I'm a Bunnycorn!

Give your character a tragic backstory before their death. A tragic death hurts most when the story has been leading toward it the entire time.Ex. Itachi's life was shaped by impossible choice, hidden sacrifices, and burdens no child should carry.

Give them a hidden truth revealed only at the end. The truth should reframe EVERYTHING the readers though they knew about this character. Ex. Itachi dies with the world believing he was a villain.

Make their death emotionally tied to another character. SHOW the effects their death has on other characters. Tragedy hits hardest when the death impacts another character(s) deeply. The death should change someone forever.

Let the character choose their fate. The strongest deaths come from choice, not randomness. Ex. Itachi chooses to let Sasuke kill him. Their choice is what makes them unforgettable.

Give them a final moment. Their last final moment shouldn't be be dramatic, it should be intimate. Itachi's last gesture is a gentle forehead tap, a gesture only he and Sasuke understand. For your story this can me a soft gesture, a final line that echoes earlier dialogue, or a symbolic action that shows who they truly were.

Their death shouldn't solve all the problem immediately. Tragic deaths shouldn't wrap the story in a bow, their death should complicate it.

Show the aftershock of the world around them. The world might celebrate or misunderstand the death, while other characters grive the truth. Ex. most of the leaf village still hate Itachi after his death. This contrast creates emotional weight.

Let the character live on in a symbolic way. The best tragic deaths echo into the story's future. Give your character something symbolic that remains after their death. When it reappears later, readers cry.

~ Let's go home ~

Slightly NSFW please don't hate me

Regulus had a plan I just can't prove it.

got it from this twt post (has more stuff in the thread)