What is the hardness and hp of a corpse?

[SolEiji]

Assume medium humanoid frame.

[RedWarlock]

At a guess, harness 5 and 13hp? Just like a zombie, basically, except not moving.

[Bananaphone]

There doesn't seem to be official stats for a corpse.
The FAQ essentially says to make one up using the table from the PHB (the question refers to a warforged, but the answer includes all races):

(click to show/hide)

Is a dead warforged character’s body subject to sunder attacks, since it is now just an object of wood and metal?

A dead body of any creature (warforged, human, dragon, whatever) is treated as an object, and thus it can be damaged using the rules for “Smashing an Object” (PH 165). 
There are no rules for determining the hardness or hit points of a corpse. Most dead bodies don’t have a hardness score, but the creature’s DR (if any) should continue to apply against attacks.
Use Table 9–9: Substance Hardness and Hit Points and Table 9–11: Object Hardness and Hit Points in the Player’s Handbook to estimate hit point values for corpses should such situations arise in your game.

I would probably set the hardness at around leather.

[phaedrusxy]

If the creature didn't have DR, why would its corpse have hardness?

[Bananaphone]

If the creature didn't have DR, why would its corpse have hardness?

Rigor mortis?   




...but you're right, it shouldn't have hardness. (I must have been really foggy-headed when I read and copy/pasted that FAQ answer.)

[Kethrian]

I'd houserule hardness to be 1/3 its natural armour, rounded down.  And only EX DR should apply, the SU kind should no longer function once it's dead.

[Ziegander]

If the creature didn't have DR, why would its corpse have hardness?

Yeah, it depends on how old the body is. If it's fresh, then it wouldn't have any hardness, but after a while I could see a little bit of hardness even for corpses that didn't have DR in life.

[littha]

Considering leather and hide has 2 hardness and bone probably has 5 (like wood) I would have thought 3 or so for a body. Even glass has 1 hardness.

[NunoM]

You could use the base AC of the creature assuming DEX 0, natural armor and armor worn for hardness, and the leather 2hp/inch for HP.

Example: Human with leather armor
10 + (-5) + 0 + 2 = 7

...just my 2 cents.

[veekie]

Considering leather and hide has 2 hardness and bone probably has 5 (like wood) I would have thought 3 or so for a body. Even glass has 1 hardness.

That sounds about reasonable, and I think Dungeonscape has rules somewhere for the hp per inch of meat.

[bhu]

depends, whats the climate and weather like?

how long has it been bloating in the sun?

is it in water?

[veekie]

Also depends on the degree of destruction you're going to. Are you hacking it into big chunks? Thats easier than having to break bone.

[SolEiji]

I am liking the leather comparisons.  I will see if I can find my Dungeonomicon...

depends, whats the climate and weather like?

how long has it been bloating in the sun?

is it in water?

It's actually the corpse of an illithid which is only recently dead, and has spent its corpsy existance in a cold dark room with slightly lower than normal air pressure.There are other more advancely decayed bodies in the room too.

[bhu]

do illithids have skeletons still?

[SolEiji]

do illithids have skeletons still?

I'd imagine they do.  They're not boneless, in spite of having squid heads.  After all, all illithids are former humanoids with a new skin, in a sense.