How to Play an Indomitable Spirit WITHOUT Causing a TPK

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How do you play a truly Indomitable Spirit WITHOUT getting everyone killed?
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Hello! My name is Jay, and I am a long-time veteran of storytelling and a semi-seasoned DM! I began playing Dungeons and Dragons roughly 5 years ago and began my first ever game as the DM. I figured things out by watching online games and fumbling my way through the rules, and never looked back! I've fallen in love with TTRPG's in general and want to share my experience and thoughts with the world and community I love so much. I currently DM two separate games regularly, and continue to learn every day.
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[@masonnash9396]

In my game, we had a character who would always refuse to surrender when he had the chance of slaying a big monster. He met his end when the rest of the party retreated and he chose to stay behind in the dungeon. The party had to seal the door, trapping him inside.

[@negative6442]

rip buddy

[@calebsorrell6235]

A hero’s death. I’ve had a few of my own

[@asdasasdas3476]

Was there an option for the party to knock him out and drag him out of the fight.

[@Maninawig]

May Celestia never bore of his tales of glory

[@smittywerbenjagermanjensen5963]

Poor guy had cowards for backup

[@DParkerNunya]

God, that scene from a silly little show about a guy who beats everything so easily that the genre becomes a comedy never fails to bring a tear to my eye. It's the most obvious example of the character, but that guy on a bike with no powers standing up to someone who has been battering actual powerhouses around is honest to god one of the most inspiring things I've ever seen.

[@theganondorf96]

That was indeed by far the most inspiring scene of the whole show. Though I was wondering, if Jay would continue the scene...

[@miles7224]

MUMEN RIDERRRRRRRR

[@TheBenjaminArgo]

I tear up every single time I watch or read that scene.

[@Maninawig]

You know what makes me tear up a second time? When the badly looks at that rider and says "I'ma give you the win."

[@mikieoboyle6127]

What always gets me is the scene afterwards, where saitama meets him at the ramen stand and just says 'its tough meeting those quotas huh?' Its just such a human phrase, i love it

[@arandomdog8586]

"I would rather die standing than live kneeling." - Vegitales facts

[@Ragnarons]

Just want to state this quote is from Mexican Revolution leader Emiliano Zapata, a figure often glossed over in history, but without a doubt a true selfless hero.

[@edscarlet865]

Can't believe we are talking about the Indomitable Human Spirit and NOT EVEN ONCE did Gurren Lagann came into the conversation.

[@gamingpandaboy]

Yo fr tho. That's the perfect representation of this trope

[@SunWukongSonGoku]

(not TTRPG related - Gurren Lagann related) I was playing Apex Legends one time, just queuing into Trio's with randoms - I get into one match, and I've got this little squeaker kid trying just SO HARD to get someone to talk to him, so I do. We get into our first fight- we got ambushed, and then 3rd partied : double ambush. The kid get's knocked, our third quits the game, and I'm the only one up. In the absolute most "I give up on myself" voice ever I hear the kid say : "just leave me..." Now, unfortunately, that was the play at the time, and I had been, maybe 2 seconds into a retreat when I hear him say "just leave me..." and it BROKE MY HEART HEARING BRO SOUND LIKE THAT!!!!! I turned TF AROUND and full-sent into a 1v6, knocked 2 people by surprise, grabbed his banner (so I could respawn him) right under someone else's nose and started BOOKING IT. The whole time, the kid is Freaking Out in excitement as this unfolds, and says in a hushed voice "it's a literal Octane" (the character I was playing - the absolute BIGGEST compliment I could have gotten from the boy) I rush to a respawn beacon, and he's yelling into his mic : OH MY GOD! I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU DID THA- there's a team! there's a team!" and he marks the location. I drop my primary weapon, ammunition, and the rest of my heals, and I tell him "there's stuff here for you, I'll go hold them off for you!" and I full send the team. I bought him just enough time. After my death, the team that killed me get's attacked, and the kid is panicking with all this action happening so close to him. "What do I do? What do I do?!" he let's out. And then I became Kamina. "Don't believe in yourself. Believe in the me, who believes in you." "Obviously." And he FULL SENDS THE FIGHT. Knocks two people, grabs my banner, and rushes to respawn me. He DOES. The last two teams rush the respawn, and he says "there's stuff here for you. I'LL GO HOLD THEM OFF." I drop on my things, and he's calling out Damage Dealt, and to Who, and what Level of Armor they have- absolutely acting PROFESSIONAL AF. We hold the fight off to the last team, and I tell him "I'm gonna be dumb- cover me!" and I rush the team, get in some good damage, and I get knocked. I bring up my shield, and I tell him the damage, but it's a 1v2; he slides behind me and uses my shield as cover and knocks one- tells me "crawl forward!" I crawl forward. The last enemy slide-jumps out of their cover, and the kid LET'S THEM HAVE IT! He win's the fight. Normally at this point, I hear squeaker's celebrating - this kid? NAH. Quiet enough that, I'm sure he didn't think I heard him, he whispers : "I'm gonna keep believing in the me he believes in"

[@Thomas-zt7dm]

Or Blanjaro

[@zhangbill1194]

Its a very intersting example because it shows the trope is not always positive. In Gurren Lagann the "bad guys" have genuine reasons for the actions like "if the population gets too big, the real bads guys will kill all of you" and out protagonists arguement is "fuck you" Its a intersting examination of how the indomitable human sprit rides the line of arrogance and fanaticism

[@teslagasoline5629]

IKR, i scoured the video for even one clip, and was almost disappointed it didn't show up. Its been my favorite show for like, a decade and a half. The feelings it evokes are just so powerful.

[@lukiklepsa6218]

The "Nah, I'd win." strategy.

[@ath0mix566]

Well not really, this is more of an overconfidence rather than knowing you might not succeed and still have the spirit to go through with it

[@Cadall]

That's it. I'm making a Paladin who's power comes, not from the divine, but from the Indomitable Human Spirit. Lay on Hands: "Keep fighting! You can win!" Divine Smite: "WE WILL NOT LOSE!"

