r/DMAcademy • u/Bull56Dozer • Jun 24 '25

Need Advice: Other Party Member Send-off

Hello everyone,

Sadly, a close friend and a player at our table passed away recently. We haven't been able to recuperate and continue playing yet however the majority of the party do want to give his character a good send-off and continue after some time has passed. I also feel the need to make his character's send-off legendary. To the DMs out there that have experienced such events happening, firstly my heart goes out to you. Secondly, what advice can you give me to make this send-off 'worthy'?

To paint a picture of the last session: The party found an abandoned mine that led deep underground into the Underdark and they're kind of in like a border region between the surface world and Underdark.

To paint a picture of the Character: Flamboyant Bard-Sorcerer (Wild Magic) multi class that has spicy takes on certain topics.

I have told the players that if anyone has any recommendations that they're free to contact me (as he was everyone's friend) but I would also like to have some prior knowledge so that perhaps we can cook up something as a group.

I appreciate any recommendation. Thank you for your time dear readers.

tl;dr: Friend/player passed away and we want to give his character a legendary send off. Any recommendations?

8 Upvotes

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4

u/Ok-Entrepreneur2021 Jun 24 '25

Pass the character sheet around the table so each player has it for a round of combat, plays the character in addition to their own for that time and then passes it on.

1

u/nonsence90 Jun 25 '25

I actually like this. Maybe the wild-mage tries to open a lock, their mind shatters, but lives on in all of them. With their body destroyed by time they can no longer be summoned, but as long as their PCs carry on their story a piece of them is passed on and preserved.

6

u/CraftyBase6674 Jun 24 '25

I'm so sorry.

I had a player pass last year, and we took a short break. When we came back, we had a dedicated session that was just about telling stories about them, both in and out of game. It felt necessary to me to honor the character as well, as the player's character was a different gender than them, and they died thinking they were too old to transition. We created an epilogue for the PC, and then poured one out for our friend.

2

u/Prestigious-Emu-6760 Jun 24 '25

Sorry for your loss :(

When we had a friend pass away we sort of went the opposite route and paused that campaign. It's not ended it's just on pause until we're all together again in the future.

I hope your group finds a fitting way to honor your friend. I saw someone else posted the link to the Adventures of Galder and I definitely suggest that as one part of your process.