Sometimes a hero is left to face inexorable doom. Rather than succumb to the lethal poison of the centipede woman or fall prey to the psychic domination of the blood sorcerers of Tien Lung, a hero may Defy Death. A hero can Defy Death any time they wish to avoid the consequences of a failed saving throw or escape a situation of otherwise certain catastrophe. They may also Defy Death to overcome some insufficiency of skill. For example, the adventure the GM is running might say that only a magic-user can decipher the glyphs that will restore the bindings of the Demon-Prince of the Iron City, while the hero is a decidedly unscholarly warrior. Assuming the hero can’t come up with some other clever way to bypass the problem, the GM may allow the hero to Defy Death in order win through by luck. To Defy Death, the hero rolls a number of 1d4 damage dice equal to their character level, calculating the damage normally for Scarlet Heroes- no points on a 1 and one point on a result of 2-4. The damage done is applied to their hit points. If the character is reduced to zero hit points then they are left with one hit point and the attempt to Defy Death fails. If they are able to endure the tax on their luck, they automatically resist the effects of whatever spell, poison, calamity, or trap obliged them to make the roll. If they are Defying Death to escape a fatal situation then some opportunity opens up for their successful flight. If the hero is trying to bypass some obstacle or overcome some otherwise unbeatable hindrance to their plans, then the GM decides how circumstances conspire to let the hero succeed. These circumstances may not always be entirely unmixed good fortune, but they will at least solve the immediate problem. Every time the hero Defies Death it gets more difficult. The second time a hero Defies Death in an adventure they roll 1d6s instead of 1d4s. Then 1d8s, then 1d10s, up to a maximum of 1d12s for each die if they continue to push their luck. This penalty keeps incrementing until they either succeed in their goal or admit defeat and try some other adventure. Only heroes can Defy Death. Other beings are shackled to the bitter limits of their destinies and must abide by the remorseless decrees of an uncaring fate.