newbDM
2008-11-25, 11:26 PM
Some information on my homebrewed setting and cosmology to understand this:
My games are very low-magic.
I have always disliked how easy and hassle free coming back from the dead is in D&D, so I made houserules which made it much more difficult in my games. For one, casters (aside from possibly adepts) are only possibly options for when you get to high level, or perhaps adepts. Secondly, I removed the gp price for the spells, and replaced it with the need to draw "life force" (basically years) from one willing individual to restore and restart the slain individual's body, and a ritual to appease Death (an over deity in my game, who personally reaps the souls of the dead. see below.) and convince him to bring back the individual to his body.
Whenever a PC dies I temporarily pause the game/encounter, I describe to the player that suddenly it seems like everything from the people in the area to the wind have frozen in place, and they can't seem to move, yet still see from their open eyes and hear. Then they see suddenly see a robed male figure of their race approach them from a distance (if in a closed room appear to walk through a wall), and as it nears they see an ornamented scythe in it's hand and notice it's face and hands are skeletal. (If the creature is non-humanoid, I get more creative). The being then talks to them (often first serious and scary, but then it always turns comical) and tells him/her they just bit the bullet, waves it's hand allowing them to move (usually followed by a surprise when they see their body left behind), and tells them to follow him.
Death has followers in basically all races (except perhaps Fey who are truly immortal), since everyone is eventually gonna die.
All creatures retain their memories and most of their abilities in the afterlife, instead of forgetting everything like it says in Deities and Demigods (or was it Manual of the Planes?). (I really hated that part).
Here is how I attempted to writeup Death:
http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e189/Celestialdragon100/Lord_of_Time_by_Ironshod.jpg
Death
Greater God (Neutral)
Death is a being who holds say over all mortal creatures. He is the one who reaps all souls from their mortal shells and guides them to whatever afterlives they have earned. No being is beyond the reach of his scythe, not even the gods themselves. He has existed since the very beginning, and he will exist long after the very last living creature in the multiverse has taken it's last breath.
Death appears as a skeletal version of a male member of the species who is observing him, or in a similar form which represents death to the creature's species if it does not have a skeletal structure. If in the form of a humanoid shaped creature Death is usually clad in a hooded gown consisting of colors traditionally related to death in the observer's culture, and he will always be holding a large menacing scythe in his hands.
Although Death is believed to have complete authority to decide when any and all creatures will meet their end, Death prefers to stand by and watch as the creature's own actions determines it's own end.
Portfolio: Death, time, mortality, destruction, peace, rest.
Domains: Death.
Clergy Training:
The clerics and other divine casters of Death vary widely in their ways, methods, and beliefs depending on the given culture and race. All creatures, with a few exceptions such as fey, understand death and their mortality on some level. Although most sentient mortal creatures concerned with death tend to focus on their afterlives, usually in the worship of deities (although it is not required to have an afterlife), some choose to revere the reaper himself.
Death being a somewhat hard to interpret, and impossible to predict, being his worshipers have become accustomed to his whimsical nature. Some heads of his churches might go their entire lives without having a single prayer answered by their god, while stories tell of mere Adepts having weekly games of chess (or other table games) with Death himself.
Quests:
Followers of Death often take quests to hunt down undead and deathless who are attempting to escape their master.
Rites:
Death's clerics and clergy often perform the funeral ceremonies in a community. They also tend a settlement's grave yards.
Death Gods:
All gods with the Death Domain are subject to Death's will. They all recognize Death's authority, and understand that Death could tear them of their power instantly. However, Death seems content to let them be and pays little interest to them.
Death's Realm:
What happens to those who choose to worship Death after they die is uncertain, for no worshiper of Death has ever been successfully Reincarnated, Resurrected, or brought back from the dead by any means. Although petitioners can be visited on their planes of rest, or on their deity's plane by those powerful enough to travel between the planes, no petitioner of Death has ever been spotted on any plane of existence.
