House Rules, Part 1

Most gaming groups have at least some houserules, and mine is no exception. 

The three rules that see the most use unsurprisingly involve dice.

First up involves exploding or cascading dice.  We've only used this for damage, so far, but have briefly discussed using it for healing rolls, as well.  For those unaware, exploding or cascading dice is nothing more than rerolling and adding to max rolls.

For example, a longsword deals 1d8 damage, and the player rolls an 8, that means they roll again, and if another 8 turns up, well, it keeps going.  So our table won't use average damage, because that reduces dice rolling, and no one wants that.  Spells with more dice rolls are preferred, because they provide more chances for explosions, or better yet, multiple explosions.  

Since implementing this rule, our longest run is 5 rolls, which killed an enemy caster before its initiative even came up.  Another caster fell to the multiple exploding dice in a Guiding Bolt, where 3 of the 4d6s came up 6.  

Because fair is fair, bad guys get to be on the giving end as well as the receiving end of the exploding dice.  An owlbear eviscerated a bard (RIP Avalon of the Hurdy-Gurdy) with them.  Traps, poisons, and anything else that may cause damage explode as well.  A Neutral Evil PC grasped a LG sword, and the resulting exploding dice nearly killed that PC (because alignment also matters in my game, which is another post).

Each dice explosion is met with cheers and laughter, and occasionally fitting .gifs when the dice prove fatal.  d4s and d6s explode the most. 

The second houserule is tied to the exploding dice, and it is simply that a critical hit doesn't deal double damage, it lets you roll normal damage twice, and then add your bonus.  Why? Because the allure of exploding dice is a strong one.

Our third and final rule involves the d30.  I picked up several at one point, and wanted to see them used in play.  So once per player, per session, a d30 can substitute for any die roll involving damage, healing, a saving throw, an attack, or a skill check.  So far, it has only been used for saves and damage.  As of yet, it has not exploded, but one day it WILL, and the laughter will be loud and long.

Can these rules make a game swingy and kill off a PC or bad guy unexpectedly? Yup, they certainly can.  So far, though, none of my players have complained.

Note that I created none of these rules, instead taking them from various sources on the internet - don't ask from where.  I will say that after typing 'exploding' as much as I have, I now prefer 'cascading,' and not just because it is also a favorite MtG mechanic.  Cascade and cascading just feel more positive and exciting than explode.  The power of connotations.