Reduced damage and damage adjustments

[jdw]

When dealing with creatures with damage resistance - such as skeletons receiving 1/2 damage from edged weapons, or zombies that take but 1 hp from piercing weapons - how do you handle damage adjustments from strength, magic, or specialization, etc. in your games?

[rredmond]

I add the STR bonus before halving the damage. Also, the 1HP is 1HP Of course I'm guessing DMs do things differently so YMMV!

[Scott]

I used to just half weapon damage, the opposite of how double damage was handled, and then add everything else, but I got lazy in recent years and just started halving thetotal.

[geneweigel]

Only for missiles do I remove the skeleton defense for STR bonus as the back and forth of melee leans more creative.

[GRWelsh]

I've always done it that skeletons take half damage after all bonuses have been added in, so strength and magic still help, but only half as much. In OD&D, Holmes Basic, Moldvay Basic, and the AD&D Monster Manual zombies take normal damage from weapons. It is only in T1 that I can find the reference of zombies taking but 1 hp from piercing damage. It's a good idea, but I think similar to Gene's reasoning I'd limit that to only missile weapons. The image of a corpse shot up full of arrows and bolts yet still lumbering forward is pretty awesome ("It's still coming!"). Also, there is some precedent for this since in the CHAINMAIL Fantasy Supplement undead cannot be harmed by normal missile fire. I like characters being encouraged to carry back up weapons and alternate methods of attack.

[jdw]

Thanks for the replies! I was interested in the thought process behind different approaches. I mention skeletons and zombies as the prime examples (as similar reductions on other creatures occasionally seem arbitrary). Personally I like the T1 version of zombie and adopted it as my standard, using the Monster Manual version only as a "lesser" zombie. In fact I like the '1 hit point from piercing' cap for skeletons as well!

Now is it a hard cap, or would you apply bonuses to it? I've chosen to apply magic weapon bonuses, but thinking also maybe a max of 1 point from STR for something like a spear. I've gone back and forth with how to apply edged-weapon bonuses vs skeletons, currently leaning towards first halving the total of weapon and specialization (reflecting the use of the edge as designed), then adding magic and strength bonuses.

Of course I'm over-complicating things, but I find it fun to think about. To be honest, when the dice are actually rolling I often take the simplest route, esp. for larger battles!

[geneweigel]

On a lot of boards its BTB "by the book" but we all know at the end of the day it has to be cool first. If players are not cool with anything then there has to be a reckoning over how wry players can be. If they can't deal with a rule then they might have to "go back to school" and hit the books just to refocus how things ran before other rpgs flooded everywhere. The Gygax D&D era was a short good time so I like to go over and over it.