Expectation, Surprise and Disappointment

Anticipating a New Edition

As anyone who reads this blog is probably tired of hearing, I have been enjoying this wonderful hobby of ours for over four decades now and during that time I have seen a few games come and go - at least in-print and out-of-print. 

The good folks at Wiz Bros announced this week that the World's Most Popular Role-Playing Game will be getting a new treatment in 2024 just in time for a much anticipated anniversary party. News which brings to my mind a number of previous occasions where I found myself looking forward to what the next iteration of my favorite FRP game would be like? 

Wondering: How would it be different? 

What would be improved? 

Would there be things left out of the new edition?

What would it look like?

So many other questions. 

Like many, I look forward to what is "yet to come", and I can't help but speculate about what might or probably will change in the new material. Once the much anticipated product arrives, I will no doubt be among those rushing to purchase and see what it all amounts to.

Many of us have been down this road before. Most of us can look back on some earlier release and recall things that we love and things that we are/were less than happy about finding in those "new" versions. 

For whatever reason, I find myself returning this week to 2008 and the release of the fourth edition volumes. My first memory of this sometimes "controversial" edition is that I really enjoyed reading the text introducing a fresh new approach to an old subject. I recall how useful I believed the defender, striker and controller ways of defining character class roles could be. The "powers" concept - daily, encounter and at-will - was a fresh new way of looking at the actions that your character could take during your turn. And I must admit, I was really excited about playing my first fire-breathing dragonborn character.

The new fun was not limited to just player characters in 2008. The 4e MM I welcomed as referee/DM and found full of surprises, some of which still delight me, and some of which have become part of the way I run the game - any game - to this day. Scaling monsters, that is making bigger, more deadly versions of any monster, (orcs and goblins are good examples) was a widely practiced theme in this edition allowing creatures to stay useful at higher levels of play and incidentally making the game more consistent with some popular fictional sources in which some orcs are way more deadly than others! Boss monsters in 4e are frequently attended by a number of "minions" - creatures with a single hit point who are good at "spreading the love" and controlling the battle grid. Players will find such "minions" in most games that I have run since 2008.

The 4e DMG is full of advice and for my money is one of the best of this kind of book for explaining how to set-up and run a game at your table. I rank this volume (together with the AD&D 1e DMG) as an essential resource for anyone occupying the post "behind the referee screen".

Unlike some, I do not have disdain for 4e. I enjoyed playing the game regularly for a number of years and give it credit for the part it played in the rise of the "old school" gaming scene. And to top it all off, I really loved (still do) those awesome 4e Wayne Reynolds illustrations!

A Resting Problem

Healing the Natural Way (and other mysteries.)

Healing in the original little brown books is commonly interpreted as occurring at the rate of one hit point per day. This is likely based on the following statement found in Volume III of the Little Brown Books. "On the first day of complete rest no hit points will be regained, but every other day thereafter one hit point will be regained until the character is completely healed. This can take a long time."

The nature of hit points is often discussed among gamers and the question of "What do the hit points represent?" is frequently pondered. Returning to the original source, the statement in Volume III that immediately precedes the above quote refers to healing "common wounds" by natural means. Turning to Volume I we find the following reference to hit points, "being the number of points of damage the character could sustain before death." Reaching "zero" hit points must therefore mean that character death is imminent? That is the way it is often interpreted. As with many aspects of the original rules, much is left open ended and it seems the intent is for the referee to add additional detail where desired.

Under the heading "Hit Dice" the author of Volume I addresses this intent when he states, "Whether sustaining accumulative hits will otherwise affect a character is left to the discretion of the referee." will the character suffer a specific "wound" that limits their ability to move, engage in combat, cast magic or perform any other adventuring task is left to referee discretion - presumably by development of a personalized method (such as a random table) whereby the nature of any such injury will be adjudicated beyond the application of mere referee's whim (although nothing in the rules prevents just that). 

