Death is such a tragedy, not only for what we lost, but what we could have had.

This is, quite possibly, the most intelligent and articulate discussion on character death I have ever seen. Thank you, Dael Kingsmill. I'm glad you're making videos again.

"Huizinga's Magic Circle" needs to be made into a spell

this actually reminds me of the start of the episode III novelization. "A strange thing about stories. Though this is happening so long ago and so far away that time cannot describe the time or distance. It is also happening right now, right here, as you listen to these words."

"This is gonna come around again when we get to Aristotle" was just music to my ears.

Its not that often I am compelled mid video to make a comment, but how could I not? THIS IS WHAT THE PEOPLE WANT!!!

A wise deer once said "You feel what you feel, and those feelings a real."

My paladin died at level 4, fighting a dragon in its lair. I rolled a 1 on my death savings throw... followed by another 1. R.I.P. Sir Galdon

This is exactly the content I needed to see on the eve of my group's final BBEG throwdown! One of our players is moving away, which definitely enhances the feeling of finality in this, our final in-person session, but I think if we lean into the right notes, this ending might help to reassure them that this is just AN ending, not THE ending.

Through the story you gain attachment to your character. When you're attached to something and it is taken away, an emotional response follows. This happens in all kinds of media whether you play it, watch it, or read it. Emotional Attachment is a key factor.

I was forced by circumstance to leave a game I had been playing in for a good few months, and I cried for twice as many hours. Both for the time lost making the character, and the emotions put into figuring out how they tick (in particular, alongside the rest of the party) being lost forever, but also for the time lost being that character. Vicariously living through much more interesting characters in a much more fantastic world makes for brilliant escapism that allows exploration of philosophical ideas from the comfort of your own office chair over a voice call in a closet. (Well, I say comfort, lol). Awesome video, subscription well earned :3

I hear the first sentence of the video(why don't we want our D&D characters to die by Dael Kingsmill) and my brain goes: "That is an oddly specific cause of death". What a brilliant start of the video! 🤣

So Dael made me smile therefore I am real, if, of course Dael is real .

5:32

Generally speaking, memories are one of two “types”. One is “stories that are told to me” and the other is “things that happened to me”. Movies, books, video games (for the most part) fall into the former. TTRPGs like D&D fall into the latter due to the active involvement and nature of the game.

Huizinga's theory reminds me a lot of a conversation between Death and Susan in the Hogfather.

My first character died when a rival rogue crit on her sneak attack against him, instakilling him. RIP Martine, you were the bravest of them all

Idk if what I'm about to write is too tangential or based on a misinterpretation, but I've noticed that there's a strong positive correlation between how much I enjoy a campaign and how much the people at the table (appear to) "believe" in it, both as a player and a GM. I think there's a tie between that and the themes of this video.

Man, I have missed Dael's ramblings after she's "finished" the main part of her video.

THIS. THIS! THIS IS WHY WE LOVE YOUR VIDEOS. GODDAMN I love this content. Subscribing on this account now, but I've seen your videos for awhile now. Please please continue making videos. Your mythological background and academic background add so much to game and theory content. One of my most favorite D&D content channels.