Five Horrible House Rules for Dungeons & Dragons 5e 

Lots of folks disagree with us about Critical Fumbles, and that's fair. If you have a Critical Fumble table that you think is well-balanced and fun... let's see it! As long as you are open to honest and frank feedback about it, share it with us!

One of the first things I was taught as a DM was that a natural 20 means the best possible outcome, not necessarily the desired outcome

Honestly its so annoying when dms act like whenever a player rolls a natural 1 or 20 they act like its some sort of ultra-rare one-in-a-million occurence that shatters worlds and kills gods. Its a one in twenty chance calm down.

My called shot system is a replacement for critical hits. So you can forego your extra damage to make a called shot instead to somehow hinder the enemy, but it doesnt result in anything game breaking like an instant kill. Like you both suggested, it’s usually some form of knocking the weapon out of their hand or something similar

"They aren't really rules, more like guidelines" -Barbosa

Simple homebrew rule for the impossible 20 rule All nat 20's give a +10 (or 5, depending on your table) to the roll. This allows for those moments where things that should not be done are done, while also making sure impossible things stay impossible

Everyone has different opinions and feelings about what is fun. Here are some of my House Rules. 1. There is no TPK or Player Character Deaths except in extreme circumstances (there are also various expansions/details that I will only mention if asked). 2. The Players can still be knocked out in combat or other situations but no need for Death Saves, 1 minute afterwards the Player pops back up at full HP but with a new permanent scar/marking, (there are some more details which same thing will only tell details if asked). 3. The way Trance works for Elves is basically they unknowingly touch the true heart of magic and that is how they get all the benefits other races get from regular rest. 4. All Races can breed/mate with all other Races, (though certain things must still apply but will only give details if asked). 5. All Planes of Existence are connected to each other,(more details if asked). 6. Carry Weight/Encumbrance only matters in combat situations, (I have a different system which will give details on if asked). 7. How to choose Player Stats & Proficiencies is this: You get 72 points to put in whichever stats (though not exceeding 20 unless playing beyond Lvl 20), then add Racial Modifier/Proficiencies on top of that, then Background/Backstory Modifiers/Proficiencies (if any), then finally Class Modifier/Proficiencies (if any). Anyway I like Nat 20 being critical success and called shot is fine but only for Players so might include them in my House Rules. Otherwise I agree with your opinions about the other House Rules you mentioned in this video.

a variant of the Greyhawk initiative could be : reroll (standard) initiative each time a key event happen like a castle wall falling, a dead or dying dragon crashing on the battlefield or a high level spell (because you can't ignore the meteor swarm ravaging your or your enemies troops)

The critical fumble tables can still lead to hilarity. We had it that you only critical fumble if you roll a 1 and then a 20. The usual was hitting an adjacent target. In our OP 3rd ed game, the wizard had a cloak that threw d4 damage darts as an attack. He consistently rolled a 1 then 20, so much that he actually did more damage to my fighter than any other enemies actually did to me. This was so unlikely that it actually became a feature of the game. Allowing a roll for something that is impossible is a failure for the GM. "I roll to push the planet." 1 in 20 you succeed. No, as a GM you should just so no. Called shots should fall under sundering strikes against weapons or limb damage. I like the different HP pools for limbs that still reduce overall HP but can remove certain attacks or abilities of the target. We would make it a feature of a crit and story it up to make it sound awesome. I'm surprised that you didn't talk about Wound Point and Vitality. It can absolutely break the system if you make a character in the right way, where even a random crit can somehow take down a BBEG. I guess it's not a terrible system, but dang does it change the entire D&D system.

