Is it bad form to have an NPC who has died as a result of the fighter move “through death’s eyes” return to life as…

Is it bad form to have an NPC who has died as a result of the fighter move “through death’s eyes” return to life as…

Is it bad form to have an NPC who has died as a result of the fighter move “through death’s eyes” return to life as and undead monster later?

Or does doing so rob the move of some narrative oomph?

8 thoughts on “Is it bad form to have an NPC who has died as a result of the fighter move “through death’s eyes” return to life as…”

  1. I think this is one of those things that work really well in books or movies, but are “dangerous” in an RPG because it might feel like your character is robbed of agency.

    I have a very good idea to pull it through though. Make everything such that this villain could both be a new one or the old one returned. When the players discover who the villain is, ask the fighter which it is.

    I don’t know how hard it is to pull through, but it might be an idea that doesn’t rob the player of agency.

  2. My gut reaction is no. You respect the player’s effect on fiction, the NPC is still dead.

    The way it could misfire is by returning the NPC to her previous role in fiction with this move. I.e. They killed their arch-nemesis, I make him come back as an undead arch-nemesis.

    I would try to overcome that risk by making a significant change in the NPC due to her turning undead. I.e. Evil genius wizard becomes mindless and vulnerable to cunning (and maybe magic control). Or a henchman becomes a very dangerous vengeful undead spirit. Or even a potential ally to players.

  4. Mostly, I’d say ask the player, though I realize that robs you of the chance for surprise. I liked Antti’s suggestion, above, for that.

    But I’m inclined to say that it’s fine. I wouldn’t allow the person to be completely resurrected, at least not without the PCs knowing it’s happening and having a chance to stop it. But the undead version is someone different, really. And there’s nothing stopping the Fighter from declaring that the undead version will die in the next battle, right?

  6. Ok, so what about the situation where the Cleric would like to use Animate Dead or Resurrection on the corpse of an NPC who has recently died as a result of “Through Death’s Eyes”.  

    Is there an optimal solution that doesn’t rob either party too much of their narrative oomph? 

Comments are closed.