Tomb of Horrors (DM Rewards version) Death Plans

I'm running the DM Rewards version of the Tomb of Horrors soon. I'm trying to come up with a system for what happens when the players inevitably die horrible.

As far as auto-raising goes, I'm planning on having them just pop up outside the entrance with gear and whatnot intact. Should I change this? I do want to make death costly, but I'm not sure the best way to go about it.

Well, is there a cleric in the party?
I'm running it at the moment too...

Perhaps, Acererak takes a level every time someone is killed and raised?

Seems too harsh. I'm looking for a happy medium.

They haven't got a Cleric. The party consists of an Artificer focusing on summons, a Drow crossbow-using Rogue, an Invoker, a Swordmage with a ritual book, and a Skirmishing Warlord.

Is there still a way to get this version of Tomb of Horrors?

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As far as auto-raising goes, I'm planning on having them just pop up outside the entrance with gear and whatnot intact. Should I change this? I do want to make death costly, but I'm not sure the best way to go about it.

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• if you're gonna 'auto-raise' them, you have to do something on the side of making sure the horror aspect is maintained, and that death is taken seriously
• perhaps drawing from other sources, like Cthulu's insanity chart everytime one of them are killed and is raised.

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They haven't got a Cleric

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Cleric NPC? Seems like something a Tomb of Horrors-bound party would need.

You could also look at applying a wound of some form similar to what is used in Dragon Age when a party member dies during combat. These would be something that would provide a penalty to a start or ability depending on the wound and that can be removed using a custom ritual maybe.

I'd suggest that if they die in the Tomb of Horrors, they are revived, but if they get bloodied, they have a flashback to their own death and get scared. (What sort of penalties would they take for this? Up to you.) Perhaps they sign a contract with a darker deity to return to the mortal world and each time they die, that debt grows?

Ressurect them, but each time, one finger less is regenerated.

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Originally Posted by Gillric

You could also look at applying a wound of some form similar to what is used in Dragon Age when a party member dies during combat. These would be something that would provide a penalty to a start or ability depending on the wound and that can be removed using a custom ritual maybe.

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Originally Posted by Garwain

Ressurect them, but each time, one finger less is regenerated.

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These two, for certain. Body Horror is horrifying. Our usual game is CoC, not D&D. These two fit perfectly.

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Originally Posted by Janus

Is there still a way to get this version of Tomb of Horrors?

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Yep.

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Originally Posted by TheOasysMaster

Cleric NPC? Seems like something a Tomb of Horrors-bound party would need.

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Nah. Any leader will do, and they've got two of them.