D&D 5E Second Wind

[Connorsrpg]

Sorry if this has been dealt with. I know there was discussion on it earlier.

This is not a hate thread for non-magic healing. I can put up with some.
'
But isn;t the way that Second Wind is written under fighter a little confusing. So after any fight, the fighter can spend short rests and heal to full?

BTW - there is no way we will be using the heal to full rule after each extended rest, especially as PCs have their own in built healing.

FUrthermore, given hps reflect actual damage after falling below half, wouldn't it make sense if these 'shrug it off heals' ONLY worked if you ABOVE half hps. (I think there is another fighter option when BELOW 1/2 hps)?

Is Second Wind meant to be used over and over OR does it mean a fighter can access their Hit Die healing mechanic as an action? Or is it ON TOP of Hit Die?

I am having trouble following the Basic Ed Fighter?

 

[Li Shenron]

Personally I think the original intent was to allow the Fighter to simply recuperate some hp just lost in combat.

But eventually it developed into accelerated natural healing. As it reads now, the Fighter can heal all HP (without spending HD, which she can also do but it's a separate feature) as long as she has enough short rests.

This may actually not be a problem, if everything else works as per the default rules and you keep up with the typical expected adventuring day in D&D.

But if you play a high-action game with more than ~4ish encounters per day, or if you lower the standard length of short rests to 5-10mins, or if you change how HD healing works, or if you change how long-rest healing works... then the Second Wind ability might make your game fall apart, so you should also consider adjusting that (BTW they have in fact mentioned that the DMG suggests e.g. to change Second Wind to granting temp HP if playing with 5min short rests).

 

[Paraxis]

It is pretty clear to me, and works just fine IMHO.

It does not use your hit dice.

It is a bonus action to recover some h.p.

It is recovered with a short rest, which is one hour. So unless you can take an hour long rest after every fight it doesn't work after every fight. It is controlled by the pacing of the game.

The only hit point that has to be physical injury is the last hit point, sure you look a bit hurt after you are half, but all hit points are a little bit luck, divine intervention, skill, stamina, and meat.

 

[drjones]

Yeah it's really only a problem if the players and DM conspire to make it one.

 

[MerricB]

Sorry if this has been dealt with. I know there was discussion on it earlier.

This is not a hate thread for non-magic healing. I can put up with some.
'
But isn;t the way that Second Wind is written under fighter a little confusing. So after any fight, the fighter can spend short rests and heal to full?

It's unlikely to be *any* fight, because short rests are now at least 1 hour long! Second Wind allows the fighter to regain some hit points without requiring that amount of time (which is really, really useful given how much damage they can take...)

I've designed a small number of house rules (bottom of this article) for an alternative, lower permanent healing option. Basically Second Wind becomes temporary HP, and only a fraction of HP are recovered each day.

(Not that I'm using them, but I thought they might be helpful for people who prefer a slower healing rate!)

Cheers!

 

[Chocolategravy]

Yeah it's really only a problem if the players and DM conspire to make it one.

Or if you're playing in a very common campaign style where encounters take place in a wilderness or town setting and the party can quite easily spend 3 or 4 hours between fights so that the fighter can regenerate to full with second wind between every fight.

In all likelihood we're going to find that this non-magical healing will allow a fighter to regenerate FAR more in a day than what can be done with the magical healing monks and paladins get. Because as we all know non-magic > magic.

 

[GrumpyGamer]

So far in my experience:

• The ability is being used in combat, or right after combat.
• The party has not taken excessive short rests.
• The ability was a lot more powerful at 1st level than 2nd level.

This is going to be a table playstyle issue, but with long rests healing everyone I think most parties will opt for 1 short rest or retreating and taking a long rest. The party that camps up for 4 hours to heal the fighter is going to be an odd duck.

 

[KarinsDad]

I'm planning on making Second Wind a reactive temp hit points. The fighter gets hit, the fighter gets temp hit points that the attack first subtracts from.

That way, the Fighter still gets the same general amount of hit points total, he just cannot take 3 short rests and heal himself up completely.

This also means that a surprised Fighter cannot get the temp hit points, but a Fighter could carry them over through short rests. Course, he would be smart to use up all of the old temp hit points before adding new ones, but that means he will probably be taking real hit point damage to manage that.

 

[AverageCitizen]

If you are taking a long rest, I assume you can't take 8 short rests at the same time?

 

[FitzTheRuke]

If you are taking a long rest, I assume you can't take 8 short rests at the same time?

That's right.

It seems to me that if you get your second wind back in a "short or long rest" (so you get ONE back if you rest for 1 hour, or you get ONE back if you rest 8 hours), then you get ONE back no matter how long you rest for. (Up to 8 houirs).

That's how I play it, anyway. Everyone is free to have trouble with it if they like.