@_ShamelessJamesIf a creature (i.e. a skeleton) is immune to critical hits, are they not immune to sneak attacks as well from a rogue?
no
— Mike Mearls (@mikemearls) August 24, 2015
@_ShamelessJamesSo a skeleton cannot be critically hit as they lack mortal vulnerabilities, but they can be victims of a sneak attack? How so?
a skeleton can be critically hit – not sure any creatures in 5e cannot take crits
— Mike Mearls (@mikemearls) August 24, 2015
@_ShamelessJamesOK DM ruled it wrong. But how? A critical hit exploits a vulnerability. Where on an animated statue does it hurt more to be hit?
an existing crack that’s exploited and widened. Any joint. Any point in the structure that’s critically load bearing.
— Mike Mearls (@mikemearls) August 24, 2015
I don’t imagine hit points solely as a creature’s life force. In my games there is no red bar hanging over a monster’s head that diminishes as it takes damage and makes the monster collapse when it reaches zero. Hit points are a representation of life force, battle endurance, and a bit of morale, collectively. When my players’ characters take damage it doesn’t mean they have actually been stabbed by a sword. They could have parried every blow; nevertheless, they were somehow being bested in battle in that moment. Sometimes I leave it up to the player to describe how.
In my games, a critical hit or a hit that drops a PC or monster to zero is almost always a bad physical wound. In the case of the skeleton, a critical hit would send rib cage fragments flying and a killing blow would be a shattered skull or crushing all of its limbs.