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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Herr der Qual" data-source="post: 6512943" data-attributes="member: 6789144">There are several ways to bring them into the game, my personal favorite is a bit cliched I'd expect but I still have the most fun with it and it gives me a lot of option for how I go about the puzzle. I love to have them in buildings preferably in situations like this:"You after passing through the illusory door you come upon the ancient ruins of a tower, magestic with intricate stonework accomplished only by skilled elemental magics the tower is stunningly designed with features seeming to defy architecture and gravity...Upon entering the tower through the door you enter a room that seems much too big for the exterior size of the tower..."From there I usually insert either a guardian type character who would be nigh impossible for the party to defeat had they come specially equipped to fight this foe, he announces his presence in a grand or commanding way and maintains a non-threatening posture and declares they must answer his questions (all riddles) to pass.Or my more common one is I will think of an abstract puzzle including features like multiple doors, trick mechanisms, or secret devices with a secret operating mechanism with a cryptic hint! I sometimes include ciphers and/or anagrams into these puzzles.My favorite puzzle was the characters entered a temple upon entering there was a circular symbol on the floor divided into a center and 6 rings, each pointed to a door, except for the largest and most ornate door which had a strange mechanism on the front of it that no rogue could pick. There was a cryptic hint scratched into the stone wall by a man who appeared to be recently deceased, although these were lost ruins, there was not a spec of dust to be found and everything glimmered as if it were build yesterday. The cryptic clue hinted at the order the doors must be unlocked in, however they could enter and pass through every room without going in order, it just wouldn't complete the puzzle. Each door was one color, behind each door was a small antechamber with a small puzzle to open the second set of doors, which were actually a portal spell etched into the stone. After completing the initial puzzle they would step through the portal to discover themselves in a strange land, each one being the ideal environment for one type of dragon. Each of these dimensional spaces had One adult dragon, matching the color of the door. They could either kill each dragon or find a way based on it's nature, predicament or by playing it's game receive a part of the key, upon gaining the piece they would be instantly teleported back to the room where the pieces of the symbol on the floor that pointed at the door they just went through and would turn to face the grand door. It took them two sessions to get through all of it. It was fantastic watching them work together to get things done, they were so busy trying to solve the problems that they forgot to argue, once, for each.I speak two and a half languages, and am fluent in 5 alphabets, so when I write out notes on design elements of puzzles, or riddles and such I write them in a language unfamiliar to everyone in my party or an alphabet unbeknownst to them. Sorry for the long drug out post, I know they can be a drag to read sometimes. Cheers!</blockquote>

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