PC Death when the player isn't there

[coyote6]

We use the fade into the background system for the most part, justifying it as guarding the rear, diseaase, constipation or whatever.

The exception is the 'inescapable location + tpk' rule. If a pc has entered an 'inescapable location' with the party and there is a tpk, that pc is dead even if his player misses the session wherein the tpk happens.

Hmm, you know the "standing around in the background" character might have, if played, contributed enough for the party to avoid the TPK. So by not being played, everybody dies.

If it's mid-adventure, the (MIA)PC usually gets ran by another player, or the GM.

Once, it worked out . . . poorly. The PC got critically hit by a halberd, and killed. The worst part was, the player cancelled at the last minute, because his son was being born.

He got a cheap and easy resurrection, that mysteriously didn't cost him a level, and qualified him for a (custom-made) prestige class.

Of course, later, the player decided to change characters, so that PC ended up assassinated. So it all evened out, eventually.

 

[Jeff Wilder]

In our games, we attempt to remove the absent player's PC from the scenario, if it is plausible to do so. Otherwise, attending players play the PC, subject to DM override. (We never pull a "Mark the Red.") An absent PC gets no XP for the session; a proxied PC shares all risks and gets one-half normal XP for the session.

 

[frankthedm]

If a player does not show, then I have to assume they has fled the scene . They have chosen to abandon thier comrads.* I am positivly brutal on characters and death is often permanent, I don't want to have to be distracted with a DM PC, and the other players, One has proven capable to role play a character to death to easily[ Really in character each time too] the others seem willing to use other PCs as sheild... at times.

The fled character is safe as long as the reigion is not destroyed that session