In my most recent session, one of my players got killed by a Wight's energy drain ability, and is now becoming a Wight. It was really meant to be a bad thing but he is a necromancer and is getting all excited. He is the kind of player that plays necromancer every time and tries to take over the world and enslave everybody.
What happens when a character becomes a Wight?
How should I handle megalomaniacal player?
Now he's a wight?
Lose class abilities, and welcome to NPCdom. He's now a page in the Bestiary but probably with better treasure.
Umm... Is the rest of the party okay with adventuring with an evil undead? Is an evil undead even going to function in the scope of your campaign? If not, he hands you his character sheet and re-rolls.
If it's all kosher with the party and campaign and you feel comfortable adjusting the game for him then feel free to let him keep it.
Edit: And, yes, he loses all class abilities and is now the base cr 3 creature from the bestiary except for his equipment. If you decide to let him play as one you can let him take classes from this point on, but he has to start over.
Firstly:
Do You, as the DM, want the PC to be a wight? That is the most important question.
If the answer is "No" then the answer to your original question of what happens- is that the PC has to create a new one. His old one becoming a Wight equates to him being dead.
If the answer is "yes" you do want him to be a wight, then go to the MM entry about the wight and apply the adjustments to the character.
Myself, I'd just knock out their con score and leave the rest of the abilities alone though by raw they should gain increases in most of the rest.
The biggest issue is the fact that they are a spawn, and under the control of the creator wight. If the other PC's haven't yet killed that person then by RAW this PC-Wight is under the direct control of YOUR NPC.
Myself, I don't think I'd allow the PC to become a wight. Being Undead, especially one that can create spawn, will in the long run create more problems for you and the party than it will solve especially given the attitude you mentioned this character having. But that's just my opinion.
-S
Firstly:
Do You, as the DM, want the PC to be a wight? That is the most important question.
Bingo.
He becomes an NPC monster under the GM's control.
As others have said: re-roll a new character.
Unless you want your campaign to roll right off the rails, I wouldn't allow him to remain a PC. The abilities the Wight would grant him, not to mention the whole host of Undead qualities will put him waaaay over the power threshold vs. the other players, especially if he retains his class and race abilities.
In most circumstances, the transformation into a Wight doesn't really leave the original mind/personality intact.
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Well, if the Players are interested in reversing the condition and geting him back from the realm of the Undead, go for it: decide what steps the surviving PCs should take and run them through them.
If you decide they can't reverse the situation, or if the Players aren't interested in getting the PC back, give the Player 3d6 and have him roll up a new PC.
His old one's dead.
Gone.
No longer playable.
See, unless all the PCs are monsters (or have that opportunity at the start of the campaign) NONE of them can be. The PC was killed and turned to a wight -- or a werewolf or whatever -- he's GONE.
I'm quite sure that, upon becoming a wight, you become a standard wight (although a bit weaker until your master dies) under the complete control of the wight that created you. The main thing is this line:
They do not possess any of the abilities they had in life.
So basically the PC would lose all of his class levels and feats. I would say it's time to hand the player another character sheet.
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In my most recent session, one of my players got killed by a Wight's energy drain ability, and is now becoming a Wight. It was really meant to be a bad thing but he is a necromancer and is getting all excited. He is the kind of player that plays necromancer every time and tries to take over the world and enslave everybody.
What happens when a character becomes a Wight?
How should I handle megalomaniacal player?
I would imagine the other PCs might not be able to get used to the smell. Plus he's gonna be walking round wondering whether to make the other PC's his personal spawn (him being megalomaniac and all that). I'd trash his ass. Bring the player down a peg might cure his megalomania too. Besides who ever wanted to be a necromancer anyway? The long hours, the lack of intellectual discussion with one's minions. I'd go mad. Oops I guess necromancers are mad anyway - so he'd probably end up talking to himself :)
In my most recent session, one of my players got killed by a Wight's energy drain ability, and is now becoming a Wight. It was really meant to be a bad thing but he is a necromancer and is getting all excited. He is the kind of player that plays necromancer every time and tries to take over the world and enslave everybody.