[@lakkakka]

and his achilles heel is self doubt. As soon as there is a little doubt in himself he loses his powers. Simply because of a lack of faith.

[@thunderknight24]

I had a paladin like that. The will to be a hero, and to seek honor and glory! Of course no one took him seriously, mostly because he was also a horse. No, not a druid or centaur, horse. Homebrew.

[@TheOneNotTheOnly]

@@thunderknight24so the indomitable horse spirit?… lol. Wild. Do it/you/they have weapons? Armor?

[@thunderknight24]

@@TheOneNotTheOnly armor, yes. Weapons? No. Instead, he had the holy hooves of JUSTICE, which could smite evildooers with the power of unbridled Don Quixote energy.

[@dragobane4728]

A level dip into firgter would actually help that out a lot. Getting at least level 9 for indomitable allows you tp gain the mechanic of the person who doesnt go down due to their own will.

[@paperwatt]

Some GMs allow a "dead" character to have one last action, one last spell, one last attack. (As long as they don't heal themselves obviously). This is it, they're dead after this. I think this would be a good consolation prize, not only ensuring a character gets one last awesome scene, but this would really help sell this archetype in the event that they don't overcome this last fight.

[@gorgit]

In the Fallout TTRPG from XP to level 3, you can decide between 3 different things when hitting 0 hp. Clinging onto life, meaning youre stable but thats it for the fight. Risking it, meaning making death saving throws with the chance of standing back up or permanently dying. Or a Blaze of glory, where your character gets one last action thats an auto critical success. But after that, he is dead, no matter what you do. I love that, I think its amazing.

[@reykhan2453]

Bro if they miss that's gotta be salt in the wound.

[@Kiyosandwicheater]

​@@reykhan2453 IMAGINE GETTING A CRITICAL FAILURE AT THAT MOMENT 😂😂

[@Kiyosandwicheater]

​@@reykhan2453"he fires his final magic missle with all of his might. It obliterates the hay bale on the corner of the demon lord's room harmlessly"

[@toz_lmao]

In uh, fantasy high, in the last fight of the first season (Spoilers btw) The party was all wiped apart from like 1 person and like 2 npcs, the cleric asked the Dm if she could roll to see if she got a nat 20 and get back up, turns out she did, made a whole ass new God, came back, stopped time with a dude she helped smuggle into heaven, and then had sandwiches and had a musical number while in stopped time

[@gaidencastro9706]

A good number of indomitable spirits have to prove their steel when they're all alone and/or the chips are down. This character has a hard time shining because at mid to late level, characters don't really run out of resources (or HP).

[@prosamis]

They very much can if the DM designs the encountere to be so My last encounter was a lvl 16 party (artificer wizard druid sorc) vs the BBEG and we literally ran out of all our resources, hp in single digits for multiple characters

[@destin5103]

You have to channel the power of the 30 year DM that merely uses the books as suggestions. "I don't know how much HP the boss has, it just dies when I think you've done enough"

[@brendanwoods7278]

​@@destin5103It's a weird principle but I ran a Dungeon for some Kids who never played the game before. Another adult ran a prior one, and the kids had a fun time taking down the BBEG making his health hit zero. When it was like 3 rounds of combat (Made sure the area they were in was dynamic, shards of a mirror flying around the room could come and take d4 damage)... Some kids didn't like the approach, but the martial players, they were having a ball, trying to match dialogue with the BBEG, was totally worth it

[@Chaotix010]

I had a Fighter in, what we ourselves call, a villain campaign where we started at level 2. She was a slave and fought as a gladiator for a few years until she was conscripted as a leading soldier in a war. Mages ended up decimating her unit in the middle of the night and she alone escaped in the chaos. In a sense, she saw that as a chance for freedom, but she found herself constantly running and fighting up until she met the party. At first, she thought it was finding a missing daughter for the family who took her in so she could save on money, but things started to get screwed up with demons and fae being involved. During that time, she was kind of the face of the party. Stood up to corrupt law enforcement in town, showed her skills in battle to an impressive degree to the party, and while she was rather brash and distant, she shown herself to be fair and kept the party's dynamic in mind as they all clearly had their secrets and she respected that so long as they didn't pry into hers. I made her to be the resilient soul down to a fault. A dirty fighter that did whatever it took to survive but didn't pick any fight for her own sake and for anyone else that would challenge her as she knew her experience left her to be absolutely brutal. But then came an encounter with a vampire. Everyone wanted to chase after the thing as they offered a chance for information, but my Fighter smelled a trap and refused to do so. Despite everyone pleading, she didn't want to enter a deathtrap, and thus broke away as everyone else followed the bait. However, one of our party members had a moment where they felt something call to them. No one thought much of it at the time until my Fighter ended up face to face with them. She was called a coward for turning and running, and she took that personally. Good news, she nearly killed it. Bad news, because her resources were already spent before the fight, it killed her first. She was at level 3. Funny enough, she's still referred back to by the party despite months later in the campaign. I'm glad to have made someone who left an impact on the party in such a short time.

[@user-in4nq6ex6h]

I saw the title and thought “Oh that sounds up my alley, lets check it out” and, immediately, the intro character examples include two of my biggest PC inspirations (Vi and Reinhardt)

[@Luykosaurus]

If you want a TTRPG that allows you to embrace this type of character fully, I recommend Ishanekon: World Shapers. It has cinematic actions that allow you to break the rules at the cost of Narrative Momentum. If you are down, you can even use a cinematic burst at twice the cost to still act. You ran out of Narrative Momentum? You can gain more instantly at the cost of gaining levels of exhaustion. The Protagonist Sub-Archetyp specializes in cinematic actions and is a great choice. Another cool option is the Hero Sub-Archetype, which makes you stronger the more outnumbered/outgunned you are and grants a free cinematic reaction when your HP drops below half for a powerful comeback.