Those who try to escape:
As usual, Death is unpredictable when it comes to those who try to cheat him. Death has been known to send waves after waves of his followers to reclaim a single lich, yet he will completely turn a blind eye to others.
Death has occasionally been known to follow such souls on their journeys. He might torment these souls at every opportunity, making them paranoid to the point where they are constantly looking over their shoulders and around every corner. At other times his appearances might be mere annoyances to the individual, and yet in rarer instances Death has even provide them with advice and guidance.
So, a few nights ago while struggling to go to sleep, I started daydreaming of the idea of having the option to "Play a game with Death" for players wanting to bring back their comrades or even NPCs if they choose.
Here is a basic idea of what I ahve thought of so far:
The Game
Death is a concept known to all creatures, and something all sentient creatures will witness more than once in their life times. Different races and cultures have their own ways of coping with the loss of loved ones and friends, and the various clergies of Death have always been there to council and advise those who need it. However, some are not able to accept such a loss, and instead turn to The Game.
The Game is said to be the ultimate game, and is played for the greatest of stakes. By challenging Death himself, one could win back a cherished loved one, or they may end up beside them in the afterlife.
To undertake a gaming session with Death
To instigate a game with Death one must visit a temple of Death with at least an Adept at it's head (in my games this usually means one in a Small City sized settlement). There the individual must approach the head of the temple's clergy, and ask for him/her to set in motion a a game with Death. Although the reaction of the temple's leader varies greatly from temple to temple, culture to culture, and race to race, the clergy will often ask for some form of compensation or donation to the temple in return if the request is approved.
Once a request is approved, the clergy leader calls forth all the available to assist in the ceremony needed to call forth their divine master (again, this ceremony varies widely from race to race, and even culture to culture within a single race). The ceremony usually takes at least a few hours (again, varies greatly), and ends only when Death finally decides he is satisfied. Although Death is free to refuse an invitation to to a Game, he rarely ever does so.
Once Death acknowledges the ceremony and those attempting to summon him, he will send a sign to the head clergy man/woman declaring his soon arrival, or instead simply ignores the entire thing until the clergy simply give up due to exhaustion.
If the temple leader receives the sign, he/she will then gesture to it's underlings to bring forth a small table between itself and the players. He/she will then ask for all those who will play to approach the table, and inform them that once their choice is made there is no changing their minds.
The clergy leader will then walk away from the table, and Death soon comes to fill that spot at the table (how he manifests himself also varies, but more around his personal whims at the time instead of any racial or cultural norms). Each player at the table will see Death as he normally would, so a group consisting of different races will see him in different ways.
The rules of The Game
Only one person is allowed to play at once. Although a gaming session may pertain of multiple individuals playing separate games with Death in turn, only on player may challenge Death at a time.
If multiple players wish to participate, no player order is required before hand, and they may choose who goes next as each new round is about to begin.
Each player may only play once in a given gaming session, regardless of if they win or lose. However, people are allowed to play in other gaming sessions later on.
The stakes of these games is the player's life for the soul of anyone they desire who has passed on. However, the individual on the other side is free to refuse to return, even if the player playing for their life wins.
No one may hire or otherwise convince someone else to play on their behalf, or for their goals or motives. Death is always aware of when this is taking place (he is an over deity, come on), and will simply refuse to play with said individual.
Once a player is decided and he/she approaches Death, he/she is asked by the deity who they desire to play for. Once an answer is given The Game has begun.
Death then decides on the game which will be played. There is no arguing or debating what game will be played, for this is solely Death's decision. It can be any game Death wishes.
No cheating of any kind will be tolerated by Death, and he is always aware of when such actions are being taken (again, he is an over deity). If one attempts to cheat at a game with Death his life is official forfeit and their game immediately ends. However, at the same time Death will not cheat or tamper with the results himself in any way.
