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TPK recovery ideas
- Thread starter Fredrik Svanberg
- Start date
"And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgement..."
The PCs wake up in a long line, perhaps with others they recognize. The "walls" are of force, and death has robbed them of all spells, and their material possessions are back on the Prime Material, along with their bodies... They slowly trundle forward with the rest, clad only in robes of different colors (the GM needn't inform them that they're based upon alignment).
Eventually, they reach a very bored being who asks for their names, and separates them according to alignment, and deity served. Atheists, agnostics, and those who have no religion are greeted by "Oh, one of those, eh?", and a lever-pull drops them out of sight... Eventually, all the PCs pass out of sight of the rest. They continue forward, as part of the herd, but no one knows where they are going.
After an interminable wait, all of the robed-alike come into a waiting room, where their names are called one by one. Finally, the PCs get called. They pass through a door and face...
Whoever they've supposedly been worshipping. Feel free to rake them over the coals about how bad a job they've been doing with alignment, tenets of their supposed faith, things the godling wanted done that they refused, etc....
If the PC has done well, their deity may reward them with a new life (especially if they are a Paladin or Cleric who has been a good example). The best of the best may even be granted some small reward, as in a Feat, Special Ability, etc. Alternately, just as there are powerful "undead", the PCs may be rewarded with some more divine version, becoming part of the afterlife (such as a Solar or Planetar).
The average PC should have to cut a deal, and be quested to complete their task(s) within a set time, or return for punishment. What they are required to do depends upon the deity they worship (Quan Yin, goddess of mercy and childbirth might require them to bring in their next 10 enemies alive, and unharmed, and build a women's hospital... Hextor would have different ideas). It is best, if possible, to have the various quests work together, if possible.
The worst of the worst at following the beliefs that they chose for their PCs get sent off to whatever nether-regions their religion dictates... The Lords of Law will banish you to Limbo, etc. From there, the PC may try to make their way back, or the other PCs may quest to find them.
Lastly, the poor, unbelieving PCs should slide down a looooooong shoot, eventually winding up in a musty, dusty, crusty old dungeon. Here, they are free to wander for a time, occasionally running into other unbelievers (of all alignments), but never any treasure nor equipment. A rock and a stone club are about the best that they can hope for.
After a long while, they can find their way to the "Lord of Ambiguity", who has sawy over all such souls in the afterlife. Here they, too, may cut their deals. (IMO, this poor guy would be horribly bored, and entertainment would - unknown to the PCs - be his currency. Being TOO entertaining would be a bad idea, however, as he might decide to KEEP you)!
I'm sure that you can come up with hundreds more ideas to flesh this out. Base it all on what your PCs believe, and how well or badly they've performed.
The PCs wake up in a long line, perhaps with others they recognize. The "walls" are of force, and death has robbed them of all spells, and their material possessions are back on the Prime Material, along with their bodies... They slowly trundle forward with the rest, clad only in robes of different colors (the GM needn't inform them that they're based upon alignment).
Eventually, they reach a very bored being who asks for their names, and separates them according to alignment, and deity served. Atheists, agnostics, and those who have no religion are greeted by "Oh, one of those, eh?", and a lever-pull drops them out of sight... Eventually, all the PCs pass out of sight of the rest. They continue forward, as part of the herd, but no one knows where they are going.
After an interminable wait, all of the robed-alike come into a waiting room, where their names are called one by one. Finally, the PCs get called. They pass through a door and face...
Whoever they've supposedly been worshipping. Feel free to rake them over the coals about how bad a job they've been doing with alignment, tenets of their supposed faith, things the godling wanted done that they refused, etc....
If the PC has done well, their deity may reward them with a new life (especially if they are a Paladin or Cleric who has been a good example). The best of the best may even be granted some small reward, as in a Feat, Special Ability, etc. Alternately, just as there are powerful "undead", the PCs may be rewarded with some more divine version, becoming part of the afterlife (such as a Solar or Planetar).
The average PC should have to cut a deal, and be quested to complete their task(s) within a set time, or return for punishment. What they are required to do depends upon the deity they worship (Quan Yin, goddess of mercy and childbirth might require them to bring in their next 10 enemies alive, and unharmed, and build a women's hospital... Hextor would have different ideas). It is best, if possible, to have the various quests work together, if possible.
The worst of the worst at following the beliefs that they chose for their PCs get sent off to whatever nether-regions their religion dictates... The Lords of Law will banish you to Limbo, etc. From there, the PC may try to make their way back, or the other PCs may quest to find them.
Lastly, the poor, unbelieving PCs should slide down a looooooong shoot, eventually winding up in a musty, dusty, crusty old dungeon. Here, they are free to wander for a time, occasionally running into other unbelievers (of all alignments), but never any treasure nor equipment. A rock and a stone club are about the best that they can hope for.
After a long while, they can find their way to the "Lord of Ambiguity", who has sawy over all such souls in the afterlife. Here they, too, may cut their deals. (IMO, this poor guy would be horribly bored, and entertainment would - unknown to the PCs - be his currency. Being TOO entertaining would be a bad idea, however, as he might decide to KEEP you)!
I'm sure that you can come up with hundreds more ideas to flesh this out. Base it all on what your PCs believe, and how well or badly they've performed.
Last edited:
Aeolius
Adventurer
KaeYoss said:
The Shaman said:
Actually, I was thinking of Nature of the Beast , which I intend to run...one of these days
Olgar Shiverstone
Legend
They weren't actually killed ... they all went into the negatives, and their enemies captured them, stripped them of their equipment, and sold them into slavery. They wake up bound/on a slavers galleon/shakled enroute to a gladatorial arena/in a cage subject to bizarre arcane experiments.
The original characters from our campaign TPK of two years ago are making cameos due to this gambit.
The original characters from our campaign TPK of two years ago are making cameos due to this gambit.
