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I was on the other side of the screen for one of those. It was my first game as a GM. I had 3 brand new players and a pregen.
I killed them all. I still wince about it. I'm not sure any of them came back.
I'm really sorry it happened to you. I hope you do do go play again. It's the exception, not the rule.
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While it is a shame it happened in your first game at least it didn't happen in like your 10th. It doesn't feel better dying 50 hours of character time in. This sort of stuff happens and is part of the game.
I had to run Trial by Machine for a group that was a huge majority new people. By the time they were at the end they ran for their lives after I probably fudged at least 20 rolls in their favor. (I would absolutely only do this in the case of many brand new people and because I was asked to go easy by the VO.)
Venture-Agent, Netherlands—Utrecht
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GM with a penchant for running difficult scenarios (and playing hard-ass) ran Hall of the Flesh Eaters for three newbies and a veteran. Only one of the newbies made it out (the Arcanist). One of those guys we've never seen again, though that may have been unrelated.
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While it is a shame it happened in your first game at least it didn't happen in like your 10th. It doesn't feel better dying 50 hours of character time in. This sort of stuff happens and is part of the game.
I had to run Trial by Machine for a group that was a huge majority new people. By the time they were at the end they ran for their lives after I probably fudged at least 20 rolls in their favor. (I would absolutely only do this in the case of many brand new people and because I was asked to go easy by the VO.)
That scenario is unnecessarily deadly. The boss is an absolute nightmare for low tier. Someone missed the point of PFS for that one (maybe I'm the one that missed the point, but that one is cranked up to 11 for absolutely no reason).
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Venture-Agent, Netherlands—Utrecht
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I played Trial on low tier, and while difficult, we managed to pull through. It was very risky, but I don't think it's TPK material. Then again, I've only seen two or three groups play it, so my sample size is pretty low.
What I remember most from that final boss was how I had a Will save of +5 and I spent cowering in the corner for 7 turns, because I simply couldn't roll above a 10. My GM still pokes fun at me because of that every once in a while.
Venture-Captain, Netherlands
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What I remember most from that final boss was how I had a Will save of +5 and I spent cowering in the corner for 7 turns, because I simply couldn't roll above a 10. My GM still pokes fun at me because of that every once in a while.
You were crying under a bed.
And I will keep bringing it up once in a while. Because its funny :P|
Venture-Captain, Minnesota
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Got slaughtered in my debut PFS game. Kind of brutal... has this happened to anyone else? It's a bit off-putting.
Corran, I am very sorry this happened in your first game. Sometimes the dice betray us.
Please give PFS another try, such deaths are the exception rather than the rule. We really try not to kill new guys. I even proactively fill out Welcome to Pathfinder Boons prior to the game's start so that newcomers can survive an unlucky GM crit!
Hmm
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You guys probably aren't helping the original poster by posting all your horror stories. As Hilary said, these are the exception, not the rule.
Personally, I've GMed 88 tables of Pathfinder Society and only killed 4 PCs. Unfortunately, one of them was a new player to PFS, but he was an experienced D&D player who understood that it was at least partially his fault for trying to acrobatics past a barbarian while playing the wizard pregen. He came back and became a regular in the group.
PFS really isn't that brutal. But you do occasionally have to be cautious. Give it another chance - it really is a lot of fun.
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You guys probably aren't helping the original poster by posting all your horror stories.
The OP did specifically ask if this had happened to anyone else, and very well might be trying to gauge just how common it is, or if the DM might have done things a little off, or just trying to make sure they are not alone.
Anyway, as others have said, it sometimes happens, but I wouldn't say its common. I have come very close a few times to character death, but I can't think of a single time for myself I've lost a character. I can think of a handful of times there has been one or more characters deaths in games I've been in, but is all cases there where ways to bring that character back and keep playing, (one exception being a brand new player that got turned to stone and as far as I know, that player walked away).
Something also to consider here is that the possibility of character death can be a good thing. It makes the game interesting, because there is a chance to loose, fail, or <for a character> to die.
Without these things, the game would grow boring really quickly.
Sometimes it happens because the characters are not well prepared for a given scenario's challenges, and sometimes it's because the dice just don't work well that game. It happens. Sometimes the party make-up makes things harder, and sometimes character make really bad choices within the game.
Take it as a learning experience, and give it another try or two. Maybe try different DM's if that is an option, or if you really feel up to it, maybe try to run a game yourself and see just how the other side of the screen works.
I started running PFS games online here years ago, (not even sure at this point, ha ha), and as far as I know it hadn't been done beforehand, but I just jumped in and started doing it, learning a lot of things the hard way. Not meaning to say you should jump immediately into that, just that maybe it may not be as bad/hard/unsurmountable as it seems.
