[MECHANICS] Dungeon! - Morale

Morale

Many modern TTRPGs have seemingly done away with Morale all-together. In Dungeon!, I have instead opted to make Morale a Variant Rule. If you want a more realistic world where Monsters and NPC's value self-preservation, it is recommended that you use the mechanics below.

Rolling Morale

Dungeon does not have a special Morale Stat in its Monsters' Stat Blocks. Also, Morale is not rolled as a 2d6. Instead, Morale in Dungeon is simply a Save. At the end of each Round, the GM should take note of the current situation of the battle. If the enemy has just lost half or more of their units this Round or if the enemy's strongest unit has been reduced to half or less of its total Hit Points, it is time to roll Morale. Simply roll a Save for the enemy with the highest CR / lowest Save value. the reason you only roll for the strongest enemy is primarily to keep things simple, but it also emulates B/X's mechanic where certain "minion" Monsters had a higher Morale in the presence of a "leader" Monster of a similar type.

If the Save is successful, the Morale Check was also successful (for the enemies at least). The enemy will stay and fight, either to the death, until the GM has the enemy roll Morale again, or until the GM decides they would logically retreat, Morale Check be damned. If the Save is failed, the Morale Check was also failed. All enemy units will gain the Afraid Affliction until the combat officially ends, and they will do everything in their power to flee to a safe location.

Finally, the GM may require Morale Checks from any NPC's the party hires or drags along. The GM should roll these Checks any time the party mistreats or abuses the NPC, or anytime a member of the party or a fellow NPC dies.