Always playable PC in D&D or other systems

[Gurp]

I'm not looking for an omnipotent/omniscient or undefeatable character but I would like to design one where no matter how killer GM that I might encounter (or bad choices I make) that they have a built in ability to continue to be playable somehow. Whether they are killed or captured, even if it takes a long time, I could plausibly work incapacitating events into a story and continue to play them.

How feasible is this? In Palladium the closest is to be Enlightened (Mystic China) so your memories are reborn with a baby post-death. Weaknesses: soul-eating/imprisonment and needing fertile female to exist to give birth. In GURPS something like Unkillable and if I could ever figure out a way to be immune to the Negate Advantage enhancement of Affliction.

I don't know enough about Pathfinder or Champions or D&D and was wondering how close they came to this ideal.

Character could still be very delicate and die in 1-2 shots to balance out their respawning, which could take a long time.

[The Glyphstone]

Frankly, there's nothing that can save you from a truly killer DM - they can always fiat away your immunities by way of plot. And even with a non-killer DM, achieving that sort of true immortality in D&D is going to be incredibly complicated and likely expensive, barring high-level cheese to get XP-free SLAs.


In Mutants and Masterminds 3e, you could do it with the Immortality power effect. Not sure what it was called in 2e, but it was there as well.

[JeenLeen]

Second Glyphstone for Mutants & Masterminds working fairly easily. You can also combo (forget the term) a power that damages yourself, triggering when you are KOed, to kill yourself, so you respawn instead of being captured. (For extra fun, it could be a blast that hits everyone around you as well, but that takes more points to build.)

D&D is tough. Some undead respawn except in very specific circumstances, but those aren't usually options to PCs. Maybe Libris Morits has an option, for 3.5. There might be some high-level wizard of psion tricks, too. I don't know of options in other editions.

For old World of Darkness, it's probably possible if you are super-high-level, but, again, not really a thing for PCs. In Mage, oracles (Spheres at ...9-10? I forget exactly) can generally make some trick to be hard to kill. At least Oracles can. A low-enough Generation vampire with the right Disciplines can be extremely hard to kill; Temporis, for example, lets you go back in time to do it differently. I reckon the other 'races' (besides probably hunter) are similar if powerful enough, but PCs aren't generally that powerful.
Oh--mummies come back as a class feature, as long as you have been a decent creature of balance.

In Exalted 2nd edition, there's some combos where you can be sorta immune to damage. Twilight caste (before errata) has a feature that lets them nullify a few points of damage. There's some Resistance Charms (as well as artifact armor) that combo with that to let you regenerate the energy it costs, but still take no damage. Non-damage stuff can still screw you over, but it makes killing you really tough. Not resurrection/respawning, though. ...you probably could work with your DM to let you play as your ghost after you die, but that's a really weak option and only works once (I think).

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Do you mean one concept that applies across games, or a concept/build for each game?

The former likely doesn't exist (unless you just choose "play a deity" or something else not an option generally), but I can see the latter being a fun thing to discuss.

[mikeejimbo]

In GURPS, Unkillable 2 with a Cosmic Enhancement to be immune to non-Cosmic Afflictions, or Unkillable 2 plus a separate, Reflexive, Cosmic Neutralize specifically for protecting Unkillable. There are a couple of recent relevant threads:

http://forums.sjgames.com/showthread.php?t=114019

http://forums.sjgames.com/showthread.php?t=144257

Granted this just becomes an arms race because it could still be shutdown by a Cosmic Affliction. Access to that is going to be up to GM fiat, of course, leading into the problem that a truly killer GM is always going to be able to get you somehow.

[Âmesang]

DRAGON Magazine #354 had the kissed by the ages spell that could be cast on another (not on yourself) to grant the subject the endless quality—stopping your aging so long as you wore a near-artifact-level magic item transformed by the spell (removing or destroying the item caused you to age again, but the latter is difficult while the subject lives).

[Red Fel]

It always amused me that Unkillable 2 (a piece of you always survives, and you can regenerate from that) seems better than Unkillable 3 (you survive as an intangible ghost). I don't think I ever took Unkillable 3, despite having multiple characters with Unkillable 2.

But yeah. There are ways in almost any system to (1) avoid death, or, failing that, (2) turn death into a revolving door. A true killer DM will inevitably bypass them.

