In my campaign, there is a temple that grants those who deem themselves worthy access to the tests of immortality. At the top level of the temple/keep, a white star metal gate blocks entry to the lands and planes where the tests take place, and the gate itself is flanked by two Tarrasque statues (guardians that will spring to life to protect the gate if accessed improperly or by someone who is banned). There are seven tests of immortality!!!
Beyond the gate there is a lush valley that seems to stretch into infinity with rolling green hills and many pine copse dotting the landscape. A distant, cloud-capped, craggy, hulking mountain dominates the center of the landscape as viewed from the gate. There, a hero must travel to face the seven tests!!!
Those who seek to take the test must be ultimately sure and confident that it is what they want, for those who fail the test are doomed to die and those who die during the test can never be brought back by any means, including by the spell Wish...
The seven test appear in various forms, depending upon the participants (aka how the DM sees it best working with his group). The mountain tests:
• Honor and trustworthiness. • Dedication to the Sphere of Power. • Resourcefulness and resolution without combat. • Bravery. • Persistence in the face of adversity. • Mercy and charity of the heart. • Wisdom
How these tests appear are different for everyone, but they will take you to other lands where you may indeed live as another person (and possibly within the rules of another edition of D&D like Basic!).
What are your thoughts? Do you have anything similar in your games?
This sounds heavily influenced by Lawful Good forces. Is that your intent? Since there are a whole spectrum of deities and mortals in the Forgotten Realms, it may help to know which, if any you are working off to create this. I'm also assuming this is an epic level situation where characters are continuing beyond Lv20.
Are there any immortals opposed to mortals becoming immortal? And will they attempt to stop them? Perhaps that can be incorporated into the tests. Maybe they need the test solutions or special components from other immortals in order to pass the tests. You can create a series of quests, or mini-campaign centered around obtaining these objects or solutions from the current immortals or gods. This can open it up to moral ambiguity depending on how the info and materials are obtained.
Aside from players being able to mechanically navigate the tests, maybe they have to provide a reason they should live forever. After all, there is something that is granting this power, so they would be convincing it somehow that they are deserving or that it's in the entities favor to do so.
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Experience: 5e Only - Playing, DM, world building.
DM for Home-brew campaign based on Forgotten Realms lore. 5 player. Also play in party of 8.
I run a variation from basic DND''s gold box aka "the immortals rules" by Frank Mentzer. A simplified version was reprinted in the Challenger book for Mystara. Because these rules are so similar to 5e they are super easy to convert over cleanly.
There are 5 Spheres of Power: Matter, Time, Energy, Thought, and Entropy. All immortals belong to one sphere.
Matter's favored class is the fighter, it is generally lawful, aligned with the element of earth. It represents order and similarity. Its purpose is to withstand destruction and decay. It Opposes Time's attempts at change, resists the attacks of Energy, and forces Thought to be practical. The path to become an immortal of matter is called the polymath. It involves living multiple lives each in a different character class without memory of the others and completing the same quest multiple times but using different skills each time. Then living as a gestalt character with abilities of all lives. This is not "jack of all trades and master of none" this is "master of all things" as the word polymath is truly defined.
Energy's favored class is any magic user. It is generally chaotic and aligned with fire. It represents disorder and uniqueness and its purpose is to create more of itself (energy) and more activity. It opposes Thoughts attempts create order, resists the attacks of time and forces matter to change. The path of Energy is the Paragon, where you accomplish an impossible task then challenge everyone of your own career/class within the campaign and force them to acknowledge you their superior (or kill them), such that you are acknowledged the greatest (whatever you are) in the world. Thus the paragon of deception, paragon of wizardry, paragon of duelists, paragon of dragon hunters, paragon of pick pockets, etc.
Time's favored class is the cleric, it is genrally neutral and aligned with water. It represents continuous regular change. Its purpose is to promote change in all and maintain time's flow. It opposes matter's intertia, resists the existence of thought and forces energy to have duration. The path of time is the Dynast, where you find an artifact or methods of traveling through time, then create an organization, family, kingdom, order, cult, religion, etc that lasts for 5 generations and visit it in each of 3 different existential crises and ensure it survives. Dr who would totally be an epic hero. ^.^
Thought's favored class is any rogue it is all alignments and related to air. It represents purpose and meaning and seeks to conceive of and categorize all of existence. Thought opposes energy's outbursts, resists the limitations of matter, and forces time to be organized. In general there are two types of immortals of thought: tricksters and philosophers. The path of immortality for Thought is the Epic Hero, where you find and destroy an artifact of Entropy, thus making an enemy of a deity while you yourself are still mortal. Typically you trick the evil deity or outsmart them, because as a mortal there's no way you can overpower them.
Entropy has no favored class, and is unaligned. it is related to void and akasha. It represents conflict and despair and its purpose is to unmake existence. Destroys matter, drains energy, stops time, and prevents thought. The path of entropy is the Unmaker and you have to make existence less. For example, one deity is said to have unmade the 8th color of the rainbow.
There's all kinds of rules about learning that it is even possible for mortals to become immortal, finding a sponsor, learning the path, etc.
If you're interested, these are the places where you can find the rules:
In my campaign, there is a temple that grants those who deem themselves worthy access to the tests of immortality. At the top level of the temple/keep, a white star metal gate blocks entry to the lands and planes where the tests take place, and the gate itself is flanked by two Tarrasque statues (guardians that will spring to life to protect the gate if accessed improperly or by someone who is banned). There are seven tests of immortality!!!
