Legacy of the Realms House Rules
COMBAT HOUSE RULES
SURPRISE ATTACK RULE When combat starts, any surprised creature is subject to the following:
- Attack rolls against it have Advantage.
- The first attack that hits it is an automatic Critical Hit.
- It cannot move or take an action on its first turn, and it cannot take a reaction until after its turn ends.
INITIATIVE SCORE Creatures don’t roll initiative at the start of combat. Instead, each creature has an initiative score, which is 10 + Initiative modifier. The Dexterity scores determine ties. Magical items like Weapons of Warning grant an additional +5 to the initiative score. Other magical enhancements can provide a bonus of anywhere from +2 to +5 on initiative scores.
EXPLODING DICE (DAMAGE ONLY) When rolling dice, if the maximum value on any dice is rolled, the dice “explodes.” Roll any such dice one additional time and add their value to the previous total. Any rerolled dice may also explode. For example, you roll 2d6 for damage and roll a 3 and a 6. You reroll one die, and it comes up as another 6. You then reroll that dice, getting a 4. This brings your total damage to 3 + 6 + 6 + 4, or 19. This rule applies to calculating damage only and does not apply to the "CRITICAL DAMAGE FROM A CRITICAL HIT" house rule.
CRITICAL DAMAGE FROM A CRITICAL HIT When anyone rolls a critical hit, roll for damage as usual. Then, determine the maximum damage that can be rolled with the attack before applying any modifiers. Combine the maximum result with the rolled damage, and then add any modifiers. This is the final critical hit damage. For example, a fighter with a +4 damage modifier strikes an opponent for critical damage with a longsword (1d8 damage). The fighter rolls 1d8 and rolls a 6. The maximum damage for a longsword is 8 on a d8. So, the critical hit damage is... 8+6+modifier(+4) = 18 hp of damage This rule also applies to spells.
CRITICAL MISS (Natural 1 on attack rolls only) Critical Misses (Melee Attacks) When an attacker rolls a critical fumble (a 1) on a melee attack roll, it leaves the attacker momentarily vulnerable. The DM determines which one of the following effects occurs based on the circumstance.
- One opponent gains an advantage on the next strike against the attacker.
- One opponent can disengage immediately.
- The attacker is unable to take any further attacks or actions this round (including bonus actions or reactions).
- One opponent gains an immediate attack of opportunity on the attacker.
- The attacker takes 1d4 bludgeoning damage from the strain of missing.
KNOCKBACK DAMAGE When a creature receives damage from a bludgeoning, force, explosive, or similar type of attack from an opponent one size or more larger, it is knocked back 5 feet for every 5 points of damage it took, with a minimum of 5 feet. Explosive spells like Fireball can generate Knockback damage. If a knocked-back creature strikes an object, such as a wall or floor, both the creature and the object take 1d6 bludgeoning damage for every 10 full feet it was knocked back. If a creature is knocked back into another creature, that creature must succeed on a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw or take the same damage and be knocked prone. A creature that is knocked back can make a DC 15 Acrobatics check to remain on its feet. On a failure, it is knocked prone. Special considerations have to be made for diffuse creatures that reasonably do not react to blows the same way solid creatures do. A creature belonging to one or more of those categories is more likely to be blown apart or scattered than pushed back. Assume that knockback does not apply, except as the result of an area effect attack such as a cone, line, or burst which completely covers such a creature's space. Reminder: Special considerations also need to be made for specific attacks and damage types that cannot be justified as causing knockback. For example, a purely mental psionic mind blast can't cause knockback, and neither can poison in most instances.
DEATH'S DOOR (Inspired by the DC20 setting rules) When a target is reduced to 0 HP, they are at "Death's Door". They are not unconscious; instead, they are in a heavily weakened state and is dying. They could be prone, crawling on the ground, holding themselves up with their sword, or losing blood as they hold on for dear life.
- When a target's HP reaches 0 or lower, the target is still conscious. However, it can only take a Reaction, and the target automatically gains 2 levels of Exhaustion (Disadvantage on ability checks, and speed is halved).
- A target gains the Unconscious condition after failing its second Death Save.
- A target dies if it fails three Death Saves.
- A target might sustain a lingering injury when it's at Death's Door but isn’t killed outright. See the Lingering Injury rules below.
- If the target receives a successful DC 10 Medicine check, the target no longer has to make a Death Save at the end of each turn. The target is conscious. However, the target remains at Death's Door and stays at 0 HP.
LINGERING INJURY WHEN AT DEATH'S DOOR A target might sustain a lingering injury when it's at Death's Door but isn’t killed outright, or if the target fails a death saving throw by 5 or more. When a creature is at Death's Door, the creature rolls a DC 10 Constitution saving throw. On a failed check, he/she/it sustains a Lingering Injury. Most lingering injuries can be removed by magical healing, per the DM's approval. To determine the nature of the injury, the DM rolls on the variant Lingering Injuries table that the DM has. This table assumes typical humanoid physiology, but should be adapted for creatures with different body types and/or attack types.
HEALER'S KIT DEPENDENCY A character must use a healer’s kit to bandage and treat the character’s wounds and requires a DC 10 Medicine check. Without a Healer's Kit, the check is made at a Disadvantage, provided there is material available to treat the wounds. If no materials are available, the DM can determine that a Medicine check is not possible or allow a DC 10 Medicine check at Double Disadvantage (roll 3 times and take the lowest roll).
FEAR (2014 rules) When adventurers confront threats they have no hope of overcoming, the DM may have them make a DC 12 Wisdom saving throw. A character who fails the save becomes frightened for 1 minute. The character can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of his or her turns, ending the effect on the character on a successful save.
HORROR (2014 rules) Horror involves more than simple fright. It entails revulsion and anguish. Often, it arises when adventurers see something completely contrary to the common understanding of what can and should occur in the world, or upon the realization of a dreadful truth. In such a situation, the DM can call on characters to make a DC 12 Charisma saving throw to resist the horror. On a failed save, a character gains a short-term or long-term form of madness that the DM chooses or determines randomly, as detailed in chapter 8 (p. 258) of the 2014 Dungeon Master's Guide.
MISCELLANEOUS HOUSE RULES
EXHAUSTION (2014 rules) Some special abilities and environmental hazards, such as starvation and the long-term effects of extreme temperatures, can lead to a condition known as exhaustion. Exhaustion is measured in six levels. An effect can give a creature one or more levels of exhaustion, as specified in the effect's description.
RESTING A short rest is 4 hours, and a long rest is 24 hours. A character can only gain the benefits of a short rest twice per day.
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