Facing death is an important part of being an adventurer and having a character die can be an exciting end to a story, as well as an opportunity for the player to transition into something new. In Daggerheart, when you mark your last Hit Point, you must make a death move.

Death Move

Choose one of the following options:

Blaze of Glory: Your character embraces death and goes out in a blaze of glory. Take one action (at the GM’s discretion), which critically succeeds, then cross through the veil of death.

Avoid Death: Your character avoids death and faces the consequences. They temporarily drop unconscious, and then you work with the GM to describe how the situation worsens. Your character can’t move or act while unconscious, they can’t be targeted by an attack, and they return to consciousness when an ally clears 1 or more of their marked Hit Points or when the party finishes a long rest. After your character falls unconscious, roll your Hope Die. If its value is equal to or under your character’s level, they gain a scar (see the “Scars” section).

Risk It All: Roll your Duality Dice. If the Hope Die is higher, your character stays on their feet and clears an amount of Hit Points or Stress equal to the value of the Hope Die (divide the Hope Die value between Hit Points and Stress however you’d prefer). If the Fear Die is higher, your character crosses through the veil of death. If you critically succeed, your character stays up and clears all Hit Points and Stress.

If a player makes a death move that results in their character dying, they should work with the GM before the next session to build a new character at the current level of the rest of the party.

Scars

If you choose to avoid death, you might take a scar. If you do, cross out one of your Hope slots. You can’t use this slot anymore. The narrative impact of this scar is up to you. For example, you might now bear a physical scar, a painful memory, or a deep fear. Scars are permanent, but can be healed at the GM’s discretion as a downtime project, a reward for a quest focused on healing that scar, or something with similar narrative weight.

If you ever cross out your last Hope slot, it’s time to end your character’s journey. Work with the GM to find a fitting way for the party to say goodbye to them at the end of the session, then prepare a new character at the current level of the rest of the party for the next time you play.

Resurrection

It is possible to resurrect a dead character, though it’s often a long, difficult, and costly process. If a party decides to take this path upon a character’s death, the GM details the steps the party must take to complete the resurrection.

There is also the “Resurrection” spell available from the Splendor domain at level 10.