[Solo RPGs] What are hitpoints anyway?
...or How to avoid character death in solorpgs.
I got thinking about the subject after watching a YT-video discussing the concept of 'enduring hexcrawl'. This is essentially a way to play OSR and not die at any given moment in the deadliest of rpg-styles.
Those of us who have spent even the shortest amount of time in the osr-iverse know how difficult it is to keep characters alive if you want to adhere somewhat closely to the rules as they are intended. For my own style of solo-play I strive to have somewhat of a balanced approach in my toolbox to alleviate Ye Oldsthe Mindseth of 'just roll a new character'.
If characters are a resource, the stories told take a different shape from what I enjoy. On the flipside, I don´t want to play super-hero types. Especially in the osr-iverse or low-key plausible settings.
First off, I need to loosely define an answer to the question in the title; what is a HP?
Growing up with BRP-adjacent systems and Rolemaster, hitpoints was always been a measure of the severity of cut skin, bleeding and smashed bones. Severe physical harm. I tend to view HP the same way today, but have had to slowly shift my stance with the advent of the 'new-school' systems out there.
It doesn't matter if it's levelbased superhero-systems like PF2e or morphed percentile-systems like Dragonbane; healing is extremely fast across the board! Long gone are the days when it was an issue for PCs to head into combat, where every bruise and scrape meant days and weeks of healing. Now we take a "short rest" and regain X, Y or Z hitpoints back.
!!!
What!?
Alright, alright. I'm not really that much of a grognard that I can´t appretiate the joy any type of roleplaying gives to my fellow enthusiasts. A fella's gotta joke tho right? There is alot of good to be said about the cushion that the "new" view regarding hp-regeneration gives to PCs and players. It however doesn´t mean that I wan´t to use the rest of the systems as they tend to focus on character-bui... Never mind. Let's just say that I don't enjoy the rest of the package the games come with.
The big takeaway is; the hitpoints of today, in many games, are more a measure of exhaustion, pain and being banged up. Not a measure of bloodloss, broken fingers and severed tendons.
Cool, so how can I incorporate this in my osr-iverse without loosing to much of the feeling of danger and suspense?
For my pure party-crawls-in-dungeons I currently use White Box:FMAG, which comes a few optional rules that serves as a nice startingpoint.
- Characters go Unconscious a 0 HP. If the HP fall below this with as many levels the PC is, death occurs.
- After each battle, PCs can be Bandaged for 1D6 HP up to the maximum they entered the battle/situation with.
To bring it even further along I have been using the following house-rules in addition:
- Bandages applied by a cleric gives +1 extra HP to the 1D6 roll. If anyone else applies bandages, they need to roll 4+ (D6) for the effect to occur.
- When Unconscious, you may try wake up on a roll of 4+ (D6), if doing so you are at 1HP. Roll once each minute. Bandaging to 1HP or above = wake up immediatly.
- Monsters never attack Unconscious PCs, but focus on standing partymembers.
- TPKs will happen.
Sounds about right, for now.
/Skald