[@somebody6235]

Looks Very fun

[@Luykosaurus]

@@somebody6235 It is. The community is small but passionate.

[@ericraululyeetusdelyeetus5028]

Please tell me there are attack clashing mechanics

[@Luykosaurus]

@@ericraululyeetusdelyeetus5028 You can use a cinematic reaction if you get attacked. You can use it to react to the danger in all sorts of ways, including an attack clash. Go for the beam struggle, sword clash, magic duel, or whatever you can think of.

[@ericraululyeetusdelyeetus5028]

@@Luykosaurus oh fuck yeah that's rad, the enemies can also take advantage of this, right?

[@HellishSpoon]

Its good thing you mention that it can also be a flaw and i think serialized cartoon villains are good example of that, coming back again again and again for selfish reasons indomitable human spirit is neutral.

[@DParkerNunya]

I've got two characters that fit this archetype, a paladin and a monk/barbarian. The paladin's dream is to inspire people, to stand up and be strong. So to run away would mean that he couldn't live up to his own ideal. The monk/barbarian is heavily inspired by Bakugo, and his goal is to be strong enough that no good person will ever need to be afraid of the evils of the world. His reason for not running away isn't that it would be betraying an image he is trying to inspire. Its that he needs to overcome this. He can't let himself be weaker than something because that would mean that people would still have something to fear. Both are very fun, though there haven't been too many points where they got to grit their teeth and push through. There's been one for the paladin, but the barbarian/monk hasn't had much action yet. Very fun archetype to play, just be ready for other people to flee.

[@Casino220]

Monk/barb underrated. Just 2 or 3 into barb sets monk for life for rages and bonus damage if using strength. You can still use heavy weapons as a monk, just not with stunning strike and flurry of blows/martial arts. So dont use those if you want max damage. It seems so simple. +50% effective hp in big fights free and a higher max damage option and people just write it off

[@wander7984]

My recommendation to do this in D&D5e is to play a Charisma focused Paladin, i know fighter literally has Indomitable as a feature, but nothing beats the paladin getting wrecked and surviving because of his aura, wichh is a representation of his will (not to mention they would also be very helpful to everyione also with the power of his will)

[@the_Royal_Crow]

I think zealot barbarian is perfect for this, almost every feature fits into the archetype: Warrior of the Gods- Reviving spells on you are cast without needing components so the party doesn't have to pay for your reckless. Fanatical Focus- Just weaker indomitable, resisting effects through pure determination Zealous Presence- Inspiring others Rage Beyond Death- Staying on your feet even as as you are bleeding out and then pushing even past that refusing to die until the fight is over.

[@Kirbonic]

I love the Doctor Who clip used. One of my favorite episodes

[@SunWukongSonGoku]

I had a group of friends that wanted to get into D&D, and as the only one of them who'd previously played, I decided to DM for them; I told them : I've only ever been a player, so please have patience while I look up the rules, and forgive me when I get things wrong. Also, I don't think "rules lawyers" are bad. If you know, or think I'm making an incorrect ruling- let me know. We'll look it up. I'd rather take 60 seconds to be right, for you, than get the whole thing wrong. Now- that said. I don't want anyone dying on our first day, but I also don't want to, "take away the danger" - is everyone fine with, "unless it's a TPK, no one dies for the first 5 combats" ? They said "yes". They had some struggles figuring out their roles, off the batt, so I gave them an NPC with only, I think mold and shape earth, so I could "earth bend" / create cover for them, and create difficult terrain for the enemies, to slow them down, and "skipped" most of it's turns. So, the "indomitable human spirit" - where, or how does this fit in? They got through their first 5 combats, and the NPC was retired, and they got to their first big fight that could kill them. They were only level 5 or 6 ( we started at 3 ) , but I wanted them to have a "anime level fight", since we were all big on anime. I "heavily nerfed" the bonus' to a Behir, and threw in a few canon fodder cultists so the party's class resources didn't all get spent 3-turning the Behir; our Sorcerer had been having a hard time "making friends", since he really played up the "edgy character" archetype, and the group wasn't receiving him well. Our Ranger was the only party member going out of their way to try and include his character in the group. [scene] The Ranger is low on HP - Paladin steps between her and the Behir, and unleashes a powerful smite to take it's attention. The Behir multi-attacks the Paladin, almost dropping him. Cue Sorcerer : "NO!" he shouts, and casts Witchbolt on the Behir - the Behir turns and attacks the Sorcerer, dropping him; he rolls a 20 on his death saving throw ( idk if this was official, but I gave everyone 1hp if they saved, so they could get up/reposition, or get back in the fight if they wanted ) He stands, fury written upon his face : "Not this time..." he mutters to himself- "NOT THIS TIME!!" he shouts, and casts Witchbolt at the Behir; again the Behir drops him, but the Paladin rushes to Cure Wounds him, and says " you need to pull back". Again the Sorcerer rises, and casts Witchbolt at the Behir, only to get knocked again. It is at this point I tell him (the player) - okay look, you have come dangerously close to death- this last roll was only a few damage short of killing you outright- I just need you to know that- and he (the player) says : "I knew this guy was dangerous" I think at this point it was the Ranger that healed him up, as he for sure failed his first death save here, and What do you think our Sorcerer does? That's right. Witchbolt. Now, we had anywhere from 5-7 people playing at any given session, so it's not like the Behir, or Cultists were in a good state themselves, and in this moment I found out, I am very much a "the boss dies, when it feels right" kinda guy. Again, and again, and again, our Sorcerer rose to his feet, from near-death experience to near-death experience, and Challenged the biggest threat to his friends. The Behir, was Slain. ----------------------------- Our Sorcerer's player decides, that once the fight was over and done, his character was exhausted, and faints, falling to the ground- caught before he hit's, by the Paladin. Now that he'd nearly died, and with everyone's chastising him, our Sorcerer opens up : his backstory was that he had been part of a previous party, and unfortunately, was the sole survivor. The events were recent enough, that his character was still recovering from the grief of their losses. (distant echo effect) "NOT THIS TIME!!" --------------------------- Time, and time again, the party wanted to "settle matters" for the Sorcerer, avenge his party, and see their remains buried; his old party stumbled into a Lich's lair. Over and over, he refused. When we ended the campaign, I asked everyone to "tell us how you retired" The Sorcerer never "settled matters". ------------------------- Cue the Paladin's retirement story : The Paladin had invited the party to "an event - dress in your Finest clothes" The Paladin had rented out an ancient hall, and filled it with food and wine, and the party was welcomed by countless priests. Once everyone had arrived, the Paladin gave a speech, thanking his friends for their many adventures. At this point, he looks directly at the Sorcerer and tells him this entire event, is for him; were it not for him, they all likely would have died to the Behir, he says. He gestures to a Priest, who brings over a Holy text, and opens to a particular page, and then offers it to the Sorcerer, saying "It is you, who should send them on their way" The Paladin then describes as Priests carry in coffin after coffin, each one described as worth a small fortune; each one, with a familiar weapon resting atop them. The Paladin, had "settled business" for our Sorcerer.