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I'm pretty sure I was the GM for this scenario, and I DO feel really bad about it. It was a lucky crit for max damage from a CR 3 Cyclops/Ape skeleton in Champion's Chalice Part 2. In my next life as a GM, I will try to remember to go easier on people on their first time out on their -1, even when they are doing the most damage. I just really, really did not expect to crit for max damage.
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My second PFS character - the illustrious private investigator Sarin van Dyne of Taldor - was bitten in two by a giant water beetle due to an unlucky critical in the first round of the first combat of the first (and only) scenario I played him in. Brand new first level character taken from full HP to below negative-CON in one attack. No one else had even had a chance to act yet.
As others have said, it's the exception rather than the rule, but it can happen, even with an experienced players. It stinks, but there's really nothing to do but shrug it off and try again.
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Got slaughtered in my debut PFS game. Kind of brutal... has this happened to anyone else? It's a bit off-putting.What scenario were you playing, could you provide details?
8-21- Champion's Chalice, Part 2.
Warning: Possible spoilers- though I tried to eliminate as much as I could.
I was combating a baddie. Since I was doing the most damage, due to the weapon I was utilizing and my character being the only full melee in our party, it focused on me. (Though there was another PC in contact with it).
Round 1: I drank a pot for a boost.
Round 2: I went smashie smashie and really hurt it (12 or 13 damage- not much, but a lot for level 1). It then attacked me and took 9 of my 12 health despite the valiant effort of our Bard giving me bonuses to AC.
Round 3: (at this point there are a few 'if onlys'). 1st 'if only,' The Bard asked whether I wanted +4 AC or +4 to next attack, I took AC. I just missed its AC by 2 on my next attack (and I think would have killed it due to the damage I could produce). The other 'if only' was if the healer had healed me. Although it's possible this wouldn't have helped (because I ended up 5 past my Con in negative HP), it might have at least kept me from completely dying on the next hit. On the baddies next attack, it got a nat 20 and despite the Bard's assistance, it confirmed. Then the GM rolled max damage on both dice, coupled with its high strength, it reduced me to -17. So the healing may not have helped depending on his roll. The last 'if only' is if I had taken a 5-foot step back and used my Pot of Cure Light Wounds.
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GM with a penchant for running difficult scenarios (and playing hard-ass) ran Hall of the Flesh Eaters for three newbies and a veteran. Only one of the newbies made it out (the Arcanist). One of those guys we've never seen again, though that may have been unrelated.
It was an incredibly lucky crit. Not just the attack roll and confirmation, but the damage was max damage. Coupled with doing almost max damage the turn before, though from a normal hit.
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My second PFS character - the illustrious private investigator Sarin van Dyne of Taldor - was bitten in two by a giant water beetle due to an unlucky critical in the first round of the first combat of the first (and only) scenario I played him in. Brand new first level character taken from full HP to below negative-CON in one attack. No one else had even had a chance to act yet.
As others have said, it's the exception rather than the rule, but it can happen, even with an experienced players. It stinks, but there's really nothing to do but shrug it off and try again.
This wasn't meant to be a dig on you as a GM, in fact, had I been GMing, I probably would've done the same thing. I wasn't expecting the max crit, either. Nor my lackluster attack just before that. And
I should've had the Paladin heal me or taken my Pot.The stars aligned to kill Jayfe... But I guess that means his brother Ryker (almost exactly the same character, funny how that works out), will have to carry on his brother's legacy.
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GM with a penchant for running difficult scenarios (and playing hard-ass) ran Hall of the Flesh Eaters for three newbies and a veteran. Only one of the newbies made it out (the Arcanist). One of those guys we've never seen again, though that may have been unrelated.It was an incredibly lucky crit. Not just the attack roll and confirmation, but the damage was max damage. Coupled with doing almost max damage the turn before, though from a normal hit.
No I did not. Am I still allowed to have one?
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While it is a shame it happened in your first game at least it didn't happen in like your 10th. It doesn't feel better dying 50 hours of character time in. This sort of stuff happens and is part of the game.
I had to run Trial by Machine for a group that was a huge majority new people. By the time they were at the end they ran for their lives after I probably fudged at least 20 rolls in their favor. (I would absolutely only do this in the case of many brand new people and because I was asked to go easy by the VO.)
You are probably right. Desna favor my other characters that they will be protected from a max hit crit that kills them in one blow.
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Venture-Captain, Michigan—Mt. Pleasant
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No I did not. Am I still allowed to have one?GM with a penchant for running difficult scenarios (and playing hard-ass) ran Hall of the Flesh Eaters for three newbies and a veteran. Only one of the newbies made it out (the Arcanist). One of those guys we've never seen again, though that may have been unrelated.It was an incredibly lucky crit. Not just the attack roll and confirmation, but the damage was max damage. Coupled with doing almost max damage the turn before, though from a normal hit.
