I want a death and resurrection system to have the following features:
1. Death is never random. When it does occur, it is because the player and DM agree it needs to. The system should allow enough 'outs' that death never occurs through mere bad luck.
2. Death is serious. It should be possible, even likely, that if the players do not act to save their friends, they will die. Permanently. Full stop.
3. Death is certain. You can verify someone has died within minutes of a battle, and if they're dead, they're dead. Keep villians dead when you kill them. When heroes die, they really die.
4. Death is epic (in the literary sense). When someone dies, it should not be an "oops, you're dead" experience. It should occur the end of an epic fight on both sides for the player's life.
5. True resurrection is possible, even at low levels, but it is a rare and legendary experience. It is not expected, even for heroes of organizations with lots of resources. It is not impossible, even for paupers. It is the sort of thing that requires purpose, sacrifice, and true love. It is the sort of thing that winds up in bard songs.
6. The circumstances surrounding the death and resurrection mechanic should not be hokey in any way. Keeping an enemy dead should not require guarding their corpse for years, binding a soul in a gem and hiding it in an extradimensional space, and so on. Death is serious. Respect it.
With all of that in mind, here is an alternate mechanic.
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Remove all of the usual resurrection effects from the game, and use only the spells below. Reincarnation, Revivify, Raise Dead, Resurrection, True Resurrection, and the related effects of Wish or Miracle (replace these with Revive, allowing a mass version only for Miracle).
Everything in the game that can kill you, still can. Falling to -10 hp does it, falling to 0 Con does it, failing a saving throw on a save-or-die does it. However, these experiences only slay the body.
Upon dying, a warrior feels as though she 'pops' out of her body. She observes the battlefield from above, hovering near where she died. The real world is gray and muted; unexpected sounds stand out, while others are muted (like being underwater), and the colors seem to fade away. At the same time, she views her life and the lives of her friends with the clarity of death, percieving glimpses of their true feelings and the significance of her life. Directly above, in the distance, is a bright light, which the soul feels drawn towards.
The soul lingers near the body for exactly 1 minute (10 rounds, same initiative count as death) before departing. During this window of time, it is possible to revive or even re-create the body, and draw the soul back into it (see Revive below). After the soul has departed, resurrection is impossible, except via Resurrection Quest.
The soul is a supernatural entity, and cannot be seen, targeted or blocked in any way. While the soul may be very interested in the happenings in the real world, and is able to concentrate on them and percieve them, she cannot wander farther than a few feet from her body.
For most purposes, the body of a slain warrior functions as an object. However, the soul is allowed a will save against any effect which allows one, and she can refuse spells which require a willing target. Treat teleport effects as though the body were still alive.
Spells:
Lingering Soul Necromancy Level: Drd 2, Clr 2, Sor/Wiz 2, Pal 2 Components: V, S, M/DF Casting Time: Standard action Range: Touch Target: One corpse of a living creature no older than 10 rounds (or older, if the soul still lingers nearby.) Willing souls only. Duration: 10 min/level (measured from time of death) SR: No For the duration of the spell, the soul percieves a glow emanating from its body, and is drawn toward it. The soul lingers nearby, extending the period during which the body can be revived. This spell can be re-cast on the same corpse, but the duration is always measured from the original time of death, so re-casting it is useless unless the original has been dispelled or caster level has been increased. If this spell is dispelled or its duration runs out, the soul once again percieves the light from above calling it, and will depart in 10 rounds (measured from the action which removed Lingering Soul). If a creature's body has been mostly destroyed, this spell requires at least half of what remains. If a creature's body has been completely destroyed (as disintegrate), this spell cannot be cast. Arcane material component: A small piece of white cloth. |
Reincarnate Transmutation Level: Drd 4 Components: V, S, DF Casting Time: Standard action Range: Touch Target: One corpse of a living creature no older than 10 rounds (or older, if the soul still lingers nearby) or see text. Willing souls only. Duration: 1 hour SR: No Upon touching the corpse of the deceased, the soul is drawn into it. The druid then restores the corpse to life by creating it anew. Over the course of one hour, a new body is created for the soul. Use the usual reincarnation rules to determine the race and its effect on the abilities of the character, with the following exception: A creature who has been reincarnated more recently than one year ago has no chance of changing race. Instead, she is reincarnated as her current race, granting her a chance to fully appreciate the new form before moving on. If the spell is dispelled or the new body is wounded before 1 hour elapses, the process is halted and the soul begins to depart. (This takes 10 rounds, measured from the action which halted the reincarnation). Since the body has been created anew, the creature is restored to full hit points, any missing limbs or ability damage is restored, and any other effects tied to the old body are removed. If a creature's body has been mostly destroyed, this spell requires at least half of what remains. If a creature's body has been completely destroyed (as disintegrate), this spell may be cast anywhere within close range (25 + 5/2 levels feet) of where the creature died. There is no level loss, ability damage, or permanent penalty associated with being reincarnated. |
