[Rant] Robbed of right to gloat at PC's death!

[Terraism]

Re: Re: Re: [Rant] Robbed of right to gloat at PC's death!

Now how could this possibly be habit forming?!!??

Good point. Maybe he's just good that way?

Originally posted by Fenes 2
Aye. I would not play in a game anyway where the DM wanted to gloat at a PC's death. Heck, if I put hours of work into a PC, with background and sketch and a couple of NPCs (family, friends, enemies), then I expect to be able to play that PC until I decide to retire it, not until I roll 2 instead of 3 at a save.

Rememer, the point of the game is to have fun. If you don't have fun you're doing something wrong, no matter if it concerns PC death or the vileness level.

I think the point was that the PC did something incredibly foolish - walking into a spot where he'd just seen a killer trap operate - and it was for the complete lunacy of the action - rather than the death itself - that the DM was going to gloat over. Heck, when players make that kind of mistake in my game, I generally do a bit of poking in their direction myself...

 

[I'm A Banana]

"Everbody make sure to have a back up character in case this one dies..."

Ted's PC dies...

"Alright, Bill? Switch your backup character with Ted. Ted, that's your new replacement. Bill, that's yours."

Hehehe....

 

[Fenes 2]

"Everbody make sure to have a back up character in case this one dies..."

Ted's PC dies...

"Alright, Bill? Switch your backup character with Ted. Ted, that's your new replacement. Bill, that's yours."

Hehehe....

"DM? Get out of my house until you grow up."

Geez. What happened to make people forget that we can talk about things that bother us. That conversation should have gone:

Ted's PC dies...

"Umm, Ted, your backup character is a carbon copy of your dead character. What gives?"

"DM, I want to play that sort of character, and for longer than one dungeon. Is there any problem with me playing a character I have fun with? You approved of my first character, so I don't see what the problem is..."

"Well, Ted, Death should have a meaning. That is no computer game."

"Well, DM, why are there spells like raise dead in the game? Losing a PC 'before his time' is not fun for me, and I was really looking forward to the higher levels..."

"Ted, can't you at least change some about the PC? Make him the adopted half-elven cousin of the first, or the sister. It bothers me when people play Ted the Fighter III after Ted the Fighter II..."

"Hmm, should be no problem. Still, could you cut back the lethality of the game a bit?"

And so on.

 

[The Sigil]

Can't tell by your post if you're doing this or not, but I handle it thusly:

1.) PCs should always have a backup character ready. The player does NOT get to choose magic items for the character - the backup character has 150 gp with which to equip himself. That's all. Furthermore, this PC must be made using ONLY the PHB.

2.) When the PC dies, the player has a choice - he may wait until the dead PC is raised or he can bring in the backup character (the DM will work in either eventuality at a convenient story point).

3.) Since raising a PC inflicts one level loss, the backup character is to be one level lower than the original PC (exception: when the primary character is first level, so is the backup).

4.) The DM chooses magical items (which may include none) and other stuff when a backup character is introduced. This decision is made mostly on the disposition of the old PC's equipment (i.e., if the corpse was looted, the newbie gets nothing - if the PC was buried with all his stuff, the DM chooses magic items appropriate to the backup's level - which is usually less than what the original character had).

Pretty much solved the problem in my campaign.

Player 1 has a 6th-level tank fighter with masterwork platemail and a +1 flaming sword. Great. His backup will be a 5th-level fighter with a chain shirt and a longsword (not even masterwork). This greatly curbed any potential abuse.

--The Sigil