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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Masada" data-source="post: 4492919" data-attributes="member: 19339">I think a few Ref's have found themselves sinking under their game screens staring at the double crit roll that is going to kill a character and thought "uh oh, what do I do now?"Thus the concept behind this thread is planning for what to do when it happens.  It occurs to me that this should be something that is discussed when a player joins the game.  "If your character dies, then X happens."  Some folks like a hardcore campaign where death is fairly permanent.  Some prefer to have a wandering High Priest around every corner waiting to rez some poor sucka.  Whatever your game, it is best to have a plan.  It will save a lot of hard feelings at the table.  My suggestions are...#1 Fudge it.  Knock the PC unconscious and move on.#2 Wake up in prison.  If the whole party wipes or someone gets left behind, have them wake up in prison.  This works better if the whole group can adventure together to get out of prison.  Have a prison adventure ready.  In previous games, I even pointed it out to players as a reminder I was prepared.#3 Magic.  Something weird is going on... you were sure you died, but now you are awake and still living!  What a mystery?!  Make something up later.#4 The Raise Dead 24-hour Clinic.  Always a classic... pay the fee... restore thee to life.  I like to remove a finger from the character... a little reminder and implies there is a limit.#5 Standby "Cousins".  Have each player keep an alternate character that will just happen to be around when the "main" dies.  A little forced, but it keeps the player in the session and you don't have to spend a lot of time making a new character.#6 Play a ghost.  The character is now a ghost that can not move far from his/her body and is incorporial.  You can dial this in power-wise if you want to keep the character actually playable.  I just like the idea of the party having to cart around a body.  Perhaps he/she can be raised later.  Or perhaps they have to buried in a special graveyard to remain a ghost without travel limits.  Obviously, you'd need ghost's as PC's rules up front.#7 You're dead, but strangely still moving.  The PC is undead in some way, but something keeps them in their body and alive.  Perhaps things change a little or not at all... perhaps there is a way back to living... perhaps not.  Again, you'd have to work out these rules in advance.#8 If you can find the Elixir of Life before the 7th sun sets... mini-quest to restore the PC... but this usually leaves the player of the dead character out in the cold a bit.#9 Mortally wounded.  The character is gravely wounded.  Their only hope is to die in one last blaze of glory.  Have them hang on long enough to "defend the pass" or "save the princess" and then tragically expire.I'd love to hear other ideas...One more thing though.  If you decide to let character really die, make a bit of a show of it.  Let it be a grand spectacle worthy of retelling.  Make sure players know this is the plan up front.  Then double crit your weasely DM guts out.</blockquote>

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