Life beyond death

[Matrota]

I am starting up a new D&D 3.5e campaign soon titled "Beyond the Veil." The concept for the campaign is what happens to a character after they die. I've heard a quote before about how in D&D, death is not a career ending event. Oftentimes people want to make new characters after they die, or believe they must get resurrected by a cleric. However, there are many ways to continue playing without any need for resurrection

For example, there's the sacred watcher, who is someone who died protecting someone else and they were reanimated into a deathless in order to protect their ward for the rest of their days. The revenant, that reanimates for the sole purpose of getting revenge on the one who killed them. The risen martyr, a person who died for their cause but rises again to continue the fight

The requirements to apply for these are not that hard to qualify for, but no one ever seems to considers them. What are some other acquired templates or ways you can think of to continue existing beyond the veil of death? Could a sorcerer whose soul goes to the ethereal plane plane shift back to the material plane as a ghost?

[Florian]

Did you already look at the Ghostwalk setting and rules?

[Inevitability]

The requirements to apply for these are not that hard to qualify for, but no one ever seems to considers them. What are some other acquired templates or ways you can think of to continue existing beyond the veil of death? Could a sorcerer whose soul goes to the ethereal plane plane shift back to the material plane as a ghost?

The sorcerer could return as a ghost the way any mortal can, but a dead person can't plane shift back from the afterlife. For one, petitioners lose spellcasting abilities. Furthermore, they have the following ability.


Planar Commitment
Petitioners cannot leave the plane they inhabit. They are teleported one hundred miles in a random direction if an attempt is made to force them to leave.

[Matrota]

Did you already look at the Ghostwalk setting and rules?

No I have not, but I'm certainly about to!

[Gildedragon]

>The ghost template
>Hellbred
>Change their type to Outsider and have them be petitioners
>Risen Martyr
+1 to checking out ghostwalk

[Jowgen]

Also +1 for Ghostwalk. Lots of fun to be had with that book's take on things.

Alternative, Fiendish Codex II has a respectable ammount of material on what happens with the souls sent to Baator and special cases that can happen. I think there is enough to make a campaign concept of the ilk you desire.

[Florian]

No I have not, but I'm certainly about to!

Short overview: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghostwalk

[Matrota]

>The ghost template
>Hellbred
>Change their type to Outsider and have them be petitioners
>Risen Martyr
+1 to checking out ghostwalk

Petitioner seems really awful to be honest. It's almost like rolling up a new character anyways, but I suppose you keep a little bit of your past character intact. Hellbred is interesting, I forgot to mention that one in the title post.

[ATHATH]

Hm... Would the Planescape campaign setting work for you (if your players all played Outsiders)?

[Gildedragon]

Petitioner seems really awful to be honest. It's almost like rolling up a new character anyways, but I suppose you keep a little bit of your past character intact. Hellbred is interesting, I forgot to mention that one in the title post.

I don't mean "give them the petitioner template" that's insta NPCdom
I mean: they're petitioners, period, souls aligned to their respective afterlives: ie outsiders with alignment types. They just go on adventures through the planes, memories unwiped

[atemu1234]

A bit of a warning as to Ghostwalk, it typically doesn't play nice with a normal setting's cosmology.