Death And Injury
Look, you aren’t a cat, or well… maybe you are, I don’t judge, but you only have one life. Under most other systems, coming back from death is just a donation of some gold, some chanted words, and a diamond shoved into your chest. Open Legend doesn’t have that. There are three answers to death instead, all of them narrative. You can chose to stay dead, go on a special kind of Encounter, or work with a Narrator. This encounter depends on the Narrator willing to run it, but it will typically involve either you and/or some friends who set out to bring the character back. Another possibility in place of the encounter is working with a Narrator on how they come back even without an Encounter.
But Death is not easy on the person and they suffer a cumulative 10 point debt. The character does not earn any new purchase slots or gain any Exp Shards until the debt is paid. This debt is paid off by going on Encounters for a total of 10 points. Once fully paid, any overflow is treated as normal. The Encounter Report for your Death Encounter (if you had one) counts towards eliminating the debt you suffered due to dying. Why does this occur? Death shouldn’t be without consequence. Usually it occurs because of a bad decision (like attacking a chicken) or being in a bad spot. But it is hard to die, the Narrator has to purposefully inflict a Final Blow on the character for them to die. Most people won’t ever have to use this (hopefully…).
Have You Tried Plugging It Back In?
You died. Insert coins to continue. 3... 2... 1... Wait! This isn't an arcade game where I scramble to get the coins out of the plastic cup precariously balanced on the edge of the machine I am playing at! This is a TTRPG! Death doesn't cost you money to come back here (but if EA buys us out... no promises!). Instead, coming back from death is a story. So, it might not be an in depth encounter, but even the most basic of returning to life requires a bit of reasoning and story to how they came back with more depth than "I sit up alive again." What is meant by this requirement and just how difficult is it to meet?
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This just means you need a reason on how you came back to life and it shouldn't be that difficult with a creative mind or the ability to ask for help. You alone do not need to think up how it happens and can request aid from friends or a narrator. Of course, it does need approval to come back from the dead, so make sure you get that before you Thriller your way through town. But what kind of things can be done? Well, if you are a cleric of a powerful entity, they could bring you back at a cost. Maybe they ask you to get a special item they want or to kill another person. This can also affect your physical appearance. In another case, your spirit fought its way from the afterlife back to the body. Maybe a powerful necromancer reanimated you as a type of undead and you escaped their control! This is very open, but some might require better storytelling than others.
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Of course, certain deaths may make certain things not work. Like you can't do CPR on a pile of ash. But anything can be walked off though it might need some magic or vodoo involved to make it so.
Dealing With Death
So you died... well, that is awkward... But! You got better! Hopefully, at least. If you didn't get better, the rest of this article will bore you to dea- oh uh... boredom! Anyways! So you died and now you've gotten better, what does this mean for your character? Technically, as much as you want it to. However, a character who nonchalantly shakes off death like it is a bit of confetti in their hair will likely be seen as a rather flat character. That is not to say you can't do it, I'm not the boss of your roleplay. But, if you really want death to matter, it is best that something comes out of your temporary trip to the afterlife. On the flip side, being too theatrical with your death can be just as bad, seeming too comical or false depth. Death should shape the clay, but it shouldn't make the pot.
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But what? Well, that is predominately up to you, though most Narrators would likely be willing to help you. However, I do have a few tips hidden somewhere in my sleeves (or was that aces?). To start, you'll want to look at how and why they died. Did they die risking themselves for another? Or was their death the cause of trusting someone and getting stabbed in the back? The change on your character should stem from something here. In the former case, they may hesitate the next time they need to risk their lives like that again if they felt it wasn't a good option or they may try to drown themselves in their work and bury their emotions. If the latter case of the previous two examples, the character could become more paranoid and less trusting especially with people they just met or to their back.
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But, now that you know where to start, what comes next? Well, if possible, recuperation through friends, family, or some other means. It could also be therapy for the character. Perhaps it can influence the build choices, such as taking a different name and being a vigilante or maybe they begin to practice magic to cover up the spot where they failed. Of course, this isn't mandatory and you can continue on with the build you had in mind, but it can help flesh out a character more.