Death in other Fantasy Settings

The hero always lives to fight another day. Through encounters with all sorts of evil, even the most careful of adventurers will find themselves on death's door. Death mechanics are an important flavor tool that define the only true failure mechanic in the game. The standard death mechanic in 5e works great in a Heroic Fantasy campaign, but fails to provide the proper flavor in other fantasy games.

When to not change death mechanics All of these mechanics invariably make death more prominent in a game. As the DM, you have full control over the world. If you want to kill your players, don't hide behind mechanics. Rocks fall, everyone dies. These alternate rules are best introduced at the start of a new campaign and are accepted by everyone at the table to create a more engaging experience.

The following are some alternate forms of death mechanics that you might find more appropriate in your campaign. Each comes with a recommendation for the game styles outlined in the Dungeon Master's guide on pages 38-41. Also consider the Hero Points variation in the Dungeon Master's Guide on page 264, which makes death even less of a threat than with normal rules.

Plot Armor

Great for: Dark Fantasy, Intrigue, Mystery, Wuxia

The halfling falls to her knees, spitting out blood as she watches the dark creature slip away into the darkness. She limps home, swearing an oath against the abomination that haunts her city.

At zero hit points, the player becomes unconscious and stable until it regains at least 1 hp. Additionally, the player loses a plot point. Any attacks against them removes another plot point.

When the player reaches 0 plot points, they die.

Starting at level 1 and at each level after, the player received an additional plot point. For a more cinematic game, an additional plot point is given at each new tier of play (1, 5, 11, 17). For a grittier game, limit the players to a number of plot points equal to their tier of play.

Lingering Injuries

Great for: Sword and Sorcery, Swashbuckling

To his shame they call him One-Eye. The half-orc grunted in anger as he stabbed his dagger through the skull of a nearby goblin. One eye for One-Eye. Until the day he gets his revenge, everyone will be blind.

Use the standard death rules. Additionally, any player who reaches zero hit points must also roll on the Lingering Injuries table on page 272 in the DMG. If a player is suffering from these effects when they are taken to zero hit points, they have disadvantage on death saving throws.

Hit Dice

Great for: Epic, Mythic, & Heroic Fantasy

Hadarai lingered on the death's doorstep as the battle swirled around him. His life, his friends, and all he fought for floated through his mind. With a surge of adrenaline, Hadarai pushed past the pain and stood for a final conflict.

Players only need to succeed at a single death saving throw to stabilize. However, they also die when they fail a single death saving throw. If the player would fail a death saving throw, they can spend any number of hit dice by rolling them and adding that amount to their death saving throw. A hit die expended that way is never regained.

Health & Vitality

Great for: War

Jalana's eyes shot open. She sat up, looking at the rows of broken and dying people laid out in rows on either side of her. She was still alive. Next to her bed was her glaive. She took it and painfully pushed herself to her feet. This war wasn't over, and neither was she.

Use the standard death rules. Every player has a pool of Vitality that is equal to their Hit Point total. When they take damage that takes them to zero hit points, any damage they recieve reduces their Vitality instead. If they player is reduced to zero Vitality, they die.

During a long rest, a player can spend one hit die to regain Vitality.

Additional optional rules

Last Stand

If a player would make a death saving throw, they can instead expend all of their remaining hit dice (minimum of one) to return to one hit point. After the combat is over, they gain a level of exhaustion.

Permanent death saving throws

The number of failed death saving throws is not reset when a player is stabilized. Instead they only reset after a long rest.