[@Lennus_Hs]

Holy... this sorcerer got his break, finally, no loose ends

[@Guava11534]

This character type the indomitable human spirit character is why i like all the dark souls games and elden ring. In those games you always start off as a basic human with no real skill constantly dying over and over again. And yet with every death you learn something new and you get better until eventually you are so much better that you even end up fighting the gods and winning. Every souls protagonist is the human that just refuses to give up and that’s why I think those games are so cool

[@iang257]

The human desire to overcome evil or die trying. And even then, refusing to die.

[@mobgabriel1767]

I low key need one of these videos for the "too pure for this world" archetype

[@PlayYourRole]

On it

[@mobgabriel1767]

@@PlayYourRole thank you so much

[@Alche_mist]

Fluttershy is a great character and _works_.

[@michael-cf8tl]

if you want to make an indomitable character but want their arc to be one that isn’t static, try taking inspiration from a character like simon from gurren lagann who learned to believe in himself and, in turn, believe in everybody else!

[@BobbieGuam]

I got into a debate with a buddy of mine over Mumen Rider. It quickly escalated into an argument when he said and I quote, "That's fuckin stupid. Why wouldn't he just run away? He's gonna get himself killed." Needless to say, I'm a very passionate person and him continuously talk down the actions of one of my favorite OPM characters really sent me and we don't talk anymore 😂😂😂

[@mickeybat5816]

This is helping me write a character in a little story I like to pick at from time to time. This character is a human standing amongst gods and knows this, but he's always the last to give up despite knowing he is around people that can punch stars out of the sky. He's nowhere near a strong character, he's weak, he's a big doofus, and he's not really too smart. But his spirit to keep moving forward even when he's been knocked down is what gives him this respect from the gods. He's a side character that teaches the gods of the story that life isn't one massive victory, but a string of small victories that start with simply having the strength to move in the first place. The funniest thing is that this character was inspired by spongebob squarepants lmao

[@MelchVagquest]

I absolutely love the three examples in your thumbnail

[@BjornWithASlash]

Amleth, the historically dubious Danish Prince who inspired Hamlet and The Northman is a great example of being indomitable without being reckless. Homie plays the LONG game. In the movie he poses as a slave for months. In the original saga he spends his entire life pretending to be struck dumb with trauma until his uncle finally let his guard down, and he could enact his revenge. Patience will go far against tyranny and injustice.

[@projectlevel0]

I had a moment, a really fun moment, our game had a bbeg who was vecna but reskinned to fit our game I played a spider-man style character…at some point the party got separated during the fight…it was just me…and him…I essentially tackled him as we were all separated…I fought him on my own, even when I was pushed to 15 hit points I kept fighting saying “you can kill me all you want, but as long as they still exist, you’ll lose” I only survived because our wizard made it back to me right before I could be hit by another spell

[@williambeck2372]

You heard no bell and thus the fight was still on.

[@calebsorrell6235]

I love these videos, they’re genuinely helpful and have inspired a good number of my characters. Keep it up!

[@Noctua07]

I really love these archetype videos (always have). Just last Friday I played my first session of Pathfinder 2e and the character I've built does have some parts of this indomitable spirit. But that isn't what I'm going for. A part of her that I really wanted to add is that she is constantly pursuing improving herself and keeping herself physically and mentally in shape. Writing out her character and personality brought this back into my own focus and now serves as a motivation to incorporate that into my own life. Sure not in the sense of actual weapon training and maintenance nor praying to gods. But in ways that fit for me. So yes, you hit it spot on with your comment towards the end of the video. Part of us will always enter into the characters we create but just as likely part of our characters can enter into us and leave a lasting mark on us :)

[@cydude5856]

My last character was an indomitable spirit. His story ended with his death, an event that because of his role in the party forced the other members to acknowledge their own strengths and weaknesses.

