Rule ideas for Heroic Sacrifice of PC

[Janx]

Good ideas.

I'm inclined that any such rules on heroci death imply, the hero is dying/will be dead on completion. As in the player has a choice. Go the normal D&D route and probably get healed or raised, or choose to make this KO a permanent one for a bonus.

I like PMING's last act or retribution concept. The PC gets one more round or action to do something (like kill the bad guy because it was just that close). Maybe if it was a 1 "attack of opportunity (or spell) with guarranteed success. Then the PC is perma-dead.

 

[Loonook]

Or you could just go with E6's concept of the Death Flag and shift it from "Able to die" to "Able to Die Permanently". Since you seem to not have Conviction points or similar just allow for a level appropriate boost.

We do something similar and also include pinnacle battles. These are the battles that define an arc in some way. Maybe the Dragon has come to Smalltown and you are making the last stand. The PCs are warned ahead of time (usually 1-3 sessions) that that point is about to come. During those battles all deaths are final, and a call to raise the flag becomes "I am sacrificing my PC to do something epic".

Altogether we've had probably a dozen calls during normal combat where things have become dire since we started using it a few years ago with 2 permanent deaths during normal combat. Of the around a dozen Pinnacle battles we have had we've had 3 deaths due to misadventure and 2 deaths due to epic sacrifices:

1.) Modern Arcana game. Player was playing a Demon Knight sort of alcoholic wanderer turned Holy Warrior. When the party was stuck inside of a fun house fighting a Manitou that fed on children, the Holy Warrior saw several of his compatriots fall and be near death. Calling for a Sacrifice he took a bottle of blessed whiskey he had received from a Clurichaun, drank the bottle, then summoned up his personal demon who had been hunting him. He offered his soul in trade for destroying the Manitou, so I gave him the sheet on the beast and he fought the rest of the battle as a Kelvezu (about 6 CR above the party's CL). The Manitou defeated the possessed then decided to turn on his comrades, only to be burned and banished due to the blessed hooch now flooding into his host body's system.

2.) D&D game. The Fighter/general decided to help break through the wall of a castle in siege as his army lay starving outside of the gates. Gathering all wands into a large bundle with two sticking out of the top of the bundle, the Fighter rushed the wall. Succeeding at getting through he sundered the wands, causing an enormous spellstorm as around a thousand charges of war magic exploded around him leaving him a greasy spot on the ground.

Good times.

Slainte,

-Loonook.

 

[Janx]

I'm not familiar with E6, though I suppose the phrase Death Flag seems relevant to the discussion.

though one thread participant mentioned removing Raise spells, I figure to leave the general principle that perma-death in D&D is rare due to all the magic. or at least, that's up to the GM.

Instead, I'd allow the player to choose IF he wants to stay dead or not.

This Death flag thing sounds like some fights (big boss fights) will be terminal if a PC falls. That's another interesting twist.