Character Death

[Tael]

So, how do you deal with character death? Do you just let players whip up a new character with the same XP and wealth? Do you penalize their stats or character options? Do you even let players get back in the game before it would make sense for the party to acquire new members? How do you handle it?

[Sarco_Phage]

Normally, when I'm running 3.5 my players have the means on hand to come back, or if they can't do it themselves I have them drag the dead person to the nearest high level cleric (good luck with the Fighter and his gear)

In Dark Heresy, you're pretty much asking for a reroll.

I can't remember the last time I killed someone in M&M.

[Laniius]

So, how do you deal with character death? Do you just let players whip up a new character with the same XP and wealth? Do you penalize their stats or character options? Do you even let players get back in the game before it would make sense for the party to acquire new members? How do you handle it?

In my groups we usually just bring in a new character, same level and at a wealth equivalent to the wealth-by-level table. Usually at an XP of the amount required to get to that level or the midpoint.

If I were DMing (I'm not) I'd probably not allow characters to jump in until a point where it was feasible, and might even institute a level loss akin to that engendered with most of the bring-you-back-to-life spells to get the players in my group more invested in their characters.

[chainer1216]

depends, we can usually find the means to bring someone back, but alot of the time we opt to roll a new character, unless our specific character is esspecially important to the story.

[Zaq]

We generally let you just bring in a new character at the party's level. I think it's just not fun to have to be at a lower level than the rest of the party, pretty much no matter what the reason is. D&D is fundamentally a game, we're here to have fun, and being put at a severe disadvantage compared to the rest of the group is just not that much fun. That disadvantage, I might add, is one that might take a very long time to go away, depending on whether or not the GM calculates XP individually . . . yes, by RAW, characters of a lower ECL get more XP, but I don't know any GMs who actually calculate out individual XP. Besides, forcing players to play at a lower level discourages heroic sacrifices, over-the-top risks, and so on.

We generally allow the new PC to come in with either normal WBL or (depending on the GM) WBL of a character 1 level behind the party, since WBL penalties are easier to overcome than XP penalties (and usually don't make or break a character with just a 1-level variance, unlike, say, missing a new level of spells or an entire feat). Any gear the old PC was carrying (aside from obvious communal gear) is immediately dusted/disappeared/rendered unusable/ignored, just by a tacit agreement.

As for bringing in the new character, if there's a convenient place to have the new character join the party, then that's great, but if there isn't, we'll make one. We've done everything from a convenient prisoner to a literal airdrop to a treasure chest containing a PC magically appearing. Sure, it might not make that much sense if you want to think about it from that perspective, but that's your friend Joe sitting across the table, spending his free time playing with you. It's not fair to Joe to tell him that he just doesn't get to play for two weeks until the party heads back to town just because his character died.

Perhaps we're a very gamist and generous group, but hey, it works for us.

[Daftendirekt]

There has been ONE time that we ever did resurrection, and that was because one of the characters had a dragon for a patron and he simply asked her for the omg****ton of diamonds you need to do it. Otherwise, no, you're dead, reroll. Who the **** has that many diamonds?

[Thurbane]

The general rule at our table is if you die, and cannot be Raised or similar, you generate a new character with the same starting XP that you would have had for you character, had he been Raised.

[supermonkeyjoe]

For my games it depends on how the character died, if it was a story/plot/roleplaying related death/heroic sacrifice then the new character is introduces at the same level.

If the character died because of utter stupidity/suicide then the new character comes in at half a level lower so that they'll be behind for 2 or 3 sessions.

As for wealth, if the character dies and is lost or buried with all their gear then the new character comes in with the recommended WBL, if the rest of the party loot their fallen companion the new character comes in with vastly reduced starting gold.

[LordBlades]

If the char died, the new char comes with the same penalties as for a Raise Dead Spell (1 level behind). We usually resurrect chars though.

If the char was removed from the party due to RP reasons (became at odds with the party, had something else to do, gave up adventuring etc) the new char comes with exact the same XP and wealth.

[onthetown]

Normally we adventure close to towns at lower levels or have some sort of resource that lets us raise the dead charrie, if they're plot important or if we like them enough.

In Temple of Elemental Evil, we've been given one free resurrection, and the next time our charries die it's print off new sheets and reroll. I guess to make it seem more deadly than our usual campaigns.

I've already used up my one free resurrection, so I'm walking on eggshells. :smalleek:

[PersonMan]

As for wealth, if the character dies and is lost or buried with all their gear then the new character comes in with the recommended WBL, if the rest of the party loot their fallen companion the new character comes in with vastly reduced starting gold.

This makes...very little sense to me.

