Dungeons & Dragons used to have cursed treasure that would suddenly cause big changes in player characters — like the Helm of Opposite Alignment and the Girdle of Opposite Gender. These were transformations that could ruin a character for some players, so we see less of that in most RPGs today, but they can still be powerful tools for the DM and players to make a narrative twist have a lasting impact on the game.

Sometimes big character changes like these — changing alignment, class, subclass, race, or even gaining weird tentacle powers from an eldritch horror trying to destroy the world — can add mechanical oomph to important narrative moments. Other times, players may want their characters to change in some fundamental way to reflect what’s happening in their personal narratives. Frankly, most great campaigns see some form of big event that alters some characters forever, and that’s something you want to capture in your campaign as well. The Lord of the Rings wouldn’t be the story it is if Gandalf The Grey didn’t die and return as Gandalf The White.

DMing these moments can be delicate, to say the least. If you’re driving them, you have to make sure it doesn’t ruin the character or the game for your player. If the player is pushing for them, you have to make sure it doesn’t ruin the continuity of your world or the experience for the other players.

In this episode, Thorin, Tony and Dave break down how they handle big, character-altering changes in the game, including how to get the players on board with them, what buttons not to push, and how to make it all balance mechanically with the rest of the game.

2:00 Different ways to handle changing characters

5:00 Why it’s cool to make rule-breaking changes a part of important story beats

9:00 Breaking their build: When players don’t want their character to change

14:00 Are you “ruining” the character for that player?

18:00 DMing the alignment price of accepting a dark gift from the Amber Temple in Curse of Strahd

23:00 Back in the Day with DM Tony: Demogorgon’s Wishes in Throne of Bloodstone

27:00 How big character changes that break the rules have a different impact than regular multiclassing

31:00 If you’re going to push a narrative change on a PC, sweeten the pot with boons and abilities that make it worth their while to come with you

35:00 When players push for big changes, should they have to give a narrative reason?

45:00 How can you be sure these changes will work and not kill your game?

51:00 Balancing the mechanics of big character changes

57:00 Will the Curse of Strahd characters kill each other off now that some of them are turning evil?

58:00 Final thoughts