D&D 3E/3.5 [3.5] How many times can I try to pick a lock?

[Storminator]

there arent any rules set in place currently (that I can see) where a rogue could possibly break his lock picks. A natural 1 does not incur a critical failure on skill checks. (if there were, there would be no such thing as taking 20, as there always would be penalty to failure)

Traps and Treachery has a lock trap that sprays acid over your lock picks if you try to pick the lock without disarming the trap.

Conceivably, you could have inferior lockpicks that break on a roll of a 1 or some such thing.

But in the course of normal gaming, you are correct.

PS

 

[Altalazar]

Anything other than unlimited tries with no penalty would be a special feature of the particular lock, not the skill.

 

[Ridley's Cohort]

The standard DCs are:
Very simple lock 20
Average lock 25
Good lock 30
Amazing lock 40

Note that you may not attempt Open Locks unskilled and you take a -2 penalty if you lack appropriate tools.

Given all that, IMNSHO a Rogue is expected to Take 20 as a standard practice. In the middle of combat how quickly you can open a merely Average lock is an interesting challenge.

 

[Norfleet]

Well, if the rogue is detected attempting to pick the lock out of combat, by the monsters on the other side, who decide to interrupt him, then he risks being hit in the face by the door and smashing several fingers. Make an attack roll for the monsters, treating the door as an improvised weapon inflicting 1d6 points of damage + strength, if the door opens outwards (in the direction of the rogue). If the door opens inwards, the rogue is unharmed by this. However, if the door opens inwards, then the hinges are on the side with the monsters: The monsters may be able to remove the hinges quietly and drop the door on the rogue: Treat as above. If the door opens outwards, then it's not really important whether the rogue can succeed with the lock anyway, since the party can always just remove the hinges.

 

[DevoutlyApathetic]

Well, if the rogue is detected attempting to pick the lock out of combat, by the monsters on the other side, who decide to interrupt him, then he risks being hit in the face by the door and smashing several fingers.

The locked door is going to just suddenly spring open and the skilled lock picker won't notice them unlocking the door?

Make an attack roll for the monsters, treating the door as an improvised weapon inflicting 1d6 points of damage + strength, if the door opens outwards (in the direction of the rogue).

Again, unlocking a keyed door without the guy working on the same lock noticing is just silly. "Hey, all these tumblers in there are moving, obviously I should just continue with what I'm doing and not think about it.

That's really a cheap tactic on the DM's part.

If the door opens inwards, the rogue is unharmed by this. However, if the door opens inwards, then the hinges are on the side with the monsters: The monsters may be able to remove the hinges quietly and drop the door on the rogue: Treat as above.

Two minute to remove the hinges, quietly, without making the door shift in the slightest way? If the hinges can actually be removed in such a fashion by unskilled monsters the party should have just knocked, it'd fall down.

Take your surprise round and be happy. Of course, I'd suggest actually using the listen rules to see if they notice. Picking a lock makes much less noise than a person speaking. DC 0 as a base is absurd.

 

[AnthonyJ]

Frankly, the surprise round is better anyway. Which would you (as monsters) rather have in a surprise round:

1) The door swings open suddenly, smashing the thief's fingers.
2) Five bugbears swing morningstars at you.

 

[CalrinAlshaw]

Personally, to make a succesful listen check to see if the door is being picked should be about a DC 10 + penalties for listening for something on the other side of the door, -1 to the listeners check per 10' distant from the door.

Sounds like someone should just ban the open-locks skill from their game if monsters can remove hinges quieter than a rogue can pick the lock.

Calrin Alshaw