Castles & Crusades: Saving Throws... Focusing On Death

In the earliest editions of D&D, death, along with poison was your best save.

In Castles & Crusades, the death save is a charisma save. 

Also under the purview of charisma are charm and fear. 

This has consequences.

For example, in C&C, half-orcs suffer a -2 penalty to their charisma stat, thus, they are less personable (of course) but also, more suspectable to death, charm, and fear than any other race. Does that make sense to you?

Also in C&C, bards have charisma as their prime stat. This makes sense for their profession, charming and all that, but, this also makes bards very resistant to fear and death, right up there with knights and paladins. Does that make sense to you?

So, in C&C, saving throws are based off your main stats. You have prime and secondary stats where you roll a 12 or higher for prime and an 18 or higher for secondary. Those are just the base numbers to which you add your level (unless you're stepping on another class's toes, such as a cleric trying to pick a lock) and your ability bonus. So, assuming average stats at 1st level, you're actually rolling over 11 and 17 respectively. Then you calculate in the challenge level, a spell -- the spell caster's level, a monster -- its hit die, for a trap it's the level of the trap setter, and so on. 

• For example: A medusa is a 6HD creature. Here are what various PCs would have to roll (on a d20) to avoid petrification. This assumes an average wisdom score.

• PC level 1, wisdom prime: 17
• PC level 1, wisdom secondary: 23

• PC level 5, wisdom prime: 13
• PC level 5, wisdom secondary: 19

• PC level 10, wisdom prime: 8
• PC level 10, wisdom secondary: 14

• PC level 15, wisdom prime: 3
• PC level 15, wisdom secondary: 9

• PC level 20, wisdom prime: -2
• PC level 20, wisdom secondary: 4

Characters start with 2 primes and 4 secondaries, 1 prime from race, 1 prime from class. Humans are the exception getting 2 primes, thus starting with 3 (other races get other perks, dark-vision and such.)

Here are the C&C classes by prime stat...

• STR: Fighter, Ranger
• DEX: Rogue, Assassin
• CON: Barbarian, Monk
• INT: Illusionist, Wizard
• WIS: Cleric, Druid
• CHA: Bard, Knight, Paladin

Most, but not all, of a class's abilities will function off their prime stat. Class ability rolls are essentially saving throws. So, charisma is crucial for all of the bard's performance and influencing skills, likewise, charisma is crucial for the successful use of a knight's and paladin's battlefield leadership abilities.

Anyhow, bards, knights, and paladins are, by default of this system, the hardest to kill by death attack.   These classes are also the most resistant to fear and charm. Charm makes sense for bards and the other two make sense for knights and paladins, but all three classes  inherently have an advantage in situations specifically calling for death. Now, you can choose charisma as your second or third prime, but you're probably sacrificing some class abilities in doing so. 

Charm makes sense for charisma to some degree, but fear and death do not. Look at those around you, impersonable grouches are usually quite resistant to charm and those who think they're slick often fall prey to other slicksters. Of course, the smart-ass might say, impersonable grouches can be charismatic in their own way, but now we're muddying the waters.

Of the six abilities, the charisma saves make the least sense. This is probably a case of trying to spread the saves evenly among six stats so as to avoid the game having a dump stat. How better to give charisma some weight than by linking it to death? And this is not necessary. You see, charisma is the social save.

Should there even be a death save?

For example: Poison is damage (and pain.) When you're stung by an insect or bitten by a snake, the amount of damage you take depends on the strength of the poison/venom/toxin. If that particular beast (whatever it is) hits you, you've been poisoned. What exactly, are you then saving against? It's like you have a free, vague, parry maneuver to reverse reality, saying -- no, actually, I was not bitten. 

Larger animals with poisonous bites, due to their sheer size, also do damage with their bite/sting/claw. This is where modern versions of D&D might have it correct in the fact that they might state damage as 1d6 (+2d6 poison damage.) If you do not have the hit points to survive this, have you not then, by default, suffered a death attack?

Going back, death should not be linked to any one particular stat. Perhaps the only death save that should exist in any game should come into play if your hit points happen to fall to exactly zero and you are making a save every round to see if you fall negative and die. In such a case, you could argue for a con-based save or a will-based save (wisdom.)

