Caveman wrote:

I personally roll the dice for hit points for monsters (as I do for characters), but think some just give an average (4 hp/HD) or something full hit points (I have noted, at least with 1 HD creatures).

I roll too. Sometimes you get a strong one, sometimes a weak one. Keeps players on their toes.

Chainsaw wrote:

Caveman wrote:

I personally roll the dice for hit points for monsters (as I do for characters), but think some just give an average (4 hp/HD) or something full hit points (I have noted, at least with 1 HD creatures).

I roll too. Sometimes you get a strong one, sometimes a weak one. Keeps players on their toes.

Me too. Exactly this!

To chainsaw and rhialto:

Nice1, I enjoy the fact that there is a 12 hp hill giant out there that is very cautious of their personal safety.

Ah, 5 hp, above average, thought it was, but was not sure...

I think it is in theory 1/2 HD = a 1d4 hp creature?

For giants in a 1e campaign I would make them d12.

I haven't (so far) brought that over to my Hyperborea campaigns.

I try to roll monster HPs. If there's a lot of HD or a lot of monsters I just do groupings of dice monsters. That way they don't have to face off against 12 74HP whatevers.

I am also using my laptop a bit more in my gaming so I can easily roll up lots of stuff if I have it at the table.

From VOL. IV, p. 293: BEAST AND MONSTER STATISTICS, hit dice:

HIT DICE (HD): The number of dice rolled to determine the monster’s hit points (hp). Typically a d8 hit die type is used, though exceptions are possible. Some monsters have bonus hit points added to the base HD total; e.g., “4+2” equals the sum of 4d8, plus 2 extra hit points. Other monsters have but ½ or ¼ HD; these are hit point ranges of 1d4 and 1d2, respectively. When a monster’s hit points reach 0, it is dead, but humanoids may be reduced to as low as −3 and remain unconscious; anything lower results in death.

rhialto wrote:

Caveman wrote:

To chainsaw and rhialto:

Ah, 5 hp, above average, thought it was, but was not sure...

I think it is in theory 1/2 HD = a 1d4 hp creature?

 The average of 1d8 is 4.5 HP, which I've always rounded up to 5 HP, but 4 works too.
I always treated 1/2 HD as "roll 1d8, halve result": maybe just because I hate the d4. 

lol

achiriaco wrote:

I roll for every monster encounter

I started doing this too, admittedly using a virtual die roller to get quick, lined up results. It's probably OCD of me, but it does make me think about monsters as having existence outside of the the few minutes they are "on-screen" encountering your players.
For example, I had an encounter with four stirges my last game. Two had nearly max hit points—5 and 7, decided thus they were sated on something they attacked earlier—while the other two were unlucky in that they had 1 and 2 hit points—runts of the flock who didn't get in on that sweet giant rat action earlier.
This made the two starving stirges a little more desperate and reckless, while the other two... not so much. The two starving stirges were quickly dispatched, an the two fatties worked out that they'd best find desert somewhere else.
In another encounter I had a bunch of skeletons who wound up with 1s and 2s in hit points, so I decided they were turned and damaged by an NPC group elsewhere on the level.

TLDR rolling hit points stimulates my brain's verisimilitude ideator. 

Iron Ranger wrote:

Caveman wrote:

In Theory

Roll or not roll the dice as suits.

Either maximize a Boss' hp or average them to a higher number that the footsoldiers…

Allow for weaker monsters, but place some more powerful (high hp) monsters in a group to give PCs something to think about (describing them as fitter and more aggressive than their companions, so they get the idea).


The varied hp could cause some inner conflict between monster in...  for example some tribal dispute:

So, it would be unusual (but not impossible) if a hill giant jarl had less hit points than one of his subordinates and was jealous of his rise to fame and threaten his position, so that half-way through a fight, the giants start fighting each other to end the rivalry while PC watch then in confuse and part contentment. They could assist one or the other and gain a partial ally or at least a rogues alliance for a short time.

Of all the murky rules in Dungeons & Dragons, this is not one of them. The AD&D Monster Manual is quite clear on this subject:

pg 5.  "Hit Dice indicates the parameters of the number of hit points a creature can withstand before being killed. Unless stated otherwise, hit dice are 8-sided (1-8 hit points). The indicated number of dice are rolled, and the numbers shown on each are added together to arrive at a total number of hit points...."

and an example given in the same paragraph: "HIT DICE 4 + 4 (which equals 4-32 hit points + 4 hit points, or 8-36 hit points)."

Hyperborea doesn't quite spell it out this plainly but it seems the idea is identical.


 

Wow! Garys Way

achiriaco wrote:

Jimm.Iblis wrote:

achiriaco wrote:

I roll for every monster encounter

I started doing this too, admittedly using a virtual die roller to get quick, lined up results. It's probably OCD of me, but it does make me think about monsters as having existence outside of the the few minutes they are "on-screen" encountering your players.
For example, I had an encounter with four stirges my last game. Two had nearly max hit points—5 and 7, decided thus they were sated on something they attacked earlier—while the other two were unlucky in that they had 1 and 2 hit points—runts of the flock who didn't get in on that sweet giant rat action earlier.
This made the two starving stirges a little more desperate and reckless, while the other two... not so much. The two starving stirges were quickly dispatched, an the two fatties worked out that they'd best find desert somewhere else.
In another encounter I had a bunch of skeletons who wound up with 1s and 2s in hit points, so I decided they were turned and damaged by an NPC group elsewhere on the level.

TLDR rolling hit points stimulates my brain's verisimilitude ideator. 

I like your style!
Back it with imagination which I think is lacking in the newer versions.

+1