Fail Forwards
- Peter Norton
- Oct 21
- 1 min read
So often in TTRPGs we fail. And the failure is, sad to say, in a lot of games the character's death. This happens. In a computer game you just boot up another and start again, but these are not that. These are pen and paper creative creations of your imagination, and that wasted effort may be the difference between you wanting to play again or just giving up on the whole idea.
What to do, what to do.
I say, do not kill off your character. Make it part of the story. Have them wake up somewhere else. If Frodo had just been eaten by the spider where is the rest of the story, spider poo? No, we have him poisoned and waking up with Sam helping him. Better story.
Do not just die and reroll. Come up with a creative reason why you did not die and do that.
Great point about the emotional investment we have in our TTRPG characters! You're absolutely right that creative alternatives to death can keep the story moving and maintain engagement with a character you've built over time. The Frodo example perfectly illustrates how even dire situations can become springboards for compelling narrative.
I especially appreciate this perspective for solo play, where you're both the storyteller and the protagonist. When I'm playing solo, I try to establish some personal guardrails upfront about how failure works in my game - not as blanket immunity from consequences, but as a reminder that 'interesting complications' can be just as punishing as death. The RNG can be brutal, and sometimes the dice tell a story where you…