Let's suppose that our adventuring character is ruled to have sufferer a specific "wound" to their leg. (The classic, "arrow to the knee"?) Applying the rule that the character will recover no hit points on the first day of rest, but will "heal" one hit point each day spent resting following the first, we can imagine a somewhat natural healing of such an injury, especially if ours is an experienced adventurer with more than a dozen hit points that have been lost. 

An explanation of the "hit point" concept and the associated increase in HP corresponding with a rise in level can be found in many sources (and I have red and listened to a number) over the decades with a common one being something along the lines of the explanation given by the same author of those 3 LBBs in his Dungeon Masters Guide:

Because these (hit points) reflect both the actual physical ability of the character to withstand damage — as indicated by constitution bonuses — and a commensurate increase in such areas as skill in combat and similar life-or-death situations, the “sixth sense” which warns the individual of some otherwise unforeseen events, sheer luck, and the fantastic provisions of magical protections and/or divine protection.

"Skill in combat", the "sixth sense" that would allow a character to side-step danger and "sheer luck" or "divine protection" are all factored into the danger equation as hit points - a finite sum that can decrease to zero resulting in the character's death. Obviously not every incident of "damage" being deducted from the character's hit points need represent an actual wound. Some could be explained by using up one's luck, or divine favor, or what-ever. The accumulated loss of hit points would expose the character to a point where the "fatal blow" is delivered as hit points reach zero.

I must query, "How does the character die?" Provided the final hit point is lost at the point of an enemy's sword, is it a thrust through the heart? Death by a thousand cuts? Decapitation?

Ultimately this doesn't matter - dead is dead. But suppose zero hit points means fatally wounded instead? It is common practice for players to attempt to stabilize or "heal" a character who is at death's door - usually through the application of some magical means. Healing magics are included in the game and the question of whether it's "too late" seems seems legitimate.

With the single exception of rolling dice for ability scores, no aspect of the rules-as-written have received more attention than death. It is therefore essential that the referee give some thought to how death will be handled in the campaign - preferably prior to the first session. A discussion with the players can ensure that everyone is on the same page and will go a long way towards building trust - an essential aspect in any relationship.

Alongside "death" rests the topic of damage and healing. While it is not strictly necessary to discuss the nature of hit points and what they represent, it is a good idea to establish and discuss how lost hit points will be recovered. It certainly helps players to plan use of their resources - including magical healing. My experience with various editions has emphasized the vast difference between healing a single point of damage overnight and recovering all lost hit points after a long rest (usually defined as a single 6-8 hour period of inactivity). 

Resources other than hit points are associated with "resting". The so-called "Vancian" magic system deployed in the original 3 LBBs and continued through subsequent editions is a traditional part of the World's Most Popular Role-Playing Game mechanics. The authors of the original edition describe spells and character class levels in Volume I of the 3 LBBs in this way:

The number in each column opposite each applicable character indicates the number of spells of each level that can be used (remembered during any single adventure) by that character... A spell used once may not be reused in the same day.

The exact interpretation of the phrase "remembered during any single adventure" deserves close attention. The most common practice used in various editions that follow the original 3 LBBs is that a caster will consult a spell book and memorize a number of spells per day limited by level and may cast each memorized spell once. 

This method of handling spell memorization and recovery is explained in the Dungeon Masters Guide (printed 1979) to the first Advanced edition wherein the author states:

Spell recovery, whether cleric/druid or magic-user/illusionist, requires about the same period of time. In order to pray and meditate for a new spell to replace one used, or in order to study and memorize such a spell, it is necessary that the spell-user rest and revitalize his or her mental faculties.

The author goes on to establish a time frame for memorization as follows: 

Whether one or more spells are to be regained, the minimum time required for complete rest (usually sleep) is that required for the highest spell to be recovered. Minimum rest periods are shown below:

SPELL LEVEL    1-2        3-4        5-6          7-8            9

      Rest Time   4 hours  6 hours  8 hours  10 hours  12 hours

Thus we can see how the memorization method is established which has been followed since. Personally, I prefer to extrapolate upon the wording. Borrowing an idea found in sources of literature and other games, I wonder about the connection with certain supernatural beings who perhaps aid the magic user in acquiring the magic spell - in a manner rather similar to a cleric who prays to their patron deity for their spells. Is the magic user tapping into a relationship with some powerful entity which is assisting them in gaining their memorized spell (I am thinking about the Warlock class from later editions, perhaps)?

