Monday, April 1, 2013

The Death of a Character

In real life we tend to get attached to our family, pets, even objects and when bad things happen to them, we tend to be upset, sad or become detached from the world for awhile.  So it shouldn't seem strange when a person loses his character to death or some powerful curse that they also get a little detached.  The good thing about roleplaying games is the character could always come back with a little magic (depending on the genre), but the lose is no less.  Here are some things as a DM you might do.

1)  Talk to the player after the session.  Talk to him about why the character died, that it wasn't personal.  This is a biggy.  Some players may think the GM is out to get him and think it has become personal.  Talking to them about why the death happened may ease that tension.

2) Ask the player what he wants to do with the character.  Not all players what their characters "rezzed".  We had a college friend who was actually upset with us that we had his character raised from the dead, so make sure they actually want the character to be brought back to life.

3) Plan some nifty way for the character to come back.  Perhaps the rest of the party has to go in search of some magical artifact or do a favor for the person doing the magic.  At the same time have a mini-adventure for the player as he fights his way back to life.  Maybe the character died saving some godly item and the god himself comes down and resurrects him.  Perhaps the king of the area orders him brought back to life because his sacrifice saved the kingdom.

4) Don't gloss over the death.  In this day and age where video games just allow instant resurrection, make a big deal about the death.  Make your players feel upset, sad, or scared for their own lives.  Make it real.  Don't trivialize the moment.

Happy Gaming!

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