Hey all, I apologize if this has been covered before. I checked and did not come across anything.
My question is about necrotic damage reducing your max hp. This past weekend during a game, my monk had her max hp reduced from 21 to 16. At that point I had taken 19 point of damage and only had 2 hp left. Should my character have gone to 0 hp due to this. I thought she should have but the GM said that since I had 2 hp I still had 2 hp its just that my max was reduced. I just found it weird that I had taken 19 point of damage and my max was now 16 that I was still up and going.
Afaik it just reduces your maximum health - not your current health too. After all - you've already taken the damage from the attack.
The only weirdness that I know of from those types of attacks is if you've got Temporary Hitpoints - where you take less damage than your Maximum HP is reduced by.
I think it depends on the effect. Many HP reducing effects (most? all?) such as harm say that they cause damage and reduce your health by an amount equal to the damage you took. In that case, it is pretty obvious.
If there is any effect without such wording, then it could conceivably just reduce your maximum. Remember that your current HP cannot be above your maximum, so those effects can still cause you to lose HP from your current HP total.
Agree with above. Firstly, Necrotic damage does not reduce your max HP by default. Reducing max HP is a separate effect (although many undead creatures and magic effects do cause both effects).
Next, many effects which do cause damage and reduce max HP will do the damage first, then reduce max by that amount or less. The max hp reduction doesn't add more damage, just prevents healing back up to the original amount.
Reducing max HP can cause a reduction in actual HP, but only if it reduces your max below your current (happens most often when temporary hp absorbs some damage, then max is reduced). If you had 37/40 hp and an effect reduced your max by 10 then you would end up with 30/30 (effectively 7 damage).
It still seems odd to me but if that's the rules then so be it.
SagaTympana I mentioned necrotic damage because that is what I remember the GM stating. I do not recall the type of undead we were fighting I just remember my monk taking damage and the GM mentioning necrotic. Sorry if that caused some confusion.
If your HP Max was reduced and you have more than what it was reduced to you lose thosw hit points. You can't exceed you HP max under any circumstances, you can increase that max and gain temporary hit points but your current max is your limit.
So if you get you max reduced to 16 and you have more than 16 HP you lose everything above and go to 16. Unless your DM rules it the what exceeded your maximum becomes temporary.
Hey all, I apologize if this has been covered before. I checked and did not come across anything.
My question is about necrotic damage reducing your max hp. This past weekend during a game, my monk had her max hp reduced from 21 to 16. At that point I had taken 19 point of damage and only had 2 hp left. Should my character have gone to 0 hp due to this. I thought she should have but the GM said that since I had 2 hp I still had 2 hp its just that my max was reduced. I just found it weird that I had taken 19 point of damage and my max was now 16 that I was still up and going.
Thank you!!
Afaik it just reduces your maximum health - not your current health too. After all - you've already taken the damage from the attack.
The only weirdness that I know of from those types of attacks is if you've got Temporary Hitpoints - where you take less damage than your Maximum HP is reduced by.
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An effect that reduces your max HP just reduces your maximum HP (not your current HP) unless it states otherwise.
I’m not sure what this has to do with necrotic damage, though.
I think it depends on the effect. Many HP reducing effects (most? all?) such as harm say that they cause damage and reduce your health by an amount equal to the damage you took. In that case, it is pretty obvious.
If there is any effect without such wording, then it could conceivably just reduce your maximum. Remember that your current HP cannot be above your maximum, so those effects can still cause you to lose HP from your current HP total.
Agree with above. Firstly, Necrotic damage does not reduce your max HP by default. Reducing max HP is a separate effect (although many undead creatures and magic effects do cause both effects).
Next, many effects which do cause damage and reduce max HP will do the damage first, then reduce max by that amount or less. The max hp reduction doesn't add more damage, just prevents healing back up to the original amount.
Reducing max HP can cause a reduction in actual HP, but only if it reduces your max below your current (happens most often when temporary hp absorbs some damage, then max is reduced). If you had 37/40 hp and an effect reduced your max by 10 then you would end up with 30/30 (effectively 7 damage).
Thank you all for the replies.
It still seems odd to me but if that's the rules then so be it.
SagaTympana I mentioned necrotic damage because that is what I remember the GM stating. I do not recall the type of undead we were fighting I just remember my monk taking damage and the GM mentioning necrotic. Sorry if that caused some confusion.
Also note that not all necrotic damage reduces your max hp. For that to happen the spell or effect must expressly state it does.
If your HP Max was reduced and you have more than what it was reduced to you lose thosw hit points. You can't exceed you HP max under any circumstances, you can increase that max and gain temporary hit points but your current max is your limit.
So if you get you max reduced to 16 and you have more than 16 HP you lose everything above and go to 16. Unless your DM rules it the what exceeded your maximum becomes temporary.
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