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<blockquote data-quote="Irda Ranger" data-source="post: 3978590" data-attributes="member: 1003">Maybe it's a matter of taste, but I don't like the idea of a reset button.&nbsp; If all I wanted was a series of consequence-free fights, I'd play Soul Caliber or something.&nbsp; I don't say that to disparage your preferred style of play, but rather simply to mean that I play D&amp;D for the story, not the fights, and the fights (win or lose) are part of the story.&nbsp; I can't hit reset without harming the narrative, so I wouldn't do it.I've had plenty of PC's die though, and it hasn't been a problem to me because of my point of view.&nbsp; I knew that the PC thought the quest was worth dying for, and so death was not avoided.&nbsp; The risk was willingly accepted.&nbsp; Since D&amp;D is not a gritty game they were always heroes, and never in danger or dying &quot;randomly&quot; in some bar fight or orc ambush; but yes, death was a possibility when fighting the good fight.&nbsp; They were fights with great and worthy opponents.I think the problem your players have is that they fear no loss greater than the loss of their character's life.&nbsp; To play a game like D&amp;D, where life and limb are risked daily, you must first decide that something is more important than living.&nbsp; Obviously treasure and experience will never suffice, since in death you cannot spend them.&nbsp; It must be something like the freedom of Gondor and Rohan from the tyranny of Mordor, or saving the Temple Mount from the defilement of the Cathar Heretics.Characters who fear only death, and love nothing more than their own life, should probably not be adventurers in the first place.&nbsp; They should stay within the city walls and take up a nice safe profession, like carpentry.My proscription would be to avoid the reset button but instead require that your players spell out (in writing) what is most important to them.&nbsp; Then threaten those things, and watch the tension mount.&nbsp; (this has the pleasant side effect of making up quest ideas terribly easy for the DM)</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Irda Ranger, post: 3978590, member: 1003"] Maybe it's a matter of taste, but I don't like the idea of a reset button. If all I wanted was a series of consequence-free fights, I'd play Soul Caliber or something. I don't say that to disparage your preferred style of play, but rather simply to mean that I play D&D for the [I]story[/I], not the fights, and the fights (win or lose) are part of the story. I can't hit reset without harming the narrative, so I wouldn't do it. I've had plenty of PC's die though, and it hasn't been a problem to me because of my point of view. I knew that the PC thought the quest was worth dying for, and so death was not avoided. The risk was willingly accepted. Since D&D is not a gritty game they were always heroes, and never in danger or dying "randomly" in some bar fight or orc ambush; but yes, death was a possibility when fighting the good fight. They were fights with great and worthy opponents. I think the problem your players have is that they fear no loss greater than the loss of their character's life. To play a game like D&D, where life and limb are risked daily, you must first decide that something is more important than living. Obviously treasure and experience will never suffice, since in death you cannot spend them. It must be something like the freedom of Gondor and Rohan from the tyranny of Mordor, or saving the Temple Mount from the defilement of the Cathar Heretics. Characters who fear only death, and love nothing more than their own life, should probably not be adventurers in the first place. They should stay within the city walls and take up a nice safe profession, like carpentry. My proscription would be to avoid the reset button but instead require that your players spell out (in writing) what is most important to them. Then threaten those things, and watch the tension mount. (this has the pleasant side effect of making up quest ideas terribly easy for the DM) [/QUOTE]

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