Beyond the gate there is a lush valley that seems to stretch into infinity with rolling green hills and many pine copse dotting the landscape. A distant, cloud-capped, craggy, hulking mountain dominates the center of the landscape as viewed from the gate. There, a hero must travel to face the seven tests!!!
Those who seek to take the test must be ultimately sure and confident that it is what they want, for those who fail the test are doomed to die and those who die during the test can never be brought back by any means, including by the spell Wish...
The seven test appear in various forms, depending upon the participants (aka how the DM sees it best working with his group). The mountain tests:
• Honor and trustworthiness. • Dedication to the Sphere of Power. • Resourcefulness and resolution without combat. • Bravery. • Persistence in the face of adversity. • Mercy and charity of the heart. • Wisdom
How these tests appear are different for everyone, but they will take you to other lands where you may indeed live as another person (and possibly within the rules of another edition of D&D like Basic!).
What are your thoughts? Do you have anything similar in your games?
"What you saw belongs to you. A story doesn't live until it is imagined in someone's mind."
― Brandon Sanderson, The Way of Kings
This sounds heavily influenced by Lawful Good forces. Is that your intent? Since there are a whole spectrum of deities and mortals in the Forgotten Realms, it may help to know which, if any you are working off to create this. I'm also assuming this is an epic level situation where characters are continuing beyond Lv20.
Are there any immortals opposed to mortals becoming immortal? And will they attempt to stop them? Perhaps that can be incorporated into the tests. Maybe they need the test solutions or special components from other immortals in order to pass the tests. You can create a series of quests, or mini-campaign centered around obtaining these objects or solutions from the current immortals or gods. This can open it up to moral ambiguity depending on how the info and materials are obtained.
Aside from players being able to mechanically navigate the tests, maybe they have to provide a reason they should live forever. After all, there is something that is granting this power, so they would be convincing it somehow that they are deserving or that it's in the entities favor to do so.
Experience: 5e Only - Playing, DM, world building.DM for Home-brew campaign based on Forgotten Realms lore. 5 player. Also play in party of 8.I run a variation from basic DND''s gold box aka "the immortals rules" by Frank Mentzer. A simplified version was reprinted in the Challenger book for Mystara. Because these rules are so similar to 5e they are super easy to convert over cleanly.
There are 5 Spheres of Power: Matter, Time, Energy, Thought, and Entropy. All immortals belong to one sphere.
Matter's favored class is the fighter, it is generally lawful, aligned with the element of earth. It represents order and similarity. Its purpose is to withstand destruction and decay. It Opposes Time's attempts at change, resists the attacks of Energy, and forces Thought to be practical. The path to become an immortal of matter is called the polymath. It involves living multiple lives each in a different character class without memory of the others and completing the same quest multiple times but using different skills each time. Then living as a gestalt character with abilities of all lives. This is not "jack of all trades and master of none" this is "master of all things" as the word polymath is truly defined.
Energy's favored class is any magic user. It is generally chaotic and aligned with fire. It represents disorder and uniqueness and its purpose is to create more of itself (energy) and more activity. It opposes Thoughts attempts create order, resists the attacks of time and forces matter to change. The path of Energy is the Paragon, where you accomplish an impossible task then challenge everyone of your own career/class within the campaign and force them to acknowledge you their superior (or kill them), such that you are acknowledged the greatest (whatever you are) in the world. Thus the paragon of deception, paragon of wizardry, paragon of duelists, paragon of dragon hunters, paragon of pick pockets, etc.
Time's favored class is the cleric, it is genrally neutral and aligned with water. It represents continuous regular change. Its purpose is to promote change in all and maintain time's flow. It opposes matter's intertia, resists the existence of thought and forces energy to have duration. The path of time is the Dynast, where you find an artifact or methods of traveling through time, then create an organization, family, kingdom, order, cult, religion, etc that lasts for 5 generations and visit it in each of 3 different existential crises and ensure it survives. Dr who would totally be an epic hero. ^.^
Thought's favored class is any rogue it is all alignments and related to air. It represents purpose and meaning and seeks to conceive of and categorize all of existence. Thought opposes energy's outbursts, resists the limitations of matter, and forces time to be organized. In general there are two types of immortals of thought: tricksters and philosophers. The path of immortality for Thought is the Epic Hero, where you find and destroy an artifact of Entropy, thus making an enemy of a deity while you yourself are still mortal. Typically you trick the evil deity or outsmart them, because as a mortal there's no way you can overpower them.
Entropy has no favored class, and is unaligned. it is related to void and akasha. It represents conflict and despair and its purpose is to unmake existence. Destroys matter, drains energy, stops time, and prevents thought. The path of entropy is the Unmaker and you have to make existence less. For example, one deity is said to have unmade the 8th color of the rainbow.
There's all kinds of rules about learning that it is even possible for mortals to become immortal, finding a sponsor, learning the path, etc.
If you're interested, these are the places where you can find the rules:
https://www.amazon.com/Players-DMS-Guide-Immortals-Volumes/dp/B000UCUJO0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1495334415&sr=8-1&keywords=dm's guide to immortals
https://www.amazon.com/Dungeons-Dragon-Cyclopedia-Allston-1991-11-01/dp/B019TMIE2A/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1495334480&sr=8-2-fkmr0&keywords=D&D rules cyclopedia
And extra rules for playing as a deity beyond the gold box were in the Wrath of Immortals:
https://www.amazon.com/Wrath-Immortals-Dungeons-Dragons-Accessory/dp/1560764120/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1495334526&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=D&D wrath of immortals