[@Psinoh]

wow, yeah, this video basically perfectly incapsulates the struggle I’ve been having with a character I’ve been thinking of for a long time now. they’re a gambler mage, but they’re scrawny, tiny, terrible Con, yet they still go out and risk their life to live and learn more, because that’s what they want, and in some regard, need to do. the type to risk the odds and always seek the best outcome, believing in possibility, and the thrill of the gamble. this character is, by all accounts, marked for death. set up to take a stray arrow and die, just like that, and because of how much of myself I’ve placed into this character, I think, in a way, it would crush me, if they died. because I think I know exactly how they feel. you know, to simulate the idea of whether I’d be able to live how I want, if the world was truly against me, and see that fail. it would be a pretty depressing end, don’t you think? this character, set out to fix so many wrongs, or fulfill this one dream, risking everything to do it, but just, faltering, because of how impossible it really is to account for *all* the odds. maybe that’s a profound story. it certainly has been done before. even though I love this character so much, do I really have the heart to see that through? to experience those implications firsthand? if that mage were speaking to me, they’d probably tell me to roll the odds anyhow, because that’s the only way the best moments would have a chance of happening- actually playing the character. I agree with that. it doesn’t change the fact, though, that it would, in some strange and perhaps a bit embarrassing way, be more than just this character that I’m risking, by playing it, even if nothing that may happen in game is actually cohesive to reality. I guess I’d be risking my idealism, and my own philosophy, in some small way, and maybe it wouldn’t feel all that nice or satisfying to see a nihilistic end to a character who I feel encapsulates how I feel about living. regardless I still think ill play him one day, and don’t you worry- he’s gonna do all he can to rig the odds in his favor.

[@2ms2]

Probably writing short stories about him would make you some good. You don't need to publish them or anything. But yes, a ttrpg is a game with set rules. I don't think that bending them for the sake of a story would make it any good, specially when there are other players that would see it as unfair.

[@Psinoh]

@@2ms2 totally, and I definitely wouldn’t want to bend rules just to make room for this character, just because I know it’s so risky to play. I think if I don’t write stories about it, the best I can do is roll the dice, despite how obviously easy it is to die, and try my best at using established game mechanics to make that not happen. and, of course, if I die, just accept it. sucks, but that’s the risk I chose to take, yk. this is the kind of character I’d probably run by the whole table first, honestly, because I wouldn’t be sure if everyone would be into that kind of ultra squishy ally to be forced to defend, if it might come down to that.

[@sinzo7108]

ay fk the bots I'm real baby and I just had my first run of DND part of it is bc of you man much love

[@identitytheft7305]

These videos are good for everything, writing, game design and custom concepts for many things

[@koroxo1152]

Great intro Jay wife.

[@-lukario-]

My personal favorite example of this trope is Kamina in Gurren Lagann. He never backed down and always managed to beat the odds, giving Simon the confidence and inspiration to fight with just as much ferocity and determination as him. He even ends up dying, showing just how much a character with this trait can do and accomplish. Spoiler below: It even shows this all the way up to how it affects the characters around them when they die, with him giving his life in a fight so Simon and the rest of humanity can have their freedom. After the timeskip following his death, Simon has adopted a lot of Kamina's traits but the main one he inherited was his indomitable human spirit.

[@Asuraph]

The second character I wrote, had his stomach split open while a dark mage threatened his friends. He was told that if he stopped resisting his stomach would be healed and his friends would be fine. So he stopped moving. I didn't trust the mage, I was simply afraid that my character would die. But I look back at that moment and even though nothing bad happened... I think I should have kept pushing. My character was destroyed in spirit that day. My spirit in turn was broken. But I learned a lesson on backing down. That being said, I disagree with this video entirely. Building a strong character can lead to overtuned fights. These fights can cause your party great issue, leaving only your op character to shine. You should do your best to line up with your party's strength, in order to allow everyone to glow. Where true determination and indomitable spirit comes from, isn't strength, it's weakness. That moment when you're at 1 hp and the giant king turns the corner and walks toward your friends. You look at him and scream "COWARD, FACE ME!". Let me tell you, living after that moment, felt soooooo good.

[@hugofontes5708]

I had a character like that, I didn't follow the meta for tanking and but for damage to a degree. He was just tough enough and believed dying wasn't a risk or part of the job but the actual job. If anyone had to risk going down, it was him and if dying meant the mission was accomplished or that more likely to be then his objective was death - all so his friends would make the actual mission and live. He was no fool, didn't jump into hordes of enemies but I ran the numbers and if my friends would get a fair chance if I drop then he would face whatever it was. Nearly died several times but never failed, which is good because that's all he could do

[@Asuraph]

@@hugofontes5708 I feel and respect that. Genuinely cool character. Anyone who does their best is my favorite person in the group.

[@makko1266]

report the bots love your content, Jay! I'm finally playing DnD and taking inspiration from you to Play My Role IMO though, I feel "last stand" moments are more impactful when done by a coward who finds the courage at the last moment. Still, there's room for both.

[@k.silverpoint]

I heard Inazuma Eleven and i immediately hit the like button. Raimon represent.

[@midooct]

I had this happen somewhat during a session. My character (a 5th level fighter/rogue) was the last one standing, but refused to give up and this was shown via second wind and a magic item that ,in the end, recovered a grand total of 3 hp lol. I stood long enough for my friend's character to land the final blow. Bleeding, cut, bruised and near the brink of death, my character still stood with 1 hp. Tho the story ended on a somber note, it was a fun night lol

[@starhalv2427]

Every two out of three characters I play as have a pretty strong will and won't stand down in front of adversity (That makes about 5 characters). I just think they're neat.

[@FuegoBacon]

The current character I'm playing is a samurai who was betrayed and killed by his master. Through some unknown means he was resurrected, and he believed his quest was to find and kill his master. I joined the party late, so the character is still trying to forge that connection with the team. He already gave his life (and came back) again for the party during a crazy boss fight, and it actually allowed us to beat the boss.

[@tatersalad76]

My favorite way to work around it is asking my DM to give my character a reason to not be there if it'll really hurt the party

[@shealupkes]

did something really funny where I played off a retreat as my friends dragging me away while I shout profanities at them and my misty step as the conjurer yoinking me back to the group

[@kurtisdeakin]

Got a superhero rp coming up soon (sentinels ttrpg) and this was very useful! Thanks, dude.

