Perhaps the most ubiquitous stat in RPGs, a character’s Hit Points determines how much damage they can sustain before becoming disabled, unconscious, or dying. When a character is successfully attack (see Armor Class) with a ranged or melee attack, or by some spells, the damage they suffer is subtracted from their current Hit Point total. If a character’s Hit Points drop to zero or below, they’ll lose consciousness - essentially taking them out of the fight until battle is over. If a character’s Hit Points are reduced to a negative number equal to or greater than their Constitution score (not their Constitution Modifier) they may die. For example, if a character has a Constitution score of twelve, they can be reduced to -11 Hit Points without dying. Should they be reduced to -12 or lower, however, they may die.

Death’s Door¶

Difficulty options effect what happens to unconscious characters when they receive deadly injuries (their Hit Points are reduced to a number below zero equal to or greater than their Constitution score). In the difficulty menu you’ll find the “Death’s Door” option, which you can toggle to make the game somewhat less risky. With the Death’s Door option on, when a character receives a deadly injury they’ll avoid death and instead be put at “Death’s Door”. If they should receive a second deadly injury while at Death’s Door status, they’ll die. You can remove Death’s Door status by resting in a safe place - usually Oleg’s Trading Post or the capital city. Death’s Door basically gives each character extra protection against death, so the odd critical hit might not be so worrisome - but it won’t help you in case of a party wipe.

Hit Dice¶

A Character’s Hit Points are determined largely by their class, with each class giving a different Hit Dice per level. Hit Dice are the type of dice (d6, d8, d10 or d12) rolled to determine Hit Points. To this score the character adds their Constitution Modifier each level. At first level, a character gains the maximum number of Hit Points possible for their Hit Dice roll, thereafter receiving a random amount as per the value of their Hit Dice roll. The formula for determining Hit Points is [Hit Dice + Constitution Modifier] x Character Level. A list of the different Hit Dice by class can be found below:

Hit Dice by Class¶

Unconsciousness and Death¶

A character reduced to zero Hit Points or less is unconscious, and can no longer participate in battles. Depending on your difficulty settings, they may automatically recover after battle (provided they didn’t die), but failing that you can always use healing magics to get them back on their feet. If a character dies, resting or healing spells won’t work to bring them back, you’ll either need to use items like Signed Scrolls of Raise Dead, pay for the services of a Cleric, or use spells like the 5th-level divine spell Raise Dead.