"Oh, your companions decided to be practical/follow your last with and use your gear to continue their campaign? Well, you get to have a lot less money because of it!"

I mean, it makes sense to want to keep the wealth at a certain level, but just shafting the one who died seems...kinda harsh.

[Yukitsu]

Here's my logic, and why I state that anyone that dies makes a new one at the same EXP as the party.

1: I don't want to track independant EXP values.
2: If you're struggling with the game, and dying already, being punished by weakening your character makes no sense.
3: I don't want to track independant EXP values.
4: If you're too low a level compared to the party, it's demoralizing, and you're less likely to be engaged in the game.
5: I don't want to track independant EXP values.
6: Character death should be its own penalty. If it's not, then you probably should play a different character anyway.
7: I really, absolutely detest tracking independant EXP values.

[Sarco_Phage]

...

I suppose in the games you run, you don't let anyone cast spells with an xp cost or craft items with an xp cost?

Because that would truly screw things up.

[Yukitsu]

...

I suppose in the games you run, you don't let anyone cast spells with an xp cost or craft items with an xp cost?

Because that would truly screw things up.

I usually just let them cast it without the cost, and deal with wishes with monkey paws. Generally the spells that have it don't really need it, and the ones that do need it (simulacrum) are so broken that having one doesn't help. I also generally don't see people taking magic item creation, but when they do I just replace EXP with specific items etc that have to be put into the material components, which means they have to quest a bit for the items in the material cost.

[Noneoyabizzness]

The option to res is always available in games I run.

But for the life of me I cannot remember a time one has actually been rezzed.

[CigarPete]

There should always be a penalty for character death IMO. In my campaign, we will raise anyone who does die if they want to be raised. Resurrection is normally not worth the extra 5k in diamonds. If not, they will come back several levels below the party. We just replaced three characters within the last few months, party was lvl13-14 with the first and 12-14 with the second two. First player's former character sacrificed himself nobly for the good of the city, so came back at 11, other two were combat/trap deaths and both came back at 10.5.

I'll be honest through, I'm not sure what our DM uses to calculate XP, but we get the same for each person, level adjusted where appropriate. The lower level people catch up fairly quickly, 2000xp at 14th, 3000 at 13th, 4000 at 12, etc. And why would the DM ever have to track XP for a player?

[Frozen_Feet]

If the character has a surviving Cohort / henchman / etc., the player switches to one of them. If not, start over from level 1. This assuming there's no in-game way to bring the dead back.

[Tael]

If the character has a surviving Cohort / henchman / etc., the player switches to one of them. If not, start over from level 1. This assuming there's no in-game way to bring the dead back.

O_O
All of the others I can understand, but Level 1?!?! Do you ever play high level games?

[Frozen_Feet]

O_O
All of the others I can understand, but Level 1?!?! Do you ever play high level games?

Haven't played one in a long while. That said, it would not change my policy. >=D

In high level D&D... what are the chances that a character does not have a single follower and his pals have nill chance to resurrect him? Total party kill feels like the most common occasion that'd happen in. In which case, it's time to say bye bye to the old campaign and start from scratch anyhow. I prefer to start my games from level 1.

Sure, it sucks. Death is supposed to. I hate playing something as dramatic as nothing but a slap on the wrist.

[Otherworld Odd]

Usually, we stick to one level behind. Reincarnate however is surprisingly rather cheap to use and brings in some fun twists with it. In my most recent game, my players used this to bring back a rogue that had been Slumbered then coup de graced.

[DwarfFighter]

This makes...very little sense to me.

"Oh, your companions decided to be practical/follow your last with and use your gear to continue their campaign? Well, you get to have a lot less money because of it!"

I mean, it makes sense to want to keep the wealth at a certain level, but just shafting the one who died seems...kinda harsh.

If getting killed means getting shafted... Well, what goes around comes around.

Also, keeping the total party wealth within specific limits makes sense in the long run since it has an effect on the party's ability as a whole. Let's say the average character wealth of a party of four PCs should be 100k per character. However the Wizard character has collected the full 400k after a near-total tpk. Is it wise to have the new Cleric, Fighter and Rogue show up with 100k each? This boosts the party wealth to 700k where it should have been 400k.

It seems wiser to keep the average wealth limited and leave the distribution to the players. It is, after all, in the Wizard's interest that his new companions be able to perform their tasks within the context of the current campaign level. If they have to "owe him", that only lasts for as long as he's alive...

-DF

[HalfDragonCube]

In the game I'm in everybody is looting each other's corpses.

A fighter just took all of the utility items from my lovely useful cleric and bought a large masterwork greatsword he can't even wield yet.