Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Grizzled Gryphon 12-14-07, 04:16 AM	Just a curious question, but has anyone done this? I ran a game a while back that had the following encoutner in it. "When you enter the room, you see across the 100 foot long cavern a very tall double door. Standing to each side is a humaniod with what appears to be a bow and arrows. Between them some strange metalic creature hangs as if held up with invisible strings. Next to the humaniod on the right is what appears to be a pull rope hanging down from the ceiling. As you all appear, you see the humaniod on the left raise its bow, while the other humaniod reaches for the rope. The metallic creature in the middle silently begins floating towards you." The metallic floating thingy was a Shadesteel Golem, the two humaniods were skeleton like undead in armor (skeletons with Int. and class levels), and there were also two shadows under the floor. The real part of this, though, was the trap in the room. Half way across the room was a pit trap. With spikes at the bottom, no less. How many times has anyone encountered a trap during combat? I thought it was cool, and the players loved that encounter, as it was ssoo tough for them. Is the "trap in combat" idea fairly common? What do you all think of the idea?
Sigma34561 12-14-07, 09:34 AM	Its not common enough I would say. Traps have a much better place in combat. If traps were a combat only thing, it would make combats more interesting, and speed up dungeon delving. Out of combat traps only slow the game, and reduce it to "you die cause you didnt find the trap" eventually. 4e will be designed so that traps and environmental effects are part of encounter design. getting back to the classic battle with whirling blades and shifting floors.
Alurim 12-14-07, 09:36 AM	Hi, One of my characters (a mage) escaped a trap like that. He was supposed to enter an underground chamber and a net would have fallen on him, thus restricting his movements (concentration check to cast spell also I think) and two spiders would have jumped on him. What happened is that he actually entered the room from another entrance (he had spotted the trap beforehand) and he caught the ambushers by surprise. Yes, I think it's a good idea to spice up combats with traps, it allows for more diversity and it's a good challenge to players.
Belkar 12-14-07, 09:42 AM	Its not common enough I would say. WORD!! Traps add flavor and realism to a battle. Do you think the BBEG isn't going to "spruce up" his home turf? Sure, sure, the ways in and out are pretty basic... but why wouldn't he trap hallways (that his people know how to avoid), etc? You should do this more often! :)
Slimgauge 12-14-07, 09:44 AM	Just make sure that trap placement makes sense. If squads of orcs transit this hallway regularly, if it's trapped at all, it there has to be a a way for them to do so without too much extra trouble. If this is a long abandoned tomb, it had better be a trap that doesn't require maintenance. Etc.
Sigma34561 12-14-07, 10:07 AM	yeah, damn dungeon ecology. I cant put my best monsters in a tomb style dungeon because they wouldnt have anything to eat... I think putting traps in well trafficed areas are great. If you leave notes and stuff that say "The lever that opens the pit in the north hallway is broken. Gorfak has been stuck in there for two days and I'm tired of his cries for help. As a side note, we should keep a monster down there." It helps foster a certain air "Office Memo" style of evil. But that might not fit your villain. It would be great for Lawful Evil.
Silverclaw 12-14-07, 10:29 AM	It is also wery fitting when fighting kobolts! And in this way even an encounter with a few low level kobolts can be a chalange for even fairly high level (or at least mid-level) characters:D This is one of the thigs that makes them really awsome... of course other creatures could use traps as well, but as we all know, kobolts loves traps! (and who can blame them)
Ikyotojin 12-14-07, 10:53 AM	Most of the traps in my settings are either triggered by a watching guard/monster or have a component that alerts nearby enemies. It's very rare that my traps are just old anti-theft/intrusion deterrents. After time thin metal springs rust and corrode, wound rope and twine used for tension will rot and termites eat the wooden parts. Old traps rarely work. The ones that do are there to weaken you while the folks you are trying to avoid beat the snot out of you. People in my games are more afraid of what happens AFTER the trap goes off.
Sigma34561 12-14-07, 10:54 AM	the sickest kobold adventure i was ever in... we had to stop the tribe of kobolds from attackin the sewers of sharn. they were ambushing the cogs and stealing people. we went into the sewers to track them. they attacked us using heavy amounts of smokesticks for cover, and hit and run tactics. we couldnt get keep up with them, and they were taking thier dead with them. Eventually after like 5 encounters of them attacking us from cover, we found thier base, and were surrounded. it turned out they werent kobolds but feral cannibal children wearing kobold skin helmets and armour. probably the best "reveal" i've ever seen. Good thing there wasn't a paladin in the group.
Ovistavin 12-14-07, 11:13 AM	I did this in a hallway. When the PCs came around a corner there were kobolds 60ft down the hallway with crossbows (just on the other side of a pit trap). The Centaur in the group charged. The Centaur managed to jump over the trap as it opened and the rest of the group had to get across to join the combat. That was a fun encounter!
Emeramber 12-14-07, 11:51 AM	Just keep in mind that, with the immediate action rules, and no special clause (that I'm aware of) for feather fall, that popping a kobold out when a pit trap is hit will prevent the (now flatfooted) wizard from casting feather fall... Some spells REALLY need the "use it whenever" clause. And elan resilience, and, well, anything that should be reactive. More on topic, the last session I played, I was acting as enemy finder (Scent vs. invis so the wis could hail of stone) and had to deal with traps on my way. Good fight, though.
Sigma34561 12-14-07, 01:02 PM	haha! that should be an element to all traps now Kobold With Lever +1 CR This trap uses a new triggering system, a kobold, who flips a lever. This prevents PCs from using immediate actions to circumvent the trap! Please note, that while this property is called Kobold with Lever, it could be a button or switch. It must be a kobold however.
Grizzled Gryphon 12-15-07, 01:51 AM	Apparently it does happen more than I thought. Which is cool. I wouldn't have it be the only way you encounter traps, though. While traps that are encountered anywhere so slow the game some, it does allow the party trap monkey to shine at what he has focused at least some of his character on. I have generally added both to my games. It is kind of funny. When the Fighter type gets to go on his first init, he tends to think about it first. "hmm, do I charge, and find out the hard way whether there is a trap or not?" Having traps in the combat situation certainly adds spice to the game!!
Rulebook 12-15-07, 02:08 AM	haha, my group has come to fear kobolds for thier traps during combats. the first time they saw the kobolds retreating towards an apparently unsecure and unwise location they were overjoyed... so they decided to rush headlong and ignore when i made them take spot checks. TPK. a party of 5th level adventurers against a dozen kobolds. TPK. HA!
Traken134 12-15-07, 02:18 AM	haha, my group has come to fear kobolds for thier traps during combats. the first time they saw the kobolds retreating towards an apparently unsecure and unwise location they were overjoyed... so they decided to rush headlong and ignore when i made them take spot checks. TPK. a party of 5th level adventurers against a dozen kobolds. TPK. HA! What kind of an obviously evil trap did they use?! I mean... for everyone to be killed by the trap is astonishing. If someone survived, the kobolds would have been screwed.;)
Rulebook 12-15-07, 02:27 AM	just really deep pit traps, simple crossbows (with a couple lucky shots) and an ogre fist trap (a big log on a rope, which bashed and bullrushed them into the pits)