Going back to C&C. I believe fear should be covered by wisdom. Charisma should only handle social interactions, bard stuff, the knight's/paladin's warlord stuff, the assassin's disguise ability, bribing a guard, etc. I would also shift confusion from wisdom to intelligence, with, charm and fear going to wisdom. This leaves charisma to dominate the social realm. 

So the abilities and their saves in C&C, rules as written are...

• STR: Paralysis, Constriction
• DEX: Breath Weapon, Traps 
• CON: Energy Drain, Disease, Poison, 
• INT: Arcane Magic, Illusions
• WIS: Divine Magic, Confusion, Gaze, Petrification, Polymorph
• CHA: Death Attack, Fear, Charm

My changes...

• STR: Paralysis, Constriction
• DEX: Breath Weapon, Traps 
• CON: Energy Drain, Disease, Poison, Polymorph*
• INT: Arcane Magic, Illusions, Confusion
• WIS: Divine Magic, Gaze, Fear, Charm, Petrification
• CHA: Loyalty, Morale, all things Social

*Polymorph was originally attached to wisdom, but I moved it to constitution because of its archaic ties to system shock. Though petrify/polymorph are also classically linked, petrification is usually caused by gaze attacks which seem to be, at their core, an assault upon your will, where as polymorph is battling the structure and health of your physical body.

Now those pesky half-orcs aren't so shit-on by fate. Not that their existence is pleasant.

As for death attacks (not counting death specifically linked to things like poison) the best way to handle this is to allow the PC to use their BEST saving throw. This way, death favors no single class and with saving throws scaling as the threat-level rises, success is no guarantee.

 And so it's full circle with death becoming your best save.

And if your best save can't save you, then to Hell with you!

Tweaking The Castles & Crusades Assassin

This is regarding the Assassin as presented in the Castles & Crusades Player's Handbook 8th Printing as seen on the right below...

In this printing, the Assassin (which alphabetically should, and has up until now, been first) is presented at the end of the class section, as an optional class(?) that "turns the idea of a hero on its head." 

Do not dis the Assassin!

Anyhow, this Assassin is a pretty good version of the concept. Most of their classes are. And I like the fact that C&C classes go up to 24th level. 

The Assassin...

• Prime Attribute: Dexterity
• Hit Die: d6
• Alignment: Any non-good
• Weapons: Any
• Armor: Leather, Leather Coat, Padded

Abilities...

Only those given at 1st level, more come at 13th, but I'm not concerned about those at the moment.

Anyhow, these abilities are good, exactly what you'd think they'd be, but a couple could be tweaked and made mechanically more interesting, at least to me.

• Armor Allowed: As above, but they can wear any armor above AC:12 with a -1 penalty to their abilities per point above AC:12. I like this, nothing to tweak here. As the Assassin levels up, you can begin to weigh the risk/reward of better armor. Also, this could easily be ported over to Wizards -- any armor above 10 could give a -1 penalty to the casting strength level of their spell, hence an easier saving throw for the target. This idea could actually be applied to any class with armor restrictions. Basically, a -1 to all rolls for every point of AC you normally can't have.

• Case Target (Wisdom): Basically, if they spend 1d3x10 minutes observing a target, the CK (Castle Keeper -- "DM") gives them some sort of useful information. Too vague for me, and clearly designed for non-dungeon use.
• Tweak: Spend the first round of combat casing a specific target and receive a to-hit/damage bonus equal to +1/+2 at 1st level, +2/+4 at 6th, +3 /+6 at 12th, +4/+8 at 18th, and +5/+10 at 24th.  An Intelligence check must be made to gain these bonuses, the CC (Challenge Class) is modified by the target's HD. You can not even attempt this if you take damage before your turn. These bonuses last that entire encounter against that particular target.

• Climb (Dexterity): This is your basic, almost supernatural, ability to climb pretty much anything you want without equipment. Doesn't really need tweaking.

• Death Attack: You must be hidden while studying your target for 3 rounds, then make a Sneak Attack (see below, not the same as the Rogue's classic Back-Attack.) If you succeed, the target must make a constitution save or die instantly. All well and good, but I will always prefer a Death Attack that's triggered by a natural 20. Either way, in this game, Death Attack saves are made with charisma. Monsters only have two saves, physical & mental. It seems to me that this would be a physical save for monsters.
• Tweak: Death Attack triggered on a natural 20, then 19-20 at 12th level, and 18-20 at 24th.

