[Swordbearer] Starvation

[lev at rpgreview.net]

> Well, I guess the first rule is how much of an issue should it be in a
> game. In D&D, for example, trivial Create Food and Water spells make it
> almost a non-issue in most situations. In Swordbearer however, it can be
> more of an issue, and the game system seems to appeal for crunchy
> realism... The following is for humans; other species (especially
> non-mammals) will have significant divergence from these.

I was thinking also that water should be very significant - more so than
food. One can survive quite some time, albeit in a weakened state, without
food... But when water is missing then you're in serious trouble and
quickly.

With water the character requires their Mass in water units per day, which
is roughly 150ml per unit. If a character does not receive this then they
suffer a loss of dehydration. For every points of dehydration greater than
their Mass the character suffers an equivalent effective loss distributed
across Strength, Intelligence, and Agility.

In general a character can survive a quite a few weeks without food.
Without water however, survival becomes questionable in a matter of days.
The rules - rather quickly thought out and possibly full of glaring errors
- do simulate this.

Something that a particularly realistic GM may introduce - if even for
narrative purposes - when character's are effectively down to half their
normal intelligence due to hunger or thirst... then the hallucinations
start.

All the best,


Lev