ForceUser
Explorer
I just realized how long the list of dead PCs in my campaign world has become. In the last year and a half, a massive number of PCs has died; more than in all the other years I've DMed, combined. Some have died because of bad luck or overwhelming opposition and some have died because of truly bone-headed decisions. It's amazing to me, upon reflection, how many of these were avoidable deaths!
I share with you my hall of the dead, separated by campaign. Show me yours!
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Corporal Johann Schmidt (human scout 3)--after surviving a dungeon full of near-deaths from stirges, falling, and drowning, he accidentally stepped across an area of forbiddance in the final room without saying the password, and was instantly fried by a massive surge of holy energy.
Avid Nathos (human warlock 3)--in the same dungeon, he didn't actually survive the stirges.
Sir Frederick, Knight-Templar (human fighter 2)--the replacement character for Avid's player, who died in the very next room after the stirges, because he impatiently walked across a sigil-laden floor and sprung the trap, which plummeted him to his death. After the second death, the player had to sit out the remainder of the dungeon.
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TOTAL PARTY KILL
After discerning that a company of hobgoblin warriors had bivouaced in a nearby mountain pass, Sir Fandal was ordered by his Knight-Commander to reconnoiter the area without engaging the enemy. Taking the party with him, he immediately engages the hobgoblins, and the party is overwhelmed by archers firing from high ground, a field of burning pitch, and mounted hobgoblin samurai.
Deacon Lorenzo Ciamati (human cloistered cleric 5)
Sir Fandal, Knight-Captain of the Temple (human fighter 5)
Brother Olaf, Anchorite of Kord (dwarf monk 5)
Mevitz (human enchanter 5)
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Arilos, Blessed of Kord (aelfborn favored soul 5), attempted to out-melee a 6th-level warforged fighter. He lost.
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Cretath (lizardfolk paragon 1/ranger 1), along with Lars Jorgensson (shifter ranger 4), deliberately entered the seedy side of town, knowing that the local Thieves' Guild intended to murder them both. Even better, they told the party cleric to stay at the temple, because "It's dangerous in that part of town. We'll come get you if we need you. Don't worry, we've got healing potions." Alas, they didn't quite make it to the temple for healing. Death by sneak attack!
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TOTAL PARTY KILL
This particular group of PCs was quite new to gaming and my playstyle, and due to that inexperience, they made some blunders that cost them big-time. After attacking an ogre lair and slaying the guard, they decapitated him, set his head upon a pike outside the cave, and left. When the remaining ogres returned to their lair the leader, a 5th-level spirit shaman (ahh, nonassociated class levels...yummy), organized a search for the culprits. Tracking the party back and finding them camped next to a cozy fire about a mile(!) from his lair, the boss opened the fight with entangle centered on the campfire, and things rapidly went downhill for the party from there. In fairness, I had forgotten to make a Survival check for the NPC ranger with them, and I probably should have mentioned that setting camp with a light source so close to the lair was a bad idea. Because of these mistakes on my part, I handwaved the TPK and ran the encounter again. The second time around, the PCs firmly trounced the ogres.
The second time around, the party druid opened the fight with entangle.
Abdul (NPC, male desert dwarf monk 4)
Adrian Stefano Valladro (NPC, male human paladin 3)
Aria (female human rogue 5)
Cara, Blessed of Pelor (female aelfborn favored soul 3)
Fearghus of Low Meadow (male loresong faen druid 4/spryte 1)
Fiorenza Lucia Bastiani (female human bard 2/fighter 2/unfettered 1)
Gabriel Tullare (male aelfborn diviner 5)
Prince Ghazi ibn Zafir ibn Mu'Ayyid (male desert dwarf fighter 3/ranger 1)
Earlier in the same campaign...
Brother Giovanni of the Temple (male human cleric 4) charged a troll, got in one good hit, and was then rent to pieces.
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Kaylin of Three River Valley (female human sorcerer 12) was slain by a glabrezu demon's unholy blight in a truly epic battle involving said glabrezu, four vrocks, a succubus, five babau, three quasits, and a couple dozen dretches. Not much she could have done about it.
Wodern Smith-son (male human fighter 11) died after giving a mounted charge against a gaggle of stone giants, leaving his clerics far behind him in the back ranks, on foot. Sadly, his attack didn't even connect--he rolled a 1.
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TOTAL PARTY KILL
Here we have the first iteration of characters for that newbie group mentioned earlier. Taking the advice of the party fighter (accurately roleplayed with an 8 Wisdom), they charged headlong into a cave full of orcs, and were promptly dispatched. My mistake here was not explaining to the new players that they didn't have to follow the fighter's advice just because he was being played by the only veteran player in the group. I felt bad about that one, but let the TPK stand as an example of what happens to reckless PCs.
Adrianna (female human ranger 2)
Gerhart (male human fighter 2)
Quenby Whirlwidget (female gnome cleric 2)
Rorik (male human rogue 2)
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Roland of Holtzmeer (male paladin 1) charged an owlbear. 'Nuff said.
Peter Van Dent (male ranger 3) charged a troll. Same player, same campaign.