Sadly it has to be applied to your -1 character so it's too late now. :(
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Venture-Captain, California—Sacramento
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That scenario is unnecessarily deadly. The boss is an absolute nightmare for low tier. Someone missed the point of PFS for that one (maybe I'm the one that missed the point, but that one is cranked up to 11 for absolutely no reason).While it is a shame it happened in your first game at least it didn't happen in like your 10th. It doesn't feel better dying 50 hours of character time in. This sort of stuff happens and is part of the game.
I had to run Trial by Machine for a group that was a huge majority new people. By the time they were at the end they ran for their lives after I probably fudged at least 20 rolls in their favor. (I would absolutely only do this in the case of many brand new people and because I was asked to go easy by the VO.)
Huh. I have had the opposite experience on that one. But then, I do have a tendency to use it as a "teaching people to play" scenario since it includes a lot of mechanics that are going to show up later in less manageable scenarios.
Oh hey look, suffocation, but rather that putting you underwater at the same time, we are going to just give you a button you can hit to end it.
Alright, flying enemies with flyby attack, but we are going to trap them under a roof, so you can still reach them (And if not you can just run through the door they have no way to operate. Sometimes "run away" is the best option.)
Gaze attacks. Lets talk about gaze attacks. But it is fascinate so unless you all fail, you can jostle each other out of it.
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Venture-Captain, California—Sacramento
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Re: Welcome to Pathfinder boon.
Talk to your local VL/VC. Given that this is exactly the sort of thing that it is meant to prevent, and given that it can only be applied to the character who just died, it is possible that they will be willing to work out a compromise to apply the benefit to the character.
I don't suppose this was played at a game store? Probably too late now, but there is also another a really cool program to try to prevent this sort of thing.
Retail Incentive Program
Roleplaying Guild
This program is designed to encourage players to reward retail locations that are providing space for Pathfinder Society Roleplaying Guild players. Locations utilizing the program should advertise its presence to their clientele. We realize that each location is unique, and has an overriding right to determine what is best for their business, so participation in this program is not mandatory. In cases where the specifics of the program don't align well with the retail's procedures (for example, if they don't provide receipts, or they run daily tabs), the event coordinator should work with the retailer to best approximate the intent of the policy.
Game stores and other retail locations are an important part of the Pathfinder Society community, and it's important to support them so that they continue to provide support for Pathfinder Society play. Under this program, players can redeem receipts in exchange for modest benefits for the entire party.
Redeeming a receipt simply involves showing it to the event coordinator, who marks the receipt to denote that it was used. A player can only use a receipt in this way on the day of the purchase, and only for an event at that venue. The receipt need not include Paizo products—any products the venue sells count as qualifying purchases. Players cannot acquire or redeem receipts during their own turn or during any player's encounter; otherwise, players can acquire and redeem receipts during play only when doing so does not significantly disrupt gameplay.
If the combined value of the receipts redeemed by players at the table exceeds $10, all of the characters at the table receive the ongoing benefit described below, and each character chooses one of the single-use benefits described below. If the combined value exceeds $50, you may use the enhanced version of the applicable benefits instead. (In countries that use currencies other than US Dollars, use approximate equivalents of $10 and $50; don't worry too much about figuring out the exact exchange rate.) The ongoing benefit lasts for up to 5 hours, and each character may use their chosen one-time benefit once in each scenario played during those 5 hours. Characters can only receive these benefits once during any 5-hour block.
Ongoing Benefit (for all characters)
Harder to Kill: Treat the character's Constitution as 5 points higher than normal for the purpose of determining when hit point damage would kill him.
Enhanced Version: For the enhanced benefit, treat the character's Constitution as 10 higher.
Single-Use Benefits (each character chooses one)
Cheaper Healing: Before the end of the session, you can use the benefit to reduce the Prestige Point cost of one spellcasting service of the healing subschool by 1 (minimum 0).
Enhanced Version: You can instead reduce the cost by 2.
Recover from Wounds: The PC recovers hit points equal to twice their character level.
Enhanced Version: Each PC also recovers 2 points of ability damage to one ability score. This benefit can only be used outside of combat.
Bonus Wealth: If you do not use the subsidized healing benefit above, you can instead choose to roll twice and take the higher result when rolling a Day Job check.
Enhanced Version: You also increase the gold you earn from the day Job result by 50% (maximum 300 gp total).
The benefits gained from this program are in addition to benefits such as the Rerolls referred to in the Pathfinder Society Roleplaying Guild Guide or on Pathfinder Society Rerolls page at paizo.com.
A little coaching from the GM or players could have easily prevented this death while maintaining the integrity of the game.
Depending on boons that foster incompetence or GM cheating is really not the way to go.