If the player is victorious Death will instantly fade away, and return a short while later with the soul of the party who has been won back. Death will then ask the individual whether they desire to return, and presents the individual who won their return, while at the same time revealing the person's true alignment (it is impossible by any means to hide this from Death). If the person agrees to return, Death proceeds to revive the individual (as with the spell True Resurrection). If the individual had originally died of natural causes, Death partially turns back the sand of the person's hourglass to grant them 1/4 of their normal lifespan (based on the individual's race) in more solar cycles of possible life. If the person being revived is of an ageless race, then he/she merely continues on as an ageless being.
If the player loses The Game, Death asks that he/she move aside until the gaming session's end.
Death then proceeds to ask who the next player will be, and the process begins anew.
Once the gaming session is complete, Death proceeds to reap any souls he has won.
*Special rule:
The Game can not be played for beings on the levels of gods, demon lords, demigods, archomentals, etc unless the player is also of a similar level of importance and/or power.
(Damn, that took a while to type up)
So, any thoughts on this so far? Bad, good, terrible?
Any ideas on how to make this better, or improve things?
I am not sure if it is actually a good idea to put this into my games, since it kind of seems to go against my desire to make death/dying "special" and more significant. Does it defeat that purpose?
Would this actually make it easier for players to come back from the dead?
For possible games I was thinking things as diverse as:
Slapping a deck of playing cards on the table (IRL), and having both of us draw a single card. The highest card wins. (Note: He declares at the very start that an ace counts as a 1)
Death suddenly transports them to a massive arena made of bone in an unmentioned plane (unknown to the players, his personal mysterious plane), with him sitting in a Roman Cesar like thrown with the player sitting in a chair below him. Then two of his party members (other players chosen by me who I feel are an even match) appear in the arena. I then isolate the player (take him outside or something) and ask him to choose who he thinks will win, and tell him that if he spoils it to the others in any way he automatically loses. If they are worried about one of them dying, Death promises not to reap the loser (but he won't heal it back up either).
A variation to the above: Throw the player in with a monster or NPC which I feel is an even match/CR for him/her. Again, he/she won't reap the loser. (I might even be able to bring a personal rival or enemy into this!)
Anyone got any other ideas? The funner the better!
My games are very low-magic.
I have always disliked how easy and hassle free coming back from the dead is in D&D, so I made houserules which made it much more difficult in my games. For one, casters (aside from possibly adepts) are only possibly options for when you get to high level, or perhaps adepts. Secondly, I removed the gp price for the spells, and replaced it with the need to draw "life force" (basically years) from one willing individual to restore and restart the slain individual's body, and a ritual to appease Death (an over deity in my game, who personally reaps the souls of the dead. see below.) and convince him to bring back the individual to his body.
Whenever a PC dies I temporarily pause the game/encounter, I describe to the player that suddenly it seems like everything from the people in the area to the wind have frozen in place, and they can't seem to move, yet still see from their open eyes and hear. Then they see suddenly see a robed male figure of their race approach them from a distance (if in a closed room appear to walk through a wall), and as it nears they see an ornamented scythe in it's hand and notice it's face and hands are skeletal. (If the creature is non-humanoid, I get more creative). The being then talks to them (often first serious and scary, but then it always turns comical) and tells him/her they just bit the bullet, waves it's hand allowing them to move (usually followed by a surprise when they see their body left behind), and tells them to follow him.
Death has followers in basically all races (except perhaps Fey who are truly immortal), since everyone is eventually gonna die.
All creatures retain their memories and most of their abilities in the afterlife, instead of forgetting everything like it says in Deities and Demigods (or was it Manual of the Planes?). (I really hated that part).
Here is how I attempted to writeup Death:
http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e189/Celestialdragon100/Lord_of_Time_by_Ironshod.jpg
Death
Greater God (Neutral)
Death is a being who holds say over all mortal creatures. He is the one who reaps all souls from their mortal shells and guides them to whatever afterlives they have earned. No being is beyond the reach of his scythe, not even the gods themselves. He has existed since the very beginning, and he will exist long after the very last living creature in the multiverse has taken it's last breath.
