[RPG] What happens if a creature is killed between its attack and damage rolls

combatdnd-5ewarlock

Came across a scenario that’s a little odd:

A creature hits a character with an attack.

The character has an ability that deals damage when he is hit.
Based on other rulings the damage from the character to the creature happens before the creature rolls damage on the player.

Now what happens if the creature takes enough damage to be killed? I see two options:

  1. The creature is dead and no longer gets a damage roll.
  2. The damage already "happened" before he died and a roll is still made.

I'm asking about any time a reaction or triggered effect causes a creature to die between its attack and damage roll and not this spell in particular but as an example a warlock casting armor of agathys with a 5th level slot, being hit by a low level creature like a 7 hp goblin.

Does the goblin hit and takes 25 damage and is dead, therefore no damage roll? Or does the goblin hit, deal ~5 damage and takes 25 damage and is dead?

It generally only matters when trivial creatures (less than CR 1) are attacking higher level characters (greater than lvl 5), situations I wouldn't bother actually playing through, but how I run it at a table could have implications on other abilities.

No "makes sense in real world" answers as I'm talking about magic and it has no real world logic. I can use story and fluff text to explain either version.

Best Answer

The damage roll is not disassociated from the successful attack

The basic rule of combat is that if a creature successfully hits, it does damage. That's the whole point of rolling the dice. (p. 194 PHB1).

Nothing in the armor of agathys spell acts like the Shield spell does in preventing damage by preventing a successful attack. Any spell or effect that supplies temporary hit points will absorb some of the damage before the Warlocks's normal HP are reduced, but such spells don't stop damage from being taken.

Other effects that preempt a successful attack include divination magic that allow the spell caster to replace a successful attack roll with an unsuccessful attack roll.

If the attack was successful, damage is done.

The order is this:

  1. The Goblins hits the Warlock with a successful attack
  2. The Warlock takes damage from the successful hit and the Goblin takes 10 cold damage-these are both a direct result of the successful hit on the Warlock.
  3. The Goblin becomes incapacitated / dies as determined by the DM.

1 From the "Making an Attack" in Chapter 9.

3. Resolve the attack. You make the attack roll. On a hit, you roll damage, unless the particular attack has rules that specify otherwise. Some attacks cause special effects in addition to or instead of damage. (p. 194 PHB){italics mine}

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