Hit Locations (CFH)

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We've said before that this whole book consists of optional systems for your campaign; well, this Hit Locations system can be considered very optional.
The AD&D® game doesn't encourage a hit locations system, for the reasons given in the Dungeon Master Guide, page 72 ("Injury and Death"). Some of you still want one, however, so in this section we're presenting a Hit Locations system that allows you to determine individual injuries . . . but stays true to the game's philosophy.
==The "Numbed" and "Useless" Numbers==
When using this system, the first thing to do is to calculate your character's "Numbed" and "Useless" Numbers.
Calculate 25% (one-fourth) of your character's hit point total (don't count current injuries; this is his starting hit point total). Round up if the fraction is .5 or higher. On your character sheet, near the hit point listing, write down "Numbed" and that number. (You can also use the Combat Sheet included at the end of this book.) If the result was 0, write down 1 instead.
Then, calculate 50% (one-half) of your character's hit point total. Round up if the fraction is .5 or higher. On your character sheet, also near the hit point listing (or on this chapter's Combat Sheet), write down "Useless" and that number. If the result was 1, write down 2 instead.
Whenever you go up a level and gain new hit points, recalculate those numbers.
Example: Zaross has 27 hit points. His Numbed number is 6.75 (rounds up to 7), and his Useless number is 13.5 (rounds up to 14).
==Body Locations==
Now, whenever you conduct combat, do so normally. And every normal blow struck is deducted from the character's hit points normally.
Every normal blow struck (that is, every blow not declared as aimed at a specific Body Location) hits the character's torso (i.e., any point from his shoulders to his hips).
However, if you take a Called Shot, you can make your strike at any one of six other Body Locations (head, two arms, two legs, and stun-points).
==General Effects of Called Shots==
Now, when you take a Called Shot against one of those special locations, interesting things can happen:
If the attack's damage equalled or exceeded the victim's "Numbed" number in a single blow, then that location is Numbed. It is useless for the rest of this combat round. At the start of the next round, before initiative is rolled, the character recovers full use of that body part.
If the attack's damage equalled or exceeded the victim's "Useless" number in a single blow, then that location is injured, and is Useless for the rest of the fight. Once the fight is over (i.e., one side or the other is defeated, surrendered, or departed, or the two sides are now at peace), the character recovers use of the injured body part in 2d6 minutes—or immediately upon its being magically healed up to the "Numbed" number or better.
For these effects to take place, remember that the attack must have done the required amount of damage in a single blow; multiple blows don't add together for this purpose.
Damage from Punching, Wrestling, and Martial Arts can also cause body parts to become Numbed and Useless.
A Sap attack (described above under "Melee Maneuvers"), regardless of how much damage it does, does not achieve the Numbed or Useless results. That maneuver attempts an instant knockout; if the knockout fails, the victim takes only the damage done by the attack and none of the special body locations results described here.
==Specific Effects of Called Shots==
You may be asking yourself, "Figuring out what a useless arm is all about is pretty easy; but what do they mean when your head is useless?"
Avoiding the normal wisecracks that would result from such a straight line, let's talk about the actual effects of this "uselessness" for each of the hit locations.
Torso: The torso doesn't become useless; the "Numbed" and "Useless" numbers have no bearing on it.
Head: When a character takes a Numbed or Useless result to his head, one of the following effects can take place. The DM, not the player, chooses which one. He can random-roll on 1d6, or just choose the one that he fancies most.
:(1) Blindness: The character is blinded (from the pain, not injury to his eyes) until the Numbness or Uselessness ends. When a character is blind but still trying to defend himself, anyone attacking him gets a bonus of +4 to attack rolls. (If, for some reason, he is also kneeling, sitting or flat on his back, the bonuses to attack rolls are cumulative).
:(2) Deafness: The character hears ringing in his ears until the Numbness or Uselessness ends. The character suffers no combat penalty, but cannot hear orders or warnings shouted at him.
: (3) Dizziness: The character is concussed and dizzy. He performs any Dexterity ability rolls with a penalty of –4 until the Numbness or Uselessness ends. Anytime he is hit in combat for more than 2 points of damage, he must make a Dexterity ability check to avoid falling down.
: (4) Knockdown: The character is knocked flat on his backside by the blow, but does not suffer any additional ill effect. His head is not really Numbed or Useless; as soon as he stands up again, the disadvantage for the Knockdown goes away.
: (5) Blindness and Deafness.
: (6) Dizziness and Knockdown.
Arms (2): A Numbed or Useless arm cannot hold a weapon; the character immediately drops the weapon. The character will not drop a shield strapped to the arm, but does not get the AC benefit of the shield until his arm recovers.
Legs (2): When a character's leg is Numbed or Useless, he must immediately make a 1d20 roll against his Dexterity. If he rolls his Dexterity or less, he remains standing (on one foot); otherwise, he flops to the ground (and is considered sitting for purposes of striking at him). His movement drops to a fourth of what it should be until he recovers. Every time he is hit for more than 2 points of damage, he has to make that same 1d20 roll against Dexterity, and will fall down if he fails it. A Shield-Rush attack will automatically knock this character to the ground.
Stun-Points: When a character has taken a "Numbed" or "Useless" attack result to a stun-point, he has the wind knocked out of him and has a hard time defending himself. His movement drops to half of what it should be until he recovers; and his attackers are at a +2 to attack rolls him until he recovers. (This bonus is cumulative with other attacker bonuses for blindness or bad position.)
==Recording These Injuries==
It's simple to record these injuries.
You don't record the damage separately. All the hit-point losses are applied against the character's normal pool of hit points, just as before. On the Combat Sheet provided at the end of this chapter, or on a scratch-sheet, you'll want to record any special combat results and how long they're in effect. For example: "Right arm useless until combat over."
==Individual Injuries and Healing Magic==
When a character who has taken a Useless result is healed before the area recovers naturally, then the healing magic is presumed to heal the injured region first. If the magic heals one-fourth of the character's hit points, the Useless body part is working fine again.
==Permanent and Crippling Effects==
This system does not support any permanent damage or crippling effects, in accordance with the general AD&D® game philosophies.
==Monsters and Hit Locations==
These rules can be used for monsters, too, even those with extra limbs and body parts (extra heads, wings, tails, etc.). As with humans, it takes a "Numbed" shot (one-fourth the monster's hit points in a single blow) to numb an area for one round, and a "Useless" shot (one-half the monster's hit points in a single blow) to incapacitate the body part for an entire fight.
Remember that the "Useless" number does not mean that the monster (or character) has 50% of its hit points invested in that body part; if it did, a creature might have more than 300% of its own hit points! The "Numbed" and "Useless" numbers are just ways to determine how much damage it takes to incapacitate a certain body part, and the hit point damage is always applied to the victim's normal hit point score.
==This System and Low-Level Characters==
Low-level characters, with their small store of hit points, are comparatively easy to hurt in this system. A character with 10 hit points has a Numbing number of 3 and an Injuring number of 5. However, since these special damage results are all temporary, and add a certain amount of flavor to combats, you should have no difficulty using them with characters of any level.
However, don't forget that all these special shots must be Called Shots. They don't come about because of random die-rolls.