System Hacks: D&D 3e-style saves in 4e

Sometimes you just need a good saving throw.

One of the troublesome things about fourth edition D&D is that the defenses are all static.  Something, even if that thing is just an environmental hazard, has to attack them.

So, when my party was crawling through a shadowy and magic-filled dungeon — and I mean literally crawling through claustrophobic tunnels — I wanted to use the Despair Cards from The Shadowfell: Gloomwrought and Beyond.  So, I made everyone do a Will save against moderate difficulty.

This one's pretty easy.  Just roll a d20, add the appropriate defense (Fortitude, Reflex, or Will), and throw in a -10 modifier.  Add other modifiers as appropriate.

In retrospect, I probably should have gone for a Wis check, because that Will save gets pretty high.  Ah, well.  Sometimes you just need a good saving throw.