Ring of Spiteful Resurrection

[harmor]

Ring of Spiteful Resurrection

Aura strong conjuration [evil]; CL 20th
Slot ring; Price artifact; Weight —

Description

This band appears to be a silvered signet ring barring the mark of a unknown Nobel. When placed on a dead body, once per day, the creature is Resurrected as per the spell. However, the creature Resurrected has a special curse, one that cannot be removed with Remove Curse. The curse reduces one of your stats randomly by 6 until the creature levels.

Construction Requirements

Unknown

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This item was introduced by our GM because he didn't want us to just replace our characters with a new character each time they die.

[Tacticslion]

Um. That sounds terrible?

(Also, it's evil. I'd be all dispelling that schtick so fast and smashing it while it's not magic that you wouldn't believe it.)

(That is, I'd do that unless I knew the GM specifically had it as a plot MacGuffin. Regardless, it sounds pretty awful. It could completely gimp a character anyway, especially, but by no means exclusively, primary casters of any sort, at random, making them effectively unplayable and a dead weight on the party until level up. This means more resources the party uses to keep themselves and their comrade alive long enough, you hope, to level up... presupposing no one else dies... which they are likely to with a deadweight they've basically got to protect. Having limitless resurrection is ridiculously powerful, but uncureably cursing a random stat is a possibly virtually overwhelming deficit. IF you have any say in the matter, make the curse able to be undone, but more resistant based on the user's level - as in it takes some rare and/or semi-expensive but not super expensive stuff, like holy water, and time to negate it, thus giving people a reason to hang around. The only reason to use this that I could see is if you guys don't have a primary divine caster already and don't have any other source to get one.)

EDIT: Ah, it's an artifact, somehow I missed that... twice. In which case I'd make sure to get it to an angel right away. If you got it from an angel, I'd get it to a different angel, 'cause clearly that other guy was just in disguise*.

*This is not automatically true, but I am personally paranoid of evil items. :)

[Sphen]

Ths is the sort of thing that makes you think whether or not being rezzed is worth it.

I do think that it is ironic that the DM wanted this item to STOP people from just replacing their characters and yet it could so easily ruin a character's playability.

[Tacticslion]

Sphen wrote:

Ths is the sort of thing that makes you think whether or not being rezzed is worth it.

I do think that it is ironic that the DM wanted this item to STOP people from just replacing their characters and yet it could so easily ruin a character's playability.

This is pretty much exactly my point (put far more succinctly).

I really wouldn't want to play a rezzed character who literally could do nothing of value for an entire level's worth of play. I mean, I could certainly metagame that puppy like nobody's business, but I don't particularly like doing that in games.

[Gilfalas]

Actually if you read the spell, you can REFUSE to be ressurected, thereby dying permanently.

Unless the GM has this ring void that. In which case I would tell him goodby and enjoy his game. If he kills the playes so much that you need THAT many replacement characters he should not be punishing YOU with this ring. He should be learning how to gamemaster properly.

[Richard Leonhart]

I like the idea of the ring, "till you level" is a bit extreme tough, as this takes veeeery long later in the game, but then again, you will have resurrection means other than the ring.

An artifact at level 1 breaks disbelief a bit, but it's alright.

But honestly you guys, refusing resurrection because you wouldn't be as awesome is metagaming. At first levels I would gladly use that ring (if I like my character), perhaps I'm a bit weak for 3 sessions, but so what?

[Gilfalas]

Richard Leonhart wrote:

But honestly you guys, refusing resurrection because you wouldn't be as awesome is metagaming.

Perhaps they refuse ressurection because they LIKE their rewards in the afterlife?

Perhaps they refuse ressurection because they dread coming back to a world where they will be physically and spritually broken again and again, becoming weaker after each return and dying even faster each time due to their weakened state?

Perhaps they refuse because they know that their reduced conditions and capabilities not only makes their own life hell but it puts their friends and companions in jeopardy because they now have to carry along the burden of their vastly reduced companions?

[Viktyr Korimir]

Richard Leonhart wrote:

But honestly you guys, refusing resurrection because you wouldn't be as awesome is metagaming.

Refusing resurrection because you know you'll come back crippled? That's not metagaming at all; that is a reasonable in-character decision that a considerable portion of humanity would make in real life.

There's a big difference between fearing death-- even though some people still choose death-- and accepting being returned from death while you are receiving your just reward for a life well lived. There is no survival instinct once you are already dead. There is no longer the existential terror that this life is the only one you get.

Indeed, I would argue that any reasonable person, once dead, would need to have a compelling reason to want to return at all-- and then, the knowledge of returning crippled would have to weigh against it.

[skrahen]

I like an idea used by an old DM back in 2cnd Ed days... Similar to your ring but it was a place. Fountain of youth style waterfall(small) bodies left overnight under the stream would be raised. The area became a plot point on several occasions, in the end it turned out there was a gate to the positive material plane in the falls. Anyway it was fun.. Racing bbeg minions to the grotto when we found out they had discovered it's secret location... One time we had to fend off a seemingly endless stream of ghouls until sunrise while waiting on our fighter to finish his time under the stream.
I also heard but did not personally experience someone who used a similar method but it was a pet semetery style graveyard brought you back whether you liked it or not, although I do think everyone came back willingly, your character would be an undead(npc) if you weren't willing to return don't think he ever got to use the undead caveat but it was neat flavor.

[Brianide]

skrahen wrote:

I like an idea used by an old DM back in 2cnd Ed days... Similar to your ring but it was a place. Fountain of youth style waterfall(small) bodies left overnight under the stream would be raised. The area became a plot point on several occasions, in the end it turned out there was a gate to the positive material plane in the falls. Anyway it was fun.. Racing bbeg minions to the grotto when we found out they had discovered it's secret location... One time we had to fend off a seemingly endless stream of ghouls until sunrise while waiting on our fighter to finish his time under the stream.

I also heard but did not personally experience someone who used a similar method but it was a pet semetery style graveyard brought you back whether you liked it or not, although I do think everyone came back willingly, your character would be an undead(npc) if you weren't willing to return don't think he ever got to use the undead caveat but it was neat flavor.

Totally stealing this. I think I'll make it so the falls let the party cleric cast Raise Dead without the diamonds, and then tie it into an adventure where I waste my NPC fighter.

[Major_Tom]

I see absolutely nothing wrong with this ring. My first reaction was how weak the curse was. Only one level? That's nothing.

Only possible change, to avoid totally nerfing a fighter, by having his strength go to 6, or a mage by nerfing his int, give them a choice. A random roll (tell them what it is), or their con. Frankly, the idea that the character is crippled is overreacting. It's only one level, that's really nothing at lower levels, and by the time you hit 9th level, you have other options. (If you don't have a cleric to do raise dead, you should have a mage to do reincarnate).

And even if the character is nerfed, so what? He might have to actually roleplay dealing with a curse? A fighter can get used to doing a lot less damage for one level, or a mage can depend on using wands and scrolls until he levels. Assuming mid levels have some stat boosting items, it might not even totally nerf them, just take away some of their higher levels spells for one level. Make them appreciate what they have when they get the level back.

Oh, and the argument that someone might not choose to be resurrected because they'd come back crippled? Crippled implies permanent. Temporarily weakened is more like it, and if they really wanted to come back, that would be no obstacle at all. In fact, it might be fun, overcoming a challenge to regain your power and prestige.