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My god, that's a long list. That's every PC death in every campaign since I started running my homebrew world in the Fall of 2003. I don't feel like a killer DM, but I guess I am one.
I share with you my hall of the dead, separated by campaign. Show me yours!
------------------------
Corporal Johann Schmidt (human scout 3)--after surviving a dungeon full of near-deaths from stirges, falling, and drowning, he accidentally stepped across an area of forbiddance in the final room without saying the password, and was instantly fried by a massive surge of holy energy.
Avid Nathos (human warlock 3)--in the same dungeon, he didn't actually survive the stirges.
Sir Frederick, Knight-Templar (human fighter 2)--the replacement character for Avid's player, who died in the very next room after the stirges, because he impatiently walked across a sigil-laden floor and sprung the trap, which plummeted him to his death. After the second death, the player had to sit out the remainder of the dungeon.
------------------------
TOTAL PARTY KILL
After discerning that a company of hobgoblin warriors had bivouaced in a nearby mountain pass, Sir Fandal was ordered by his Knight-Commander to reconnoiter the area without engaging the enemy. Taking the party with him, he immediately engages the hobgoblins, and the party is overwhelmed by archers firing from high ground, a field of burning pitch, and mounted hobgoblin samurai.
Deacon Lorenzo Ciamati (human cloistered cleric 5)
Sir Fandal, Knight-Captain of the Temple (human fighter 5)
Brother Olaf, Anchorite of Kord (dwarf monk 5)
Mevitz (human enchanter 5)
------------------------
Arilos, Blessed of Kord (aelfborn favored soul 5), attempted to out-melee a 6th-level warforged fighter. He lost.
------------------------
Cretath (lizardfolk paragon 1/ranger 1), along with Lars Jorgensson (shifter ranger 4), deliberately entered the seedy side of town, knowing that the local Thieves' Guild intended to murder them both. Even better, they told the party cleric to stay at the temple, because "It's dangerous in that part of town. We'll come get you if we need you. Don't worry, we've got healing potions." Alas, they didn't quite make it to the temple for healing. Death by sneak attack!
-------------------------
TOTAL PARTY KILL
This particular group of PCs was quite new to gaming and my playstyle, and due to that inexperience, they made some blunders that cost them big-time. After attacking an ogre lair and slaying the guard, they decapitated him, set his head upon a pike outside the cave, and left. When the remaining ogres returned to their lair the leader, a 5th-level spirit shaman (ahh, nonassociated class levels...yummy), organized a search for the culprits. Tracking the party back and finding them camped next to a cozy fire about a mile(!) from his lair, the boss opened the fight with entangle centered on the campfire, and things rapidly went downhill for the party from there. In fairness, I had forgotten to make a Survival check for the NPC ranger with them, and I probably should have mentioned that setting camp with a light source so close to the lair was a bad idea. Because of these mistakes on my part, I handwaved the TPK and ran the encounter again. The second time around, the PCs firmly trounced the ogres.
The second time around, the party druid opened the fight with entangle.
Abdul (NPC, male desert dwarf monk 4)
Adrian Stefano Valladro (NPC, male human paladin 3)
Aria (female human rogue 5)
Cara, Blessed of Pelor (female aelfborn favored soul 3)
Fearghus of Low Meadow (male loresong faen druid 4/spryte 1)
Fiorenza Lucia Bastiani (female human bard 2/fighter 2/unfettered 1)
Gabriel Tullare (male aelfborn diviner 5)
Prince Ghazi ibn Zafir ibn Mu'Ayyid (male desert dwarf fighter 3/ranger 1)
Earlier in the same campaign...
Brother Giovanni of the Temple (male human cleric 4) charged a troll, got in one good hit, and was then rent to pieces.
----------------------------
Kaylin of Three River Valley (female human sorcerer 12) was slain by a glabrezu demon's unholy blight in a truly epic battle involving said glabrezu, four vrocks, a succubus, five babau, three quasits, and a couple dozen dretches. Not much she could have done about it.
Wodern Smith-son (male human fighter 11) died after giving a mounted charge against a gaggle of stone giants, leaving his clerics far behind him in the back ranks, on foot. Sadly, his attack didn't even connect--he rolled a 1.
----------------------------
TOTAL PARTY KILL
Here we have the first iteration of characters for that newbie group mentioned earlier. Taking the advice of the party fighter (accurately roleplayed with an 8 Wisdom), they charged headlong into a cave full of orcs, and were promptly dispatched. My mistake here was not explaining to the new players that they didn't have to follow the fighter's advice just because he was being played by the only veteran player in the group. I felt bad about that one, but let the TPK stand as an example of what happens to reckless PCs.
Adrianna (female human ranger 2)
Gerhart (male human fighter 2)
Quenby Whirlwidget (female gnome cleric 2)
Rorik (male human rogue 2)
---------------------------
Roland of Holtzmeer (male paladin 1) charged an owlbear. 'Nuff said.
Peter Van Dent (male ranger 3) charged a troll. Same player, same campaign.
---------------------------
My god, that's a long list. That's every PC death in every campaign since I started running my homebrew world in the Fall of 2003. I don't feel like a killer DM, but I guess I am one.
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![:]](http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/devious.png "Devious :]")
