The risk of death, to me, is an important part of any oldschool-type dungeony crawly dealie, or most other oldschool-type formats for that matter. Characters being believably fragile is one of the key parts of what makes the playstyle truly sing, with interesting decision making being greatly enhanced when the stakes are truly blah blah blah, you know the drill already.
PCs being able to buy the farm is good, and buying the farm always needs to be on the table, or else the adventure will have been pointless. I've been spending some time, recently, thinking about my specific feelings on resurrection.
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| In the latest idea stolen from goblinpunch, buying the farm is now actually on the table. |
Y'see, Wising From Youw Gwave is a tricky thing. On one hand, we understand that a beloved PC being annihilated unceremoniously does not feel great; on the other hand, it's deeply unsatisfying as a player to realize that your darling murderhole explorator can only be removed from the board either by way of you deciding that you're over them and don't want to pay the Raise Dead cost at the local temple again; or, by way of the GM deciding they've had enough of that level 7 cleric fucking up their game, and see to it that you run into a trap that deftly exploits the specific wording of whatever back-to-life tools you have on hand so that dead actually means dead again.
Now, this is a tricky thing, in my experience. On one hand, I think my players never becoming complacent is good, and them always treating dangers as dangerous keeps their dungeoneering exciting. On the other hand, players can also be fearful of bringing their high-level darlings out into adventures, and instead will leave that one really good character in town to get drunk off their ass for months, while they roll up new low-investment goons to throw into the maw of death. Whether this is bad or something that needs fixing is debatable; but for this reason and others, I've decided to tweak things a bit, in an attempt to make bringing your high-level PC out feel slightly less terrifying (so that I can then fucking kill them as intended).
There's been three angles to this: First, I've introduced a fairly classic death-and-dismemberment system to make dropping to 0 HP be somewhat more survivable (although instant fucking death is never off the table, sorry charlie, if you don't wanna risk it don't drop to 0). Second, the Retirement Table up there serves as a nice little way for you to keep a character around without condemning them to the fate of being a wizard pinch hitter past a certain level.
Third is the actual point of this post, which is Resurrection. There's a lot of ways to handle this, but I've always been a big believer of death being real goddamn hard to come back from (sorry DBZ fans, if you don't wanna risk it don't drop to 0). That said, I'm actually expanding a bit on my previous options, as they were eclectic and unforeseeable in ways that felt, in play, a little unsatisfying. So here are my 3 current Big Things, outside of extremely niche options like once-in-a-campaign cloning goo pools or whatever, that can bring you back from the dead in my campaign.
Everything below This is officially Spoilers. If you are my player, or ever plan to play in my Stained Fortress game, the following information is not for your eyes; it probably won't help you much to know it, but it can rob you of the joy of discovering it in play. You've been warned.
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| That means you, chuckles. You know who you are; stop lookin'. |
Amulet of Life-Saving
A resplendent amulet, made of 3 elaborately carved circles made of gold, platinum and orichalcum, inlaid with a massive ruby at the spot where all three circles intersect. It is a very rare and valued item, and those who posses it are not often willing to part with it.
When worn, the amulet has no immediately noticeable effect, other than a vague sense of safety. If the wearer would ever suffer a mortal blow, or would otherwise face immediate and certain death, the Amulet activates: the wearer is protected from death, is restored to 1/2 their maximum HP, and if the wearer desires, instantly teleported six miles in a direction of their choice. This destroys the amulet, which disintegrates into a glittering pile of metal and gem powder (worth 200 gp). The effect is not completely fool-proof: some forms of death, such as death by old age or as a result of one's soul being extracted from their body, might not trigger the amulet, as there is no immediate source of harm for it to save and heal you from.
When worn, the amulet has no immediately noticeable effect, other than a vague sense of safety. If the wearer would ever suffer a mortal blow, or would otherwise face immediate and certain death, the Amulet activates: the wearer is protected from death, is restored to 1/2 their maximum HP, and if the wearer desires, instantly teleported six miles in a direction of their choice. This destroys the amulet, which disintegrates into a glittering pile of metal and gem powder (worth 200 gp). The effect is not completely fool-proof: some forms of death, such as death by old age or as a result of one's soul being extracted from their body, might not trigger the amulet, as there is no immediate source of harm for it to save and heal you from.
Certain great artifacts, such as the Silvered Rod of the Moon Magus, are also imbued with this power. Whether they completely disintegrate, or simply lose a portion of their power, depends on the item.
The Life Seed of an Immortal
It is a well known fact among those who obsess with immortality that the bodies of immortal beings, most often their hearts, contain the still-hot spark of life. It is put there by a force way beyond the power of any magic known to us, and while we cannot hope to recreate it, we can certainly steal it.