[@soldierbreed]

I think the dice have decided this for my character. The amount of grapplea and junking my character has gone thru is flabbergasting. 😂😂 Thank god for Rage

[@LockerLovesYellow]

Dude the Inazuma Eleven mention killed me. SO happy to see someone mention Mark Evans as a prime example of willpower and mental fortitude lmao

[@Cutesune]

I had an amazing campaign experience with a character like this who when facing another 'impossible fight' from which she refused to retreat; and lost the battle, getting her arm ripped off for her trouble. And it was an interesting exploration as she found herself forced off the frontline to playing a more sagely role for the party. Slowly regaining her skills and confidence over a good half the campaign to eventually standing on the front again sword in singular hand to protect her friends by the closing chapter, facing down the BBEG.

[@Raoul.]

4:30 "trespass into the domain of the gods" goes so hard I don't subscribe to the beliefs of any major religions but I believe that one day mankind will reach a level that could be considered close, or equal, to divinity. The tower of Babel is not a physical construct, but an accumulation of all of humanity's achievements.

[@Pundae]

I played this character last campaign. I roped us all into some shit. We would have died a couple times had our dm not navigated it smoothly, but I think we're all quite happy with how it turned out, since everyone had their own flaws that presented themselves and were overcome

[@noemiedepatie3987]

Okay but the undertale music in background at the end really got to me like it is exactly what that game is about, the power of humans to keep going and never give up... gosh got me teary-eyed

[@benjaminfrost2780]

I give my players Resolve points to a certain cap when they roll a natural 1 as the final result roll. Resolve can be used before rolling to give advantage. As well they have Heroic Resilience. They can use this to automatically break out of a spell or effect sustained on them that has a repeat save mechanic. (as well as let player character make their saves at the start of their turn not the end.). More over...in similarity to the "Limit Break" talked about in this video. I allow each player character 1 limit break that they can use once and only once per 4 character levels. This can result in a number of things in the moment when they use it.

[@doctorbootstrapjohn]

I clicked for my fav hero in anime on thumbnail (Mumen Rider) and stayed for dnd vid.

[@YeetSpace]

Having undyne's theme in the background is a choice it is a very specific choice. You know what you were doing you have to have that's like the existence of the indomitable human Spirit put into hor ror movie terms like it's just the point of view of the animals we fucking endurance hunted

[@PlayYourRole]

I put a lot of thought into my music choices and whenever someone recognizes that it makes me feel so happy thank you

[@corrupted_vessel2843]

In my current campaign, one of my players has this exact architype, a Warlock developed into a paladin down all spell slots, overrun by the undead, stood tall, and held them off with one other player and roll after roll they pushed on. They almost lost their life to exhaustion, but just managed to succeed despite the odds, they were out of commision for a few days to say the least, while the rest of the party regrouped after a loss to the BBEG.

[@sammymike6293]

Love red riot in the thumbnail

[@skippermysun5991]

Oh no the bots came

[@n.henzler50]

Coincidentally, that's also the name of my new sci-fi, uh, "novel."

[@skippermysun5991]

@@n.henzler50 sorry for only seeing this comment now, you're a genius

[@matthewletexier]

14:00 Made me think of this quote. It's from Rhythm of War by Brandon Sanderson, but I don't think it is a big spoiler. (It has no plot and no character names attached so it isn't much of a spoiler at all) . . . “But sir, do you know why I get up each day? ...It’s hard sometimes...Coming awake means leaving the nothingness, you know? Remembering the pain. But then I think, ‘Well, he gets up.’” “You mean Kaladin?” “Yes, sir, ...He’s got the emptiness, bad as I do. I can see it in him. We all can. But he gets up anyway. We’re trapped in here, and we all want to do something to help. We can’t, but somehow he can...And you know, I’ve listened to ardents talk. I’ve been poked and prodded. I’ve been stuck in the dark. None of that worked as well as knowing this one thing, sir. He still gets up. He still fights. So I figure … I figure I can too.” This quote means so much to me and has helped me handle my bad days.

[@JAMllostthegame]

I never really knew about the static character arc until you brought up Toph as an example. And then it hit me that I know at least one character who shares that which is Kamina from Gurren Lagann (SPOILER WARNING BTW). He was always looking forward, always looking ahead, always looking out for those in need. So much so that even after his death, he's still the ideal person the other characters look up to, even in their most dire.

[@xenmaster2203]

A lot of protagonists are static characters. I kinda like them more than positive and negative characters honestly.

[@hamsterpixel]

14:17 I watched your deal maker vid and was inspired to gamble away my life savings

[@CombatSportsNerd]

It’s awesome to see Kirishima on this thumbnail

[@1ManRandom]

It occurs to me that 5e’s zealot barbarian is a good class for this archetype. That whole subclass is designed around the idea of never staying down. Abilities to push through debuffs, keep fighting beyond that point where they should go down, heck, even the ability to inspire the people around them to fight harder. Their flavor text leans more towards the idea of being divinely marked for battle, but they really do embody the idea of being indomitable.

[@thecommenter90]

This is a very fun trait to look at as a human should give up some point. They choose fight over flight no matter how lopsided the fight is in the enemy's favor. It is great to observe and design.

[@maphestispain203]

14th-level Zelot Barbarians embody this trope the best. Ignores unconsciousness upon hitting 0hp and even if they fail all 3 death saves they still don't die unless their rage ends so no matter what happens, they will survive at least 10 rounds, doesn't matter if you deal 1 DMG or infinite dmg to them, they are too angry and determined to die.

[@michaelcordero7061]

If yall want an indomitable human spirit build, then you can use a homebrew class called the Pugilist. It is littlerally indomitable human spirit, the class. Pugilists are similar to monks, but they learn their hands from the streets. And instead of Ki, they have moxie. Which is littlerally formed from a never say die attitude. Oftentimes, a pugilist will be getting a lot of temp HP. They can also give themselves resistance for a turn at the cost of one level of exhaution. Their most notable abilities come from when they are getting their @$$ kicked. At half HP they can add their proficiency bonus to the damage of their attacks, ignore exhaustion for a time, and also gain a heck ton of Temp HP. When they hit 0 while at lv 18. They instead go to half health once. Similar to a Zelot Barbarian or a Samurai fighter. But rather than Zelots just not dying at all until their rage ends or Samurai's getting an extra turn, the Pugilist straight up just gets another half health pool for enemies to try and chew through. You basically gotta kill them twice just to put them down for good.

