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DMing Puzzles: Not Too Easy, Not Too Hard, What's Just Right?
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<blockquote data-quote="Tequila Sunrise" data-source="post: 5839278" data-attributes="member: 40398"><p>During the last adventure I ran for @<u><a href="http://”http://www.enworld.org/forum/members/rechan.html”" target="_blank">Rechan</a></u> and others, I invented this puzzle to guard a door:</p><p></p><p><em>A four-pointed star is inscribed on this door, with its upper arm longer than the others. (An inverted cross.) A fingertip-sized oval adorns the end of each arm. Above the star an inscription reads:</em></p><p></p><p>"Spring, summer, autumn and winter</p><p>Which do you favor?</p><p>Not the one of your birth</p><p>Wait for the moment of your death</p><p>Everything falls into the seasons of life"</p><p></p><p>The PCs soon discovered that the four-pointed star is a 5-point combination lock: the ovals must be touched in the right order to open the door. Unfortunately the players got frustrated after being zapped by the accompanying energy trap several times, so they never worked out the puzzle. And in retrospect, I wouldn't have done any better. EDIT: Post #7 has more details.</p><p></p><p>Which brought upon me an epiphany: It's shockingly easy to invent a realistically difficult puzzle. And when I say 'realistic,' I mean a puzzle that any mage worth her salt might invent to protect her magical laboratory and doodads. All it takes to make a tough puzzle is two or three layers of misdirection, like I did with this one. Robert Langdon makes it look easy, but that guy's a trained professional!</p><p></p><p>I guess this is why some DMs allow their players to solve puzzles with skill checks. But that feels lame. Why actually invent the puzzle myself if it's going to be bypassed with a single roll? Why not just say "You encounter a word puzzle. Roll a [whatever] check"?</p><p></p><p>I have an idea on this front, but first I have a sick interest in finding out if anyone here can solve my puzzle. Any puzzle aficionados in the house?</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Tequila Sunrise, post: 5839278, member: 40398"] During the last adventure I ran for @[U][URL=”http://www.enworld.org/forum/members/rechan.html”]Rechan[/URL][/U] and others, I invented this puzzle to guard a door: [I]A four-pointed star is inscribed on this door, with its upper arm longer than the others. (An inverted cross.) A fingertip-sized oval adorns the end of each arm. Above the star an inscription reads:[/I] "Spring, summer, autumn and winter Which do you favor? Not the one of your birth Wait for the moment of your death Everything falls into the seasons of life" The PCs soon discovered that the four-pointed star is a 5-point combination lock: the ovals must be touched in the right order to open the door. Unfortunately the players got frustrated after being zapped by the accompanying energy trap several times, so they never worked out the puzzle. And in retrospect, I wouldn't have done any better. EDIT: Post #7 has more details. Which brought upon me an epiphany: It's shockingly easy to invent a realistically difficult puzzle. And when I say 'realistic,' I mean a puzzle that any mage worth her salt might invent to protect her magical laboratory and doodads. All it takes to make a tough puzzle is two or three layers of misdirection, like I did with this one. Robert Langdon makes it look easy, but that guy's a trained professional! I guess this is why some DMs allow their players to solve puzzles with skill checks. But that feels lame. Why actually invent the puzzle myself if it's going to be bypassed with a single roll? Why not just say "You encounter a word puzzle. Roll a [whatever] check"? I have an idea on this front, but first I have a sick interest in finding out if anyone here can solve my puzzle. Any puzzle aficionados in the house? [/QUOTE]
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