PSJ Maps - AKA Paul

According to Gary Gygax, a significant number of hit points, especially at higher levels, represent skill, luck, and magical forces. I especially like that Gary says it would be "...ridiculous to assume that even a fantastic fighter could take that much punishment", when comparing a theoretical 10th level fighter with 95 hit points to that of four war horses or an equivalent 18 Hit Die monster. 1E AD&D PHB on Character Hit Points — "Each character has a varying number of hit points, just as monsters do. These hit points represent how much damage (actual or potential) the character can withstand before being killed. A certain amount of these hit points represent the actual physical punishment which can be sustained. The remainder, a significant portion of hit points at higher levels, stands for skill, luck, ond/or magical factors. A typical man-at-arms can take about 5 hit points of damage before being killed. Let us suppose that a 10th level fighter has 55 hit points, plus a bonus of 30 hit points for his constitution, for a total of 95 hit points. This is the equivalent of about 18 hit dice for creatures, about what it would take to kill four huge war horses. It is ridiculous to assume that even a fantastic fighter can take that much punishment. The same holds true to a lesser extent for clerics, thieves, and the other classes. Thus, the majority of hit points are symbolic of combat skill, luck (bestowed by supernatural powers), and magical forces."