Character Tree

To begin a character tree, a player should completely roll up four characters. Once this is done, the player selects the character that he intends to run for the first adventure, making that one his “active” character. The other three are inactive.

Changing Characters

There are three instances when a player may switch the character he wishes to use in play: between adventures, during an adventure, or upon an active character’s death.

Between Adventures

When an adventure is concluded (in the eyes of the DM , that is), a player may switch his active character for an inactive one. The player is not obligated to do so, and may keep one character active through any number of consecutive adventures.

During an Adventures

Within the scope of the campaign world, calling upon another character to replace the active character requires a substantial investment in time, whether for sending messages or journeying and searching for the transient inactive characters of the tree (psionics and magic may make this task easier, but cannot solve all the problems). The DM should sparingly allow players to switch their active character during an adventure, and usually impose a 3d6 day delay. The DM should never allow switching during critical or dangerous scenes of an adventure. Any switching of characters during an adventure is subject to the discretion of the DM , who may freely veto any request to do so.

Upon an Active Character’s Death

When the active character dies, one of the inactive characters on the tree is assumed to arrive on the scene within one day (if possible). The player picks which inactive character will arrive and must subsequently roll a new first-level character to occupy the vacated spot on the tree. If circumstances make it difficult for a new character to arrive, the DM may be forced to extend the period before the newly activated adventurer arrives.

Editor’s note: While the rules state that new characters added to a tree are first level, this can be excessively punitive—in addition to losing a character in which the player has an investment, they must now add a replacement whose low level means that they are excessively fragile in the harsh Planescape setting. It’s recommended that DMs waive this rule unless a player chooses to use it.

Character Advancement

The active character in a campaign receives experience points and advances in levels just as described in the Player’s Handbook.

Every time the active character goes up a level of experience, the player may also advance one of his inactive characters one level. The inactive character chosen must be of a lower level than the active character. Adjust the experience point total on that inactive character’s sheet to the minimum number for the new level attained.

The Status of Inactive Characters

Inactive characters are not NPCs or followers. They aren’t involved in the adventure at any time. At no time will a player’s active and inactive characters come into contact in the campaign world. When not in play, inactive characters are assumed to be elsewhere in the planes, performing other tasks. All characters in a character tree are assumed to know each other and are working toward similar ends. The player may invent connections—the characters are all sons of the same powerful woman, are distant cousins, friends from childhood, etc. However, there is no need to have any relationship between them—the player may decide that the individuals in his character tree have no more than a passing acquaintance with one another.

Using the Character Tree to Advantage

The character tree’s chief purpose is to give every player a pool of adventurers to choose from for different situations or when one of his characters dies. The player is familiar with these characters and can apply their strengths more readily than he might be able to with freshly created characters. However, if care is taken, the character tree can be a valuable tool to the player in an extended campaign.

As only one inactive character gains a level of experience every time the active character does so, deciding which character to advance might be a decision based on which direction the campaign seems to be taking. If, for instance, a large war is in progress, a player may wish to use his fighter for his active character. If the war is winding down, ke might want to advance inactive non-fighter characters for the post war adventures to come.

As another example, the quest might be a dangerous trek across the wilderness to steal a magical item from an ancient defiler’s mansion. The player might use his ranger character to make the journey, but all the while might be using his inactive character advancements to make his thief more powerful for the final assault on the mansion.