In my regular weekly campaign, the most recent foray into the dungeon has brought with it two more PC deaths - both of them 7th level PCs. Even the henchman being prepped by one of the players as a backup to cover this sort of eventuality was also killed. Back to the drawing board - and, the way I run things, a new PC starting at 1st level. We are now I think at PC death #23 or 24, over the couse of just over two years. A rough average of one every four sessions.
What passing bells for those who die as cattle? Only the monstrous anger of the d20s. But still the PCs come. They are fully aware of the possibility of death. Indeed, they understand it to be inescapable. But it is somehow what actualises them.
In this respect, PCs in my game are Heideggerians. The anticipation of death is what mobilises them. It is the fact that they will die that stirs in them the desire to act. Knowledge of the inevitability of death is inextricably bound up, that is, in the ancient understanding of freedom as the pursuit of excellence. It is only because we know that we will one day die that we do anything at all that is worth doing - and that therefore we endeavour to realise our true selves, and become that version of ourself that is potential within us.
This is why D&D PCs are so relentlessly active. In the two years I have been running my campaign, only about 6 months have elapsed in 'real time'. Yet the PCs have in that time grown vastly wealth, founded a cult, vanquished pirates, slain a swan queen, massacred a tribe of shrew-men, tamed a herd of hippogriffs, and much more besides. They live as though embodying Heidegger's description of 'being-towards-death'.
This passage from Gene Wolfe's The Wizard Knight (which I intend to write a lengthy entry about at some point) seems apposite:
I raised my hand, and finding the rag still in it began to clean my hauberk again. 'What's foolish is spending your whole life being scared of death.'
'You believe that because some knight told you.'
'Sir Ravd, you mean. No, he didn't tell me that. Only that a knight was to do what his honour demanded, and never count his foes. But you're right just the same, a knight told me. That knight was me. People who fear death - Lord Beel does, I guess - live no longer than those who don't, and live scared.'
What is important is not to ignore death, but to accept its inevitability as a reason for living well. This is what Heidegger was driving at, and this seems to be the implicit philosophy of old school D&D PCs.
Yeah, I used to be hesitant with the whole "killing PC's" as a DM. In our last game, a major PC was killed along with two important NPC's. Did anyone take it badly? Nope. Without danger and the real potential (and likelihood) of character death, there is little to no tension. And without tension in a game . . .?
ReplyDeleteBy the way, what old school system are you using? Getting up to level 7 in two years sounds pretty brisk but maybe you're playing often.
We play once a week, BECMI, so the PCs get XP for bringing back treasure - they don't have to also spend it as they would in B/X.
DeleteYou use the Rules Cyclopedia?
DeleteYes, but only XP for treasure and monster kills (not story goals, achievements, etc.).
DeleteAn interesting take. Do you feel OSR games bring out this element more than modern variant where character death is far rarer?
ReplyDeleteDefinitely.
DeleteIn my experience modern RPGs tend to be very slow and drawn out affairs with lots of emphasis on emoting.
I emote plenty. "Nothing . . . happens to any man . . . that he is not formed by nature . . . into . . . a bear . . . Grrtthhhhhh . . . hhhh . . xxcth . . . . . ."
DeleteGod I laughed at that Theo
DeleteNow, consider the cowardly wizard Rincewind from the Discworld stories. Expeditiously retreating from every manner of danger, motivated only by self-preservation, yet despite all that becoming the focus of one adventure after another.
ReplyDeleteIs such a conceit only possible in storytelling, or can some manner of it be succesfully produced in an RPG? Other than, say, a single character in a party acting as such as a foil.
I think not in a campaign. For a one-off, yes. In the long term it would get boring for the person playing the PC, and annoying for the others.
DeleteNoisms, if I may ask without offence, what is your religious affiliation if any? You like to bring up prominently Christian authors - invariably ones I like on their literary merits - and as a reader of your blog I feel like I might better understand what you say if I know who you do or don't pray to, not in any judgemental sense but purely a matter of appreciating your perspective.
ReplyDeleteI was brought up as a Christian and was at one time very devout. I still have a lot of time for Christian teaching. I think it's a terrible tragedy that Christ's critiques of e.g. hypocrisy and pride have disappeared from public life and consider that to be in large part responsible for the awful mess we are in. In terms of affiliation I suppose I'm something more than an agnostic but not a fully-fledged believer. Though I might get there.
DeleteI don't know if you're familiar with Paul Kingsnorth's substack, but if not (and I feel you might be), here's a recommendation for you.
ReplyDeleteTo your assertion regarding the Heideggerian nature of OS PCs , I think this is true, but the idea finds it's most Platonic expression (in rpg terms) in Greg Stafford's Pendragon. That game also manages to be about emoting AND dying, which I guess, is a feat.
Thanks for the blog David.
I like Paul Kingsnorth but I've not read his substack. I will though.
DeleteGood observation about Pendragon! Love that game.
Some players get demoralised at losing too many PCs. This is one reason I like using 5e D&D in my old school sandbox games. Where an OSR game like yours might see two dozen PCs lost in two years, with 5e it falls to half a dozen or so. I also like to start new PCs at half the highest PC level, so eg with 7th level PCs in the group I start new PCs at 3rd. Still a fair bit of death, but also a fighting chance. Guess I'm getting soft in my old age (50). :)
ReplyDeleteI don't mind 5th edition but the death rules do annoy me a little bit. I basically don't like rules making exceptions for PCs. If the PCs get three lives (I forget the precise functioning) then NPCs and monsters should get that as well.
DeletePCs need to roll 10+ on a d20 three times, before rolling 1-9 three times, to stabilise. The rules suggest not bothering with this for monsters, the actual reason given is so that the PCs don't need to slit the throats of surviving enemies after the battle, presumably so as to keep the action 'heroic'. I do sometimes roll death saves for monsters, only if they have a healer though. The big issue in 5e is that you can be on 0 hp and popped back up with a single heal spell. I did kill a PC last night though in my 5e game - taken to 0 hp by the BBEG medusa crime boss, then a second blow was 2 automatic failed saves, then the player's turn and she rolled an 8, dying.
DeleteI suppose my PCs strike me as less conscious of death and more of legacy. You build and plan and budget and record, there is gambit and counteraction and scheme and debate - until you find yourself in a place from which there is no escape, no negotiation, no debts to be called in or assets to employ. All that went before becomes merely sandcastles in the floor of the arena. You stake your life and hopes on a moment of possibly catastrophic action, like cutting the Gordian knot. If you succeed, maybe you'll make a better sandcastle.
ReplyDeletePerhaps this explains why I'm not a devotee of Nortia.
Noisms I'm curious as to what a "typical" PC death looks like, especially for the higher level characters. Are they dying to traps/poisons/death spells? Victims of surprise attacks by monsters? Casualties in a more drawn-out combat?
ReplyDeleteThis is a good question and one that might deserve a full blog entry. The answer is a mix of all of those things but I would have to do a proper survey. The most recent two deaths were in an epic drawn-out combat with a major adversary, and a random encounter with giant scorpions with one of the PCs being stung and failing an (easy) save vs poison. I do have a list of all the deaths somewhere, so I might go back and put them all in a post and see if there is any sort of pattern.
Delete