Interview with Steven D. Russell (Restless Souls)
By Jonathan Roberts and Robert N. Emerson
Illustration by Hugo Solis
1. Where did you get the inspiration?
A lot of people ask me about Ghostwalk but to most it was surprising that I had never read it, I have read an interview about the initial thought being that it was boring sitting around and watching other folks play .
My real inspiration came from old ghost stories, and the dead in theIliad and the Odyssey, along with other lesser influences like the pattern ghosts from Roger Zelazney’s Amber, The Dead from Stephen Donaldson’sChronicles Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever , and both The Heroes of the Horn and those brought back the Lord of the Grave in Robert Jordan’sWheel of Time, along with a strong influence by Mike O’Barr’s The Crow(both the comic and the movie).
2. With all the new benefits of death will players be more likely to sacrifice their players?
One of the things I really decided on this that is that the dead know it is better to be alive. As a pure game mechanic its better to be a lich than it is to be human, since often we forget the role-playing draw backs to undeath, I wanted to keep the trauma that is from crossing the pale threshold there are some really evocative options with the restless soul feats but raise dead is still better than being a restless soul. Its also not a guarantee that you will come back, it is entirely the province of the Game Master.
That was part of the design, the GM had to approve this option to begin with so why not put the option entirely in his hands and bring a bit of the uncertainty and mystery that is death into the game.
3. Does it change the way we use resurrection?
No, I wanted to give a GMs and Player Characterrs an additional tool, that had a great deal more than these options do but still not take anything away from them.
4. What is your favorite part about the piece?
Hugo Solis’s Artwork, he is one of the best artists I have ever had the pleasure of working with. The artwork really helped me find the voice for the introduction which is told first person from the point of view of a restless soul named Nestra Darklaugh, So there is another piece of inspiration for you, There is a good deal of dark humor in it that has been very well received, and I credit Hugo with that inspiration.
5. Why did you feel the need to do it?
The desire really came from my home game. I run a very character driven long term campaign and when a character dies it leaves a big gapping whole. Defending against this can lead to a character having plot armor where nothing can kill him until that character’s plot is completed. The problem with this style of play was that it took away from the inherent risk of adventuring and runs the risk of railroading the character’s death. With Restless Souls I could have the best of both worlds because its inherent that when you complete the mission you came back for your going to die, yet if you don’t work toward that mission you can’t be back.
It has even been suggested that you could have a Total Party Kill and bring them all back as restless souls, including the adventure of them escaping the lands of the dead.
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