D&D 3.5e is particularly guilty of this. Become one of any number of versions of Lich (e.g. Lich, Dry Lich, Worm-that-Walks). Use a Craft Contingent Spell to bring yourself back from the brink of death. Have a friend with True Resurrection. Cast Hide Life and basically become a temporary living Lich. Use Astral Projection to become your astral self, then Plane Shift back to the material - if someone kills your astral self, you simply wake up. And so forth. In Pathfinder, there's even a race specifically with reincarnation in its lore - the Samsaran (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/races/other-races/uncommon-races/arg-samsaran), whose past lives give it bonuses to skills (or the knowledge of spells, or psychic powers).

[ExLibrisMortis]

In D&D, it's relatively straightforward to become immune to harm (ice assassin of an aleax of yourself and all that). It's stupid and has no place at an actual table, but you can do it. More reasonably, there are ways to be a lich with practically untouchable phylacteries, such as the Dream of Metal.

[Jay R]

Frankly, I don't want to play a game I can't possibly lose. There's no suspense.

But you play the way you want to, and good luck on the search.

[Lord Raziere]

A truly unkillable PC is one that the GM doesn't want to kill.

therefore, make your character a good memorable one that they will enjoy roleplaying with so much that they will hesitate to kill them. snacks is a good way to keep the on your side as well, as well deliberately going on with their plot and making yourself vital to their plot so that they have no choice but to keep you alive so that it is completed to their satisfaction. however this temporary.

but the only surefire way to make your character never dies is to be the GM's girlfriend, and thus alienate the other players with his favoritism, and probably ruin the game for everyone else, thus probably ending the game and your character anyways when the other players have had enough of it and walk out.

so, in truth, there is no way to truly have an unkillable character. but you can try those mechanical ways of coming back from being killed if the GM agrees to them.

[Flickerdart]

For 3.5, I enjoy the body leech (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/psm/20040925a). Whenever you are in trouble, just kill yourself, and you're awake and functioning in no time.

[Koo Rehtorb]

Make a PC, play it for one session, then quit the group. If you don't play it it can't be killed!

[Knaight]

Frankly, I don't want to play a game I can't possibly lose. There's no suspense.

You can't be permanently removed, but you can still lose in a dizzying variety of ways. Most of your goals are likely to be the sort of thing that you can permanently fail to achieve, as just one example.

As for a game that does this, Wield is a good example - you primarily play objects of extreme power, things like The One Ring or Stormbringer. In addition to that, you play the destined hero who got ahold of another player's object of extreme power, and who is thus thrown way off whatever it was they were supposed to be destined for. The destined heroes can be killed pretty easily, but the object of extreme power sticks around, and can't be permanently removed. It can be mastered by the hero (much like The One Ring almost was by Frodo, or Stormbringer was by Elric), it can be lost for a time and powerless until found again, it can suffer any number of setbacks, but it will always remain in the game somehow, with a tiny exception you deliberately carve out and probably want to happen on some level.

[Daedroth]

I'm not looking for an omnipotent/omniscient or undefeatable character but I would like to design one where no matter how killer GM that I might encounter (or bad choices I make) that they have a built in ability to continue to be playable somehow. Whether they are killed or captured, even if it takes a long time, I could plausibly work incapacitating events into a story and continue to play them.

How feasible is this? In Palladium the closest is to be Enlightened (Mystic China) so your memories are reborn with a baby post-death. Weaknesses: soul-eating/imprisonment and needing fertile female to exist to give birth. In GURPS something like Unkillable and if I could ever figure out a way to be immune to the Negate Advantage enhancement of Affliction.

I don't know enough about Pathfinder or Champions or D&D and was wondering how close they came to this ideal.

Character could still be very delicate and die in 1-2 shots to balance out their respawning, which could take a long time.

At the highest levels, this is an actual feature of Dragons in Legend (http://www.ruleofcool.com/)

[Toxic Shaman]

The only sure fire defense is a character with Plot Armor, the GM can always come up with something bigger or badder than you are. I don't try to come up with all powerful characters, what fun is that. I'd rather have a character that is really good in his own niche, but has weaknesses the other player's characters can compensate for.

I also always try to leave my characters with something that the GM can exploit. social stuff in particular is nice. Creating a good game is hard work, and if you give the GM something that makes it easier to get the pcs involved in the game, that makes his or her job much easier. Maybe an enemy, or a rival, or someone that my character is obligated to.

If you are worried about getting captured, psionics or a TOB character is a nice choice, you can do something without gear.

[Arbane]

Play Toon. As a toon, you can survive anything. Your dignity can't, though.

Play Eclipse Phase? ISTR death is a treatable condition in that game, thanks to mind backups.