Random Tables - Hit Location
I really enjoy random tables in my sessions. I enjoy them for the potential narrative elements they can add and I enjoy seeing how a story unfolds just as much as the players do and it’s super extra fun because the DM is supposed to be more-or-less a god and the ONE WHO KNOWS AND CONTROLS ALL THINGS!
In this case it’s more about removing some mental processing requirement in the form of hit location for player characters, foes and friends and forgetting that that one Gnoll has now been hit in the same damn arm five times now. I mean that can still definitely happen with a random die roll (and did, except it was four times not five…) but at least you can blame the dice if anyone complains and then have all remaining enemies in the area converge on their character and hack them to pieces for daring to question you!
Before I get distracted again I use the following simple hit location table:
Roll 1d12 (which also gives a d12 something useful to do) 1-2: left arm 3-4: right arm 5-10: torso 11: left leg 12: right leg
Are the odds real life accurate? Probably not but neither is a Gnoll so who cares. The purpose isn’t perfect accuracy it’s a narrative function to add some automatic variety to a combat description. I also roll on the table for the rolls that I make and those the players make as I’m also describing their hits as well.