I don't like SoD's gone from the game, but I understand the need for them to be. The problem is that the SoD's did so fantastically well to convey that you are about to die via horrible necromantic magic. The damage just doesn't convey the same thing.
Now this new version of the spell may produce a massive damage roll needed, but at DC 15, at higher level that's nothing. This massive damage roll does add a bit of the same flavor back to the spell, but being so ineffective makes it not very exciting.
As a solution, I propose that if a save vs Massive damage is called for by spells like Finger of Death or slay living, you allow the primary Stat modifier (int for wizard, Cha for sorcerer, Wis for druid or cleric) to be added to the massive damage DC.
This means that for the massive damage to take place, you still need to do enough to cause massive damage and the first save would have to be failed, but also the chance of instant death is still there in more of a real sort of way.
I've tried to think up SoD alternatives for this and this is the best one I thought up.
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I don't like SoD's gone from the game, but I understand the need for them to be. The problem is that the SoD's did so fantastically well to convey that you are about to die via horrible necromantic magic. The damage just doesn't convey the same thing.
Now this new version of the spell may produce a massive damage roll needed, but at DC 15, at higher level that's nothing. This massive damage roll does add a bit of the same flavor back to the spell, but being so ineffective makes it not very exciting.
As a solution, I propose that if a save vs Massive damage is called for by spells like Finger of Death or slay living, you allow the primary Stat modifier (int for wizard, Cha for sorcerer, Wis for druid or cleric) to be added to the massive damage DC.
This means that for the massive damage to take place, you still need to do enough to cause massive damage and the first save would have to be failed, but also the chance of instant death is still there in more of a real sort of way.
I've tried to think up SoD alternatives for this and this is the best one I thought up.
I liked the two save solution that was proposed. If you make the first save,you're free and clear. If you fail, you take the damage and have to make another save. Fail that one and you're dead. It makes it slightly less anticlimactic as the target gets two bites of the cherry. And if you can survive the damage, you're probably likely to make one of the saves too.
Not a bad idea, but then you may have save damage/save death/save massive damage...making the total 3. Almost everything immune to massive damage will also be immune to death magic (I think?) so it might make more sense just to add to the massive damage roll.
Either would work though. The two-roll would be a bit higher if you had spell focus or the spell level was a good deal higher than 5.
I was thinking about this the other day, and rather than straight damage, what I was thinking was that if you still had the effect of the missed save being death, more or less, it would still make everyone happy.
What do I mean?
Okay, I think the two save solution is workable, but in this case, if save number one misses, you go down to -1 hit points, and then you have to make another save, and if that save misses, you fall to -(whatever) and can only be revived with TR.
So the initial missed save still "kills" you, i.e. knocks the life right out of you, but you may still just be out of it and near death if you don't miss the next save.
The other thing I was thinking on this score was, what if every spell that is a death effect just has this as an automatic side effect, i.e. this is part of the description of a death effect.
So if a spell that has the (Death) descriptor takes you to 0 or fewer hit points, you automatically make the . . . ahem . . . system shock roll to see if the death effect completely does you in.
Also, a lower level (Death) spell might take you to 0 hit points, letting you drink a healing potion on your own, or lie there stabilized, and a higher level one might drop you straight to -1 and push you toward death right off the bat.
Another balancing point that might make this interesting is that you could have spells that protect against (Death) just protect against the secondary effect of (Death) spells, i.e. the -(whatever it takes) and TR to come back effect.