Death and Resurrection
Only an Aethyrsparked soul can be called back from death. When an Aethyrsparked mortal dies, their Aethyr Knot lingers in the mortal plane for a time, held by their Aethyrflame, and magic such as revivify or raise dead can guide it home. Each return wears at the knot. A character’s Soul Fray measures how worn it is, and the more frayed the soul, the harder the next return.
These rules apply on top of the spell or effect that restores life. Its own limits still hold, such as how long the creature can have been dead, and a soul that doesn’t want to return can’t be forced to.
Rapid restoration
Section titled “Rapid restoration”When a spell or effect that takes 1 action restores a dead creature to life, such as revivify, whoever uses it makes a restoration check: a d20 plus their Aethyrflame Ability modifier, against DC 10 + the dead creature’s Soul Fray.
- Success. The creature returns to life as the spell describes.
- Failure. The soul doesn’t return, but it isn’t lost. No 1-action effect can be tried on it again; only a resurrection ritual can bring it back.
Either way, the creature’s Soul Fray increases by 1.
Resurrection rituals
Section titled “Resurrection rituals”When a spell or effect with a casting time longer than 1 action restores a dead creature to life, such as raise dead or resurrection, the casting becomes a resurrection ritual.
- Contributions. Up to three creatures other than the caster can each contribute to the ritual: praying to the fallen’s god, telling the stories of their deeds, calling on the people who love them, or bargaining with whatever holds their soul. Each describes their contribution and makes the check the GM calls for, at a DC set by how fitting the contribution is. In Geminaea, a soul is sustained by those who remember it, so a contribution that draws on the fallen’s Persona, their values, relationships and the people who remember them, can have advantage. One that misjudges them has disadvantage.
- The return. The GM rolls a d20 with no modifier against DC 10 + twice the creature’s Soul Fray. Each successful contribution lowers the DC by 3, or by 1 or 2 for a contribution that only partly succeeds.
- Success. The soul returns, if it’s willing, and the ritual completes. The creature’s Soul Fray increases by 1.
- Failure. The soul doesn’t return, and the character is lost.
For example, Wulfred has been raised once before, so he has Soul Fray 1 and the return DC is 12. His companions contribute: one leads the Argos Legion’s rite for the fallen (a success), one recounts the night Wulfred swore his High Oaths (a success), and one loudly demands his soul back from the afterlife (a failure). The DC drops to 6, and the GM rolls a 9: Wulfred returns, now with Soul Fray 2.
Beyond the fray
Section titled “Beyond the fray”True resurrection and wish are powerful enough to pass the fray by. They need no restoration check or ritual, they can return a character who was lost to a failed ritual, and they don’t increase Soul Fray.
Tracking Soul Fray
Section titled “Tracking Soul Fray”A character carries their Soul Fray as a condition, from Soul Fray 1 to Soul Fray 5, listed with their other conditions on the character sheet and in the combat runner. When it increases, replace the old level with the new one. Soul Fray never ends. Past 5, keep Soul Fray 5 and note the count: each further point adds 1 to the rapid restoration DC and 2 to the ritual DC.
| Condition | Description |
|---|---|
| Soul Fray 1 | - This Aethyrsparked soul’s tie to the mortal world has frayed once. Each return from death, and each failed rapid restoration, frays it further.- Rapid… more |
| Soul Fray 2 | - This Aethyrsparked soul’s tie to the mortal world has frayed twice. Each return from death, and each failed rapid restoration, frays it further.- Rapid… more |
| Soul Fray 3 | - This Aethyrsparked soul’s tie to the mortal world has frayed three times. Each return from death, and each failed rapid restoration, frays it further.- Rapid… more |
| Soul Fray 4 | - This Aethyrsparked soul’s tie to the mortal world has frayed four times. Each return from death, and each failed rapid restoration, frays it further.- Rapid… more |
| Soul Fray 5 | - This Aethyrsparked soul’s tie to the mortal world has frayed five or more times. Each return from death, and each failed rapid restoration, frays it further.-… more |
For characters who are dying rather than dead, see Combat for death saving throws and stabilizing, and Lingering Injuries for what happens to a character healed before they’re stable.