In the deepest, most unknowable realms, even the weakest have a chance to rise again—but at a cost. Such a mechanic would be as dangerous as it is tantalizing.

When a player’s character is reduced to 0 hit points, the character teeters on the precipice of death, yet something stirs in the void.

When a player falls unconscious, they may choose to invoke the Shard of Despair, a desperate plea to the unknowable forces that pull at the edges of existence. This will allow them to make a special Abyssal Check—a roll of the dice to determine whether they rise again or remain forever lost to the abyss. The DC of this check is 15 + the number of times the player has used the Shard before. If successful, the character rises with 1 hit point, but not without consequence.

Corruption of the Flesh: The character returns, but they are changed. With each use of the Shard, the character’s soul becomes more entwined with dark powers. At the beginning of each subsequent long rest after the Shard is invoked, the character must make a Wisdom saving throw. On a failure, their mind fractures—they gain a temporary madness as described in the Dungeon Master's Guide. Additionally, the physical body begins to twist, mutating slightly, growing darker veins, changing eye colors, or sprouting symbols of unknowable origin on their skin.