Single dying save – you would possibly or may not die instantly.  Also enjoyable variants the place you do not make the save till somebody checks on you.

Whatever the checks are (dying saves, medical assist, heal spell, and so forth.) having a variable time chart.  Maybe one thing like instant, 1 minute, 10 minutes, 1 hour, 6 hours, 1 day, and so forth.  Check for “bleeding out” every interval on the chart.  If one thing would not kill you immediately, there’s time for somebody to do one thing.  If it would not kill you within the first 3 or 4 checks, there is likely to be time to your associates to get you again to civilization.  I like this when the means are restricted and/or dying saves are considerably robust.  Reason being that if the chances are appropriately robust, then examine each spherical or each minute is successfully a dying sentence in lots of conditions.  So if you’d like that, would possibly as properly simply set the chances low of surviving as an alternative of dragging it out.

A method to have the situations have an effect on the therapeutic.  I give boosts when characters have applicable garments, aren’t carrying armor in unhealthy situations, are clear, dry, have the eye of a devoted healer, and so forth.  Or give penalties when it goes too far the opposite approach.  Down within the dungeon with little meals, no heat, and so forth. you would possibly “bleed out” as a result of although you bought bandaged, the setting is simply too terrible so that you can make it.  Gives a powerful motive to arrange a safe base camp close to the place the motion is going down, however not so shut that it will not be safe while you retreat to it.

Last week I had a sport session with some gamers new to this type.  Starting characters had been poor, and the sport was set in early winter (earlier than it will get too unhealthy).  First outing, a pair nearly died.  They tried to camp and heal.  I defined that given a few of them solely had sandals and ragged tunics for garments, and incomplete armor that wasn’t a lot assist, the one approach they may heal in any respect was to have certainly one of their healers make a reasonably troublesome examine to take care of them, but it surely was sluggish.  If the climate turned worse, even that restricted therapeutic would disappear.  They tried that for two days, then ran for an remoted inn a day away.  Second outing?  They moved heaven and earth with their funds and barter some previous weapons they discovered to get cloaks and footwear. Mission completed.