D&D (2024) Life drain needs to be replaced with Exhaustion
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Xeviat
Dungeon Mistress, she/her
I like the idea.
Something I've been playing with is introducing Subdual Damage and Fatigue/Exhaustion. Subdual Damage and Fatigue are tracked separately, and stack with lethal damage and exhaustion, but they recover on a short rest instead of long rest. That way, they can be used as penalties without affecting the next fight, usually.
Something I've been playing with is introducing Subdual Damage and Fatigue/Exhaustion. Subdual Damage and Fatigue are tracked separately, and stack with lethal damage and exhaustion, but they recover on a short rest instead of long rest. That way, they can be used as penalties without affecting the next fight, usually.
Whizbang Dustyboots
Gnometown Hero
Obligatory: This is why getting rid of 3E's ability score drain was a bad idea. It's more granular than level drain, more nuanced (you can have monsters that drain different things) and while it's more dangerous than just knocking off hit points, it's not as much of a death march as imparting levels of exhaustion is.
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pukunui
Legend
Remember that they didn't fully get rid of it - shadows still drain Strength, even in the 2024 revised rules!
I never liked it because of the math involved, but luckily it's easy to implement ability score drain in DDB, so I wouldn't be opposed to seeing more of it in the game now.
SteveC
Doing the best imitation of myself
I think the most important thing about using Exhaustion in 5E is making sure there's a way to get rid of it. From what I remember, you can get rid of one level of Exhaustion with a Greater Restoration spell and ... I think that's about it. For me, that's difficult because it's making the spell/healing system have an outlyer condition that becomes much more important as a result.
I think if 5.5E designers had wanted more Exhaustion, they would have made more ways to get rid of it. As I know, you have a potion of Vitality and the Greater Restoration spell and long resting ... that's about it. Of course, I'm not claiming to be a rules authority on this matter because I'm just not, so if there are a bunch of other ways, I will be properly schooled.
I think if 5.5E designers had wanted more Exhaustion, they would have made more ways to get rid of it. As I know, you have a potion of Vitality and the Greater Restoration spell and long resting ... that's about it. Of course, I'm not claiming to be a rules authority on this matter because I'm just not, so if there are a bunch of other ways, I will be properly schooled.
pukunui
Legend
Yep, there are limited ways of removing exhaustion. At least the Potion of Vitality removes all levels of exhaustion!
Charlaquin
Goblin Queen (She/Her/Hers)
Also long rests. And, level 10+ Rangers lose an Exhaustion level on a short rest. And as DM if you want to make Exhaustion easier to deal with you can always make potions of vitality easily accessible and/or make a more common potion that just removes one Exhaustion level instead of all of them.
mellored
Legend
It's not completely removed. Some creatures still have it.
It's just mostly removed.
Xeviat
Dungeon Mistress, she/her
I would have stuck with the longer 10 point track they were toying with in play tests, made it recover 1 on a short rest, full on a long rest, and -1 penalty to all d20 rolls and spell DCs, -speed at some pattern.
That would be fatigue. Points of exhaustion would be like the current exhaustion, recovered 1 on a long rest, as a more permanent, sticking fatigue. Then, lesser restoration would restore fatigue.
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