It has happened a number of times over the years that players in my games have made friendly contact with a devil. Invariably, someone brings up the possibility of soul selling. After all, that’s kind of the whole role of devils in this genre. My standing policy at this point is that—once friendly contact with a devil has been made—1 soul given by free contractual agreement may be exchanged for 1 wish. Devils are Libertarians in the American style. Some player usually takes the deal (often my sister Lily who seems to dislike having a soul). This is the objectively correct decision for these players to make, because up until now I’ve never been good about enforcing any penalties on characters without souls.
When discussing this problem with others, a common suggestion is that characters without souls should receive no benefit from magical healing. This makes good sense after all, since magical healing typically comes from good gods, a group the soul-seller has now actively scorned. One could even go further and deny the character benefit of any divine magic, good or evil. If such a character were to try and cross the red sea while it is parted, why wouldn’t god cause a bit of water to run free and wash them away? As for the evil gods, I figure the whole purpose of letting humans use clerical magic for them is to gradually and subtly taint living souls so they can be harvested after death. Once a soul is gone, why bother with the person attached to it?
Sensibly thematic as this option is, I hate it and I’ve never used it. It’s just too harsh a price to pay for a single wish. I don’t think anybody would sell their soul if it meant being stuck recovering 1hp/day for the rest of their character’s life. I’d prefer a consequence that would tempt my players. So finally this morning, after literally years of putting it off, I sat down to think my way through the problem, and I’ve resolved on what I call the Devil Die.
See, good gods are forgiving motherfuckers. For as long as the mortal beneficiary of a devil’s bargain stays alive, the devil’s investment is in jeopardy. You never know when the asshole might fall down on her knees and repent of all her misdeeds, thereby robbing the devil of their justly-earned soul. So, after the devil’s side of the bargain has been executed, they’ll immediately set out trying to get you killed so they can secure your soul for themselves.
When a player proposes their wish to a Devil, the referee tells the player how many Devil Dice the wish will cost them. Usually this will only be 1, but I figure it’s good to leave the door open for more if the player makes some absurdly grandiose wish. For each Devil Die a character has, the referee may force the player to reroll once per session. If they roll well on a save, or deal just enough damage to kill a dragon before it gets another breath attack, the Devil slips in to try and fudge the result.
My players’ lives do not often hang on the result of a single roll, but they can. This is a dangerous risk, but it’s the sort of risk I think my players might take. I also like the implication of a game being played between the Devil and the Soul-Seller. The Soul-Seller recklessly confident in their ability to dodge and outsmart the devil, confidence bolstered by each session they survive. The devil knowing time is on their side. They only have to win once, while the Soul-Seller has to win every time.
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ooh I DO love this. but I also like the “no recovering HP through divine healing” thing, especially in more superheroic games that restore all HP over a long rest or whatever. might do both, attributed to different powers (if you deal with a devil you get scorned by god, no healing for you, but sell your soul to some yugoloth or something the gods don’t mind but the yugoloth’s gonna try to collect lmao)