Death happens.
While we as game masters (GMs) rarely want a player character to die, it’s bound to happen at one point or another during our tenure. In many cases, death is just another obstacle for the players to overcome. D&D abounds with resurrection spells, friendly clerics, merciful gods, dark forces, and many other avenues to bring a character back from the dead. These methods can be narratively satisfying and fun for your players. However, sometimes there is no viable option to bring a fallen hero back. Maybe resurrection magic doesn’t exist in your world, maybe the player wants to try out a new character, or maybe the character’s body is lost, unable to be recovered. Whatever the reason, the character may have died but that doesn’t mean they need to be forgotten.
We as GMs can use the death of a character as a worldbuilding tool to create powerful artifacts to be used in future adventures. I call these items Vestiges of the Fallen and have used them to wonderful effect in my campaigns. The premise is fairly simple: when a player character dies, a part of their essence or soul clings to a meaningful piece of equipment they carry (i.e. a fighter’s favorite sword, a cleric’s holy symbol, a goblin’s favorite shiny rock). The item then becomes a powerful magic item with effects inspired by the fallen character’s abilities and personality.
Not only does the player of the deceased character get some additional closure, they also know that their character’s story will live on through this badass item. Their character may be gone but they have left a long lasting and tangible effect on the lore of this world. D&D already has a rich tradition of incorporating the spells created by former PCs (Tenser’s Floating Disk, Melf’s Acid Arrow, etc.) into the lore of the wider game. Using tools like the Vestiges of the Fallen, we can create that same kind of immortality in the localized lore of our own tables.
After the character has passed and it is clear that they will not be revived, I reveal the Vestige. Generally, I use a short cut scene as the deceased character is being buried or remembered in some way. As a personal rule, I don’t allow the surviving party members to keep and use the Vestige. I prefer to have the item go to the deceased character’s next of kin, the faction they were a member of, or to remain with the character in their final resting place. I feel that this gives more depth to the world and provides a seed for future adventures. The next campaign you run in this world now has a powerful magic item with a built-in backstory as well as a fun easter egg for any returning players.
The Vestige of the Fallen should have effects inspired by the deceased character that created it and/or the heroic act that cost them their life. For example, the shield of a paladin who gave her life protecting someone else could grant its new wielder a reaction ability to reduce the damage taken by an ally. When determining the effects of the Vestige, I generally try to base the item’s power level off of the tier of play the characters were in when it was created. I use the following as a general rule of thumb. I’ve also included some items from the basic rules that you can use as a template or inspiration for your Vestiges.
| Character Level | Item Rarity | Example Items for Inspiration |
|---|---|---|
| 1-4 | Uncommon | Cloak of the Manta Ray, Staff of the Python |
| 5-10 | Rare | Belt of Dwarvenkind, Mace of Terror |
| 11-16 | Very Rare | Dancing Sword, Frost Brand, Oathbow |
| 17-20 | Legendary | Hammer of Thunderbolts, Robe of the Archmagi |
The death of a player’s character does not need to mean the end for that character’s story. You can use Vestiges of the Fallen to immortalize them in a powerful magic item for ages to come all while seeding your world with rich lore and loot for the next group of adventurers to uncover. As always, feel free to reach out on social media or email to let me know what you think. Even better, reach out and let me know if you use this in your own game. I would love to hear how this content is being used in the wild!
Examples
The following are two examples of Vestiges of the Fallen that I have created after player character deaths in my most recent campaign. Feel free to use these for inspiration.
Frost’s Fury
Character: Ylva Verglas, human barbarian and last surviving member of her tribe.
Item: Ylva’s longsword that she had carved with runes to depict her adventures.
Death: Ylva died in a selfless act of heroism. Thanks to her quick instincts, she was able to identify and subdue a cultist assassin. When the cultist sacrificed their life to release an explosion of fire, Ylva chose to use her own body to smother the blast, saving dozens of innocent lives in the process.
Vestige Creation: The city held a ceremony to memorialize Ylva’s sacrifice during which they performed the traditional funeral rites for a warrior of her tribe: cremating her remains along with her weapon. The flames of the funeral pyre suddenly became a swirling torrent of ice and snow. As the winds subsided, only Ylva’s sword remained, the blade now encased in razor sharp ice. The blade was returned to the northern lands where it now hangs in the great hall of the allied tribal leaders, forever reminding them of the strength of Ylva and her now extinct tribe.
Effects: Weapon (greatsword), very rare (requires attunement by a member of the northern tribes)
Frost’s Fury was once a standard longsword that has now been encased in a razor thin sheet of ice that extends the blade by about a foot and a half. A cold radiates off the blade so fierce that it is painful for someone not accustomed to the frigid north to wield it. A creature that is not attuned to Frost’s Fury takes 2d6 cold damage at the start of their turn while wielding this blade.
You have a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with Frost’s Fury.
When you hit with an attack using this magic sword, the target takes an extra 2d6 cold damage. This cold damage ignores any resistance or immunity to cold damage that the target may have. In addition, while you hold the sword, you have resistance to fire damage.
In sub-freezing temperatures, the blade sheds bright light in a 10-foot radius and dim light for an additional 10 feet. When you draw this weapon, you can extinguish all non magical flames within 30 feet of you. This property can be used no more than once per hour.
Stone’s Embrace
Character: Garin Tallheart, human fighter who spent much of his life living amongst stone giants.
Item: Mithril splint armor.
Death: Garin was slain in a valiant battle against an army of hill and fire giants. Using his runes to enlarge himself, he gave his life while single handedly fighting off 3 giants so that his party could go on to defeat the hill giant leader and end the battle.
Vestige Creation: When the stone giants that Garin had lived with came to collect his body, they performed sacred rites for their dead friend. Garin’s armor, which had been gifted to him by the giants, began to change and grow crystals as it was imbued with his essence. The armor lies with Garin in the western mountains that he and the stone giants called home.
Effects: Armor (splint), legendary (requires attunement)
This crystal splint mail was expertly crafted by stone giants and is remarkably light. This armor does not impose disadvantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks and does not have a strength requirement. While attuned to this armor, your Strength score changes to 23. The armor has no effect on your Strength score if your Strength without the armor is equal to or greater than 23.
The armor has 5 charges, which are used to fuel the spells within it. While attuned to the armor, you can use your action to cast one of the following spells from the armor (spell save DC 15). No material components are required when casting a spell in this way.
1 charge: erupting earth, meld into stone
2 charges: stoneskin, stone shape
3 charges: bones of the earth, investiture of stone
The armor regains 1d4 + 1 expended charges each day at dawn.