Critical Hits: System II[]
The second, and more detailed, system for critical hits uses the same attack mechanic as the previous one. As above, the attacker must roll a natural 18 or higher and hit his opponent by a margin of 5 or more. Then, if the victim fails a saving throw vs. death, a specific injury occurs. However, the effects are determined by four factors: the attacker's weapon size compared to the defender's size, the type of weapon compared to the type of target, the location of the hit, and a roll for the injury's severity.
Critical Hit Charts[]
There are three types of weapons: slashing, piercing, and bludgeoning. Every weapon in the AD&D game system is assigned a type, with only a couple of exceptions such as lassoes and nets. If a weapon does not have a type, it cannot roll on a critical hit chart, although it can still inflict double damage on a critical attack roll.
These three weapon types are compared to three target types, for a total of nine different critical hit charts. The target types are humanoids, animals, and monsters. In the following pages, you'll find a chart for Bludgeoning vs. Humanoids, Bludgeoning vs. Animals, Bludgeoning vs. Monsters, Slashing vs. Humanoids, and so on. In most cases the correct critical hit chart to use should be relatively obvious.
Humanoids include anything that is generally shaped like a human, ranging from pixies to giants. If it has two arms and two legs, it's probably humanoid.
Animals include anything that is a normal or giant-sized version of a normal animal. Mammals, reptiles, birds, and amphibians all fall into this category—but not insects or fish. It also includes monsters that are animal-like in form, such as blink dogs, winter wolves, moon dogs, hell hounds, nightmares, osquips, or fire toads.
Monsters include anything that doesn't fit into the previous two categories. Giant insects of any kind, fish-like monsters, composite creatures such as manticores or dragons, and weird things like xorn or leucrottas would all be considered monsters. If in doubt over whether something is a monster or not, call it a monster; this is the default category for things that defy classification.
Location[]
The critical hit charts require two die rolls: one to determine the location of the hit, and the other to determine the severity. Note that these can be rolled simultaneously. The location die is usually a single d10, but there are some exceptions.
Called Shots. If a character hits with a called shot and scores a critical hit, the location die is ignored. The location is automatically determined to be wherever the character had been aiming.
Low Attacks. If the attacker is fighting a creature two sizes larger or a defender with a distinct height advantage, use a single d6 for location. Head and upper torso shots become extremely unusual in these cases.
High Attacks. If the attacker is two sizes larger than the defender, or has a significant height advantage, roll 1d6+4. Giants fighting halflings don't often strike them low.
Severity[]
The second roll on the critical hit charts is for severity. The severity of a hit is determined by the relative size of the attacker's weapon and the defender.
| Weapon vs. Target Size | Effect | Di(c)e |
|---|---|---|
| Weapon size is < target size | Minor | 1d6 |
| Weapon size is = target size | Major | 2d4 |
| Weapon size is > target size | Severe | 2d6 |
| Weapon is two sizes larger | Mortal | 2d8 |
The di(c)e indicated is the type rolled for that severity. For example, if a human armed with a long sword (size M) is fighting a gnoll (size L), he rolls 1d6 for the critical hit's severity because the long sword's size is smaller than the gnoll's size.
If the weapon is two sizes larger than the target, it is possible to reach the 13+ column of the chart. These hits inflict triple damage dice, even if the victim passes his saving throw to avoid the effects of the critical hit.
The arrows and bolts fired from bows and crossbows are considered size M weapons, even though the missiles themselves are Small. Heavy crossbow bolts are considered size L.
Resistance[]
Critical hits automatically inflict double damage dice, or triple damage dice if the weapon is two sizes larger than the target (see above.) However, any effects beyond this can be avoided by a successful saving throw vs. death. For example, the critical roll may indicate an arm injury with minor bleeding, but if the victim makes his saving throw, no arm injury actually takes place. The character only suffers double damage from the hit. Obviously, this could be sufficient to mortally wound or kill a character anyway.
Some monsters are naturally resistant to the effects of certain critical injuries. Creatures such as golems, undead, or elementals don't bleed and therefore ignore any such effects. A monster like a hydra can lose a head without being instantly slain. However, these injuries can still be important because it might affect the way a monster moves or attacks. A skeleton that's had a leg knocked off can't move at its full rate, even if it is less troubled by the injury than a living person would be. Slimes and jellies have no parts that are more specialized or important than the rest of the body, and are therefore immune to the effects of most critical hits. Use common sense to handle these situations as they arise.