Killing blow rule - our party gets to describe their kill but all XP is shared among all players. This is an interesting and terrible concept, but bonus XP for an exceptional story (martial, social, any skill) is a fun part. Critical fumble - We have implemented the critical failure rule that adds some some flair to the battle that's based on Deadlands failure rolls. Attack rolls have a deviation and opportunity to hit targets in that direction...d12for direction using 12 directly behind rotating clockwise, and d6 to determine hit of PC/NPC next to the target. 1 = hit, 2-6 = no hit of secondary target. This applies for melee and ranged. Called shots - also utilize the Deadlands charts but is typically only used for grapples. Thorn whip to the legs to make them drop prone or arm to grapple the weapon hand. We do not implement additional damage but does add flair to the game. One of our players is a pacifist, so he likes to "bonk" the enemy on the head to KO if health drops to 0. Initiative - yet again returning to Deadlands with a deck of cards for initiative. Lower initiative creates fewer actions in a round and re-roll initiative every time people use all cards. This was one of my favorite components of the game and doesn't slow the combat pace.

My DM uses a critical fumble rule and as the only melee character in the party I basically spend the entirety of every session getting shot in the back by my allies. Not fun.

You say it you did it, a house rule that destroyed all the fun and humour of the game

I think the best thing to do for called shots is to take inspiration from GURPS, first of all, to hit the head, it's a pretty hefty penalty, -7 I believe. Also, all limbs/apendages have a cap for the amount of damage they can take before it stops harming the creature, for arms and legs it's 1/2 the creature's max hp (So say a creature has 12 hp, you deal 10 damage to the arm, it'll take 6 damage and the arm is crippled), for hand and feet it's 1/3 and so on. and instead of instant death for head/eye/vital blows, it simply deals more damage.

If you roll a 20 trying to convince the king to hand you the kingdom, you convince him not to kill you

6:48 one of the few homebrew rules at my table is that any critical failure, even those of monsters, is met with en opportunity attack in response, that doesn't consume reaction kinda funny and fortunately no one has more than one critical failure every one or two fights

I use a critical fumble table, but I'm also incredibly lenient on it for them just missing. Like half of the d20 roll table just equal that you miss or something small like your weapon falls to the ground but you can pick it up with your reaction. Critical fumble tables can be fun, but only when it also is balanced to be not devastating on any roll.

I had a d4 critical fumble table that just described how they failed 😂 except if I rolled a 4, they were just looking forward as to what would happen and got the chance to redo their action as something different

So as a DM I have made my own called shot system. Essentially they make an attack roll and if they hit they need to roll a D10. They need to get a 10 to succeed the called shot. If they get a 2-9, they miss the called shot and do half damage. If they get a 1 they miss. My players have learned to not abuse this because of the 1 in 10 shot. They tend to only try it when things get desperate. And weirdly enough some of our best moments have come from this called shot system. Also I have made the sleep spell depend on hit dice in stead of hit points. That way it’s actually useful. Imagine rolling 5D8 and not even able to out a goblin to sleep.

Senile Mage: I want to examine that rock. DM: Roll *rolls 8* DM: You examine the rock and you find... that it's a rock. Senile Mage: I want to examine that other rock. DM: You know what to do. *rolls natural 20* DM: You examine the rock and you find... that it's a *very nice* rock.

Rogue: id like to stealth. Me: sure, roll stealth Rogue: Nat 1 Me: you believe you are stealthed Rogue: ? Ok i try to steal the guards sword Me: you proceed behind him dodging their sight, however you are unaware you are making the mission impossible theme out loud instead of in your head. The guards hear you

At a convention, there was a GM who ruled that since you get a -1 to perception per 5 feet distance, no one can see *anything* past 100 feet away. No one in this world has ever seen the Sun.

"I persuade the guard to betray the king... I rolled a Nat 20!" "Good. Since he can tell you're obviously joking, the guard does not immediately attack you."

Bard tries to convince King to give away his kingdom. Rolls a 20. King: You're right, I hate being the King. Nothing but paper work. From now on, you're the king. And now I'm joining the party. Player loses bard character and now has to start over as a level 1, out of shape, going through a mid life crisis, former king.

My party has always handled Natural 20s as "The character achieves the greatest degree of success realistically possible."

I think of nat 20s on ability checks as "it goes as well as it possibly could," rather than automatic success. It keeps it feeling epic without guaranteeing success. Even if you fail, something great could come out of it!