What happens when a character becomes a Wight?
How should I handle megalomaniacal player?
The wonderful thing about spawn is that they lose all class levels and abilities. He will reset to his first level stats, plus whatever stat adjustments would be for the wight, if you really want to be kind. All skills, class levels and feats are overwritten to that of a wight. Savage Species had a wonderful short prestige class called Emancipated Spawn, which, if the commanding Wight who created the PC Wight has died, the PC may qualify for. But, the PC will have to level up as a bestiary standard Wight for as many levels as the PRC goes to regain class abilities that the PC had before becoming a Wight.
Becoming a spawned undead, like a wight, wraith, or vampire spawn, is not a shortcut for becoming the equivalent of a Lich or Templated Vampire.
They do not possess any of the abilities they had in life.
The Wight will likely be below the party level in power, actually has a number of weaknesses, which, if you GM it correctly, will result in a fairly short career of unlife as emancipated spawn. If the creating wight is still alive, however, then the PC wight can have off screen adventures trying to come out of the control of the elder wight, while trying to survive. This can be fun.
Now, a spawn creating undead, like a Wight, is a problem if there is trivial opposition that the wight can drain into also becoming wights under the control of the PC wight. Peasant villagers that seem like tasty snacks are the real problem you will have to address. Although the rules suggest that spawn creation is open ended, I recommend keeping a control limit, much like for animate dead. Since wight is not a template, you will not have to contend with troll wights, or dragon wights, which will mean that only humaniods slain with the energy drain will become spawn, and will only fall into the two alternate types, either brute, frost, or the standard wight. I would not as a GM allow cairn wights except through create undead.
Edit to add: Keep in mind that Wights, while intelligent, are hungry for the vital essence of the living. Therefore, you are, as many other posters have suggested, completely within rights to slap a big shiny N in front of that PC, take the sheet, take all the advice I mentioned up above, and create a memorable adversary for the party in the future. A highly intelligent Necromancer specialist Wizard wight was, in fact, a notable bad guy in one of my campaigns back in 3.5, although in PFRPG I would rebuild as an Undead or Arcane bloodline Sorceror, as the stats of the wight are not condusive to being an Int based caster.
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You're a DM, take the reins and get your game under control. He's dead, gone, and that's all she wrote.
However, you've got the lines for a great story if some semblance of his "evil" nature remains. Could this NPC wight go on to do some horrific things that the party will have to deal with at some point?
I think it depends on what you want to do with your game. If you don't want the player to become a wight then, by the RAW, he loses all of the abilities he had in life and becomes a spawn. On the other hand, if you don't mind him playing a wight, then you might consider having him lose one or two levels in his current class (you can say it's part of the wighting process, but really it's so that he's not more powerful than the other players) and either give him the wight template from Dragon #300, or allow him to progress in the wight character class presented in Libris Mortis. You could also use the rules for undead hunger and appetites from Libris Mortis or create your own rules to make for some interesting roleplaying encounters.
Personally, if my players are excited about something, I try to find a way to make it work. In this case, I think you have an excellent opportunity to give the player what he wants, as well as some great resources available to make it work.
thanks guys. most of these were along my own thoughts, i just needed second opinions.
In game we had slain an azlanti beetle and he reanimated it. upon turning into a wight he freaked and jumped on it, commanding it to burrow. Now he is underground as a wight without the ability to command the beetle :) And I don't see him slaying the elder wight anytime soon. Plus, I'm gonna have the PC's kill him. He's evil and undead, nuff said.
What are the wight ability adjustments and skills?
As has been said a few times, it's up to you.
But you have an interesting opportunity.
If your game group has an issue with him always playing evil necromancers, you've been handed a decent hook. Take his character, wight it up, and have it show up to harm the rest of the party. Encourage him to develop a good-oriented character dedicated to hunting down his wight ex-character and putting it to rest. Perhaps the necromancer's not-evil brother or sister. Use it as bait to draw him into the light.
