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Return to Oz: A Thousand Ways to (Not) Die
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<blockquote data-quote="talien" data-source="post: 8397544" data-attributes="member: 3285"><p>In Oz, there are many ways to die and far more ways to not die but suffer for eternity. For tabletop role-playing games, it's a great example of how a campaign can deal with characters who never stay dead.</p><p style="text-align: center">[ATTACH=full]143723[/ATTACH]</p> <p style="text-align: center">By Александр Коротич - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=62470895" target="_blank">File:Иллюстрация к сказочному сериалу Л.Ф.Баума "Страна Оз" 18.jpg - Wikimedia Commons</a></p><p></p><h3>Where It All Began</h3><p>In <strong>Dungeons & Dragons, </strong>characters can return in many different ways. Dungeon Masters have considerable justifications too (besides DM fiat). In my original Welstar campaign, the heroes ambushed their recurring nemesis, a red dragon named Molyemaia. They cut off her head, disintegrated the body and head, and then scattered the ashes... all to keep her from returning for revenge.</p><p></p><p>This behavior might seem extreme, but it's understandable in a game where reincarnation and resurrection are all feasible alternatives for PCs and NPCs. This is just as true in Oz, as Baum explained in <strong><a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/41667/41667-h/41667-h.htm" target="_blank">The Emerald City of Oz</a>:</strong></p><p></p><p>That specific phrasing leaves the door open to all kinds of "accidents." Let's look at a few.</p><p style="text-align: center"></p> <p style="text-align: center">[ATTACH=full]143721[/ATTACH]</p><h3>Being a Witch</h3><p>Perhaps the most famous death is the one that started the Oz series, when Dorothy's house landed on the Wicked Witch of the East. Although the Munchkins claimed Dorothy "killed" her, the above quote indicates that she was still alive at the time. In fact, the real issue isn't the house falling on her at all. The Witch of the North explains in <strong><a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/55/55-h/55-h.htm" target="_blank">The Wizard of Oz</a>:</strong></p><p></p><p>Witches were also deathly afraid of the dark and of water, which could melt them:</p><p></p><p>In Baum's world, being old and ugly, in a land where anyone can stop aging if they wish, was less a condition of age and more of a manifestation of wickedness.</p><p></p><p style="text-align: center">[ATTACH=full]143724[/ATTACH]</p><h3>Banished</h3><p>Because it's difficult to get to Oz, Ozma or Glinda would frequently banish intruders back to where they came from. This was always coupled with destroying the means for the intruders to reach Oz, usually with magic. Narratively, this is the least likely option in tabletop games, because most means of transportation are a repeatable spell or ability. But a carefully worded wish might ensure the invaders aren't interested in returning.</p><p></p><p>Banishment doesn't always involve magic. The roly-rogues that invaded Noland in <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/55737/55737-h/55737-h.htm" target="_blank"><strong>Queen Zixi of Ix</strong></a> were poisoned so that they fell asleep, then tied up and rolled out into the ocean, where they presumably ended up on an island (because surely that won't come back to haunt anyone later!).</p><p></p><p style="text-align: center">[ATTACH=full]143722[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><h3>Buried Alive</h3><p>In <strong><a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/56073/56073-h/56073-h.htm" target="_blank"><strong>Captain Salt in Oz</strong></a>, </strong>a much worse fate awaits the enemies of the wizard Boglodore (who cannot die easily), by tying them up and then dropping them in the ocean, as he explains to the titular Captain:</p><p></p><p>In <strong><a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/51263/51263-h/51263-h.htm" target="_blank"><strong>The Scarecrow of Oz</strong></a>, </strong>King Phearse of Jinxland quarreled with his Prime Minister, King Krewl.The quarrel turned violent, and Krewl shoved Phearse into a deep pond. Here's what happened next, according to Pon, Phearse's son:</p><p></p><p>It doesn't seem to occur to anyone to look for Phearse after Krewl was overthrown.</p><p></p><p style="text-align: center">[ATTACH=full]143725[/ATTACH]</p><h3>Permanent Polymorph</h3><p>In later books by Ruth Plumly Thompson, Ozma was fond of dispatching enemies by turning them into animals. She turned the Wizard of Wutz's minions into moles. Oz animals can still speak, but those animals were inevitably small and harmless.