The most annoying rule I had to deal with was that natural 1s on attack rolls meant that you damaged yourself. Cue my 1st level wizard casting chromatic orb, rolling a 1 on attack, and instantly killing herself while at max health

In response to the "I'm going to try and convince the king to give up his kingdom" *nat 20* "The king simply says 'no' and has you and the party escorted out of his halls." "What? But I rolled a natural 20!" "I know, if you had rolled any lower, he would have had you executed for the worst coup he has ever seen in his life." Stupid ideas followed by a nat 20 just means no harsh consequences, not success.

I hate it when every 20th time I swing my sword that I've been training with for years, it just turns inside out and whacks my head off.

Our DM allows us to call shots... at the hit that finally kills the enemy. The "how do you want to do this" is amazing because it both creates a sense of success at us finally beating that tough opponent, and a bit extra of roleplaying for our characters. Plus, a recent example is that, since we didn't actually behead the enemy, he gave some final words for us to chew on. It's neat, and maybe everyone does it, but I feel like it gives a lot of flavor to the fights

players: "trying to convice a king to give away his kingdom" charismatic player rolling persuacion check: *natural 20* me: the King laughs, the whole court laughs, its taken as a joke ...*congrats you have managed to not get arrested or killed on sight* #fixed

I allow players to “call” their shots when they roll a Nat 20, or when they deliver the killing blow. It is more about narrative than damage.

Killing blow seems like a big middle finger to the healer.

For the “boss monster with body part health pools” idea, the easiest way to tell your player this mechanic is available is to just ask them what they’re targeting. “I want to attack the dragon.” “Okay, which part of the dragon?” “Uh… wait you can do that.” “For this fight, at least, yes.”

*rolls a 1 on charisma check* *accidentally decapitates himself on the critical fumble table*

"here at my table we use the critical fumble table" Look down and sees horrible punishments the next day: so what race are you each playing? every player: Halfling

I thought using a called shot to shoot someone in the knee was to prevent someone to continue being an adventurer. I have been decieved.

2:45 - Killing Blow Experience 5:14 - Critical Fumble Tables 9:09 - Automatic Impossible Success of a Natural 20 12:14 - Called Shots 17:14 - Greyhawk Initiative Rules

My group has always used a natural 1 to just describe you doing something embarrassing with your miss, so it's more about the comedy than punishing you for rolling a 1.

Killing blow experience - Laughs in Milestones

I like what Matt Mercer says when his players want to try something crazy. 'You can certainly try.' He says it in such a way that conveys just how unlikely it is to work or even be possible.

First rule: "Hey healer, you can keep us topped off in end game at level 1, right?"

With the "impossible natural 20" rule, I once DM'd for a group who, at one point, walked into the treasury of an abandoned castle and found a sleeping dragon. The druid managed to roll a natural 20 on convincing the dragon not to instantly kill them for accidentally disturbing it's rest, so I ruled that he gave them a task: collect some of its hoard that was stolen from it while it slept by imps. They did so under the condition they received a single pendant from the hoard (a magic item of great importance to one character). The dragon hated the idea, but in it's eyes, if it got the large portion of its hoard that was stolen back, what was a single lost pendant in return?

They mentioned how the critical fumble table makes it so that someone with an insane bonus can fail catastrophically. It made me think about my house rule where, if someone has a high enough bonus, I just don't bother asking for a roll, I just let them do it. Unless they're under duress, in which case, I feel that even someone who's incredibly skilled might fuck up. My favourite example is someone trying to pick a lock during a fight. Even a simple lock can become difficult when you've got arrows and fireballs flying all around you.

"I roll to ask the king to give up his kingdom" *Rolls 20* "the king decides not to have you executed on the spot"

One thing I love to do instead of the Critical Shark Jump is to give them a neat reward but not what they asked for. Trying to ask for the king's abdication to you? He laughs heartily, slaps you on the back and orders a feast and a noble title to be awarded to you because you're just such an awesome, funny guy that he wants to keep you around as a friend. Running up a wall? You do a really sick parkour wall backflip, landing perfectly on your feet exactly in the place you started at. Every non hostile witness claps.

