What do your players do with thier dead foes?

[reanjr]

I didn't respond to the poll because the answer varies wildly depending on the situation. If there's time (rarely), no danger (occasionally), and no survivors (about half the time) and they are intelligent opponents then they'll usually get some kind of burial or whatever, especially if they are of a race for which someone in the aprty knows the last rites for.

Unintelligent foes are usually left or eaten.

If detection is something we have to worry about, we made hide the bodies.

If we are strapped for time, but want to do something to take care of them, they get piled and burned. If there's no fuel for the fire, we'll dig a mass grave (of course we have to have more time to do this).

If there are survivors, we'll leave it up to them (bandage dying foes to stabalize them then take off while they are unconscious). Depending on the situation, we might help the survivors make some sort of stretcher to carry the dead on, give them some food and a few silver and let them be on their way.

We rarely loot the dead (obvious items such as nice weapons, or magical stuff usually gets taken, but no one goes through their pockets unless we expect to find information), but we often remove the belongings of the living so that they are not dangerous.

I'm sure there are other situations that warrent different attention. We play it by ear.

 

[reanjr]

There is a certain player who always makes a note to burn bodies no matter the character and no matter the situation (Within reason I guess). I don't see this being a socially acceptable or even personally acceptable thing to do, lighting up after every battle to deny burial rights, grieving, not to mention plot devices. Better safe than sorry the credo goes, although it feels a lot more like a tired routine, and I'm resolved to break it with random acts of DM meanness.

What if the PCs culture burns their dead? The PC could be trying to perform the last rites. Most cultures don't grieve for the dead. They celebrate them. I suppose it would kind of strange for a PC in Christian Medieval Europe to burn all the dead, but given diverse cultures normally present in a D&D game, it seems quite reasonable.

 

[demiurge1138]

Most of the time, bodies are left to rot or to the scavengers. There have been a few exceptions, though...

In an Eberron game I played in, the half-orc barbarian had the tendancy of taking an ear from each of his kills and collecting them on a "necklace of remembrance". They also, after killing a rampaging fiendish dire boar, ate it.

One of the characters became a wereboar thanks to that.

In the Planescape game I'm running, they decided to "dispose of evidence" after killing a bunch of tiefling guards in Blight. The gnome artificer (same player as the half orc above) gave them to his homonculus, and also told it to make them breakfast for the morning.

He shouldn't have. Cream of Tiefling isn't very tasty.

Lately, this character has been selling more and more foes to Seamusxanthuszenus. It's a source of jink for him, and a source of amusement for Seamusxanthuszenus. A win-win situation.

Demiurge out.

 

[Testament]

There is a certain player who always makes a note to burn bodies no matter the character and no matter the situation (Within reason I guess). I don't see this being a socially acceptable or even personally acceptable thing to do, lighting up after every battle to deny burial rights, grieving, not to mention plot devices. Better safe than sorry the credo goes, although it feels a lot more like a tired routine, and I'm resolved to break it with random acts of DM meanness.

Do you have MMII? If you do, then go to the E's and look up Effigy. That'll teach him!

In my games it's varied quite a bit. Bodies have been left to rot, dragged to the authorities for a "Speak with Dead", eaten, vivisected for components and trophies, burned...

I'll never forget what they did with one foe...can't say the guy didn't deserve it though!

 

[Sarellion]

If there is time and the foe is sentient they get last rites and a burial.

I seems to e that burning the bodies seems to be a good custom in lands where corporeal undead can walk the earth. So I would assume that cremating the dead is the most common kind of burial in a fantasy world.

 

[Hand of Evil]

And my players alway wonder why there are sooooo many zombees roaming around. They leave them to rot where they drop, they may loot them but that is about it.

What is bad about this is that I have gone to a lot of trouble to create a death myth, the grey waste, that the players know about and plays roles in the games!

 

[diaglo]

Depending on the creature killed, our wizard starts to look for unusual material components.

ditto.

the players mostly leave the bodies to rot after they loot the bodies of coin, magic, armor, and weapons.

but sometimes one of the players will remember to tell the magic-user's player to get some parts for components.

after a few of the left behind bodies were animated. the party got wise. and started to burn some of the dead bodies. coughing/choking on all the smoke in the dungeon... but they soon got tired of doing that and their fear of animated corpses has diminished. so they are back to just leaving them to rot.

 

[Garnfellow]

One of the PCs is a grimlock. He forgoes all treasure in favor of food. Cannibalism was never so funny.

 

[Seeten]

I have fun with the bodies. As my new personal servants, soldiers, and bodyguards.

"Arise, my new minions and defend your Mistress."

What?

What?

 

[jodyjohnson]

Slain foes fall to the ground. Pause for 2 seconds and then sink through the floor leaving only their valuable items.

Barring that, I'm with Crothian. Pull the figs and move on.