• Disguise (Charisma): You need props, make-up, and 1d3x10 minutes of prep, with some penalties for age, race, sex, etc. Then the CK rolls secretly for you and reveals if you succeeded at the appropriate time. Usual disguise rules stuff. 
• Tweak: An almost supernatural ability to fit in where you don't belong. I've said it before, it's like stealth out in the open. The roll is made by YOU when the moment of truth comes. CC modifier equal the highest HD present.

• Hide (Dexterity): The classic Hide in Shadows. There's really not much to tweak here. At 3rd level the Assassin can attempt to hide and move silently at the same time -- this requires two rolls, both at -5. I would require no such thing. Stealth is one of the hallmarks of thieves/rogues/assassins!

• Listen (Wisdom): "Hear Noise." Pretty standard here, however, in SIEGE, since this is a class ability, classes that don't have it do not get to add their level to the ability roll (SIEGE check.) Here, I'll bring up one of the criticisms of SIEGE, and it really goes back to the origins of D&D itself. Why does wisdom represent awareness? Wisdom, more accurately stated, is willpower/faith. I would argue that all observation/perception type abilities/skills should be under the purview of intelligence. I know, you can have absent minded professors and such, but should clerics be the most observant members of a party? In C&C, clerics kick-ass in this department because wisdom is their prime stat. Trust me, I love clerics, but, I think not.

• Move Silently (Dexterity): See Hide, above.

• Poisons (Intelligence): With the aid of some alchemical equipment, the Assassin can identify and manufacture poisons and antitoxins at 1/3 the market price. The handling of poison makes Assassins a bit resistant to them (+1 vs poison at 3rd level.) Pretty vague here. No time table is given nor are alchemy kits listed in the book.
• Tweak: You can harvest poison/toxins (actually, this would be venom, not poison) from slain monsters. An intelligence roll vs. the monster's level (HD) must be made as well as 1 turn of time (that's an old-school turn, C&C does not have 10 minute turns). Failure means you either botched it or the source was destroyed when the creature was killed. A natural "1" results in poisoning yourself. Vials are needed for storage. A vial of poison/toxin can be turned into 1d4 antitoxins with a full days work -- and another roll, failure means no antitoxin and the poison is destroyed.
• Tweak: Your +1 save vs. poison/venom at 3rd level continues to increase with levels, it becomes +2 at 7th, +3 at 12th, +4 at 18th, and +5 at 24th. 

• Sneak Attack: In C&C, Rogues have a back attack and a sneak attack. Assassins don't have the back attack because they have their death attack. With Sneak Attack, you can surprise attack someone walking by or even standing face to face. You get a +2/+4 attack/damage bonus and the target can't roll for initiative until the following round. But, you basically need the CK's permission to pull this off and the CK may require you make a Hide and/or Move Silently check anyway, at which point it becomes a weaker form of back attack. In this form it's more of a role-playing ability.
• Tweak: After initiative is determined, in the first round of combat, the Assassin can use Sneak Attack on anyone who acts after him. Thus, he gets the jump on that particular target.

• Traps (Intelligence): Finally a game that bases traps on intelligence instead of dexterity. And it's interesting that finding traps requires intelligence yet listening at doors requires wisdom. Nothing to tweak here though. One roll to find, another roll to disarm. And if you wish, a roll to set a trap of your own. Obviously setting your own trap would take time and it's not something I've ever seen come up in any game or system.

The 13th level+ abilities are mostly bonuses to surprise, initiative, dexterity, and sneak attack. At 15th level you gain a Signature Move which increases the potency of your death attack by +2 (meaning -2 to save) and at 20th level you gain an ability called Slow Kill which causes extra bleeding damage.

More to come on Castles & Crusades.

Great game.

D&D Assassins: Best And Worst Mechanics

Is there a reluctance in D&D games to give Assassins the ability to kill? Consider this... 

• A 1st level Magic-User can slay at will with the spell Sleep -- which offers no saving throw and shuts down multiple foes of 4 hit dice or less. Considering that probably 90+% of all creatures in your fantasy world are 4 hit dice or less, your 1st level magic-user is stunningly powerful. Granted, they can only do this once/day until they gain more levels and/or scrolls.

Let's take a look at different versions of D&D to see how they handle an Assassin's ability to assassinate as well as other abilities like disguise and poison.

In no particular order or importance...