The way I put it, "Nat 1's and Nat 20's do not alter the fabric of reality."

Before allowing an impossible role like running up the vertical wall I’ll usually say “Do you have an ability that lets you do that?” If they do, no roll needed. If they don’t… also no roll needed. Sometimes even helps remind the monk maybe they should be trying to run up the wall not the wizard. Or remind the wizard they have spider climb that this is a perfect opportunity for.

My table has the “Rule of Cool” where if you want to take an action that would violate a rule, but it is believable, fair, not immersion breaking, and cool, we will let you roll on it and if you succeed you can do it

2:45 Killing blow gets all xp 5:20 Critical fumbles 9:12 Impossible outcomes on nat 20 12:23 Called shots 17:22 Greyhawk Initiative Rolls

The thing you forgot to mention about the Initiative rule that made it extra bad was that after initiative was rolled and everything was sorted out, you started declaring what your actions were (from slowest to fastest init) but didn't start resolving them until everyone has said what they are going to do. Then you started resolving them from fasted to slowest, and if when your turn came up your action was now impossible (say due to your target going faster than you and moving out of range of your attack) then you just got to do nothing on your turn.

Players: “Give us your kingdom.” Rolled Nat 20 *Expectation of something special.* King: “I like your style kid, you're bold, driven, and you lack deception. I could use that on my court. I have a plot of land that i require someone with your nature to look over. It’s not much, but I imagine over time, you can make a decent barony out of it.” *Quest log updates* Players *shocked* “why would you do that instead of banishing us. Or throw us in the prison or laugh us out of your throne room?” King: “I like you, I want to help you. And maybe in due time, you can help me when I need it.” Sometimes, you can turn a bad scenario into a quest chain to save you time while you finish working on your megadungeon. And you may not be handed a kingdom, but you're given the opportunity to manage a barony, be careful what you ask for. Everyone wins.

12:40 "Shoot them in the hand to disable the weapon they're holding" Me: Maybe give them disadvantage... "Shoot them in the knee to..." Me: Force them to stop adventuring and become a guard? No way too op.

How dare you call them “Impossible Natural 20s” instead of “Supernatural 20s”

The way you described the Legend of Zelda called shot systems is precisely how the Monster Hunter game series works. I've seen someone put together a homebrew campaign for MH before, and tbh it looks absolutely fantastic.

11:29 Player: I want to run up this 30-ft wall and grab a ledge. DM: I guess you can try...... Player: (rolls) Natural 20! DM: You attempt to run up the wall only to find you get 10 ft up and you slip and fall. Miraculously you ricochet off a nearby tree landing gracefully and out of tree drops a small pouch someone tucked away up there. Player: (Yonk!) ......... I'm not going to complain about this.

I usually go with a Crit Success meaning a guaranteed success on a skill roll... with the clause that I decide what a success means. In the case of a Bard going up to a King and declaring that they should abdicate their thrown, rolling a natural 20 to persuade them, there are a number of perfectly acceptable, CRITICAL, success options. The two I can think of off the top of my head are... 1.) The King laughs at this humorous joke and the Bard finds that he has made fast friends with the monarch. 2.) The King is angered by this but before anything can happen, his steward reminds the King that these are the champions and they are a bit... unorthodox. The king lets the stupid joke slide but as the Steward is leading them away, he slips a note to the Bard with an address and a meeting place... For a revolutionary group! Ultimately, the roll failed to do what the bard intended. But success was still had in the endeavor. In the end, though, I also like to let players fail forward too, and I'm not afraid to tell them if something is truly impossible if their idea is too narrow in field for me to work off of. This house rule is a 'rule of cool' sort of rule... and with such rules, the DM is the ultimate decider.

Best houserule: whenever someone lands a Crit they say a one liner. If it’s good enough, rap air horn goes off. Worst houserule: once per session each player was able to alter the world in any way they wished even if it didn’t make sense with the story. It turned the main quest giver from a rich traveling merchant into a gay robot foot fetishist who was constantly trying to sexually harass one of the player characters.

