Hardmode (5e)
Does your 5e game suffer from cakewalk syndrome? Players routinely steamrolling what should be deadly encounters? Downed adventurers dancing the whack-a-mole jig? Attacking dying PCs to claw back a modicum of danger? You're not alone. Standard 5e is notoriously safe and survivable. But don't fire up the furnace just yet. Hardmode is here to inject more peril into your campaign. With a few special tweaks and additions¸ your next session will be buzzing with white knuckle excitement. What follows are 9 optional rules designed to modify certain aspects of the game¸ including: higher lethality¸ party retreat¸ removing balanced encounters¸ removing the need for many encounters per day¸ persistent injuries¸ incapacitation at zero hp¸ Boss monster templates¸ discouraging nova-rest-repeat¸ improv chase tables¸ and more. So gather thy allies 'bout the gaming table. Make ready the dice¸ the beverages¸ and the spare character records! And prepare for adventure the likes of which ye've not experienced before. Will PCs die in droves? Will carefully crafted plots go to waste? Will players exult in hard won victories? Undoubtably¸ assuredly¸ and emphatically. Welcome to Hardmode. 10 pages exc cover & credits¸ 2 files (parchment & white backgrounds)¸ bookmarked & optimised for fast viewing. PS - If you like these rules¸ you might check out Low Fantasy Gaming RPG¸ which uses variants of them.