pawsplay said:
Secret door. Obvious chain. Conclusion: chain is a bug zapper.
This is what I would think, too.
I answered "Other" -- the chain would get pulled, but it would be with a rope or a summoned creature or something else like that. I would not want a PC/NPC to pull the chain.
For me, as a DM, I want the PCs to explore. And that includes opening doors, pulling chains, pushing buttons, and going down stairs. But that doesn't mean nothing is ever trapped. And it doesn’t mean that PCs should just screw around with any and everything they come to without worry or caution.
To me, as a DM, the best experience with a trap is when the PCs/Players figure out there is probably a trap present, deduce where and how to look for it, actually find it, realize how dangerous, troublesome, or deadly it would have been if sprung, and then circumvent it. That is fun.
The second best experience with a trap is when the PCs/Players fall for the trap, but they survive. They then mentally kick themselves for falling for it, and they see how they could have avoided it. That is funny.
The worst experience with a trap is when the PCs/Players blindly fall for the trap, one or more PCs die to it, and then they don't realize/learn anything from the experience, and they just move on still incautiously. That is disappointing.
I love it when the PCs see something, or are about to do something, and one of them says, "Wait a minute. There's something wrong about this." That moment is wonderful to me as a DM with a trap. It gets even better when, a few minutes later, after investigating, someone says, “Holy crap! It’s a good thing we didn’t set that off.”
I don't want the PCs/Players to be paranoid about every door they come to. Paranoia in PCs/Players isn't fun for me as a DM. But I do want PCs/Players to be alert. Logical caution in PCs/Players is fun for me as a DM. Inspecting every mundane door in the dungeon isn’t fun adventure. Inspecting the secret door to the BBEG’s treasure room is wise.
For instance: secret door, obvious chain. I would think such a set up just screamed, "Trap!" There is something wrong about this scene.
As a Player, yes, I'd want to know what happens when that chain is pulled. As a DM, yes, I'd want either for the chain to get pulled, or for the PCs to discover another way what happens when the chain is pulled.
As a Player, it would seem weird if when we pulled the obvious chain, the secret door opened. If that happened, I’d become paranoid that we’re being set up for something. If we then went through the door, collected the open treasure, and went home safely, I’d be left thinking, “That was the dumbest secret door ever.”
If when we pulled the chain, something else happened that wasn’t bad, I’d just shrug and keep going.
If pulling the chain zapped the puller, I’d go, “Aha! See? I told you.”
I’m really surprised at the poll results. Most people here would just pull the chain. (Only a few would pull it with precautions/protections.)
It’s interesting to match this poll with this one:
http://www.enworld.org/forum/general-rpg-discussion/172293-fair-your-personal-opinion.html
It seems that most people would pull the chain/lever, and then declare a resulting death as unfair.
Bullgrit