I’ve always hated the idea of “critical confirms” where you have to roll twice for a crit.

Player: ima lift this stick *rolls 20* DM: you lift the stick and it lifts you to heaven to become a all powerful deity that can blow up universes

The first rule is a rule my brother used the first time he was a DM. He didn't bring it up until we finished our first battle. I had dealt most of the damage and still got 0 experience, it was really not a good way to do it.

I totally get the idea behind Grayhawk Initiative, as no extended combat encounter would ever result in everyone attacking in a set order repeatedly, and it makes sense that faster weapons/attacks should get earlier initiative slower weapons/attacks. In practice, however, anything that enforces realism at the expense of game play is never worth it, and considering that initiative is designed to streamline combat, adding something that slows down combat is just a terrible idea.

"That title seems a little harsh, some house ruled can get a little silly, but-" "Killing blow XP" Me, who favors milestone levelling: Oof. As for nat 20s, I've been thinking of giving a "You wasted a crit" point of inspiration for a 20 on a roll they shouldn't have made. Obviously this assumes players don't bag of flour it and just start constantly rolling dice.

We have a different "Killing Blow" rule. When the player reduces an enemy's HP to 0, they get to DESCRIBE the kill (we are a text dnd campaign). That's it. How equipment or other stuff is divvied (no experience, we do milestone level up) is kinda just.. between ourselves.

Dumbest hose rule I've ever seen: rouges shouldn't have a sneak attack because its op.

My take on critical fumbles is to punish the player socially rather than mechanically. Describe how their paladin bravely swings at the monster then almost stumbles over their own cape. One of the monsters laugh mockingly at them. Maybe the paladin can restore some honor by slaying the mocking foe, or maybe the other characters in the party will tease them about it later. Could be they themselves begin to doubt their ability after a series of unlucky roles. I roleplayed a character who after getting almost killed several times on a journey to retrieve a treasure began wonder if this life was really cut out for him. He still hasn't quite made up his mind about retiring or not. I don't like mechanical punishment, because it can lead to so many snowballs and end up with that player getting blamed for so much trouble that was really the fault of their die. However, by making it something social that your character gets to experience, it becomes a venue for roleplaying and character development. If the player roleplays the reaction to the miss with gusto and style, give them inspiration as they wish to redeem their fumble, or have them add some negative trait such as loss of confidence. There is so much fun to be had with a character who fumbles, just don't do it mechanically. Unless you want to, and YOU ALL think that stuff is fun.

I tried called shots once. The players kept saying "I'll aim for his nuts", "I'll aim for his nuts", "I'll aim for his nuts". I never used called shots again.

With the Greyhawk initiative rules, imagine casting a spell that lasts until your next turn only for your next turn to come immediately after.

Just found this channel, and was watching through some past videos... This one hit home for me. I grew up playing the game. My mother and her husband were excellent DMs (horrible at just about everything else, but excellent DMs). I learned to love the game, and to understand the benefits and potential pitfalls of house rules. I ended up moving in with my dad, and unable to play the game for a decade. I'd really missed it. Some time after growing up, moving out, and getting married, my husband and I decided we both wanted to get back into playing. A friend offered to DM. We do a session zero, I had NEVER played 3.5e (this was back in like, 2010), and I hadn't played in well over a decade. It took a while to brush up on SOME parts, and other things were just really foreign to me, but I pulled something together that I genuinely loved and was excited to play (despite a -1 Con modifier, and feeling oddly crippled. Should have been a red flag). Our first real play session rolls around... And our first full combat scene goes down... I roll a 1. Okay, sure, that's a fumble. "Roll again." 1. Joy. "Your dagger breaks. Roll again." 1. "You fall onto the jagged remainder. Roll damage." I died. The first bout of combat, and I die. Because he INSISTED on critical fumble. And when I went down, it was apparently permanent. That session put me off of playing again for years. It was driven home that the DM was "just playing by the rules." I know this was a long comment, but hearing about critical fumble rules STILL simultaneously breaks my heart and makes my blood boil...