AD&D 1st Edition

•  A back-stab doing up to quintuple damage depending on your level. That option is for both assassins and thieves and serves as an argument against even having a separate assassin class. In most versions of D&D on this list, not counting 3.5, the back-stab (sneak attack) is merely double damage.)
• The assassination table (found in the DM's Guide, pg. 75) assumes you have delivered to your DM a detailed plan of your assassination attempt. Probably includes infiltration and disguise rolls. You have a base 50% chance of straight up killing your foe, depending on your level cross-referenced with theirs. If this fails, regular weapon damage is rolled, which might kill in and of itself, and also may require a save vs. poison if you are employing such tactics.
• As mentioned above, any option you choose can also employ the use of poison as a back-up, but the Player's Handbook discourages PCs using poison as it can be abused and there is mention of a check to see if you nick yourself, but it's unclear what that check is (just dawning on me now, is this a poison save? -- if so that's cool, but assassins should get some kind of bonus.)
• Also, the poison rules are overly concerned with people spotting the poison on your blade, not something I was ever concerned with.
• Disguise success is automatic with a increasing chance of being caught per day. 
• Assassins don't start getting thief skills until 3rd level.
• The Player's Handbook has a table displaying what you should be paid for your dirty deeds. This is cool. 
• Verdict: Not bad, but it's largely a flavor class. The 1st level thief is more capable.

D&D 3.5

• Dungeon Master's Guide, pg. 180 (I consider the 3.5 DM's Guide second only to the much beloved 1st Edition DM's Guide in it's overall usefulness.) Here, the Assassin is a Prestige Class requiring 4 ranks in disguise, and 8 ranks in both hide & move silently. 
• The best Assassin drawing I've ever seen in a D&D book (art by Wayne Reynolds.)
• Mechanics, the death attack -- here you have to make a sneak attack after studying your target for 3 rounds. If it hits, they must save vs. Fort DC:10 + your level + your Intelligence bonus or die instantly or (your choice) be paralyzed for 1d6 + your level rounds. If they make their save, you still do sneak attack damage. I love it all except for the 3 rounds of study. Nobody wants to voluntarily sit out the game for 3 rounds.
• This version of the Assassin can cast spells.
• Poison Use -- can use poison without poisoning themselves. Not really that exciting as anyone can use poison with only a 5% chance of poisoning themselves -- lame. And all variations of D&D lack good (or any) black market rules for locating things like poison. However, the Assassin does gain an increasing resistance to poison (bonus to save) as he levels up, so this is good as it displays tangible knowledge of the subject.
• Verdict: Good, except for the 3 rounds of study thing.

Pathfinder 1st Edition

• Very similar to the 3.5 Assassin. No spells though, but has variations on the death attack as you gain levels.
• Verdict: I prefer the 3.5 version.

D&D 5th Edition

• A sub-class of the Rogue starting at 3rd level.
• Assassinate -- You have advantage vs. someone who hasn't taken their turn and any attack is a critical hit if your foe is surprised. High level assassins can do a lot of sneak attack damage vs. surprised targets.
• Your 9th & 13th level abilities are lame as hell, campaign-based, infiltration and imposter abilities. Talk about empty levels.
• Death Strike at 17th level(!) surprised targets must save or take double the damage inflicted. Could be a massive amount of damage.
• Verdict: Disappointing. Yes, they can do a shit-ton of damage when they (finally) reach 17th level, but all of the mid-level abilities just focus on disguise type stuff, and poison isn't even mentioned. Everything is measured in damage. This is the Walt Disney Assassin. 

Labyrinth Lord (Advanced)

• Streamlines the percentage chance from AD&D 1st Edition. Here you don't have to turn in an elaborate plan to your DM, you simply attempt the (modified by levels) percentile roll after a successful back-stab.
• Disguise rules like in AD&D1st Edition.
• Can use poison of course, and again like 1st Edition.
• Verdict: Pretty good streamlined assassinations.

Swords & Wizardry

• No rules for assassination other than the suggestion to add damage equal to your level to any successful back-stab. This is because S&W is based on the Original Rules which apparently only had "off-screen" assassination mechanics for NPC assassins.
• Verdict: Disappointing. But, a few simple hacks...

Old School Essentials

• Assassination -- you must succeed on a back-stab attack, victim then saves vs. death with a penalty based on the assassin's level. Any human/demi-humans can be killed and monstrous humanoids up to 4 hit dice.
• Usual disguise stuff and victim's of the Assassin's poison (if they use it) suffer -2 to the save.
• Verdict: Very clean, one of the best. I would add -- a poison save bonus, treat disguise like a thief skill, a few spells. 

