If you’re going to die, better to die on the main quest. I avoid side quest distractions.
“The hero died before he could defeat the Dark Lord because he was killed whilst on an errand to deliver 20 bear asses to a random villager.”
But what about when you die fighting the Dark Lord because you’re not overlevelled from doing all the sidequests?
Sometimes it’s funny when tabletop RPG players expect the game to behave like a video game.
GM: “The nearby town sent a message that a swarm of zombies is coming down the haunted mountain for them! They need help!”
PCs: “Cool. But let’s finish that mushroom side quest first, and then we gotta help our wizard buddy get his new broom tuned up.”
GM: “…okay.”
<two in-game days later>
PCs: “Ok, what do we see when we get to that town?”
GM: “Seems like everyone’s dead. Looks a swarm of zombies or something came down from the mountain and ate everyone alive or something, maybe a day or two ago.”
PCs: <confused, shocked>