Once again while consulting the words I find in Volume I of the original 3 LBBs I postulate; what else might the phrase "during any single adventure" imply? 

I like to think that each spell is prepared in a laboratory or seclusium and involves a more extended and "magical" formula be followed than spending a few minutes with one's traveling spell book as described in the Advanced game. Once a spell is "remembered" in this manner, it may be cast once each day - at least as long as the material spell component supply holds out. This interpretation seems just as easy as the more popularized method and I find it more evocative of the tone I like to encourage in the games I run.

I hope this brief discussion highlights a couple of the interesting ways that our old tried and true rules can be re-examined and creatively recast to deliver a fresh and exciting new slant on fantasy gaming. The do-it-yourself spirit of the early days of role-playing is what grabbed my attention from the start and continues to keep me excited about the hobby forty-some years later.

(Im)Balance In the Game

Player verses the GM

What we often don't talk about, but probably should, is game balance or imbalance between the referee and their setting and the players and their  character's abilities. What I am specifically referring to is the idea that the current edition of the world's most popular role-playing game and those GMs who feel it leans heavily in favor of the players frequently express an opinion that the game seems to be only getting more unbalanced as each new volume has been released, that it is all the while giving players more options and meanwhile mostly neglects the GM/referee; and finally, the negative effect this is having on the GM's "fun factor". There are a number of reasons why I think this may be a common perception. In this post I will discuss what my view of those reasons are and I will offer some insight how the problem might be addressed. As is the usual case for this old gray-head, my perspective is informed by decades of experience with a number of RPG systems including all of the previous editions of the popular game in question. 

Using the currently published series of rule books, it often seems that each encounter is set up to present a very limited "challenge" to a party of adventurers which have most of their class-based resources ready at hand. The more difficult encounter seems to be designed to wear down the party's resources or perhaps cause a weakened party to experience one or more PCs to fall unconscious while entering the usually temporary game status of "dying" and its related "death saving throw" routine. The authors of the current edition have indicated that character death isn't fun and should therefore be avoided - perhaps at all costs? 

The 5e dying mechanic involves a number of saving throws (each at 55% to succeed - roll 10+ on a d20) and uses the "rule of three" - three failed rolls before three successful roll will result in the player character actually dying NPCs don't usually get death saves. If the character is "stabilized" or makes the three death saving rolls, they can pop back up ready to continue the fight (unless the DM imposes optional Fatigue rules to give the previously "dying" some lasting detriment).

Rests, short (1 hour) and long (6-8 hours), will reset many of the adventuring party's resources including most class abilities (spells, etc.) and renew some or all lost hit points. As a result, resting between encounters (especially the long rest which generally resets everything) means that the party will start each encounter in a fresh state. The idea of slowly wearing the party down and depleting their resources through attrition (and resulting tension) is therefore diminished and a large part of the original game, namely resource management, is lost.

Encounters in older editions are often randomly determined (roll on a table) and can produce monster encounters that are way above the ability of the characters to comfortably handle. The idea here is for players to cleverly avoid such potentially "deadly" encounters, which often offer little to no rewards even when defeated. Combat is something for players to carefully consider rather than jump right into, meanwhile weighing the odds of loss verses gain. When players are so confident that any encounter can be dealt with by a headlong charge into combat because it is all "balanced" for them to defeat, the entire nature of the game is arguably changed.