Death appears as a skeletal version of a male member of the species who is observing him, or in a similar form which represents death to the creature's species if it does not have a skeletal structure. If in the form of a humanoid shaped creature Death is usually clad in a hooded gown consisting of colors traditionally related to death in the observer's culture, and he will always be holding a large menacing scythe in his hands.
Although Death is believed to have complete authority to decide when any and all creatures will meet their end, Death prefers to stand by and watch as the creature's own actions determines it's own end.
Portfolio: Death, time, mortality, destruction, peace, rest.
Domains: Death.
Clergy Training:
The clerics and other divine casters of Death vary widely in their ways, methods, and beliefs depending on the given culture and race. All creatures, with a few exceptions such as fey, understand death and their mortality on some level. Although most sentient mortal creatures concerned with death tend to focus on their afterlives, usually in the worship of deities (although it is not required to have an afterlife), some choose to revere the reaper himself.
Death being a somewhat hard to interpret, and impossible to predict, being his worshipers have become accustomed to his whimsical nature. Some heads of his churches might go their entire lives without having a single prayer answered by their god, while stories tell of mere Adepts having weekly games of chess (or other table games) with Death himself.
Quests:
Followers of Death often take quests to hunt down undead and deathless who are attempting to escape their master.
Rites:
Death's clerics and clergy often perform the funeral ceremonies in a community. They also tend a settlement's grave yards.
Death Gods:
All gods with the Death Domain are subject to Death's will. They all recognize Death's authority, and understand that Death could tear them of their power instantly. However, Death seems content to let them be and pays little interest to them.
Death's Realm:
What happens to those who choose to worship Death after they die is uncertain, for no worshiper of Death has ever been successfully Reincarnated, Resurrected, or brought back from the dead by any means. Although petitioners can be visited on their planes of rest, or on their deity's plane by those powerful enough to travel between the planes, no petitioner of Death has ever been spotted on any plane of existence.
Those who try to escape:
As usual, Death is unpredictable when it comes to those who try to cheat him. Death has been known to send waves after waves of his followers to reclaim a single lich, yet he will completely turn a blind eye to others.
Death has occasionally been known to follow such souls on their journeys. He might torment these souls at every opportunity, making them paranoid to the point where they are constantly looking over their shoulders and around every corner. At other times his appearances might be mere annoyances to the individual, and yet in rarer instances Death has even provide them with advice and guidance.
So, a few nights ago while struggling to go to sleep, I started daydreaming of the idea of having the option to "Play a game with Death" for players wanting to bring back their comrades or even NPCs if they choose.
Here is a basic idea of what I ahve thought of so far:
The Game
Death is a concept known to all creatures, and something all sentient creatures will witness more than once in their life times. Different races and cultures have their own ways of coping with the loss of loved ones and friends, and the various clergies of Death have always been there to council and advise those who need it. However, some are not able to accept such a loss, and instead turn to The Game.
The Game is said to be the ultimate game, and is played for the greatest of stakes. By challenging Death himself, one could win back a cherished loved one, or they may end up beside them in the afterlife.
To undertake a gaming session with Death
To instigate a game with Death one must visit a temple of Death with at least an Adept at it's head (in my games this usually means one in a Small City sized settlement). There the individual must approach the head of the temple's clergy, and ask for him/her to set in motion a a game with Death. Although the reaction of the temple's leader varies greatly from temple to temple, culture to culture, and race to race, the clergy will often ask for some form of compensation or donation to the temple in return if the request is approved.
Once a request is approved, the clergy leader calls forth all the available to assist in the ceremony needed to call forth their divine master (again, this ceremony varies widely from race to race, and even culture to culture within a single race). The ceremony usually takes at least a few hours (again, varies greatly), and ends only when Death finally decides he is satisfied. Although Death is free to refuse an invitation to to a Game, he rarely ever does so.
Once Death acknowledges the ceremony and those attempting to summon him, he will send a sign to the head clergy man/woman declaring his soon arrival, or instead simply ignores the entire thing until the clergy simply give up due to exhaustion.
