Once in a Lifetime abilities/powers/etc.?

[Necrosnoop110]

In D&D 3.5 are there any class abilities, powers, spells, items (not referring to regular consumables) that can only be used once in a characters lifetime?

[phaedrusxy]

In D&D 3.5 are there any class abilities, powers, spells, items (not referring to regular consumables) that can only be used once in a characters lifetime?

Hmm... I think maybe some of the sacrifice stuff in BoVD might have been once in a lifetime.

[Garryl]

I know there is at least one that can only be used a fixed number of times per class level, which might count for a character who only takes a limited number of levels of the class. The Sapphire Hierarch's Consultation ability (effectively the Commune spell) is usable only 3/level from 1st through 9th. It becomes 1/month at 10th level, though.

[oslecamo]

There's a casting prc whose name I can't remember that has the capstone of 7 free auto-life for your character. And once those seven are expended, they're expended.

[kitep]

The Deck of Many Things has a card - undo any situation, once

[kitep]

Not sure if these apply to your question, but

Monk - can only become an ex-monk once.  ie, once a monk takes a level in a non-monk class, she can no longer take more monk levels.  Ditto for becoming non-lawful.
Same with Paladins.

[ksbsnowowl]

Illithid Savants can only gain abilities from a limited number of brains (3 or 4 over the course of 10 levels), and once he has done so, he doesn't get any more.

[Ithamar]

The god-touched templates in MMV let you gain DR 10/- as an immediate action.  Then once you have absorbed a certain amount of damage, you lose the template.  So with the exception of Vecna-blooded, those templates are basically just wasted LA.

[ksbsnowowl]

I don't know about "wasted."  IIRC, it is implied that the god-blooded templates are the type of thing you would gain in-game.  So all of a sudden your ECL is one higher than the rest of the party.  Your XP accrual slows down while you've got the template.  Once you've used up the DR, the template goes away, and your XP accrual would go back to "normal."  At worst you are ~1,000 xp behind your party mates, but were tougher for a time.

[Maat Mons]

The transcend mortality spell (Complete Mage, p120) kills you when it ends. 

Anyone can deliver a dying curse (Book of Vile Darkness, p28) at the moment of death. 

[Ithamar]

I don't know about "wasted."  IIRC, it is implied that the god-blooded templates are the type of thing you would gain in-game.  So all of a sudden your ECL is one higher than the rest of the party.  Your XP accrual slows down while you've got the template.  Once you've used up the DR, the template goes away, and your XP accrual would go back to "normal."  At worst you are ~1,000 xp behind your party mates, but were tougher for a time.

Nothing in the template description states you lose the +1 LA though.  You lose the "benefits of the template".  You still have the template.  A reasonable DM might let you lose the LA, but I don't see that as actually being stated in MMV.

Exalted Fury spell from BoED kills you and then does a bunch of damage to all enemies nearby.  The Risen Martyr PrC takes you into the upper planes when you reach level 10.  Reaching level 10 of Shadow Sun Ninja can permanently turn you into a vampire NPC.

[phaedrusxy]

Exalted Fury spell from BoED kills you and then does a bunch of damage to all enemies nearby.  The Risen Martyr PrC takes you into the upper planes when you reach level 10.  Reaching level 10 of Shadow Sun Ninja can permanently turn you into a vampire NPC.

Oh yeah... Alienist 10: you're abducted by "things" from the Far Realm.

I hate those PrCs that actually take away your PC as a "capstone". The Risen Martyr one is the most annoying, as you're forced to take all levels of it, and prohibited from multiclassing to avoid your "fate".

[FlaminCows]

Risen Martyr can get away with it, though, because it exists basically as a "free resurrection". Instead of Risen Martyr taking your PC away, it returns you a PC that was already taken away (by death) and returns it on a temporary basis.

A PC does not try to become a Risen Martyr, because characters do not want to die and if they do die they would like to be resurrected properly. Risen Martyr is "You screwed up. Here, you can play for ten more levels but that is it, young man!"

[Stratovarius]

Oh yeah... Alienist 10: you're abducted by "things" from the Far Realm.

It's actually Alienist 9, and it's when you die of old age. So it's not nearly that big a deal.

[awaken_D_M_golem]

Oh yeah... Alienist 10: you're abducted by "things" from the Far Realm.

It's actually Alienist 9, and it's when you die of old age. So it's not nearly that big a deal.

I get those confused.
My kitty avatar gets those confused too ... and just about as often.