Permadeath

Characters will definitively be available for multiple games, however their deaths will also be permanent.

There will be one single save slot and it will be overwritten whenever the player dies, so that only the summary remains until a new game starts.

This does not mean that every death will kill the character. Given the volatile nature of combats, that would be unfair. But the lost of your Shelter/Refuge, or having the whole of the population against you, will finish your journey and character.

I don't believe it will be punishing since the game's main appeal is after all replayability and exploration and, personally, I've never felt discouraged to start over with a new character during testing.