If the temple leader receives the sign, he/she will then gesture to it's underlings to bring forth a small table between itself and the players. He/she will then ask for all those who will play to approach the table, and inform them that once their choice is made there is no changing their minds.
The clergy leader will then walk away from the table, and Death soon comes to fill that spot at the table (how he manifests himself also varies, but more around his personal whims at the time instead of any racial or cultural norms). Each player at the table will see Death as he normally would, so a group consisting of different races will see him in different ways.
The rules of The Game
Only one person is allowed to play at once. Although a gaming session may pertain of multiple individuals playing separate games with Death in turn, only on player may challenge Death at a time.
If multiple players wish to participate, no player order is required before hand, and they may choose who goes next as each new round is about to begin.
Each player may only play once in a given gaming session, regardless of if they win or lose. However, people are allowed to play in other gaming sessions later on.
The stakes of these games is the player's life for the soul of anyone they desire who has passed on. However, the individual on the other side is free to refuse to return, even if the player playing for their life wins.
No one may hire or otherwise convince someone else to play on their behalf, or for their goals or motives. Death is always aware of when this is taking place (he is an over deity, come on), and will simply refuse to play with said individual.
Once a player is decided and he/she approaches Death, he/she is asked by the deity who they desire to play for. Once an answer is given The Game has begun.
Death then decides on the game which will be played. There is no arguing or debating what game will be played, for this is solely Death's decision. It can be any game Death wishes.
No cheating of any kind will be tolerated by Death, and he is always aware of when such actions are being taken (again, he is an over deity). If one attempts to cheat at a game with Death his life is official forfeit and their game immediately ends. However, at the same time Death will not cheat or tamper with the results himself in any way.
If the player is victorious Death will instantly fade away, and return a short while later with the soul of the party who has been won back. Death will then ask the individual whether they desire to return, and presents the individual who won their return, while at the same time revealing the person's true alignment (it is impossible by any means to hide this from Death). If the person agrees to return, Death proceeds to revive the individual (as with the spell True Resurrection). If the individual had originally died of natural causes, Death partially turns back the sand of the person's hourglass to grant them 1/4 of their normal lifespan (based on the individual's race) in more solar cycles of possible life. If the person being revived is of an ageless race, then he/she merely continues on as an ageless being.
If the player loses The Game, Death asks that he/she move aside until the gaming session's end.
Death then proceeds to ask who the next player will be, and the process begins anew.
Once the gaming session is complete, Death proceeds to reap any souls he has won.
*Special rule:
The Game can not be played for beings on the levels of gods, demon lords, demigods, archomentals, etc unless the player is also of a similar level of importance and/or power.
(Damn, that took a while to type up)
So, any thoughts on this so far? Bad, good, terrible?
Any ideas on how to make this better, or improve things?
I am not sure if it is actually a good idea to put this into my games, since it kind of seems to go against my desire to make death/dying "special" and more significant. Does it defeat that purpose?
Would this actually make it easier for players to come back from the dead?
For possible games I was thinking things as diverse as:
Slapping a deck of playing cards on the table (IRL), and having both of us draw a single card. The highest card wins. (Note: He declares at the very start that an ace counts as a 1)
Death suddenly transports them to a massive arena made of bone in an unmentioned plane (unknown to the players, his personal mysterious plane), with him sitting in a Roman Cesar like thrown with the player sitting in a chair below him. Then two of his party members (other players chosen by me who I feel are an even match) appear in the arena. I then isolate the player (take him outside or something) and ask him to choose who he thinks will win, and tell him that if he spoils it to the others in any way he automatically loses. If they are worried about one of them dying, Death promises not to reap the loser (but he won't heal it back up either).
A variation to the above: Throw the player in with a monster or NPC which I feel is an even match/CR for him/her. Again, he/she won't reap the loser. (I might even be able to bring a personal rival or enemy into this!)
Anyone got any other ideas? The funner the better!