How a Demon Dies

[shadowhowler]

Hey all, I'm not sure if it's mentioned in the PDF but I can't seem to find the part that tells you how Demons heal, and what happens when they die? Unless I'm not reading this pre-book-PDF properly?

Totally happy that we've been given it, btw! I'm engrossed!

[Metrophelean]

Outside of demonic form, Unchained heal like dudes.

I don't recall what happens to their Covers when they die, but the demon itself just dies, as far as I remember. They don't leave ghosts or nothin'.

[shadowhowler]

I found this:

"The demon heals lethal or bashing damage equal to her Primum rating, starting with the rightmost health box upon changing into her demonic form. Any Tilts relating to a bodily injury, such as Arm Wrack, are removed."

So that explains some natural healing. I guess Death is just death since it says that any wounds suffered go with you from Cover to Cover.

[Ryu]

For that healing: It is only when you assume full demonic form (partial is not enough). I cleared that earlier today.

Also if they die while in cover or in demonic form they are dead just normal dead. Although good question what happens with all covers AND also what happens when they die in demonic form (do they change then automatically into their last cover? [if so what is up when they have burnt their last cover by going loud?])

[Aiden]

Dying outside of Cover makes more work for the God-Machine's agents who have to clean up these kind of messes.

[PenDragon]

A Demon in cover heals like a human, barring the use of Embeds or Exploits. Taking demonic form immediately heals [Primum] lethal or bashing damage, but doesn't increase healing speed unless they have a form power that does so.

[Cleverest of Things]

I couldve sworn in the development phase, one of the devs said that a demon who dies loses that cover but still goes on, and is okay if he can get a new one. is that gone, or does it apply only to covers dying of old age?

[The Yann Waters]

I couldve sworn in the development phase, one of the devs said that a demon who dies loses that cover but still goes on, and is okay if he can get a new one. is that gone, or does it apply only to covers dying of old age?

From the draft's page 23: "Demons age along with their human Cover and die of old age if their Cover does. Theoretically, demons can achieve great longevity by changing to a youthful Cover every few decades, but even the eldest Unchained can still die to accident or violence." A later section on switching identities clarifies that it won't heal any actual damage.

[Intrepid Vector]

From the draft's page 23: "Demons age along with their human Cover and die of old age if their Cover does. Theoretically, demons can achieve great longevity by changing to a youthful Cover every few decades, but even the eldest Unchained can still die to accident or violence."

BRING ME THE SOUL OF A FORSAKEN CHILD

Edit: Know what could be neat to see? A demon who painstakingly splices together pacts over time to keep recreating more-or-less-the-same Covers as their current one ages too much to be useful. You could play this up as slightly deranged or explain it as sign of how the Demon really identifies with that Cover and is really uncomfortable with the short, transient lifespans of mortals.

[Hawthorn]

I have yet to read far enough into the book to reach the stuff about the actual Demon template and its features, however to make sure I have this correct -

In Cover a Demon heals exactly like a normal mortal. I take it they are also subject to the knock-out/bleeding out rules for getting a health track full of bashing/lethal?

In Demonic Form they heal a number of Bashing/Lethal damage equal to their Primum when they transform and loose any tilts resulting from injury.

If they die in Demonic Form they are perma dead.

If they die in cover they are perma dead (and don't just pop into the next cover or Demonic Form?)

When in Demonic Form they still heal at the same rate as a human being for the different types of damage?

How many Embeds/Exploits/Demonic Form Powers are there that let you heal?

Just that at the moment they are sounding pretty flimsy.

As you can switch back and forth to Demon form, but that is going to shred your cover and unless you have high Primum does not seem to be either worth it or a good idea.

[pgolasze13]

On the Mend is pretty powerful. It lets you heal all bashing with a success, one lethal per success or agg equal to your primum. an exceptional success is recover all bashing plus a will power, recover all health lost to lethal or point of agg damage per succes or primum whichever is higher. Thats just an embed.

Just Bruised on a single success on any damage you take or a target takes to just one.

Shift Consequences can redirect damage as well and that's an embed

Break to Heal also is pretty powerful as a healing tool but that's an exploit.

Demons aren't to squishy IMO.

[Satchel]

I have yet to read far enough into the book to reach the stuff about the actual Demon template and its features

Stopping you here because in my experience this is where people start putting their feet in their mouths.

Just that at the moment they are sounding pretty flimsy.

Demonic form powers can include things like armor, regeneration, teleportation, Defense boosts — and they can be customized to include these things every time their Primum goes up or down. Most of those aren't even mutually exclusive.

Break to Heal and Halo are both healing or recovery-accelerating Exploits, and On the Mend is an Embed — which suffer no untrained Skill penalties and don't cost Aether — that can at the very least heal a point of lethal or aggravated damage or all of your bashing damage.

If a demon lives the sort of life where they expect to face injury on a regular basis, it's not hard for them to prepare against that eventuality.

[Tribute of a Dark Heart]

Between On the Mend, Just a bruise, Break to Heal, and Tough as stone it feels to me like demons can recover from injuries very quickly.

That's not even considering abilities like Never Here, 4 Minutes ago, and Echoing Death which allow them to completely reset damage taken and resources...

Oh..and if you Go Loud all injuries are healed...along with boosting your Primium to the the max and refilling aether...of course losing a cover is never desirable, but the option is there!

[Stupid Loserman]

All of this is true. It still feels to me like demons are the major supernatural line of the nWoD to most worry about the consequences of any fight they get themselves into - the stakes feel higher, no fight feels trivial. Perhaps this opinion will change when I actually start running the game and see the healing powers in action, but I like that notion. It adds some of the tension back in that can be lost, without being so lethal that the chronicle is ended prematurely or the characters have to spend frequent weeks of downtime healing up.

[pgolasze13]

Well it's a game of techgnostic espionage so it's very fitting. I feel that mages and demons are similar in that catch one unprepared it could be a cake walk, but if they had the opportunity to prepare? God rest the poor bastards soul that pissed either of them off.