Clues to indicate secret door?

[The Red King]

Adventurers should, in general, have a shovel, crowbar, and 5' steel rod in the party, in addition to the usual 10' poles, large sacks, marbles, caltrops, and the rest. The shovel to dig, the crowbar as a lever, and the steel rod to hold a shifting wall or crushing ceiling open for a round or two.

Who has a 10' pocket for their 10' pole?

 

[Umbran]

Depending on the environment, you might also see a pattern of discoloration on the floor or wall near the door from past water seepage or minor flooding.

 

[Tarek]

All the ideas that have been posted so far....

... are subsumed under the "chance to spot secret doors roll."

Really, the roll is shorthand for "I've noticed these scratches on the floor, and there's a faint draft coming from around her, and that stone seems a little out of place. I think there might be a secret entrance around here."

 

[DMBrendon]

All the ideas that have been posted so far....

... are subsumed under the "chance to spot secret doors roll."

I think there are some things that are more fun to resolve with roleplaying than dice rolling. I'm trying to get my players to engage with the fiction and use that to their advantage, rather than mechanics. The flip side to this is that I need to provide hooks to them so that they've got something to go on.

 

[Janx]

All the ideas that have been posted so far....

... are subsumed under the "chance to spot secret doors roll."

Really, the roll is shorthand for "I've noticed these scratches on the floor, and there's a faint draft coming from around her, and that stone seems a little out of place. I think there might be a secret entrance around here."

then reverse the meaning of the list. If you suceed at the roll, give one of the indicators from the list as what the PC noticed.

 

[Umbran]

All the ideas that have been posted so far....

... are subsumed under the "chance to spot secret doors roll."

Which is great, so long as they think to check that particular place for no particular reason.

If they don't think to do it, and doesn't want his game to degrade into a search of every 5' section of wall, it may behoove the GM to give a clue.

 

[Hand of Evil]

• Warping of wood or pealing of wood, where door meets wall.
• Plants, mold, or fungus following the crack.
• Path leading to the door...come on, you are following some one and the trail just ends at a wall AND you don't figure out there is a secret door!
• Poor workmenship, alignment, dis-color...just how much quality went into its making.

Note: Don't just think clues may be on the floor, it could be the ceiling - no spider webs and a breeze.

 

[SkidAce]

Note that the moment you describe the area differently than other rooms, players will probably get suspicious and start looking. It is very tricky to include clues that don't stand out as "he never described the last 20 rooms in as much detail...."

That said, here is a list of tell-tale signs of a secret door

• scuff marks on the floor by the wall from the door swinging past
• disruption in the dirt on the floor by the wall from the door swinging past (or feet)
• a slight breeze detectable in feathers or candles from the door
• slight wearing on the edge of the door where it closes, showing up as a line on the wall
• smoothness on the trigger mechanism from frequent use, unlike other objects in the room
• somebody ran into the room before you, and vanished. There's no other exits
• if you turn out the lights, you might light from the other side of the door via a crack

Ensure your roll the check, then IF they succeed you give them the description...its what they noticed after all...

Or, if they verbally tell you they are looking for grooves in the floor and you decided that was the clue...just give it to them...auto succeed.

 

[SkidAce]

then reverse the meaning of the list. If you suceed at the roll, give one of the indicators from the list as what the PC noticed.

Yeah, this..."must spread exp around etc."

 

[Scott DeWar]

Yeah, this..."must spread exp around etc."

done for you