Mason Beck Fiction

If you’ve watched Acquisitions Inc. or followed Chris Perkins’ games, you’ve probably seen the Perkin’s Crit in action. It’s not official rules, but it should be.

Here’s how it works.

When you land a critical hit, you deal maximum damage for your weapon’s base dice, then roll those same dice and add the result. So a greataxe (1d12) crit would be 12 plus 1d12. A longsword (1d8) would be 8 plus 1d8. Simple. Clean. Satisfying.

Now compare that to rules as written. A crit just doubles your dice. That same greataxe would roll 2d12. Which means you could hit someone square in the chest and deal six damage. A normal hit might hit harder. That’s not just anticlimactic. It’s disappointing.

Crits should mean something.

They should be the moment everyone leans in, not deflate in disappointment. A turning point. A beat that lands. The Perkin’s Crit doesn’t actually inflate average damage much, but it feels like it does. Because the floor is higher. The moment is bigger. And the table reacts accordingly.

It’s not about min-maxing. It’s about momentum.

So if you’re looking to bring a little more weight to your natural 20s, bring the Perkin’s Crit to the table. The math holds up. The story hits harder.

And when it lands, it lands.