If "balanced" encounters are determined to be the preferred style of play, there are still other considerations which can/should be addressed regarding game balance. The character races and classes found in the current PHB are often augmented by including the optional Feats and Multiclassing rules. Using these "options" will often result in player characters with even more powers than those built using only the basic mechanics. This "over-powering" is often much to the liking of players, but can cause even more encounter balancing headaches for the GM. The character options which sell players on additional books and make the publisher money also further expand the challenges for the GM - both in terms of having to purchase and read/master the new material and in terms of adjusting game challenges to be in line with the newly enhanced PCs which are being built using all the latest options. (It can result in a situation I personally have found tiresome as I try to keep up with all the latest and greatest for the game.)

Giving away too much to the players is something GMs are warned against even back in the earliest days of the hobby. (Mr. Gygax did just this quite often.) A game that players find too easy will not long hold their interest - nor the interest of a GM who feels like all their best efforts get easily rolled over by the powerful PCs. It is indeed a "balancing act" for any game to keep everyone happy. I honestly believe that players old and new want to feel challenged, and to know that they have earned their character's survival, as well as any PC rewards, and advancement.

The default setting of 5e is assumed to be the Forgotten Realms, which incidentally has morphed into a world only slightly resembling the Realms of previous editions making comparisons across editions more difficult. For those newer to the hobby than me, this presents perhaps little to ponder, I suppose, but for those GMs who have established a degree of comfort with an older and familiar setting (either the published Forgotten Realms or one of their original design) the GM may be at odds with default assumptions as they appear in the recently published sources - including rules tomes. I personally see the setting, the fictional world and all its inhabitant NPCs and monsters, as my GM's "character" or playing piece in the game. It is through control of these setting elements that the tone and story are staged, and a preferred style of play is prompted. (Having some experience with narrative or "story" games where designing the world/setting is an endeavor shared among all the players and not just the GM, I think that such a play style differs significantly enough from what I am describing here as to constitute an altogether different kind of game.)

The nature of alignment has also changed drastically through the editions so that in the current game, it seems that the concept of alignment is often given only passing attention. Originally (in Chainmail and the three little brown books) alignment consisted of grouping all creatures into three alignments, namely those who adhere to the principals of Law, Chaos or Neutrality respectively. The various creatures who inhabit the game world under this system are divided along these lines with Law seen as the closest to "good" and Chaos being associated with "evil" - although the exact nature of the moral concept of what constitutes "good and evil" are usually left to players gathering at each individual table to define for themselves. By the time that we have the Advanced rules, good and evil are an additional axis on the alignment chart, equal in weight to law and chaos, and the concept of alignment has moved to become one that involves character behavior and personality. 

Under this Advanced system of alignment, GMs are encouraged to "police" the actions of characters for alignment consistency. (Along with many other aspects of the game, I much prefer alignment as it appears in the "original game" outlined in the three LBBs.) Perhaps as a reaction to practices of prior years and the Advanced editions, a more recent trend among DMs has been to move away from the use of alignment altogether, but I think this eliminates the central theme of organized conflict and factions from the game thereby resulting in a less satisfying game experience.

In the decades long history of our beloved game, the balancing of power (including that existing between GM and players) has been a frequent topic of discussion. Early versions of the world's most popular role-playing game often reflect a power structure weighted in favor of the gamemaster. In the original White Box version of the rules it is assumed that the referee/GM may be the only player with access to a copy of the complete set of rules - published and "in-house". In the Advanced 1e rules, a first attempt is made to "standardize" the game so that every table will use what is generally similar mechanics, but in this edition many of the essential rules, especially those regarding combat, are located in the Gamemasters Guide and not the Players Handbook. The Advanced 2e Players Handbook is distinctly different in this approach since it includes all essential rules (including combat) so that the rules necessary to play the game are all put into the players' hands. 

In the publishing era of 2e we see the world or setting become the primary means through which the gamemaster is encouraged to shape their unique style of play. Setting takes a more active role during the publication life of this edition as can be seen in the number of classic worlds that remain popular. Dark Sun, Ravenloft, Dragonlance Planescape, and even more, all serve to illustrate some of the varieties in play style that can be achieved through the use of individualized rules that are specific to one setting. 