the difference between a critical fumble table and a wild magic table is that you sign up for the wild magic. Nowhere did I select for my character to do some wildly punishing shit just for rolling poorly on an attack roll, but I did choose to cast a spell with wild magic or in a wild magic area knowing there's a random consequence that will occur

When I tried to do stuff with my monk that was fluff, like kicking off their face and using that pressure to jump away to fluff my mobile 5e feat, I had to roll acrobatics. If I succeed I get no benefit. It was roll for fluff. If I fail, I'm prone. Not failed fluff but an actual fail. Worst feeling I ever had.

Had a DM one time who told us that if we wanted to have called shots, we could, but the enemies would be using them, too... We decided we didn't need that feature right away!

If any game has a critical fumble table, I'm straight up playing a halfling.

"instant death and other forms of decapitation" I think you mean decapitation and other forms of instant death. :P

#1 (Last-Hit EXP) "Hey! Let's turn D&D into League of Legends!" - Said nobody, at least nobody who should be allowed to be a DM #2 (Critical Fumbles) One time, I said to a new group of players that I don't use Critical Fumbles in my campaigns, and they literally started cheering #3 (Nat 20 to pierce the heavens and kill god) Tends to be more the result of an inexperienced DM not realizing what the players should and should not be allowed to do more than a "house rule" #4 (Called Shot) It's a combat mechanic that should be carefully designed and integrating into the existing rules to make the game more diverse and balanced, not "I cut off his head to instantly win the fight." Honestly, it feeds back into #3: Not knowing what the players should and should not be allowed to do #5 (Greyhawk Initiative Order) **Confused screaming**

Natural 20: You perform your best possible effort at your task. A perfect attack may hit a weak spot, but a perfect attempt at convincing a king to give up his crown still can't undo a whole country's laws.

In the old Rolemaster rules, killing blow was part of the written rules. In my group it resulted in people jeopardizing combat in order to disengage and switch targets so that they could finish off the monster that another player had brought down to low hp. The kind of kill-stealing seemed not as crazy as it would not since it was baked into the rules. I remember actually houseruling this away in our Rolemaster game.

My favorite nat 20 happening was when a Druid tried to identify the magic being used in the area used to create a false valley to keep people out, and was nothing like any magic any of the characters had ever seen. The Druid rolled a nat 20, and the information they got was, “That’s not druidic magic.”

These two always look uncomfortable about how close they're sitting to each other

Rule 2: Player: "Give me your kingdom please." Rolls nat 20 King: *laughs* "That was a pretty good joke so I won't kill you today. Guards throw it in the dungeon until tomorrow and we'll see if it continues to amuse me." ~Rip silly player.

At my table, I’m implement called shot rules, however any attempts to outright one shot the enemy are never allowed and calling shots only allows minor debuffs to the target, such as -5ft of movement if a leg is injured or becoming blinded for a round if shot in the eye. The enemies can’t call shots on players though. So far, this rule has been a great addition.

Wild Magic is not only sometimes helpful and interesting, it's also a choice. Critical Fumble rules aren't really something that a player has much say in, but they CHOOSE to spec into Wild Magic when building their character. That choice is an important difference I would say.

Player: "I wanna run up the 30' of wall and grab the ledge" DM: "Well... You can try" Player (rolls):"NAT. 20!" DM:"Good job. Now do that again for the next 10'"

I reconcile the “hypocrisy” of the fumble and wild magic tables on two points. 1. Wild magic doesn’t prevent your spell from occurring. You just got this random deal on top. 2. The results of wild magic aren’t negative by nature, sometimes it’s comedic, sometimes beneficial, other times harmful. Whereas critical fumbles are punishments on top of failure.

