deathless
/ˈdɛθlɪs/
UncommonCompleting a game without dying at all, usually as a challenge or secondary goal alongside a speedrun.
What counts as a death varies by game and community. Some define it as any respawn. Others only count it if it triggers a game-over screen. The runner usually states their specific ruleset.
Real-world examples4 examples
| # | Example | What it means | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | deathless run down the drain because of a random enemy spawn in the last area. 47 minutes wasted | An unexpected enemy killed the player near the end, ending their no-death attempt. | x, 2024 |
| 02 | first deathless clear ever. that final boss took me out so many times before | The player finally beat the game without dying after many previous failed attempts. | |
| 03 | going for deathless + sub 2 hours tonight. both or nothing | The runner is attempting a combined challenge requiring no deaths and a specific time. | twitch, 2023 |
| 04 | some people run deathless because dying wastes time anyway. two goals, one run | For fast enough runs, avoiding death is also the optimal time strategy. | youtube, 2023 |
Use it when
- Completing a game without dying as a deliberate challenge or run category.
- Combining a no-death requirement with a speedrun attempt.
- Praising someone for a clean run with no deaths.
Do not use it when
- You just mean someone played well without specifying a no-death run.
Origin and context
Emerged from gaming challenge communities where players sought self-imposed difficulty beyond just completing a game. Became more structured in speedrunning as a recognized category and leaderboard tag.
- First seen
- mid-2000s
- Confidence
- low
Cite this page
Use this stable URL to reference the entry.
https://slang.fyi/deathlessUpdated: 2026-08-28License: CC BY 4.0