Character Killing... sometimes necessary?

[Calico_Jack73]

Has anyone here ever killed off a character to reinforce the deadliness of a setting to the players? I'm going to be starting up my Midnight campaign tomorrow night and the thought occurred to me that I don't remember ever killing a character. I don't typically like doing it and I can't imagine any DM liking it but considering that it is supposed to be a dangerous setting with very real consequences to the characters actions I have almost talked myself into killing one of the characters before we get too deep into it just to reinforce the feel of the setting to the players. If any of you have read the Guardians of the Flame books by Joel Rosenberg then you know what I am talking about. For those of you who haven't it is about a bunch of college kids who get sent to the fantasy world that they've been roleplaying in to aquire a magic item for a wizard (their DM) who was trapped in their world. One of the party members gets heinously killed within the first couple chapters and I believe it was a plot device to drive home the danger that the group found themselves in and that combat wasn't something to be considered lightly. I want to drive the same point home in my setting and I just don't think killing a NPC will have enough of an impact.

Enough rambling... what do you think?

 

[Thanee]

Well, I do not purposefully kill off PCs. Never.

But, if the setting is meant to be dangerous, death surely can happen, as combats or hazards will be tough then, even bordering on the impossible (sometimes you have to know when to turn and run).

Bye
Thanee

 

[Piratecat]

I think you should roll all of your dice out in the open, where the players can see them. Sooner or later you'll end up killing at least one PC, and you won't have to feel guilty about how it was done. Meanwhile, the players will understand that the kid gloves are off.

 

[Thanee]

Oh, one more thing. Nearly killing one or more PCs might have the same impact, you are looking for, without going through the annoying steps of character creation soon after the game has started.

Bye
Thanee

 

[diaglo]

i just keep harping on it. i bring it up at the beginning, middle and end of each session. even moreso when the PCs are low level. over, and over, and over again.

until the players get the hint.

i never kill PCs. the players do it enough for me not to have to.

 

[Calico_Jack73]

I think you should roll all of your dice out in the open, where the players can see them. Sooner or later you'll end up killing at least one PC, and you won't have to feel guilty about how it was done. Meanwhile, the players will understand that the kid gloves are off.

The dice aren't really the issue. Putting the character into a situation that is certain death is the issue. Obviously things like that can happen IRL but sometimes players hold it against the DM for putting them into that situation. In the Midnight setting it would be fairly easy... surround the character with Orks in a situation where the other characters couldn't help them and then let fly. Maybe the other characters can't help because if they do then the village that they are in will be destroyed for harboring resistance fighters.

Of course then the fun is the moral dillema on whether it was right to let their friend die and so save the village.

 

[Whisper72]

I'd go with PirateCat's idea. I always rolled in the open, it adds to the suspense. For 'to hit' rolls as well as damage. Only rolls for checks etc. may be rolled away from sight. Every now and then, some really big bad guy rolls a couple of 20's in a row, a roll for a fireball damage turns up almost all sixes and fives, and if the PC's are too dumb to disengage when the tide is turning, sure, they'll die.

Stricly enforcing rules (I can't remember if it's official rules or simply homebrew, but they are pretty much standard in all my campaigns) of a permanent decrease in Con (-1) and a setback to the lowest amount of XP in the PREVIOUS level (i.e. the PC also loses a full level of XP), make sure that even though the party may have good access to resurrection type magic, death is a thing to be feared...

 

[diaglo]

I think you should roll all of your dice out in the open, where the players can see them. Sooner or later you'll end up killing at least one PC, and you won't have to feel guilty about how it was done. Meanwhile, the players will understand that the kid gloves are off.

they will also soon guess what level, magic, and stats the monsters have.

 

[Whisper72]

Hmmm, read you clarification a little late... I myself am against 'certain death' scenario's unless they are the result of 'stupidity'. I.e. if the orcs were already known to be in the neighborhood, and the PC does something to attract unwanted attention, then the hostile situation is of the creation of the PC him/herself. That once the situation gets lethal, it turns out there is no way for the PC to escape alive, well... tough luck then...

To simply put the PC on the spot: you are suddenly surrounded by orcs, they shoot you down, you die; would IMHO be unfair to the PC's, especially if the only reason for it is to put the fear of dying into the Player...

 

[Thanee]

they will also soon guess what level, magic, and stats the monsters have.

Actually, I don't see this as a bad thing. Rather the opposite.

Realistically, you should be able to guesstimate some of those during combat. Something, which is nicely emulated by this.

Bye
Thanee