[@gdhuertas07]

"But at the last the King grew weary, and Morgoth bore down his shield upon him. Thrice he was crushed to his knees, and thrice arose again and bore up his broken shield and stricken helm. But the earth was all rent and pitted about him, and he stumbled and fell backward before the feet of Morgoth; and Morgoth set his left foot upon his neck, and the weight of it was like a fallen hill. Yet with his last and desperate stroke Fingolfin hewed the foot with Ringil, and the blood gushed forth black and smoking and filled the pits of Grond [...] Morgoth went ever halt of one foot after that day, and the pain of his wounds could not be healed." -J.R.R. Tolkien, The Silmarillion

[@KodasGarden]

I just recently saved my party from a TPK against a greatwyrm while playing a zealot barbarian. I didn't even have the Rage Beyond Death feature yet, but a high CON stat and relentless rage. zealous presence allowed me to continue succeeding on my rolls until the turn that would have made the DC impossible to reach, when my party got out of there and i ended my rage and used an amulet of the planes to escape myself (I rolled a natural 19 on the INT check). i safely landed in Mt Celestia and waited for my party to come get me, since when they let me have the amulet we made sure to specify where I should plane shift to. was genuinely my favorite combat encounter ever and solidified barbarians as my favorite class in the game haha

[@galordworld4721]

You don't have the right to make me cry like that man :')

[@joaquingarraza9716]

i had an oath of the watchers paladin who unconsciously had this archetype, he died beheaded by a crit, and after his death his mother took the mantle

[@axesaw2210]

I love this style of character Barbarian is always my choice when I do play it

[@kuno3336]

I am currently running a character like this. She's the tank, she's the martial in a party of casters, she's a barbarian/paladin, and she's the Oath of Glory. She knows she can take the hits her friends can't, and that because she is in fact the physically strongest person she knows, she feels it is her place to get in the face of the big monsters we fight. True, she gets knocked down, but she gets up again. I love playing her so much

[@seamajor]

Ah yes, the way I succeeded in having an indomitable spirited character without causing a TPK was to just simply apply that personaility trait onto a way too broken and complicated power build. The only problem... the rest of the party was there just to have fun.

[@slymjym5598]

Best character I can think of to make this work mechanically alone is a half-orc zealot barbarian

[@mihamelavc9870]

NEVER BACK DOWN NEVER WHAT?

[@Neutral_Tired]

A couple of years ago I homebrewed Adrenaline and Fatigue rules for 5e, partly to better communicate the toll combat takes on a character and partly so you can have those moments of defiance where your character hits 0 hp but refuses to go down through sheer force of will. It seems relevant to this conversation so I'll put it in a reply to this comment, to avoid making things too long

[@Neutral_Tired]

Adrenaline Points: You have a number of adrenaline points equal to your Constitution modifier. When you roll initiative while you have at least one level of Exhaustion, you can spend an adrenaline point to reduce your Exhaustion by one until the end of combat. Alternatively, when you are reduced to 0 hit points or end your turn with 0 hit points but have no more than 1 failed death saving throw, you can spend one adrenaline point to remain conscious until the end of your next turn. You still must make death saving throws, and you suffer the normal effects of taking damage while at 0 hit points. When you use this ability, your speed is halved, you can use either an action or bonus action on your turn, not both, and you can’t make more than one melee or ranged attack in a turn. Additionally, if you are concentrating on a spell at the start of your turn, you must make a successful Constitution saving throw (DC 10) or lose concentration. Each turn you concentrate on the same spell, the DC increases by 5. You regain 1 expended adrenaline points when you finish a long rest. Fatigue: When you end combat with less than half your maximum hit points, you suffer a level of exhaustion. You can only have 1 level of exhaustion from this feature at a time. Exhaustion gained in this manner is cured if you start your turn with more than half your maximum hit points.

[@generalkuros56]

I have a wizard that lost his mother amd ran as his home was destroyed he was only a child but he blames himself so now be pratices necromancy and refuses to be a coward and back down

[@ImmortalLemon]

I had a character who unintentionally became like this. My goal was to have him be the meat shield that just filled the tank role in the party. But Boris the half orc paladin ended up killing Auril in the end after all his friends had died, by grabbing her and jumping into a mythallar with her. Throughout the campaign Boris always came in clutch and just would not give up on people, even if you were evil he tried to help understand you

[@memedealer2018]

A good player build is the answer.

[@brettmelnrick4854]

Thank you for another great video!

[@sunandshadow6593]

Using Battle Against a True Hero as a piece of music is very fitting but grim. Given the context of the scene, it's an indomitable monster's spirit OR an indomitable human spirit that seeks nothing but the annihilation of everything.

[@Laughing_Dragon]

I always liked as well, adding your own "risk/reward" mechanics into games if allowed(or if your the DM) my idea was always HP Sacrifice to push onwards, not Max HP but just current, meaning your hurting yourself, to succeed FURTHER. OBVIOUSLY after a time, this can be just some, OP resource that can be abused later on if unbalanced, but I feel that it also increase with your level, because in the end, it is a "sacrifice" for a "reward" and so the stronger you are, and the harder you push, the harder it will be on your own body and mind as well. maybe something where when you try to push beyond limits, you roll your hit dice for every +1 you wish to add to your roll, to the point where it COULD be a danger, hell, it COULD cause you to go unconsious/die, but in the end, if you make it succeed, that is still the "risk/reward" aspect of the idea. it was sort of a feat I wanted to try and homebrew for campaigns that people could take to sort of EMULATE this "indomitable spirit" while having a mechanic for it, but in a way that would balance it out, and still be fun. feel free to steal this idea and improve it/change it how you wish, maybe you'll come up with a better idea/way of doing it than me, but this video definitely has been an inspiration on how to do the indomitable spirit even more now, great video!

