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Message: <blockquote data-quote="transtemporal" data-source="post: 6528462" data-attributes="member: 6777693">I remember in old games, if your PC died you rolled a new one at 1st level and you joined back up with the party and continued on your way. Even if the party was 20th level, you still started at 1st. It wasn't that big a deal but it changed over time and now 20 years later it seems punitive, impractical and actually pretty weird.First of all, there's the power disparity and the contribution the new pc can realistically make. I know we've all bought into bounded accuracy like it was a  religious text, but a 1st level pc IS NOT "basically as effective" as, say a 5th level pc. The 1st level pc doesn't have the extra attack, spell slots, spell levels or hp that a 5th level pc has and will likely die in any encounter a 5th level party engages in. The only way this is workable is if the 1st level sits at the back and tries not to draw attention from monsters, which is not much fun for the player.Secondly, there's the in-world practicality of picking up a lower level companion (that someone mentioned in the other thread): taking the extreme example, why would 20th level PCs pick up an unknown, unskilled 1st level pc? It just wouldn't happen unless they were the 'chosen one' POV character in movies.Thirdly, DMs seem to justify it like this: "It's your fault you died so I'm starting you at a lower level to encourage you not to die!" This one I find the most weird and the most illogical but I know as a DM I've thought it at times. It's trying to turn something which is effectively a punishment into a reward when its clearly not.So where does this come from and why on earth did it ever make sense? Is it a reaction to "everyone's a winner" sports activities? Is it some kind of weird DnD hazing?</blockquote>

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