End of the road for Necro Necrosonn the 5th [or whomever]
time for him to roll them bones [and not in an undead recreational smoking way] and create Necro Necrosonn the 6th [presuming from your post that it'll be another necromancer...
Hey maybe he could be encouraged to break the mould and play something else... y'know use his imagination given its a role playing game and all ;)
However the irony of him continually wanting to enslave the world and making him play a spawn for another creature [who may have very different campaign aims to his] has potential...
BD
He seriously believes that he can bend everybody to his will, and complains when it doesn't work. It just gets old. He's a friend who doesn't take criticism well either.
He'll try to convince the party not to kill him, and if they do he'll probably complain and quit.
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In my most recent session, one of my players got killed by a Wight's energy drain ability, and is now becoming a Wight. It was really meant to be a bad thing but he is a necromancer and is getting all excited. He is the kind of player that plays necromancer every time and tries to take over the world and enslave everybody.
What happens when a character becomes a Wight?
How should I handle megalomaniacal player?
Urk, that happened to a player? If it were just a PC wight, I'd advise you to tell the player to roll up a new character -- with a megalomaniac player wight, I'd advise you to stock up some holy water and get some priestly help! ;P
He seriously believes that he can bend everybody to his will, and complains when it doesn't work. It just gets old. He's a friend who doesn't take criticism well either.
He'll try to convince the party not to kill him, and if they do he'll probably complain and quit.
If it's a going to be a problem explain that as per the rules he's under control of the elder wight and can no longer be part of the party.
He seriously believes that he can bend everybody to his will, and complains when it doesn't work. It just gets old. He's a friend who doesn't take criticism well either.
He'll try to convince the party not to kill him, and if they do he'll probably complain and quit.
That's going to cause a bit of a problem then...
Best suggestion: Get the group together before the next game - it can even be early on the day of the next session, and ask the rest of the group what their out of character thoughts are about the situation.
If the group vetoes the idea of the player continuing as a wight, then no one person is the bad guy. Brainstorm about what happens to the character. (I recommend it flees, never to be seen again. At least leave the player with the chance of playing it in another game.)
If the group is cool with the idea - it might even spawn (all pun intended) some great ideas - can you work with it? It might require rewriting your game though... ((If you have access to it, Libris Mortis has some (3.5) rules for dealing with undead characters including wights.))
If it is clear that some characters won't get along with the new made wight... Something has to give. Either the group has to decide to switch to an "evil" game, or the player has to make a new character.
Keep it collaborative, and try to avoid "us versus you" type situations.
Second best suggestion: Tell the player of the now-wight that he has no control over the character as long as the creator wight still exists. And in the meantime, he must make a new character to continue playing. (Again, I suggest the character flees never to be seen from again - at least until the creator wight is destroyed.)
This is purely a stop-gap maneuver, and will only delay the inevitable until such time as the creator wight is destroyed...
Good luck. I do not know the person of whom you are speaking, but it does sound like he has some issues that are going to need to be excised.
He is now a minion with zero class ablitys and possibly only a little recall of his past life..he would see the pc's as folks that betrayed him to this fate and give them no mercy...the character they knew is gone.
He is now a minion with zero class ablitys and possibly only a little recall of his past life..he would see the pc's as folks that betrayed him to this fate and give them no mercy...the character they knew is gone.
Good call.
"the creature that faces you is but a pale, twisted imitation of the man you all knew... It shifts menacingly in its predatory stance, burning gaze moving between you all as it smiles with a jagged toothed maw. Vainly you search for some semblance of your former comrade in those cold, dead eyes... but there is nothing - save the glint of undeath.
It would be neither quick nor easy, but silently you offer prayer that the gods guide your hands and blades - and his soul be soon released..."
BD
He seriously believes that he can bend everybody to his will, and complains when it doesn't work. It just gets old. He's a friend who doesn't take criticism well either.
