KidSnide
Adventurer
I agree that traps are better and more interesting when used in the context of a larger encounter. However, I also think they serve an important role as danger in a pure exploration setting like the Tomb of Horrors. (A less arbitrarily deadly version of the Tomb should be a staple of the genre.)
Since killing characters who step on the wrong square isn't desirable in most games, there needs to be a way to inflict damage that matters on a scale longer than the encounter. Healing surges (despite their flaws) came closer to this that post-CLW-wand 3.5 healing, but it's not clear that either are particularly satisfying. A 15-minute adventure day tendency to withdraw is also a problem.
I'm not sure I have a solution (although I wonder if some kind of "wound" system is the right direction), but I do think it's important for the game to provide at least some type of significant-yet-nonlethal damage.
-KS
Since killing characters who step on the wrong square isn't desirable in most games, there needs to be a way to inflict damage that matters on a scale longer than the encounter. Healing surges (despite their flaws) came closer to this that post-CLW-wand 3.5 healing, but it's not clear that either are particularly satisfying. A 15-minute adventure day tendency to withdraw is also a problem.
I'm not sure I have a solution (although I wonder if some kind of "wound" system is the right direction), but I do think it's important for the game to provide at least some type of significant-yet-nonlethal damage.
-KS