Getting the Life Seed of an immortal creature is a tricky proposition, since there ain't that many immortals running around, and those that do tend to be quite attached to it. The crudest way for one to cheat death is to take the freshly-removed heart of an immortal creature (such as a dragon), no older than a day (or a week if properly preserved); then place it into the mouth of a body that has been dead for no more than one month, and force them to bite into it. This direct ingestion is potent, if wasteful, and the results are inarguable: the dead will rapidly regenerate over a period of minutes (taking about a second for each day they've been dead), and then rise as if born anew. They are feeble, exhausted, and at only 1 HP, but they will once again be alive for all intents and purposes.
This is not free, however: the Life Seed of an immortal creature is almost always placed there as a curse, rather than as a gift. Consequently, the unfortunate magic is carried over the the victim. Those who are brought back to life will suffer some permanent malediction, depending on the exact nature of the being: whether that is mutation, an elusive and pestering hex, or a lifelong struggle to prevent yourself from turning into the dragon whose heart you ate, something is bound to burden you.
More enterprising individuals may instead try to extract more value from the Life Seed. Through some very costly and difficult efforts, the Life Seed can be exploited alchemically, allowing for the creation of some highly desirable magical items: Phials of Regeneration, "Troll Leather", and Amulets of Life Saving are some of the better known ones.
None of the above are capable of granting immortality, however; such power would likely require a truly cruel amount of Life Seeds, and some deeply self-destructive magic. No survivors of such efforts are known in mortal history; some believe that the most terrible of the undead were a result of such attempts, and others believe that such efforts could only result in a terrible, burdensome godhood. But none so desperate are remembered...
Pelur Pa the Forgotten
A second chance is never free.
A forgotten deity of life eternal. Few followers join of their own volition, but those that do are fanatically devoted; either willingly or otherwise, followers never show themselves to the world; they are not provided eternal power, only eternal life.
Altar: A simple, rectangular, flat-topped altar of stone, with a bronze rim on all of its edges. A "pillow" of glass lies on one side, with a single flawless emerald in its center. Altars to Pelur Pa can be found in many places, but most will be found cracked, destroyed, and the emerald gone; leaving only a narrow, seemingly bottomless gap of darkness, presumably down which the emerald travelled. Only those altars found in secret places, ancient ruins or uninvaded holy sites are likely to be whole.
Worshippers: Worshippers of of the ancient Pelur are incredibly rare, as the only thing more severe than the Pa's Punishment are the requirements to to follow in the first place. On the rare chance that a follower is encountered, their nature is unknowable, but their appearance is unnerving: a perfect picture of health and youth, yet carrying themselves with the measured pain of a venerable great-grandparent. There is no organization between followers, for their burden is theirs alone to carry; if they ever meet, they will just as quickly split ways.
Restrictions and Special Rules
Pelur Pa can only be followed by the recently deceased. Worship begins as soon as their body, or a piece of their body no older than a week, is placed upon the altar. This shatters the altar, so that it may never again be repaired.
No other small god will become vengeful if their follower is resurrected as a follower of Pelur Pa, either out of fear or disinterest. The only exception are the undead, who may never worship Pa; an undead that lies (or is placed) upon an altar of Pelur Pa is instantly destroyed with no save.
Conduct
Pelur Pa appreciates embracing life to the fullest. You will receive 1 Piety each week you spend adventuring.
Pelur Pa especially appreciates the destruction of the Undead (1 Piety per 6 HD of undead destroyed, but only if the undead have more HD than your current piety level), and the performing of Last Rites (1 Piety if a deceased ally is given a proper burial in the valley, taking 4 hours and using at least 50gp of material).
Pelur Pa depreciates abandonment and the shirking of one's Burden, but nothing else.
Gifts
0 Piety: Life
Upon joining Pelur Pa, the new worshipper is immediately resurrected. They rise from the broken altar fully restored: They are at full HP, their attributes are restored, and any wounds, scars, missing limbs and other injuries are gone: they are at their most ideal.
If the worshipper ever leaves Pelur Pa, this Gift is negated, and they will immediately die and return to whatever state they were in at the moment their remains were laid on the altar.
If the worshipper ever leaves Pelur Pa, this Gift is negated, and they will immediately die and return to whatever state they were in at the moment their remains were laid on the altar.
0 Piety: Eternal
The worshipper is granted immortality, of a sort. They will no longer age naturally, and have a piety-in-6 chance of resisting any unnatural aging they might be affected by. They must still eat, drink, sleep, and do all the other things they do in life.
This does not come for free: You are now, and forever more, Burdened. See the Special section below.
