What do you do with character sheets for slain characters?

[eris404]

My group has taken to pinning their dead character sheets to the wall, right underneith the poster-sized campaign map. They draw little gravestones with the dates of their existence on them and stuff.

That's kinda nice.

Actually, I don't know where the sheets for some of my dead characters are. I think the DMs might have them.

 

[RandomPrecision]

As a DM, I like to keep at least a copy of the sheet.

Otherwise, it's difficult to make them come back as undead.

 

[deltadave]

I keep a copy of the sheet, sometimes they show up in modified form as NPC's. I currently have a file box full of them after 20+ years of play. They are filed according to class and campaign. I almost never have to make an npc from scratch any more....

 

[Arc]

As a DM, I like to keep at least a copy of the sheet.

Otherwise, it's difficult to make them come back as undead.

My DM has an ugly habit of doing that sort of thing. However, I can't say I don't enjoy it, mostly for two reasons:

1) It enforces playing fair. Explaining where those "extra" skill points and BAB came from can get mighty sticky when your character dies, so it gives everyone incentive to keep their character's abilities and attributes well documented, as well as fair.

2) It's damn cool to fight previous characters. One of my favorite characters in a campaign was a Nezumi Frenzied Berserker (with the Kensai alternate fighter core class from Dragon 310). He was so disgustingly powerful (as compared to the party) that I volunteered to have him killed/removed from play. I was getting bored of single handedly winning combats, the rest of the party was getting bored of being secondary in combat situations (which I felt guilty about), and my DM was pulling his hair out trying to balance encounters for the brute. When we later killed the campaign boss (without much of a sweat), and my DM announced that we saw a ratkin weilding a greatsword walking towards us, several players became visibly shaken. That fight ranks as one of my most memorable, to be sure.

 

[RandomPrecision]

1) It enforces playing fair. Explaining where those "extra" skill points and BAB came from can get mighty sticky when your character dies, so it gives everyone incentive to keep their character's abilities and attributes well documented, as well as fair.

Actually, your second reason enforces playing fair. If a character is going come back and fight the party, anything the players cheated with on their character is okay with me.

However, I usually keep pretty accurate tabs on what my PC's have and don't have. Not that I'm a perfectionist rules-nazi, but I've had some online events where it's more convenient to just have a copy of the character sheets that you modify along with the players, just so they don't have to electronically send everything to you whenever you want something, and it just carries over a bit. I usually don't have full character sheets for everyone at a table game, but I tend to remember BAB and saves fairly well, and I might have some things written down, and that probably discourages trying to subtly move some of them higher than they actually are.

 

[PsicrystalAffinity]

Personally, I keep mine at the back of my D&D binder.

However, other members of my group simply toss them in the trash, or hang onto them, or take them out back of the apartment and BURN THEM TO ASHES! *insert pyromaniacal laughter here*

 

[RandomPrecision]

Don't you mean simply 'maniacal' instead of pyromaniacal?

 

[Khayman]

I keep handy a rubber stamp that says 'DECEASED', courtesy of a stint in a government office.

We stamp the dead and keep 'em in the deadbook, a special folder or section of the campaign book in which we keep character sheets, maps, notes, etc.

 

[kirinke]

I keep handy a rubber stamp that says 'DECEASED', courtesy of a stint in a government office.

We stamp the dead and keep 'em in the deadbook, a special folder or section of the campaign book in which we keep character sheets, maps, notes, etc.

Musta worked at the IRS. LOL. We don't use the deceased stamps anymore. Still good idea.

 

[Darth K'Trava]

Mine is in a notebook with other retired, but not slain characters. I've only had one die (3 TIMES!!) and finally decided to "give him a rest" after that 3rd one. But I don't draw little gravestones on the sheet.... Who knows... I could bring him into another game, probably moreso at a con than our regular group who all know he's dead.