The 3rd and 4th editions encourage an even more standardized play style (along with the implication that the setting will be one of the  few "official" ones published by WOTC). The default and assumed nature of "balanced" play is herein assumed to extend across all tables regardless of individual GM fiat, and includes a default availability of magic items connected to leveling -in 4e the players actually choose their character's magic items from a list as part of the reward earned during play. 

Balance is frequently interpreted quite differently and is a more important concept for some players than for others. What balance ultimately rests upon is the ability of each player to enjoy the game. Few players, referees included, enjoy a game that seems heavily skewed toward a pre-ordained outcome. It is generally less fun to go through what may seem to be "the motions" of play when there is little chance of failure - or maybe no chance of success! 

It is the challenge that engages a gamer. The opportunity to be surprised by the outcome and a feeling that good play and luck has paid off. It's precisely this element of wanting to know how t will turn out which can bring us back to a favored game time and again.

Location Based Adventure

The Winding Way: Setting the Stage

When I set up a role-playing game session, I try to anticipate what might happen once my players interact with it through the actions of their characters - with my locations, my NPCs and with whatever monstrous creatures I populate my setting with. Then we all "play to find out..."

The art of refereeing an RPG depends greatly upon one's ability to multi-task. A good referee will possess more than one skill set. Part of the job is creation; to create a setting, scenario or an entire world. The ability to excite others, to describe, to manage suspense, to react and to improvise, to apply the rules and to make fair rulings, are all aspects of the multi-faceted job of the referee.

The way I personally run a game is from the perspective that the rules are mostly about character creation and advancement and combat. Everything else is handled through discussion between referee and players and role-playing out those interactions with NPCs. This portion of the game requires very few (if any) rules. Occasionally I will call for a die roll, just to cover the chance (including all those elements beyond our ability to understand, control or account for) that luck plays in the outcome of any endeavor. It's just my preference and it seems to work for many players who have enjoyed playing at my table.

My preparation for play is generally focused on the location. I try to create some place that is both interesting and that I and my players can explore to find out more about. One method I use for this is to borrow a bit of inspiration from something in my real environment - preferably several somethings that when combined will feel original and at the same time, a bit familiar. This has the advantage of giving me a mental place to draw upon should I need additional detail (who can predict what players will ask?) while also containing some mystery. The more experiences the referee has, the better able we are to draw upon a wealth of data to fill in our improvisational descriptions!

With a location in mind, I will populate it with creatures. It may be an NPC, a monster, two quarreling factions, or something else for the player characters to interact with. Again, jotting down some notes based upon a mental image of the creature or thing will get me started and if it is something with a motive, I will have an idea what motivates it - hunger, curiosity, taking a prisoner, or gaining some treasure?

Frankly, that is usually about all I have to start with. A map, a few notes and a good idea from which to draw additional inspiration from allows me to go where ever my players decide to take their adventure. For me, that is player agency - decide what you would like your players to do in this location. Sometimes my players will decide "this isn't interesting" and move on to another location, so it helps for me to give some thought to the broader area. This is where remembering where I originally borrowed my idea from helps. Over the hill? Across the river or onto the next town. Grab some inspiration and start making some notes as you play. That is how I frequently build my setting.

A Small Sandbox

The Witch Farm

It all started when a chromatic wizard from a far-off land immigrated to the area. A specialist in ancient lore and the necromantic arts, which were fairly common pursuits in the far-away country where he originated, the wizard came in search of a fabled "well of souls". Whether he found such is not recorded. What did transpire, and ultimately did reach this chronicler's ear, was his discovery of the ruins of a nearly forgotten civilization - one which had its own pre-occupations with defeating death. The wizard practiced his art farming the bone fields, growing crops of witches - creatures that soon began to prey upon the local population creating a reign of terror and many heroic deeds as adventuring types were drawn to the area by news of the evil afoot.  

