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Heroic Deeds: Combat Enhancement

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Suggested Price $0.50

Combat can be a grind. We've all been in a fight where we've thought, “How many times do I have to hit this creature before it dies?”

Sometimes it feels like nothing more than a drawn-out exercise in dice-rolling. Sure you can try to throw in some creative moves and action description to make it more exciting, but what’s the point really? A hit is a hit. A miss is a miss. Fanciful narration won’t change the outcome

Everyone has played a game where fighting became tiresome. In those moments when we’re worn out instead of excited, it isn’t hard to slip into the negative thinking exemplified in my opening paragraph. Or perhaps your party simply needs an extra push to get the creative juices flowing.

Whatever the situation, Heroic Deeds is a simple addition to the rules of Dungeons & Dragons combat designed to incentivize creativity and make fighting more fun.

DISCLAIMER: This system has NOT been thoroughly playtested. If you have any recommendations, please leave them in the comments and I'll be happy to take them into consideration. Also, stay tuned for potential updates to the rules.

Change Log

V2 (01/23/18) - The work in progress PDF was accidentally uploaded as V1, it was replaced with the correct version

V3 (01/24/18) - An alteration was made to the deed die table after a probability issue was discovered.

V4 (03/01/18) - A big addition to the rules has been made. Nothing was changed in the rules that were previously published. Think of the changes as a supplement to the supplement. The new rules bring tables for successful deeds and failed deeds providing options for bonus damage, weakened attacks, and inspiration of allies and enemies.

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Reviews (2)
Discussions (3)
Customer avatar
Barney C February 13, 2022 8:19 pm UTC
PURCHASER
Allright. I discovered this just now, and probably will forget about it before tomorrow comes, so I put my rewiev here.

First, lets start with the obvious. Deeds are a thing from certain OSR dungeoncrawl. There, it is part of the Fighter (or Warrior as they call it) class progression, and not only tied to increase in damage, but also things like shoving oponents, or tripping them, etc.

As far as what this ingraft from that OSR to 5e goes... it's not bad, but it's not great either. Let me tell you why:

Firstly, here, Deeds are just a way to make bit more damage in exchange for more detailed description and switching +2 for +d4. So even cool actions liek "I use my whip to swing on the chandelier and land a hit on the guys neck", deal a dice more damage. Sure, sure, there is 5% chance that you might instakill your foe but... honestly, If I state such action, I probably wanted to stab him, and land him prone, or something. not deal extra d6 damage.

Secondly,...See more
Customer avatar
Dallin H December 11, 2020 11:44 pm UTC
PURCHASER
I can't even describe how much I love this enhancement. My players are at the end of a campaign, so I think we're going to use this in our next one. I'll definitely leave a review after a few sessions with their opinions included.

Also, thanks for making it PWYW. I'm poor right now, but when I have some spare dollars I'll hurl them at you.
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Customer avatar
Seth T December 12, 2020 1:20 pm UTC
CREATOR
When I first started playing with my current party, they were all new players and weren't being very creative or descriptive it battle. I don't use this supplement anymore, but I did for a little while to get their heads into a more creative space for combat. I had a lot of fun with it when I was using it, and I hope you do too!
Customer avatar
timothy P February 14, 2018 5:32 am UTC
PURCHASER
I really like the concept of what you've started in this Doc. I think there can be much more depth from what "heroic deed" might imply. Even add an additional "optional" chart for condition effects for success like luring or goading an enemy on successes. Perhaps adding that heroic deeds can be declared at any time but condition effects only work if used against an enemy with a CR rating higher than the character attempting it.
Try creating elements of "inspiration". If allies witness the heroic deed do they receive some kind of benefit; ergo being inspired by seeing an ally do a "heroic deed".
This is definitely a strong flavor element I intend to attempt to homebrew at my table and I hope you add more into this doc.
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Customer avatar
Seth T February 14, 2018 1:17 pm UTC
CREATOR
These are all really great ideas! When I find the time, I'll try to implement some of them. I especially like the "inspiration" effect idea. I might even add a reverse: a failed deed could inspire the enemy's confidence and give them some kind of advantage on the next attack.

However, I do like the simplicity of the current system, so if/when I add new features, I may mark them as optional. That way, people who don't want a complex rules supplement will know that the "core mechanic" of this document is just the deed die table.
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Customer avatar
Seth T March 01, 2018 5:16 pm UTC
CREATOR
Again, I want to thank you for your awesome suggestions. I've added new rules to the system. Rather than simply taking bonus damage on a successful deed, you can role on the Deed Success Table to determine the effects. Possibilities include a range of bonus damage, inspiration of allies and even an instant kill for a perfect roll (I know some people won't like that last part, but you can obviously ignore it if you want).

But with great reward comes great risk. Now, if you succeed on an attack but fail on your deed, you can roll on the Deed Failure Table to determine the effect. There might be no negative effect, or you may get a damage handicap on the attack or inspire your enemies against you because of your clumsiness.

I hope you like the new additions!
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Customer avatar
timothy P March 01, 2018 5:54 pm UTC
PURCHASER
super happy that you took the time to consider what I thought might make this idea have more depth to it. I always enjoy charts and I like what you added for failure and successes on both sides. Hope you have more ideas like this to put out there and excited to try this out in my next sessions to come!
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Customer avatar
Seth T March 02, 2018 8:06 pm UTC
CREATOR
I do have a few more ideas. It's just a matter of finding the time to work them out!

My next DMs Guild product will be a short adventure, but after that I might work on a rules supplement for wizards and other magic users.
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This title was added to our catalog on January 23, 2018.