hit points was halved. And by fifth level of exhaustion, your speed was reduced to zero. but there was no rule that say it couldn't be increased.

If the first didn't really upset you and the second was something you could work around, the third one was generally the one where people started giving up on their character. Then by the fourth level of exhaustion, your maximum hit points was halved. And by fifth level of exhaustion, your speed was reduced to zero. but there was no rule that say it couldn't be increased.

So apparently if you got some sort of spell that would increase your speed, your speed would go up by that. It's just, that's something I noted because now we're seeing a lot of, and your speed can't be increased. So they didn't put that in there. So technically based on the rules that they're now adding, your speed could be increased through magic.

So apparently if you got some sort of spell that would increase your speed, your speed would go up by that. It's just, that's something I noted because now we're seeing a lot of, and your speed can't be increased. So they didn't put that in there. So technically based on the rules that they're now adding, your speed could be increased through magic.

And at the sixth level exhaustion, you are an X character. You are dead. Yeah.

And at the sixth level exhaustion, you are an X character. You are dead. Yeah.

Yeah, I was good with the minus one to D20 checks during the play test. And when the minus two came, I thought they were going to, what they normally would do is take the teeth away from it. And so I thought it would be, oh, something puny. And they went in the opposite direction. So minus two to D20 tests. D20 tests, if you don't know, are saving throws, attack rolls, and ability checks.

Yeah, I was good with the minus one to D20 checks during the play test. And when the minus two came, I thought they were going to, what they normally would do is take the teeth away from it. And so I thought it would be, oh, something puny. And they went in the opposite direction. So minus two to D20 tests. D20 tests, if you don't know, are saving throws, attack rolls, and ability checks.

so that's uh that's significant at at minus two you're in the disadvantage territory uh at minus three you probably go just beyond the disadvantage uh mathematical penalty for for d20 roles we're gonna get arguments about that sean Yeah, that's OK. I'm not a mathematician. I do not play one on TV or in podcasts. But, you know, we're we're in the ballpark here.

so that's uh that's significant at at minus two you're in the disadvantage territory uh at minus three you probably go just beyond the disadvantage uh mathematical penalty for for d20 roles we're gonna get arguments about that sean Yeah, that's OK. I'm not a mathematician. I do not play one on TV or in podcasts. But, you know, we're we're in the ballpark here.

yeah and and it's interesting you know that mentality that sort of mental uh the mental part of what the player brings to the game cannot be overstated and that is another really huge benefit of play testing is check the numbers yes check check this check that but also check what what players are willing to put up with because

yeah and and it's interesting you know that mentality that sort of mental uh the mental part of what the player brings to the game cannot be overstated and that is another really huge benefit of play testing is check the numbers yes check check this check that but also check what what players are willing to put up with because

i can tell you right now if you take exhaustion or you take these other penalties and you take them away from what the player sees put them on the dm rather than saying okay this player has a minus six on all their checks dm just increase the ac or the uh or the difficulty class of the checks that they make by six players would still engage the players would engage with the game differently.

i can tell you right now if you take exhaustion or you take these other penalties and you take them away from what the player sees put them on the dm rather than saying okay this player has a minus six on all their checks dm just increase the ac or the uh or the difficulty class of the checks that they make by six players would still engage the players would engage with the game differently.

They would try things to overcome them. They would think outside the box rather than just throw their hands up. And so that's one thing a game designer needs to keep in mind is where are you focusing that big, horrible penalty or advantage spotlight on the game itself and who interacts with the rule. Mm-hmm .

They would try things to overcome them. They would think outside the box rather than just throw their hands up. And so that's one thing a game designer needs to keep in mind is where are you focusing that big, horrible penalty or advantage spotlight on the game itself and who interacts with the rule. Mm-hmm .

It really hasn't changed. What they've done, I just wanted to put this in there to show this example of what was in the old rules and what's in the new rules and how it sounds different, but it's exactly the same. So in 2014, it says, "...a frightened creature has disadvantage on ability checks and attack rolls while the source of its fear is in line of sight."