"Over the course of a battle, you take damage from attacks. Hit points (hp) measure your ability to stand up to punishment, turn deadly strikes into glancing blows, and stay on your feet throughout a battle. Hit points represent more than physical endurance. They represent your character’s skill, luck, and resolve—all the factors that combine to help you stay alive in a combat situation. When you create your character, you determine your maximum hit points. From this number, you derive your bloodied and healing surge values. When you take damage, subtract that number from your current hit points. As long as your current hit point total is higher than 0, you can keep on fighting. When your current total drops to 0 or lower, however, you are dying." (Player's Handbook pg. 293)
So let's get this straight in our mind. At 100 hit points or 1 hit point you are fighting at full effectiveness: no negative modifier to hit, no negative modifier to damage, full attack, full move, full minor. At 0 hit points you are dying: no attack, no move, no minor, no free, miss three saving throws and no character. Huh? Shouldn't there be some sort of gradual effect? Perhaps an intermediate step where the character is weaker than full strength, but not dead. I could imagine making bloodied characters dazed every turn they take damage. Is that possible? Would it be fun? Would it add an extra layer of strategy to battle without slowing things down? Please, let me know what you think.
A. No, Josh. There shouldn't be . You're stupid. Shut up.
B. While, yes, Josh, you are stupid, in this case I agree. There should be some sort of weakening of the character as damage accumulates. And I propose...
C. Other (for Don).