kent_allard_jr | D&D Geekitude: Extreme Vengeance

It became a cliché in 80s action movies: The bad guys came and murdered your wife, kidnapped your kids, shot your dog, killed your partner the day before his retirement ... NOW THEY'RE GOING TO PAY! Despite its overuse, the trope had a nice cathartic logic to it. It made the hero sympathetic (despite the vast numbers of people he kills) and the resolution emotionally satisfying. It was also often used to explain the hero's success. The hero's righteous fury gives him the strength to endure hardship, and his blows against the villain are powered by his insatiable rage.

I always wanted to simulate this dynamic in an RPG (without switching completely to narrativist mechanics, which I view with suspicion). Hero is Wronged, Hero is Enraged, Hero Goes Medieval on Villain's Ass. Yet most RPGs are realistic in this regard: It doesn't matter how much you hate the guy you're fighting, you have the same chance to hit and you do the same damage.

You could say some D&D classes -- the raging barbarian and the cursing warlock -- are powered by their righteous fury, but unfortunately these powers used routinely against anyone that stands between them and the treasure. What I'd like to see if some game benefit you get only when you've been grievously wronged, and one that can be given to any class.

So what benefits would make sense, in D&D terms? Free criticals? Free healing surges? Extra action points? Or simple bonuses to attack rolls? I'd be interested in what people could come up with.