Come laugh at me - my Players please stay out

Quasqueton · Feb 21, 2005

I have a completely surprising, highly improbable, and terribly complicated situation here. The more I think of this situation, the more it makes me laugh at its totally weird existence.

A PC is currently wearing a magic necklace that gives some serious ability score boosts. What he doesn't know for sure, though the party suspects, is it is also cursed. When the wearer dies, the necklace will make him a "vampire" (modified template, less than a full MM vampire).

The party has entered an ancient tomb. To get in, they had to drink from a dark well. This well gave each of them a magical Con-damaging disease. The disease was originally intended to be the first steps in becoming an undead creature. When the diseased character dies, his mind will not depart the body. This is so the character can be made into a wight, lich, or other intelligent undead with their own mind and abilities. (Complicated explanation, that the PCs have no clue of currently.)

While adventuring in this tomb, the character got hit by a mummy. He now has mummy rot.

So, now this PC has three effects pending his death: turn to dust (mummy rot), stay dead but have his mind trapped in the dead body, arise as a vampire.

I couldn't have arranged this mess if I had intended and tried it. The party is still in the tomb, at least 2 days from civilization, and the only cleric they have with them is an NPC cleric of Hextor (long story). So there is a real chance this character might die of the diseases.

How's that for a twisted situation?

Quasqueton

robberbaron · Feb 21, 2005

I'm only laughing on the inside (mainly because my co-workers already think I'm mad).

Nice situation. Have you though of temporal precedence - Vampire came first so has first dibs on body?
Perhaps he could stay in his body AND turn into a vampire.

Wulf Ratbane · Feb 21, 2005

I should point out that a person who dies under such cursed circumstances might very well linger on as a ghost!

Wulf

Algolei · Feb 21, 2005

Has he been bit by a wolf recently?

Darkness · Feb 21, 2005

Quasqueton said:
So, now this PC has three effects pending his death: turn to dust (mummy rot), stay dead but have his mind trapped in the dead body, arise as a vampire.

I'd say turning to dust kinda puts a damper on the other two effects. Or at least on the the vampire effect; undead dust could be kinda cool. I think there's even a turn-to-dust option under the swarm-shifter template in Libris Mortis.

Narfellus · Feb 21, 2005

I think you should combine all three effects into a new and terrible undead template. A vampire with mummy-rot bite, driven mad by having his mind and consiousness in a rotting corpse. Actually, a pretty mean thing to do to a character. Maybe you should have deity drop in and miracle his butt away.

BiggusGeekus · Feb 21, 2005

Narfellus said:
I think you should combine all three effects into a new and terrible undead template. A vampire with mummy-rot bite, driven mad by having his mind and consiousness in a rotting corpse. Actually, a pretty mean thing to do to a character. Maybe you should have deity drop in and miracle his butt away.

Well, the PC at least knows about the mummification. So he knows to get to a cleric before he hits 0hp. At that point the cleric can give him the bad news about everything else.

But I agree that all three things are called for. I mean, if you're going to kill the guy off, do it in style.