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Unearthed Arcana: Traps Revisited
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<blockquote data-quote="Gardens &amp; Goblins" data-source="post: 7709504" data-attributes="member: 6846794"><p>Hmm, well for me at least, there's enough to work with. </p><p></p><p>They talk of a single ability check to disarm -- but I reckon not every trap has all the bits readily available, within arms reach to disarm. Some prep might be required. Not too much of course - these are simple traps, a minute or so at the most to disable should be enough unless I specifically wanted play to crawl along at a slow, slow rate (which we've done, in a very deadly one-shot dungeon crawl.)</p><p></p><p>Likewise, there's talk of possible consequences for traps being triggered. A smart adventurer will no doubt take precautions to mitigate the penalty for failure, even if they're confident in their skills<em> (for example, in the crossbow trap below, a single alarm bell rigged to ring when the trap fires could ruin an infiltration attempt)</em>. Which again, leads to a greater variety of action options and skill checks.</p><p></p><p>The simple traps are.. simple. So we get a simple description. For example: </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Crossbow. Tripwire rigged to trigger. That's a fair amount of information to work with. Even if just the crossbow is visible, or the tripwire, an attempt to Investigate: I'm looking to see where the wire connects/goes to find the rest of the trap, is a start. Then, depending on where everything is:</p><p></p><p>''Fluffy tries to use her thieves picks to:''</p><p></p><p>- disconnect the trip wire and attach it to a placed piton/substitute, in order to maintain tension and avoid the trap triggering. </p><p>- jam the crossbow's firing mechanism. Assuming the crossbow is reachable. It might involve an Athletics check to reach, and perhaps an Acrobatics check to balance while doing so.</p><p>- remove the bolt/whatever is to be fired from said crossbow. Again, assuming it can be reached.</p><p>- check for any other mechanisms attached to the tripwire/connected to the trap. Perhaps a bells also rings or the crossbow trap is part of series of traps.</p><p></p><p>and so on.</p><p></p><p>Granted, for the Firey Blast Trap, we have less to work with. Still we get:</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Still, Fluffly might use her Knowledge: Religion to connect the mosaic with the firey religious practitioners, their Investigation to notice scuff marks/signs of use on around the area in the hopes of finding either a safe path or deactivation mechanism, her Slight of Hand to carefully remove the pressure plate so that she can then use her thieves tools to disable the mechanism or heck.. her Persuasion, to convince the barbarian to trigger the thing, soak the damage and be done with it.</p><p></p><p>As they say, it does help to try and imagine how the trap works, who set it and for what reason. Sure, if we imagine a trap as just a trick to do X damage, then to be honest, 'I look for the mechanism and try to disable it with my thieves kit' is about right as it's at least as imaginative as the context we've presented the trap within - and sometimes that's all I'd need. If I really want my players to pick their brains then I'll present traps placed in a more connected/holistic scenario.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Gardens & Goblins, post: 7709504, member: 6846794"] Hmm, well for me at least, there's enough to work with. They talk of a single ability check to disarm -- but I reckon not every trap has all the bits readily available, within arms reach to disarm. Some prep might be required. Not too much of course - these are simple traps, a minute or so at the most to disable should be enough unless I specifically wanted play to crawl along at a slow, slow rate (which we've done, in a very deadly one-shot dungeon crawl.) Likewise, there's talk of possible consequences for traps being triggered. A smart adventurer will no doubt take precautions to mitigate the penalty for failure, even if they're confident in their skills[I] (for example, in the crossbow trap below, a single alarm bell rigged to ring when the trap fires could ruin an infiltration attempt)[/I]. Which again, leads to a greater variety of action options and skill checks. The simple traps are.. simple. So we get a simple description. For example: Crossbow. Tripwire rigged to trigger. That's a fair amount of information to work with. Even if just the crossbow is visible, or the tripwire, an attempt to Investigate: I'm looking to see where the wire connects/goes to find the rest of the trap, is a start. Then, depending on where everything is: ''Fluffy tries to use her thieves picks to:'' - disconnect the trip wire and attach it to a placed piton/substitute, in order to maintain tension and avoid the trap triggering. - jam the crossbow's firing mechanism. Assuming the crossbow is reachable. It might involve an Athletics check to reach, and perhaps an Acrobatics check to balance while doing so. - remove the bolt/whatever is to be fired from said crossbow. Again, assuming it can be reached. - check for any other mechanisms attached to the tripwire/connected to the trap. Perhaps a bells also rings or the crossbow trap is part of series of traps. and so on. Granted, for the Firey Blast Trap, we have less to work with. Still we get: Still, Fluffly might use her Knowledge: Religion to connect the mosaic with the firey religious practitioners, their Investigation to notice scuff marks/signs of use on around the area in the hopes of finding either a safe path or deactivation mechanism, her Slight of Hand to carefully remove the pressure plate so that she can then use her thieves tools to disable the mechanism or heck.. her Persuasion, to convince the barbarian to trigger the thing, soak the damage and be done with it. As they say, it does help to try and imagine how the trap works, who set it and for what reason. Sure, if we imagine a trap as just a trick to do X damage, then to be honest, 'I look for the mechanism and try to disable it with my thieves kit' is about right as it's at least as imaginative as the context we've presented the trap within - and sometimes that's all I'd need. If I really want my players to pick their brains then I'll present traps placed in a more connected/holistic scenario. [/QUOTE]
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