</p><p></p><p>For really persistent enemies, Ozma took more drastic measures. In the Wizard of Wutz's case, the magically summoned Himself the Elf turned the Nome King and the aforementioned Wizard into cacti.</p><p></p><p style="text-align: center">[ATTACH=full]143726[/ATTACH]</p><h3>Petrified</h3><p>Turning creatures to stone and then working to turn them back is a common theme in Oz. It's a major plot point in <strong><a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/32094/32094-h/32094-h.htm" target="_blank">The Patchwork Girl of Oz</a> </strong>when an accident petrifies several people and the heroes must find the cure to turn them back. More than one villain uses this ability to their own ends to either permanently paralyze or place characters in stasis. It's a specialty of the Wizard of Wutz. The most egregious use of this ability happens in <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/58765/58765-h/58765-h.htm" target="_blank"><strong>The Cowardly Lion of Oz</strong></a><strong>, </strong>when the stone man known as Crunch turns nearly ten thousand lions to stone with seven magic words.</p><p></p><p style="text-align: center">[ATTACH=full]143728[/ATTACH]</p><h3>Feeblemind</h3><p>When the Nome King assembled a fierce army to burrow under the Deadly Desert in <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/41667/41667-h/41667-h.htm" target="_blank"><strong>The Emerald City of Oz</strong></a><strong>, </strong>Ozma cast a spell that made the intruders dreadfully thirsty. The invading armies all ran to the nearest source of water, the Forbidden Fountain. Drinking from the fountain causes one to forget who they are, what they were doing, and become childlike (which also means becoming good-aligned):</p><p></p><p>It should be noted that in the case of the Nome King, this condition didn't last, so presumably the invading armies eventually regained their memories too.</p><p></p><p style="text-align: center">[ATTACH=full]143727[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><h3>Dismembered and Reassembled</h3><p>What would normally be fatal in Oz turns out to be something much worse. Instead of dying, body parts live on (for at least some beings). In <strong><a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/33361/33361-h/33361-h.htm#Page_76" target="_blank">Ozma of Oz</a>, </strong>Princess Langwidere changes heads like one would change hats. In <strong><a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/16259/16259-h/16259-h.htm" target="_blank">The Magical Monarch of Mo</a>, </strong>everyone who lives there can survive with all of their limbs cut off. Prince Jollikin, dismembered by a monster, ends up attaching his legs to his head in pursuit of the rest of his body. In <strong><a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/61681/61681-h/61681-h.htm" target="_blank">Grampa of Oz</a>, </strong>King Fumbo loses his head in a storm (it gets blown into some floating clouds) and his son must go on a quest to retrieve it.</p><p></p><p>Being cut up is bad enough. Being put back together incorrectly is worse. In <strong><a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/30852/30852-h/30852-h.htm" target="_blank">The Tin Woodman of Oz</a>, </strong>Nick Chopper (the Tin Man) was cursed with an axe that caused him to chop off his own limbs, each gradually replaced with tin by the famous tinsmith Ku-Klip. Ku-Klip later glued together the fleshy leftover parts with another Tin Man (Captain Fyter) to create a new humanoid named Chopfyt. And in <strong><a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/39159/39159-h/39159-h.htm" target="_blank">Sky Island</a>, </strong>the blueskins can't be killed, so their punishment is being "patched":</p><p></p><h3>Nigh-Invulnerability and D&D</h3><p>As characters reach higher levels, their ability to withstand damage and overcome even death increases considerably. Conversely, anything the player characters can potentially do to prolong life or avoid death is also an option for the villains.</p><p></p><p>When I wrote <a href="https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/369068/5E-RPG-Oz-Adventures" target="_blank"><strong>5E RPG: Oz Adventures</strong></a><strong>, </strong>I created a new species called mofolk (inspired by the people of the Valley of Mo) that is mostly indestructible (that is, PCs can die but can be reassembled and eventually return to life). Each humanoid NPC that demonstrated indestructibility is considered a member of this species. For creatures, monsters that can’t easily die have regeneration instead.