How do you handle Dead Players Equipment

[EOL]

So let's say a character dies, and for one reason or another, he isn't raised or ressurected or reincarnated or anything like that. But the party still has all his equipment. The player brings in a new character who is already equipped. The problem I've run into is that the party then distributes the dead characters equipment and suddenly your carefully balanced treasure distribution is completely shot as every characters wealth increases by 20% or more.

In the past I've made the characters give the equipment to the dead characters family, but at the moment I'm running a campaign where the world is at war, everything's anarchy and most characters aren't sure if their family is alive or dead.

How do you handle the situation of a dead characters equipment?

 

[Sodalis]

if they are taking the equip off dead char and giving it to new char (alredy equipped) then just give them less treasure per encounter. that should balance things out...

or pit them against NPCs with little equip, or undead with none...

 

[Shallown]

I usually just let them have it. I can slowly adjust the treasure acquisition back out so that things are balanced also in some cases finding the new Party member captured and stripped down will balance things out. Maybe let him have a few items that haven't been sent away or wondered away but basically make it so they need some of the old characters stuff to be at all effective.

Those are the two soultions I have used in the past that didn't require too much special set up before hand or that the circumstance didn't cure itself, like a character going over a cliff.

Also HAve the dead person dragged away. That works as well. I play a character who has been killed twice and had stated... that's it no more soif he dies again I get a new character but the party knows he wants his stuff taken and used, period.

Later

 

[Axiomatic Unicorn]

I don't think there is much you can do without being heavy handed.

You could destroy a choice item or two as part of the character's death if that applies.

If the party has a lot a redundant items, it won't help them much other than as something to sell. You can control the economics of that.

 

[jollyninja]

hold back magical treasure until you feel your balance has been restored. for charged items, have a few battles where it would obviously be a good idea to use them. for weapons, sunder by a creature with corresponding damage reduction gets rid of them nicely. for other stuff you just you just have to have it stolen in the chaos of the war or live with the extra eqiupment.

most of the time it just gives the characters more options when a party member's equipment gets split up amongst them. really unless you fight with two weapons, having two powerful magical blades is redundant and certianly not game breaking, the same goes for most magical items. certian combinations can unbalance things however, ever seen a high level monk or fighter with boots of speed? a bard or rogue however can have the boots and not really unbalance anything.

if nessisary, just ask the players to avoid things like that. it breaks the illusion but in order for fun to be maintained it is sometimes required.

 

[Sir Osis of Liver]

I usally just let the PC's take what they want and leave the rest, it usally makes the most sense that way. Unless one or more of the pc's has other ideas and gets the whole group to go along.

In a war situation keeping the dead characters equiptment makes even more sense, it's generaly percieved that in a situation like this the characters will want anything they can get there hands on that will help them survive.

If you really feal that the redistrabution of this wealth is unbalancing you can always make the body inexecable in some way. Have some come along and force the group to run away before they can loot they're fallin comrade, have the body" fall off a cliff" ie make it in excessable do to terrian, really what ever you need to do to keep the pc's away from the dead guys equiptment.

 

[TalonComics]

I go for realism so the treasure just goes to the party to do with as they wish. I would just compensate by not giving as much out later on. I'm not very anal though about carefully giving out treasure. For me it's just been about keeping the story and plots going.

I guess it's just a matter of DM style.

~Derek

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

Our campaign has a serious problem with ITEM BLOAT. I know what you mean.

New characters-- and, worse, new cohorts-- bring along new gear every time. I've had the feeling at times that folks are falling on their swords so that at leat the party will have a new batch of items when the new character comes along.

As others have pointed out, the only fair way to do it is just to reduce the amount of new stuff you hand out for a while. Keep a running tally of the value of new items that come in and then reduce each encounter's treasure value by a little bit to compensate.

At least that way it's transparent to the players and no hard feelings. I know I'd be pretty upset if the bodies of my comrades kept falling off cliffs or being swept away. You'll have a hard time disguising heavy-handed tactics like that and it will only end up making your players grouchy.


Wulf

 

[Bozo]

Thieves

My favorite technique for dealing with extra goodies or an overly powerful magic item is a thief. A party walking around glowing with magic is going to draw attention from any greedy wizard. Said wizard may have contacts in the local thieves guild or something along those lines.
I liked that the old system had item saving throws so a DM could use fireballs and such to remove items.
My other favorite is the "magic vendor": Party wants to trade a few less powerful item for a more powerful one. Have a vendor do the trade, dissappear, and a few hours later the magic item fizzes out (not a permanent effect) this of course only works with sloppy overtrusting heroes.

 

[Conaill]

Dead players...

We typically split up their dice bag more or less equally. The DM has dibs on any books, the ones nobody wants are sold on ebay. And any snacks he brought are of course eaten during the rest of the game.

Oh, you meant dead characters!

[Sorry, someone had to do it...]