Gloomhaven has a cool system where each spell/attack has a different initiative but the game is based around that mechanic

Our group experimented a little bit with a "crushing blow" houserule, so that very high attack rolls felt more rewarding. A crushing blow is triggered for hitting 10 above the target's AC, and a double crush for 20 above it. At first, we were saying that it would double the number of dice rolled, but that lasted about 2 sessions before we discovered how absolutely broken that one. Then we started saying that it just added 1 dice to your roll, but it still seemed very powerful at times. Now, we have determined that on a crushing blow, you roll your damage as normal, and once all the dice have been rolled, you are able to choose a single die out of the entire lot to flip to max damage. It seems to be working out well, and helps to give really good attack rolls the extra punch they feel like they deserve, without being overly powerful. But there was definitely a little experimenting to find that sweet spot.

the talk just after the "called shots" rule about different body parts having functions and health pools has made me realise the "5 gnomes in a mech" are now making an appearance in my campaign

My DM has a fun way of dealing with the "impossible natural 20" thing. In his version you still make the check, but it is now more of a save. You get that 20 for trying to persuade the king to give up his crown, he finds it amusing and decides not to have you executed.

The first paragraph of that initiative houserule made me excited, because I've been running dynamic initiative for years. Roll initiative each round, and changes to initiative changes your turn order. It's likely because I've only had on average 2 to 3 players for several years, but it hasn't slowed my games down that much. My group's loved it so far. (To be fair we play PF1e with some more dynamic 3rd party systems). Then the rest of it came... And my disappointment was immeasurable.

I can't believe that first house rule is even a thing for anyone. What a terrible decision.

1. mirror image can cast spells 2. mirror images can cast mirror image

I do “called shots” tied to crits. When someone rolls a nat 20, they can either take the auto hit and double damage, or they can call a shot and roll another attack to confirm the called shot. A hit on the confirm roll equals success. The called shots I use are Head which is double damage dice and stun for a round, Arm which is double damage dice and disadvantage on attack rolls, Leg, which is double damage dice and half speed, and Vitals which is triple damage dice. If the confirm roll misses, the original “crit” roll is still an auto hit but only for normal damage. This leads to a risk vs reward system that my players have enjoyed.

We often do the critical failure thing and its normally like derpy stuff like triping or failure on a perception check on a spider results in the "thats a strange looking dog" derpy jokes and the occasional 1d4 bludgeoning damage from steping on a garden hoe

One of my favorite homebrewed rules is the DM rolling death saves for downed PC’s behind the screen. This adds so much tension to the game when a teammate goes down and my PC’s are actually compelled to aid their fallen ally rather than saying’ “Oh, he’s got two passes. I’ll just attack this monster real quick.”

I'm starting out as a DM and I like to punish a 1 by making a humorous RP event, just as their pants splitting. It still has an effect but it's not game changing

If you roll a nat 20 on convincing the King to give you the kingdom... the outcome is that he finds that hilarious rather than having you violently thrown out or worse.

The best way to avoid that nat 20 problem rule is simple. Player: "I'm going to try and convince the king to give up his kingdom." DM: He says "no" No dice rolls.

This is my first time hearing about or reading the greyhawk initiative rules and I literally had a stroke trying to understand them lmao

I treat called shots like how monster hunter treats breaking monster parts- they have to do an x amount of damage to a certain part (or get a crit), and the best it results in is a minor debuff (especially if it's a boss) AND a rare reward at the end.

well for that give the kingdom to that guy problem... That's how i would solve it as a DM The king pauses and ponders. A full minute passes when he finally leans back at his throne. His servants stare at him with worried eyes. "...Well.... My true passion was never to rule these lands." Some of the servants look away at disbelief Another minute passes when he opens his mouth again to say ''But i cannot give my fathers legacy to any stranger that comes around asking so here is my offer: I will prepare Seven challenges to see if you and your group/levy are fit to govern. You will recive a letter summoning you to an audience in two weeks." The king claps his hands twice. "This meeting is finished''

I really like how logical the Greyhawk Initiative Roll is. Buttt, it would be much better suited to a video game, where the mathematical formula could be calculated in a millisecond and would not bog down combat.