EDSG Episode 191 - Player Character Death

Earthdawn Survival Guide

* Player character death.

* Reminder: Tastes and desires on what a player wants from a game can vary!

* Most problems arise from a difference in expectations between the players and GM.

* Story about Josh’s friend Doug and his approach to his characters.

* Players who strongly identify with their characters can dislike having their story “cut short”.

* A brief sidebar about gamemasters fudging dice results.

* Leaving the “training wheels on” – how long before death becomes a legitimate stake?

* “Sliders” – the degree to which PC death can come into play.

* Setting a policy on handling player character death.

* Is death permanent? How easy is it to come back?

* Revisit the policy to see if it needs to change as the campaign progresses.

* Table tale from Josh about Bearclaw the Journeyman and a player choosing death for their character.

* Table tale from Dan about a character death and how it shaped the game.

* Critical Role Campaign 2 and how a character death shaped character growth and future story.

* In-game acknowledgement of the character death.

* Does removing taking death off the table remove any tension or stakes to the game?

* Finding other options to threaten characters without death; deus ex machina.

* If a character can come back, what does it cost? How might it change them?

* Another table tale from Dan about a fight against the “big bad”.

* Earthdawn’s “lethality curve” and how that shifts as powers come online.

* Email from Leamon (part 1): Petty GM on a power trip.

* Game tone and setting conceit example: Paranoia.

* Character as pawn or game-piece. “Character funnels”.

* The Traveler RPG and characters dying before the game even started.

* Email from Leamon (part 2): Connection to a character affecting feelings about the game.

* Player grief and emotional bleed.

* Bringing in a new character, how to create them, and other consequences.

* Email from Leamon (part 3): Bringing a character/archetype back for more exploration.

* Player introspection and self-discovery resulting from character death.

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