Dragons; the view from below

Sea of Stars is hosting the Blog Carnival again:

https://seaofstarsrpg.wordpress.com/2025/02/05/beginning-this-months-rpg-blog-carnival-dragon-neighbors-how-do-you-live-with-a-dragon-nearby/

So how do you live next door to a dragon?

Blog Carnival: The Bridge Between Worlds

The RPG Blog Carnival for this month takes The Worlds Between as its theme. Bridges always feel like a liminal space to me. You're neither on one bank nor the other, but floating in between. Especially when it's foggy, or dark.

The Bridge Between Worlds takes this to its logical conclusion.

1d6 Celestial Phenomena

Eldritch Fields requested 1d6 celestial phenomena for the OSR Discord's 2024 Secret Santicorn¹. Also, the Goblette (Goblina?) has reminded me that it was, in fact, her idea that the Christmas elves should form a trade union. So whoever's drawn that one... the credit is not due to me.

The King is....Not Dead? Still?

The King has always been the King. Even when Great-Grandfather was a boy, he had always been King. Nobody questions this. But the players might. Typical players.

Roll a d12 for the explanation they are given. One of these might be true.

1. He is the last surviving Elf King.

2. He consumes the souls of children to postpone death.

3. He is an undying vampire. Court cuisine is remarkably bland.

4. He consumes the magic of ancient Elvish artefacts to prolong his life. Those who provide him with them are generously rewarded. Nobody thinks too hard about what will happen when there are no more artefacts to harvest.

5. The Gods have blessed him with eternal life, so long as he serves their will.

6. He defeated Death in a duel. Death is still pissed off about it, but the Laws of the Universe must be obeyed.

7. Death just sort of… Forgot. It would be embarrassing to have to come back and call attention to the error.

8. Death came for his soul. He offered Death something far more valuable.

9. He died long ago, but his body has been occupied by a demon who finds it useful to wander the mortal world without drawing attention to itself.

10. He died long ago, but the King's Council has been keeping it a secret so long that the lie has become habit.

11. Actually, he's only been King for a few months, but powerful magic has made it so nobody can remember anything else.

12. The masses believe him to be King. As long as he has it, he cannot stop being King. Mere death cannot supersede this mandate.

How to Cause Wounds and Mutilate Corpses

I've been meaning to explore some thoughts about injuries, wounds, and character death in adventure games for some time. In doing so, I've inevitably had to tackle the subject of Hit Points.

In the past, I've considered that obviously hit points correspond to actual wounds. The key arguments here being the effect of armour, and the existence of poisoned weapons. This argument often goes hand-in-hand with the idea that a combat round is six to ten seconds, and that a single attack roll reflects a single swing of a sword.

The contrary view is that obviously hit points reflect endurance, stamina, and will to live. The arguments here being that no mere mortal could expect to endure multiple wounds, and that an 'attack' merely represents the cumulative effect of swordplay over a round lasting a minute or so. This was the interpretation favoured by Gary Gygax et al, seeking to replicate the duel between Robin Hood and the Sheriff of Nottingham in the 1938 Errol Flynn movie.

Where I've landed is a compromise. Why, yes, this fence is mighty comfortable. No human could expect to endure - as even a moderately high level character can - multiple blows from a swordsperson who really means it. Much less a fire ball spell. So hit points must, on some level, represent all those good intangible things. But, at the same time, the presence of various effects contingent on scoring blows does necessitate actual wounds.

So, my conclusion is this: hit points represent the gradual wearing down of defences and the accumulation of minor wounds. Inconsequential cuts, scrapes and bruises. And I think this suits the genre well. Heroes in media - whether film, or TV, or literature - aren't slowed by flesh wounds. It takes a meaningful hit to do that. One which only comes when their defences are worn down, or by some combination of luck and skill from a foe.