</p><p></p><p>As for that red dragon? I brought her back as a ghost dragon to bedevil the PCs one last time before being finally, permanently, defeated.</p><p></p><p><strong>Your Turn: In a campaign where nobody stays dead for long, how do you keep characters from returning?</strong></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="talien, post: 8397544, member: 3285"] In Oz, there are many ways to die and far more ways to not die but suffer for eternity. For tabletop role-playing games, it's a great example of how a campaign can deal with characters who never stay dead. [CENTER][ATTACH type="full" alt="Иллюстрация_к_сказочному_сериалу_Л.Ф.Баума_'Страна_Оз'_18.jpg'Страна_Оз'_18.jpg"]143723[/ATTACH] By Александр Коротич - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, [URL='https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=62470895']File:Иллюстрация к сказочному сериалу Л.Ф.Баума "Страна Оз" 18.jpg - Wikimedia Commons[/URL][/CENTER] [HEADING=2]Where It All Began[/HEADING] In [B]Dungeons & Dragons, [/B]characters can return in many different ways. Dungeon Masters have considerable justifications too (besides DM fiat). In my original Welstar campaign, the heroes ambushed their recurring nemesis, a red dragon named Molyemaia. They cut off her head, disintegrated the body and head, and then scattered the ashes... all to keep her from returning for revenge. This behavior might seem extreme, but it's understandable in a game where reincarnation and resurrection are all feasible alternatives for PCs and NPCs. This is just as true in Oz, as Baum explained in [B][URL='https://www.gutenberg.org/files/41667/41667-h/41667-h.htm']The Emerald City of Oz[/URL]:[/B] That specific phrasing leaves the door open to all kinds of "accidents." Let's look at a few. [CENTER] [ATTACH type="full" alt="i024_edit.jpg"]143721[/ATTACH][/CENTER] [HEADING=2]Being a Witch[/HEADING] Perhaps the most famous death is the one that started the Oz series, when Dorothy's house landed on the Wicked Witch of the East. Although the Munchkins claimed Dorothy "killed" her, the above quote indicates that she was still alive at the time. In fact, the real issue isn't the house falling on her at all. The Witch of the North explains in [B][URL='https://www.gutenberg.org/files/55/55-h/55-h.htm']The Wizard of Oz[/URL]:[/B] Witches were also deathly afraid of the dark and of water, which could melt them: In Baum's world, being old and ugly, in a land where anyone can stop aging if they wish, was less a condition of age and more of a manifestation of wickedness. [CENTER][ATTACH type="full" alt="i_285_0645.jpg"]143724[/ATTACH][/CENTER] [HEADING=2]Banished[/HEADING] Because it's difficult to get to Oz, Ozma or Glinda would frequently banish intruders back to where they came from. This was always coupled with destroying the means for the intruders to reach Oz, usually with magic. Narratively, this is the least likely option in tabletop games, because most means of transportation are a repeatable spell or ability. But a carefully worded wish might ensure the invaders aren't interested in returning. Banishment doesn't always involve magic. The roly-rogues that invaded Noland in [URL='https://www.gutenberg.org/files/55737/55737-h/55737-h.htm'][B]Queen Zixi of Ix[/B][/URL] were poisoned so that they fell asleep, then tied up and rolled out into the ocean, where they presumably ended up on an island (because surely that won't come back to haunt anyone later!). [CENTER][ATTACH type="full" alt="illus94.jpg"]143722[/ATTACH][/CENTER] [HEADING=2]Buried Alive[/HEADING] In [B][URL='https://www.gutenberg.org/files/56073/56073-h/56073-h.htm'][B]Captain Salt in Oz[/B][/URL], [/B]a much worse fate awaits the enemies of the wizard Boglodore (who cannot die easily), by tying them up and then dropping them in the ocean, as he explains to the titular Captain: In [B][URL='https://www.gutenberg.org/files/51263/51263-h/51263-h.htm'][B]The Scarecrow of Oz[/B][/URL], [/B]King Phearse of Jinxland quarreled with his Prime Minister, King Krewl.The quarrel turned violent, and Krewl shoved Phearse into a deep pond. Here's what happened next, according to Pon, Phearse's son: It doesn't seem to occur to anyone to look for Phearse after Krewl was overthrown. [CENTER][ATTACH type="full" alt="illus109.jpg"]143725[/ATTACH][/CENTER] [HEADING=2]Permanent Polymorph[/HEADING] In later books by Ruth Plumly Thompson, Ozma was fond of dispatching enemies by turning