Eliminating "Raise Dead" and "Resurrection"

[Crass]

I'm using hero points IMC. They work very much like what you describe.

See previous thread on this subject, here:

http://www.enworld.org/forums/showthread.php?t=58637

I understand Shadow saif he will be implementing a hero point system. I'm currently PLAYING in said campaign of Hong's and the hero system does work - at least, it does at low level. (The PCs are all either level 8 or 9). Also, the resurrection of slain characters, and curative magic in general, works in a different fashion entirely.

However, in another campaign that's just gone epic (with characters ranging from levels 19-21), I don't think a hero point system would work as well, and as for scrapping the resurrection spells - there's no way that would work! Our last adventure involved a number of winter wights and an average of about 2-3 deaths per SESSION. And the current adventure has involved multiple balors exploding, dealing multiple lots of 100 hp damage... it's far easier, and makes more sense, to keep the resurrection magic in the campaign.

OT: As an alternative, if as a DM I were to institute a hero point system in any campaign, I would get rid of all healing and resurrection magic (and divine spellcasters), but change the way characters heal damage so that they heal their level in HP every two hours as long as they remain on poisitve HP. If a character were to fall below zero hit points, they would heal their HP per day, until they were on positive HP again.

 

[hong]

However, in another campaign that's just gone epic (with characters ranging from levels 19-21), I don't think a hero point system would work as well, and as for scrapping the resurrection spells - there's no way that would work! Our last adventure involved a number of winter wights and an average of about 2-3 deaths per SESSION. And the current adventure has involved multiple balors exploding, dealing multiple lots of 100 hp damage... it's far easier, and makes more sense, to keep the resurrection magic in the campaign.

Of course, it would help if certain characters had higher than 12 Con to start with.

OT: As an alternative, if as a DM I were to institute a hero point system in any campaign, I would get rid of all healing and resurrection magic (and divine spellcasters), but change the way characters heal damage so that they heal their level in HP every two hours as long as they remain on poisitve HP. If a character were to fall below zero hit points, they would heal their HP per day, until they were on positive HP again.

That's pretty much what I do, actually. Note you'll still probably need curative magic to handle things like stat drain and energy drain. Hit points are actually not that much of a problem later on, in terms of resource management between fights. You either have enough to survive the fight, in which case you get healed up to max when it's over; or you don't have enough, and you die.

 

[Zhure]

Here's what I plan in my next campaign (it's a swashbucklery kinda thang).

- Raise and Resurrection(s) are only available via domain spells (I reworked the healing domain slightly). Or via Miracle, in which case it usually costs 5000 XP.

- They may only be cast on sanctified ground. Not just ground made holy by a hallow spell, but a site fully vested by the church hierarchy.

- The target must be a worshipper of the casting cleric's deity or be willing to legitimately convert in the afterlife. If the target later recants the religion, for any reason, the Miracle/Raise/Resurrection/True Resurrection ends immediately and the target dies. (Maybe with a Will Save. )

- Similarly, the target cannot engage in contrary religious behavior. I.e., venal sins against the religion. Doing so also revokes the raised condition and the target dies.

The campaign is set in a monotheism, so it's not quite as restrictive as it might seem.