He'll try to convince the party not to kill him, and if they do he'll probably complain and quit.
That's going to cause a bit of a problem then...
Best suggestion: Get the group together before the next game - it can even be early on the day of the next session, and ask the rest of the group what their out of character thoughts are about the situation.
If the group vetoes the idea of the player continuing as a wight, then no one person is the bad guy... {snip} ...Keep it collaborative, and try to avoid "us versus you" type situations.
The only problem with this suggestion is that when a group of players discuss the fate of the wight as if in a position to decide what happens, the wight-player is likely to get defensive and feel he/she is being 'picked on' by his teammates. Depending on the maturity of the players, they may not want to appear 'the bad guy' so they hem, haw, and defer to the DM. In the end, the DM always has to be the 'bad guy' because that is where the buck stops. The DM's only shield from this (aside from players being mature) is that the rules say that the Wight loses all PC levels, etc. and is under control of the elder Wight - i.e NPC-land.
If the player can't handle that maturely - it's his choice to leave the game or whatever.
The only problem with this suggestion... ...He seriously believes that he can bend everybody to his will, and complains when it doesn't work. It just gets old. He's a friend who doesn't take criticism well either.
He'll try to convince the party not to kill him, and if they do he'll probably complain and quit.
That's going to cause a bit of a problem then...
Best suggestion: Get the group together before the next game - it can even be early on the day of the next session, and ask the rest of the group what their out of character thoughts are about the situation.
If the group vetoes the idea of the player continuing as a wight, then no one person is the bad guy... {snip} ...Keep it collaborative, and try to avoid "us versus you" type situations.
Yeah. I'm aware it isn't a perfect suggestion... But it still is the best. It has the best chance of fixing the problem...
So, again I wish MacNuada good luck.
Well, I'm assuming the Wight that killed him was already slain, so we don't have the *easy* out of "You're spawn under the control of the Wight that converted you" (the rules on that are pretty clear).
So, then, we have the wight-as-PC issue.
First off, as said, he loses his levels, so that's bad for him. (That would be what they mean by: "They do not possess any of the abilities they had in life.") Obviously, as mentionned, he's got some advancement he'd have to do before he could start (re)gaining class levels.
Second, he's about to undergo a personality shift (unless he was already LE, which I doubt, you know, with the whole Chaotic-sounding bits you mentionned).
Third, he's a newbie who's hungry and probably views the party as a nice source of food.
So, to the rest of the party, IC, the corpse of their friend (now rotting and with glowing eyes) is begging them to let him come with - unless one of them is planning to find a "cure" for Wightness and plans on locking up the thing so it can't hurt anyone, I would imagine a good-aligned party would pretty much refuse - realizing that they're facing an LE creature that wants to kill them wearing their friend as a flesh-mask.
Now, if they're too meta-game and want to let the player have his way, then there's a whole host of things to deal with to make them want to rectify the situation.
1: I would make him have to feed - and might go so far as to treat him like an infected lycanthrope while he's dealing with his hunger (ie - he's an NPC during that time...)
2: The corpse-dude would be burned to death the first time he went to *any* settlement, unless the party took pains to disguise him. And, if they did, they'd be branded as evil themselves if they were ever discovered. (And they probably would be, based on #1).
3: Attack the party with a hoarde of skeletons, and when the cleric channels to wipe them out, say goodbye to their new leechie-buddy.
Now, you could, as a DM clearly point out the problems to the party and let them decide (it's a matter of having the things their characters would clearly know actually enter their thought processes -- in a world with undead, people tend to be uneasy about such things, for instance) -and they would clearly be having this conversation without the input of the corpse. If they still want to do it - let them, but as a DM, you need to have the *world* react properly, even if they aren't.
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He seriously believes that he can bend everybody to his will, and complains when it doesn't work. It just gets old. He's a friend who doesn't take criticism well either.
He'll try to convince the party not to kill him, and if they do he'll probably complain and quit.