A sandbox adventure is best when it's intimate and of limited scope. Much as its name implies, the sandbox exists in a "box". It has boundaries - even large ones do. Starting small allows the referee/world-builder to manage the scope of the setting and to present the players with a level of detail that will engage their characters. A handful of choice and well played NPCs - all of them characterized by some notable feature that makes them stand out as memorable - and a few rumors of evil doings will present the players  a menu of irresistible choices. As the adventure develops, your setting may expand to present a feeling that the fictional world is an expansive place, but by presenting opportunities that bring the characters back into the core of the setting, the sandbox campaign can remain manageable. The more time that the players spend exploring the local neighborhood, the more acquainted with it they will become, the more "real" it will feel and perhaps more importantly, the more likely they will be to care about what happens to the now familiar folks (NPCs, etc.) and the place they may start to think of as home (-base). 

With such notable TSR classics as an inspirational model, the referee may draw upon the likes of modules featuring Borderlands or Homlet as they create their own locale ripe for sandbox adventure. A small civilized nodule of imperiled citizenry to form the "home-base" for your adventurers combined with an external threat for them to conquer (or die trying!) and your campaign is off to a promising start. Mix in the particular interests as expressed by your players and many sessions of fun and entertainment surely await. Add in a few surprises in the form of an NPC (or three) who are not what they seem to be, and perhaps the subplots of a quarrelsome faction or two - the possibilities seem almost endless - and your campaign will continue to delight everyone. The longer the campaign lasts, the more you and your players will come to value this little sandbox they now call home.

It started with a rumor - some farmer claimed he lost a few sheep. Another complained about the "varmints" and their increased foraging in his vegetable patch. "It ain't natural, I tell ya!" he exclaimed.

Then there was the strange "disappearance".

Inquiry leads to some "strange doings" as reported to be happening at the old ruins. "It's witches... Burn 'em!" the crowd shouts.

"What about ol' Granny? I've heard she might be a witch."

Everyone seems to have almost forgotten about the stranger who passed through some months back asking questions about the old ruins and a magical well...

Character verses World

Standing Out in the Crowd!
The game, as it has often been played since the beginning of my interest in the hobby, is about the players, their characters and the actions that those characters take (or don't take much to evil's delight!), all done in a setting consisting of a particular fictional world, which over the course of many sessions, may see several characters that come and occasionally go. The world, or setting as it is often called, is the place where all the action in the game happens. Usually it is created by the referee or taken from a published author as the case may be when the setting is purchased for use "as is". It is always a fictional place (even when based on a "real world" location and time) where challenges await our players as they confront mysteries and the many dangers encountered by their characters. The excitement of playing the game most generally comes from interacting with this setting, the fictional world as it is, through characters that may take on a favored role through several sessions of play. 

The game world can be based upon our own world's  history or perhaps can be set in the modern day, using various real world locations, institutions, and even headlines taken from news stories, all as inspiration. Together this is the backdrop for the many actions our characters will take - both heroic and mundane. Because the characters are fictional, and therefore their actions are make-believe, the game is ultimately just that, an exercise in playing make-believe. It is a fiction, or entertainment for its own sake, and yet so much more for those of us who love the game.

Regardless of the character sheet, each player's abilities - and their game-craft (i.e. player skill at role-playing) is ultimately all that is pitted against the fictional challenges posed by the referee and the setting. 

This is the basis of the game. It is the job of the referee, or game master as the role is often titled, to set the stage for all the unfolding action by preparing a fictional world (ripe with intrigue!) in which the game will ultimately take place. Once the players are assembled, the referee describes the situation for them using the point of view of each of their game characters. The players say what they would like each character to do. The referee then judges the outcome of all actions taken by the characters by applying the rules as they are written and also by making any rulings necessary to cover the in-play events which are outside the scope of said written rules.

The challenge for all is to play the game well and to have fun. This is true for every participant, including the referee. The referee, it should not be forgotten, is also a player and as such, is just as invested in the game being fun for all as anyone else is. The role-playing game differs from many other types of game in that it is cooperative in nature - not competitive in the traditional sense of winners and losers. The adversary is the evil characters and monsters played by the referee - not the referee. The game is about the characters AND the world which is bigger than any character or group of characters and may provide the backdrop for many scenarios involving any number of characters.