1 Piety: Second Chance
You may touch a being other than yourself that has died as a result of death failing a saving throw in the last 10 minutes. If you do so, they may attempt that saving throw again, with a -4 modifier; if they pass it, they are returned to whatever condition they were in before they failed the saving throw. You may use this ability any number of times on the same individual, as long as you have the Piety for it. Costs 1 Piety
3 Piety: Persistence
You may activate this ability at any time. For the next 10 seconds (~1 round of combat), you are completely and totally immune to all forms of harm: Attacks do not pierce your skin, explosions only send you flying, falling from great heights can damage only your equipment. Being doused in acid, swimming in lava, getting swallowed whole by a dragon, none of these things can do more than displace you or coat you in something. You are not immune to the after-effects of these things; being on fire from swimming in lava or inside a dragon's stomach may still kill you immediately after Persistence wears off. You may choose to extend the duration of this ability, paying the Piety cost for each round you want it to keep affecting you. Costs 1 Piety.
5 Piety: Restore Death
If you touch an undead being with an ungloved hand, you will be protected from any effects caused by its touch, and the undead creature will be immediately destroyed. Intelligent Undead will immediately recognize you as having this ability on sight, will fear your touch more than the grave itself, and will take every possible action to stay away from you. Cost 1 Piety (or 4 Piety if undead has more than 4 HD).
6 Piety: Gift of Life
Once, and only once, you may invoke this ability to receive a gift: an Amulet of Second Chances. This amulet is similar to an Amulet of Life Saving; however, this item will restore the wearer to full HP, restore any attribute damage they might have taken, and teleport the wearer any distance they desire (as long as they know the exact location they wish to arrive at). Additionally, the amulet will only trigger after a character is killed and dead for at least 10 minutes; any possessions or parts of the deceased that were removed will be on their person once they resurrect, with the exception of the amulet, which crumbles to glittering dust and disappears. Once granted, anyone can be given the amulet; Pelur Pa doesn't care what you do with it after you get it. Costs 4 Piety.
Punishment
Pelur Pa does not have penance. Your punishment is simply death: If you ignore your Burden more than once, or if you ever abandon Pelur Pa, you drop dead on the spot, and your remains revert to whatever state they were in when they were placed on the altar of Pelur Pa.
Special: Burden
Followers are expected to follow a very specific set of rules, at the cost of their own life. You are allowed a mistake once, and only once; if your Burden is ignored a second time, you are excommunicated by Pelur Pa and struck dead on the spot.
First Burden: Silence. You may not discuss any part of your resurrection: Pelur Pa is Forgotten, and prefers to stay that way. You may not tell others of Pelur Pa's existence, of your abilities and their working, or even the name of Pelur Pa. Neither may you discuss the nature of your Burdens, beyond stating "I may not discuss the nature of my Burdens." If you're not certain about whether you should share something, play it safe and don't share it. As far as others are concerned, nothing happened.
(GMs are encouraged to enforce this rule outside of the game as well: if you didn't want to commit to the bit, you shouldn't have died, steve)
(GMs are encouraged to enforce this rule outside of the game as well: if you didn't want to commit to the bit, you shouldn't have died, steve)
Second Burden: Selflessness. Pelur Pa is not of greed, and neither are you. Whenever you return to safety, before doing anything else with your treasure, you must immediately give 10% of your gold to charitable causes and the community. You can never accept a gift of gold, treasure or valuables; and you will never accept gifts of equipment, but only make trades for something of equal value. You may take from the dead, but you may never steal from the living.
Third Burden: Ritual. You must regularly perform a ritual to reinforce your loyalty. Once per week of play, the GM should roll on the table below to determine your required ritual:
1. For a whole day, eat only the flesh of a beast you personally slay; thank it, then burn what remains.
2. Visit a home that you have not visited for at least twenty days. Give your host a gift, sit with them for an evening, and share stories of a life well lived. Never disrespect your host, or those under their roof.
3. Slay a living foe that has slain others. Spit on their corpse to dissolve it into a bloody pool, then deny them a burial, and forbid anyone from ever taking any of their possessions: those items are unclean.
4. Destroy an item, spill a potion or burn a scroll worth at least [Level x 100] sp, which you have possessed for at least a week previously. If you have no such item, reroll.
5. Spend one watch alone, with no allies, in a dangerous place where the sun does not reach (such as the halls of a dungeon).
6. Nominate an ally to protect, and spend the day ensuring that no harm befalls them - or, if it does, that they suffer less harm than you do. They must not know that you are protecting them.
For each day you do not complete a Ritual you have been given, your character deteriorates: each day you suffer a random Scar, as you fall apart. If you had any scars before you became a follower of Pelur Pa, those will resurface first. Once the Ritual is complete, all of the scars will disappear.
If you do not fulfil your Ritual before the next one is rolled, it is considered a Failed Burden. If this is your first time failing a Ritual, Pelur Pa will forgive you - but the first two Scars you suffered become permanent.
For the sake of not being a dick, don't hit PCs with a Ritual if it's game time is coming to an end, and especially if you know they won't be able to play for a while - just hit them with it the moment that the next session of play starts.
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