Is That Loot, or a Trap?

[JohnnyO]

I'm looking for some ideas about how to approach giving out loot to the party that may possibly be trapped/cursed/etc

In all the previous adventures I've run, I've given out loot and told the adventurers what the item was right off the bat, without any suspense. However, that seems wrong for the current adventure I am running

Sleeper In the Tomb of Dreams related plot points below:
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I am currently running a group through Sleeper In the Tomb of Dreams, and they are about to approach the treasure room. Inside the room, behind several traps is a statue dressed in the armor and holding the weaponry of the boss they are after. The weapons and armor are made from a material the players have run into before, an obsidian like rock with paranoia inducing properties.
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Knowing my players, they will probably be a little hesitant about just picking up these weapons/armor and putting them on, given that they may think they are trapped/cursed/etc. I'd like some advice on DMing how to go about allowing the players to discover the properties of the weapons/armor.

 

[UngeheuerLich]

Ok, do you want them to put them on or not... and is it a trap or not...

I would present it as you presented it here... they have to decide for themself if they put it on.

Maybe a ritual to determine the properties would be appropriate... i have the feeling this ritual will involve good 8 hours of meditating and stirring a crushed pearl worth 100g into wine with an owl feather...

and then, if you think they need the weapon, have some of the PC´s have a dream about this weapon.

 

[Mort_Q]

I haven't looked at that download, but one thing I've been toying with for cursed items, is critical failures.

PCs miss/fail on a 1 regardless, so this isn't adding in any penalities, just reflavouring them. So, when the player rolls a 1, have something happen that retroactively causes them to miss/fail... something that fits the curse.

Just an idea.

 

[Nytmare]

I wouldn't want to do this for every cursed item, but in Thunderspire, they introduced at least one magic item that had an additional negative effect when the holder became bloodied.

When I revamped the adventure for my campaign, I carried that effect over to the whole suite of items, and had the mage give me an Arcana check when they stumbled onto the first one. I think the DCs I had were something like (20/25/30) to, in order, recognize that there was some other hidden power, know that the effects of said power were triggered by the holder becoming bloodied, and know the specifics of said effect.

When they found the first one and tried to figure out what it did, the mage only cleared that first hurdle, so the card for the item I gave them ended by saying "An unsettling feeling leads you to believe that there are other, obscured powers of this item that you do not fully understand."

If the mage had beaten the 25, or if the party had already seen the curse in action on another party member, the item card I gave them would have ended with "A swirl of necromantic energy surrounds this item and seems to almost stalk the holder's own strength and vitality as a cat stalks a mouse. Remind the DM that you are holding this item when you are first bloodied."

If the mage had managed to beat the 30+, the item card would have had the same fluff as the 25, but would have ended with the crunchy bits as to what happened when the holder was bloodied.

Like I said, I wouldn't want to treat every cursed item in the world this way, but I thought it would be a neat little sub game to tack on to this leg of the adventure.

 

[JohnnyO]

Ok, do you want them to put them on or not... and is it a trap or not...

I would present it as you presented it here... they have to decide for themself if they put it on.

Maybe a ritual to determine the properties would be appropriate... i have the feeling this ritual will involve good 8 hours of meditating and stirring a crushed pearl worth 100g into wine with an owl feather...

and then, if you think they need the weapon, have some of the PC´s have a dream about this weapon.

Sorry, I should have been more clear. The items are not cursed, but they seem to give every indication of being so. In fact, one of the weapons has a disturbing, but ultimately harmless property when wielded (see Dreamstone Weapon, Dreamstone Amulet in the compendium if interested).

I like the idea of a ritual to discern, but they are currently on a very short timetable to stop a resurrection ritual, so they couldn't really waste 8 hours on their own, though I like the idea of re skinning it down to 10 minutes or so.

I like the dream sequence idea, after all they are in the "Tomb of Dreams"

 

[UngeheuerLich]

I understood you right:

I think it is the best way to react. The Idea for this ritual is just a simple 2nd edition identify spell, which should be a ritual in 4e IMHO. (Arcana key skill)

Telling your players what exactly they find takes away some of the fun IMHO.

You can reduce it to a much shorter ritual if you like. Maybe add some healing surge costs to invoke more arcane power.

 

[merb101]

Might be slightly off the topic, but I rather like the idea of a piece of loot first being a trap/skill challenge. If you succeed you remove the curse/trap without effect. If you fail, you still get the item, but take damage or suffer a temporary effect (possibly the next time you do a skill challenge or enter combat or just roll dice).