The character may stand out as being memorable through the merit of exceptional deeds performed during play. It is our impact on the world that leaves an impression! Clever play, humor and heroic action makes for a remarkable character career. An eye-catching costume, superhuman game stats, and a unique background may assist the player in gaining a "feel" for role-playing the character, but such detail will rarely contribute much to a remarkable career. In the game as in real life, it s what we accomplish that ultimately determines our legacy.

Does our new character sheet become a character we will remember and talk about for years to come, or are they just another future tombstone marking a brief and non-illustrious make-believe, pen and paper life? 

Play and find out!

Sunsetting Your Character

A Fitting End.

One of the potential problems with long term campaigns can occur as a result of the characters themselves. Campaigns can be described in many ways, focused or unfocused, plot driven or sandbox, but all revolve around its unique cast of characters.

Over the last 15+ months I have been following an online campaign that is using the "Advanced" 2e system. I won't mention the name or "channel" because I am not going to be particularly kind in my comments. Frankly this campaign see4ms to have outlasted its vitality and this is evidenced by the players who no longer "show-up" for scheduled sessions and by characters who now seem to lack purpose and direction. In other words, it has become tedious and boring to watch and probably to play. This is not how this campaign began, however. In its early sessions it was interesting and engaging. The setting was revealed to show depth and surprise and the characters acted as explorers and investigators as well as combatants. Somewhere along the way, the campaign lost its way and devolved into playing characters who although they are getting more powerful, they also are very much less fun to play and watch.

Every character in every campaign has a beginning when we as players "roll them up". Some characters die a violent death during play. Some succumb to disease or level drain. Some get rich and retire, maybe to become a recurring NPC in future campaigns or to run the local tavern. Too many characters are just abandoned, their ultimate fate lost to anonymity, largely due to the campaign being abruptly abandoned. 

There comes, even to kings, a time of great weariness. Then the gold of the throne is brass, the silk of the palace becomes drab. The gems in the diadem and upon the fingers of women sparkle drearily like the ice of the white seas; the speech of men is as the empty rattle of a jester's bell and the feeling comes of things unreal; even the sun is copper in the sky and the breath of the green ocean is no longer fresh. – from “The Mirrors of Tuzun Thane” by R. E. Howard 1929

At some point we all desire to play something new and our old character loses its appeal. Sometimes we just feel that we have exhausted all the interesting possibilities this character presents. Our PC's "story" may have been told and we have reached a logical stopping point with them. Maybe we are just bored with our PC, or maybe the "latest and greatest supplement" has given us an idea for a new and improved PC and we are looking to start anew? 

In many games the characters are there simply to explore the fictional world - the setting is the central element of this type of campaign and PCs may come and may go without serious consequence to the on-going campaign. This may seem "natural" and is often how the real world works for us adults as acquaintances come and go. Children may view the world, and everything in it, as being there merely to meet their needs, but we adults quickly learn that this is not the case. 

In a role-playing game where the PCs are the focus of play, the dynamics of an evolving "story" can be quite different than in a sandbox style game where the setting is being slowly revealed through exploration - during which play may involve many quests, each of which adds to the compiled lore that enriches the setting.

What seems logical to me is that a PC focused campaign should be planned from the beginning to be  of a relatively short term and should be goal oriented. A specific task for the PCs should be clearly defined and the cast of characters (and their players) devoted to accomplishing the task. This is quite similar to a novel such as the famous "walking the magic ring to mount doom" which has a beginning, middle and end. The character(s) should be facing some crisis which when resolved will complete the "story" and therefore the campaign. Wrap it up nicely - then move on to the next campaign.

Regardless of our reasons for retiring our old character, I would encourage us to see the character deserves a decent send-off. After all, has not our well-played PC given us hours of enjoyment, and probably provided us with some laughs along the way! By giving careful attention to exactly how the PC will "ride off into the sunset", we can nicely wrap up this particular chapter in our emergent story - and perhaps provide a plot hook for some future adventure.