them into animals. She turned the Wizard of Wutz's minions into moles. Oz animals can still speak, but those animals were inevitably small and harmless. For really persistent enemies, Ozma took more drastic measures. In the Wizard of Wutz's case, the magically summoned Himself the Elf turned the Nome King and the aforementioned Wizard into cacti. [CENTER][ATTACH type="full" alt="illusc12.jpg"]143726[/ATTACH][/CENTER] [HEADING=2]Petrified[/HEADING] Turning creatures to stone and then working to turn them back is a common theme in Oz. It's a major plot point in [B][URL='https://www.gutenberg.org/files/32094/32094-h/32094-h.htm']The Patchwork Girl of Oz[/URL] [/B]when an accident petrifies several people and the heroes must find the cure to turn them back. More than one villain uses this ability to their own ends to either permanently paralyze or place characters in stasis. It's a specialty of the Wizard of Wutz. The most egregious use of this ability happens in [URL='https://www.gutenberg.org/files/58765/58765-h/58765-h.htm'][B]The Cowardly Lion of Oz[/B][/URL][B], [/B]when the stone man known as Crunch turns nearly ten thousand lions to stone with seven magic words. [CENTER][ATTACH type="full" alt="i311.jpg"]143728[/ATTACH][/CENTER] [HEADING=2]Feeblemind[/HEADING] When the Nome King assembled a fierce army to burrow under the Deadly Desert in [URL='https://www.gutenberg.org/files/41667/41667-h/41667-h.htm'][B]The Emerald City of Oz[/B][/URL][B], [/B]Ozma cast a spell that made the intruders dreadfully thirsty. The invading armies all ran to the nearest source of water, the Forbidden Fountain. Drinking from the fountain causes one to forget who they are, what they were doing, and become childlike (which also means becoming good-aligned): It should be noted that in the case of the Nome King, this condition didn't last, so presumably the invading armies eventually regained their memories too. [CENTER][ATTACH type="full" alt="i241.png"]143727[/ATTACH][/CENTER] [HEADING=2]Dismembered and Reassembled[/HEADING] What would normally be fatal in Oz turns out to be something much worse. Instead of dying, body parts live on (for at least some beings). In [B][URL='https://www.gutenberg.org/files/33361/33361-h/33361-h.htm#Page_76']Ozma of Oz[/URL], [/B]Princess Langwidere changes heads like one would change hats. In [B][URL='https://www.gutenberg.org/files/16259/16259-h/16259-h.htm']The Magical Monarch of Mo[/URL], [/B]everyone who lives there can survive with all of their limbs cut off. Prince Jollikin, dismembered by a monster, ends up attaching his legs to his head in pursuit of the rest of his body. In [B][URL='https://www.gutenberg.org/files/61681/61681-h/61681-h.htm']Grampa of Oz[/URL], [/B]King Fumbo loses his head in a storm (it gets blown into some floating clouds) and his son must go on a quest to retrieve it. Being cut up is bad enough. Being put back together incorrectly is worse. In [B][URL='https://www.gutenberg.org/files/30852/30852-h/30852-h.htm']The Tin Woodman of Oz[/URL], [/B]Nick Chopper (the Tin Man) was cursed with an axe that caused him to chop off his own limbs, each gradually replaced with tin by the famous tinsmith Ku-Klip. Ku-Klip later glued together the fleshy leftover parts with another Tin Man (Captain Fyter) to create a new humanoid named Chopfyt. And in [B][URL='https://www.gutenberg.org/files/39159/39159-h/39159-h.htm']Sky Island[/URL], [/B]the blueskins can't be killed, so their punishment is being "patched": [HEADING=2]Nigh-Invulnerability and D&D[/HEADING] As characters reach higher levels, their ability to withstand damage and overcome even death increases considerably. Conversely, anything the player characters can potentially do to prolong life or avoid death is also an option for the villains. When I wrote [URL='https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/369068/5E-RPG-Oz-Adventures'][B]5E RPG: Oz Adventures[/B][/URL][B], [/B]I created a new species called mofolk (inspired by the people of the Valley of Mo) that is mostly indestructible (that is, PCs can die but can be reassembled and eventually return to life). Each humanoid NPC that demonstrated indestructibility is considered a member of this species. For creatures, monsters that can’t easily die have regeneration instead. As for that red dragon? I brought her back as a ghost dragon to bedevil the PCs one last time before being finally, permanently, defeated. [B]Your Turn: In a campaign where nobody stays dead for long, how do you keep characters from returning?[/B] [/QUOTE]
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