[@ghostofrevan4455]

I ran a WarForge Barbarian whose thing was essentially this, he fought the good fight not because he wanted to, but sometimes he had to. He even tried to get away from that life because he didn't want to only be seen as a tool or a weapon, he strove to cook despite not being able to taste it, because it brought joy to others, but when the lives of the innocent or the defenseless came in to question he was the first to rise to the occasion even through insurmountable odds. My favorite one was when he was fist fighting an Oni to buy time for some miners who were trapped in his illusions could escape, he was beaten senseless and ended up holding out long enough for a deus ex machina, and even the Dm was wildly impressed he didn't go down despite getting absolutely clobbered

[@FellowInconsistent]

“Indomitable human spirit” Indomitable monster spirit song starts playing

[@summeraidan5815]

My favorite way to play this is mid/low strength and dex, high con tough feat martial characters. They are mid as hell but god they will simply persist. Orc, Half-Orc, VHuman w tough feat or Warforged, Goliaths make this go beyond in different ways

[@literallyalois2966]

I can totally see a DnD Fighter take 1 level in Barbarian JUST BECAUSE HE CAN GO SUPER SAIYAN TWICE A DAY.

[@Mary_Studios]

I looked away and for a moment I thought it was Dr. Dracan from Kim Possible that was talking. Then I saw that it was sandman instead. Makes sense that would be used instead.

[@leonard8452]

If you want to be Gon, make sure you have a Killua in your party.

[@A_Humming_Bird]

Rage against the setting of the Sun! Fight my warriors! Scream out! Let them hear your rage!

[@zhangbill1194]

Honestly, I know some people dont want to hear this, but its ok to make a character whome you fully know will probably die following their beliefs. Anyways: MY LIFE FOR SUPER EARTH!

[@camerontroscianiec5320]

Also, if you’re looking for stuff to build your character, you can go with any flsvor of barbarian, their rage being reflavored as you taking more damage than you should be able to, put etill fighting. Zealot works best because you literslly just don't go unconscious at higher levels. Fighter works too, action surge and second wind really work well to show passing past your limits. Evocation wizard literally takes damage to themselves in order to output maximum power. As for race, Half-Orc can go to 1 hp from an attack that knocks them unconscious once per long rest. Goliath can reduce damage from an attsck by a hefty chunk once per long rest. I know one of the dwarves gets an extra hitpoint every level, having a lot of health is one of the best ways to mechanically show resilience

[@teleportsaroundyou4629]

Eren Jaeger would be a good example of a negative arc for a character like this

[@torshavnnewell]

As consequence of my actions, I went into a fight with an acid breathing green dragon once with no weapons and spell slots as a Paladin. I won with my party, but I'm really proud of that because it fit my character really well.

[@trumediamix1]

Alternative Video Title: *_"How to Write a DOOM Slayer!"_*

[@NyxNovaStar]

I had an idea for a Paladin or fighter who just refuses to stop. Long ago he gave up, he ran in fear for his own life and it cost him everything, his love, his people. From that moment on he swore an oath that no matter how bad a situation gets he will not run, he will stand and fight even if it means certain death. My idea is that he would have a big tower shield that he uses to protect others, becoming a wall between his friends and the monsters they fight. If I do play this character I plan for him to die, to have a moment where it finally becomes too much for him but still he refuses to run. Party members may beg for him to run to save himself but he will refuse, he will not go down like a coward even if it costs him his life, he wont make that mistake again. It could be seen as prideful or stupid, or stubborn, but in the end he will die a hero's death protecting those he swore to.

[@bengonzalez5215]

Lets be honest if mumen rider had a single power he would be S class

[@clownwig3]

Side note though; Mumen Rider is a real one

[@leKitsu]

I as a DM have put an indominable spirit in my games as a nemesis for the party. Shes always two levels above the partys highest level person. She has little tweaks like +2 dmg if shes attacking her nemesis. Otherwise shes just a really strong berserker x battlemaster mix that I minmaxed myself. I often put her as an enemy in situations where they cannot destroy the body. And "resurrect" her when they inevidably run away. It came to the point where she just flat out silenced partys wizard and made him scared shitless of her due to me just DASHING towards him every fight. Just to mess with the strongest dmg dealer.

[@claytonwilde5750]

Never give up, Never surrender!

[@rixdespo9144]

MY DRILL IS THE DRILL THE CREATES THE HEAVENS!

[@dodhethompson4841]

I like to do this trope by doing this: Optimize the ever-loving shit out of my PC Don't use most of the features until I absolutely have to Whenever I do use the features it's just my indomitable human Spirit pushing me through

[@sarahtachibana1333]

Spiderman and Toph are ok examples of this but I feel like Emma from Promised Neverland is THE example of this

[@dazeo4393]

you know, i had a paladin whose entire deal was aggressive passion who learns that his allies are the most important thing to him and he would do ANYTHING to protect them. but the campaign never lasted, so we never got to see gis growth. same with a drunken master monk character i had. they started as a cocky performer who got kicked out of his performance group after their co star got killed due to their arrogance. they only cared about money and fame. they were among real heroes while just being a parasite trying to feed their ego and fill their wallet. but our frontliner players stopped attending, and we had no healer. so it was up to me and only me, to defend against every attack and protect the casters or objective. drunken master monk is insanely gpod for this type of character. my character realized the truth of heroism and believed themself unworthy compared to the party. we never got to it, but my character was 100% going to die, never realizing that they too became a true hero. monk is such a powerful underdog in a fight. youre a slippery bastard who crits more often than most characters, stuns are hype, but all it takes is one or two hits from a big bad to kill you if you have no help. a monk's last stand always feels like this to me.

[@ghostblaster115]

dice... Goblin slayer´s story come to mind