Revive Conjuration (healing) Level: Clr 5, Pal 4 Components: V, S, DF Casting Time: Standard action Range: Touch Target: One corpse of a living creature no older than 10 rounds (or older, if the soul still lingers nearby) or see text. Willing souls only. Duration: Instantaneous SR: No Upon touching the corpse of the deceased, the soul is drawn into it, and experiences the sensation of having 'popped' back into its body before blacking out. The creature is at -1 hp, stable, and unconscious. Minimal auxiliary healing occurs as necessary to restore life: Con score is raised to 1 (if it is lower), negative levels are reduced to 1 fewer than character level (if there were more), and so forth. Major damage to the torso and the head is repaired, and massive bleeding is staunched. If the body had been mostly or completely destroyed, it is re-created, but any missing limbs remain missing until the target recieves a Regenerate spell. If a creature's body has been mostly destroyed, this spell requires at least half of what remains. If a creature's body has been completely destroyed (as disintegrate), this spell may be cast anywhere within close range (25 + 5/2 levels feet) of where the creature died. There is no level loss, ability damage, or permanent penalty associated with being revived. |
Resurrection Quest Universal Level: Clr 9 Components: V, S, DF Casting time: 10 minutes Range: Touch Target: Self or one willing living creature; intercession may be made for one soul who has been gone for no longer than 1 year/4 levels. Duration: 30 minutes; see text. SR: No This spell is cast upon an intercessor who pleads with a deity to restore a friend to life. When the spell is cast, the intercessor finds herself in the home of the deity, speaking face to face. She must state the reason she wishes to return the deceased to life, and demonstrate her commitment to doing so. Deities are free to refuse the request, at their own discretion, at which point the spell simply ends. Each deity will use her own criteria for determining whether the cause and the intercessor are worthy, but none take resurrection lightly. Generally speaking, diplomacy does not help the request, nor does status or position. Strong desire to return, a good purpose to serve, or strong love between the parties generally does help. Evil deities may have their own criteria, may be unwilling to give up prized souls, or may view giving a resurrection quest as an opportunity to lay an unreasonably difficult and painful challenge on someone who will fail. The deceased will be consulted, and if both she and the intercessor are judged worthy and dedicated enough to undertake the task, the pair is assigned a resurrection quest. A resurrection quest can occur anywhere--within a plane specially constructed for the purpose, in another world, or even within the mind. The intercessor and deceased are assigned a difficult and epic task designed to test their resolve, their dedication to the cause, and their love for each other. This task is tailored specifically by the deity as a test of dedication. Some ideas are given below: - Kord: Participate in a wrestling match and contests of strength with Kord himself, until you can win. Includes years of training and preparation, as well as always losing and never giving up. - Moradin: Descend (on foot) to the center of the earth and return with a handful of the sand found there. Includes many years of difficult combat and navigation, cultivating allies and following hard roads. - Ehlonna: Ascend to the top of an extremely high mountain, through rough thicket, and constant storms, enduring all the extremes and hardships of nature. - Any evil: Endure vile torture and mind games in silence for the entire duration. - Any good: Seek out 100 orphans (listed) and reunite each a relative. - Any: Participate in an epic war. Cause one side to win. The resurrection quest takes enough time to age each participant one full age category. (If this is a disparate amount, the deity manages the subjective flow of time such that each percieves the full amount as having passed). The participants spend the time working together to complete the quest. Resurrection quests are always difficult, and very easy to fail. For many deities, wavering in resolve for but a moment is enough to terminate the spell. For others, achievement of the final goal is all that matters, and moments of despair are allowed so long as they are overcome. In any quest, should the deceased or the intercessor fail to give their utmost (remember--it's a test of resolve!), the spell ends in failure. A request which ends in failure still ages the intercessor and deceased by the amount of time which has apparently passed. Time spent in a resurrection quest flows at a different pace than normal. Those twenty (or two hundred) years of questing are compressed into a half hour, yet the body of the intercessor visibly ages. While the quest is going on, the intercessor's body is comatose, but under the protection of the deity, and invulnerable to all harmful effects (deity's discretion). If the spell is completed successfully, the deceased is restored to life, her body re-created near the intercessor. Both have aged one full age category (and are as far into the next one as they were into the last). Treat childhood as an age category for this purpose (infants age to adults). The penalties and benefits of aging apply. At the deity's discretion, skills or scars gained during the resurrection quest may be retained, but in general the character gains no experience points or levels for having undertaken the quest. However, the memory of the quest remains as a major life event for both parties, and the bond formed between them is permanent. Both parties gain a permanent, non-magical +1 (morale) bonus to Aid Another checks made to help each other. Venerable characters cannot be raised by this method. Venerable characters may intercede, but die within minutes of returning after completing the quest. Time spent dead does not count against your age; your age as the resurrection quest begins is your age at the time of death. |
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