Sometimes friends can be your worst players because the expect preferential treatment, and take their in-game issues out on your friendship, especially when things don't go their way. I've walked away from games where DM and his buddies get favored because it spoils the fun and ruins the RPG experience. I actually dissuade evil characters in my campaigns because I personally like to convey a "moral" message, and they end up being disruptive especially when the choose CE because they think that gives license to spoil the game for everyone else in the name of role play.
I once had a CE PC in my game who ran afoul of a cabal of LE assassins who finally took him out. It wasn't my intention for them to kill him, and providing the party didn't cross their affairs they generally kept a low profile and out of the party's way. Obviously if they'd been a contract out on a PC in the party that would have been another matter but it never happened because the city where they operated tolerated them. He took one or two of their lower ranking members out for kicks, though the rest of the party refused to take part because the assassins hadn't tried to attack them anyway.
This cabal had a set of rules that required retribution for wanton killing of their members, unless a contract could be produced that authorized it by another group. This didn't apply to the CE PC who ended up being set on between adventures when he was on his own. To be fair to me I did let him role play the encounter and gave him a possible chance to survive. It's amazing how stupid testosterone laden players can fall for the old poison chalice routine when being entertained by a charming "lady".
In the next play session a new and subdued PC joined the group and handed them a scroll saying: "For services rendered - all free of charge . Have a simply wonderful day."
His body possessed by putrescence his struggling intellect riven from his body to plunge with the weight of his soul into the deepest darkest corner of the domains of an evil entity. Torment and sorrow - pain and brutality are his bedfellows now.
Yet still, as the entity sifts his new found possession - tearing into the slivers of memory and character - a question starts to form. Perhaps these adventurers might be of some use....
sigurd
He is in the perfect position now to take over the world. He can be a Hellsing-type villan. A Nazi Necromancer...
Wight makes Right
Honestly, I would let him continue as-is. Why not? How's he gonna heal himself? What happens if he get's turned? Does he realize he is now vulnerable to Control Undead? To Searing Light?
I think it might be a good lesson in why undead don't become adventurers. Besides, it would be mean to ruin his fun for no reason.
Yeah really, every time a priest channels energy to heal the party "Arrrgh, it burns!"
A Nazi Necromancer...
Wight makes Right
A Wight supremacist.
Wights--the king of bad pun monsters
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Honestly, I would let him continue as-is. Why not? How's he gonna heal himself? What happens if he get's turned? Does he realize he is now vulnerable to Control Undead? To Searing Light?
I played a character who was turned undead by a cursed sword once. The sword did actually provide some healing, as whenever I killed something with it there was a chance that the sword healed me of some damage. It was really fun and exciting, because I was low on hit points and would be destroyed when I reached 0 (instead of just unconscious), but the only viable way for me to increase them was to subject myself to the dangers of melee combat. I think the DM might have fudged a roll or two, becuase even though I got down to a single hit point once, the sword managed to feed me the souls of my victims just whenever I most needed it.
Undead half-orc fighters with swords of soul cleaving rule.
So, then, we have the wight-as-PC issue.
I don't see that as an issue.
"My character comes back as a wight. Cool, I get to play a wight."
"No, you don't. Your character isn't yours anymore. Its now a remorseless undead terror under my control. Make a new character, please."
"But, I want to play a wight."
"We all want things we can't have. Anyway, Bob's character just came back as a wight. It lunges for the rogue. Initiative, please."
So, then, we have the wight-as-PC issue.I don't see that as an issue.
"My character comes back as a wight. Cool, I get to play a wight."
"No, you don't. Your character isn't yours anymore. Its now a remorseless undead terror under my control. Make a new character, please."
"But, I want to play a wight."
"We all want things we can't have. Anyway, Bob's character just came back as a wight. It lunges for the rogue. Initiative, please."
Yeah, well, that's how *I* would play it, but I was attempting to help with the "arguing the guy into submission" bit.
I'm all about the "lawful evil, nasty, life-hating undead" trying to kill the party right away. ;)