Castles & Crusades

• Death Attack is similar to the one from D&D 3.5 in that it requires 3 rounds of study, a sneak attack, and a save (constitution save.)
• Has an interesting ability called case target (wisdom check) which allows you to discern things like hit dice and hidden weapons or abilities, but it's all at the CK's (DM) discretion and it takes 1d3 x 10 minutes. This tilts toward being a flavor ability because it takes so much in-game time to do and depends a lot on discretion. I would change it to -- 1 secret discerned per round spent casing, so it can be beneficial right there in combat.
• Has the usual uninspiring disguise and poison stuff.
• Verdict: Okay. C&C classes have a lot of flavor abilities that I wish had more of an immediate mechanical impact. Still a nice game. Just tinker a bit.

Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea

• Assassination requires a successful back-stab as per the usual back-stab type rules, must be hidden, +4 "to-hit", etc. Then a second d20 is rolled according to a chart cross-referencing levels. If this second roll succeeds, the target then saves vs. death (no save is allowed if the "kill" roll was a 19 or 20).
• The usual poison and disguise stuff, except here disguise has a 1 in 6 chance and the disguise spell is referenced.
• Verdict: Okay, maybe one too many rolls. Should a death save be required after two rolls? Does sleep offer a save? -- No. Compromise -- Drop the second roll, keep the death save.

Basic Fantasy

• Assassinate -- Make a successful sneak-attack, victim saves vs. death. DM's discretion -- Victims 2 or more levels lower than you might be denied a save and no penalty for higher level victims -- wow!
• Can also waylay (knockout) someone using the Assassinate ability.
• No disguise mentioned, but they can make a dose of contact poison for 500 GP and this has a percentage chance of success like other thief abilities. Pretty cool, comes with a warning not to abuse this.
• Verdict: Not bad, pretty straight forward. Maybe the most generous one here.

HackMaster (5th Edition)

• Ok, for an old-school D&D clone, this game is crunchy. 1/3 of your hit points equals your Threshold of Pain (ToP). If you take more damage than your ToP, you need to roll under 1/2 your constitution or collapse, writhing in pain. 1st level Assassins deduct 1 from their target's ToP, and 1 more every two levels thereafter making it easier for them to drop you. If the damage is 5 or more higher than it needs to be, you're not only dropped, but dropped silently. 10 or more than it needs to be, and you fall flat out unconscious allowing for a Coup de Grace in just 2 seconds, where as other classes take 10 seconds. Got that?
• Poison is not mentioned and disguise is a skill anyone can take (I think.)
• Verdict: I think it works for this game as there are a lot of realistic aspects to this combat system. But damn, crunchy.

In summation and what would my perfect Assassin look like?

• My two favorites from the list above are from vastly different versions of D&D -- Old School Essentials and D&D 3.5 (I've always liked the 3.5 Assassin.) 
• I would like to see poison utilized more. Not just in using poison, but finding it in the black market or cultivating it from the wild. 
• Disguise should be treated just like a thief skill with instantaneous, on-the-spot results. Example -- the party slays some cultists or orcs or something roughly humanoid. The Assassin gathers up it's equipment and wanders into the next room containing more cultists/orcs, roll your disguise to see if it works. If it does, you gather some intel or pick some pockets. If it doesn't, it's much like failing a stealth check. When you distill it down, disguise is just stealth out in the open.
• Clean assassination rules. Successful sneak attack, then level-based save.
• Daggers are iconic assassination weapons and should be more integral to the class. Perhaps limit sneak attack (back-stab) to daggers only. This creates a decent risk. But in doing this, I would make them equal to, or close to, fighters in combat ability, while still limiting armor to leather.
• Magic use is optional for me, but makes sense. Assassins would definitely dabble in the dark arts to gain an edge.
• Visually, I like the mysterious, cloaked figure, dodging in and out of shadows, poisoned dagger in hand, striking to kill whenever he can.
• And here's a final thought -- you could link the death attack directly to poison. If they're out of poison, they can't make a death attack. This promotes the need to find and/or cultivate poison (which should be hard & expensive.) Start counting your doses. With this method, a back-stab isn't required (but you would still have that ability.) And perhaps a poison would only last so long on your blade, so once you apply it, time is of the essence.