Death icon in Shin Megami Tensei V
Death, Dying, Dead, K.O., or Fainting is a recurring battle condition in the series. Death occurs when a combatant has lost all their HP.
Overview[]
Combatants will die when their HP reaches 0. They will be unable to take action and will have any ailments removed. In some games, such as Shin Megami Tensei, characters will also have their MP dropped to 0 upon dying. Some spells, such as Recarm and Samarecarm can revive an ally from death. Other skills, such as Recarmdra and Last Resort, kill the user but also have beneficial effects. In some entries, the protagonist being killed will immediately cause a Game Over.
Persona 5 / Royal[]
In Persona 5, party members with zero HP are referred as incapacitated, fallen, or K.O.'d. When incapacitated, they collapse on the field and can no longer take action as their battle icon is grayed out. Most ailments as well as status conditions they have are removed, and do not come back if revived. The only exceptions are the status of "decoy" cast by Taunting Aura and Limelight/Spotlight, and the ATK debuff caused by using Beast Weaver. Fainted combatants cannot be targeted and are unaffected by skills, except by revival effects. Once the battle ends or when they are switched out by Emergency Shift, they are automatically revived with 1 HP. In Persona 5 Royal, allies' traits still function even when they are incapacitated. If a party member is dead when the battle ends, they do not receive any EXP.
The death of the protagonist will instantly end the battle, usually resulting in a Game Over. Several exceptions will not end the entire game, such as friendly battles.