Mephistopheles
First Post
A pool of water with valuable coins visible in the water, like a shallow wishing well. The water is actually acid, the coins are illusory.
Interesting traps for a temple devoted to greed?
- Thread starter UltimaGabe
- Start date
A nice touch might be to have all traps bypassable by paying gold. So each time there is a trap, there is also a crack in the wall where gold can be put in. So for each trap you can "pay your way around it". They can even call it "pay as you go" 
You might also want to make something like a mousetrap (in bigger size though), with gold as the bait. When someone grabs it, SLAM!
You might also want to make something like a mousetrap (in bigger size though), with gold as the bait. When someone grabs it, SLAM!
silverwhisper
Explorer
2 traps i used recently for the same character level PCs:
using the large statue trap from keep on the shadowfell: the statue is standing on a raised pedestal. on the 4 squares of the pedestal are a host of gold coins. anyone touching the coins triggers the trap.
the party enters a room strewn with silver coins several inches deep. the coins are all coated in a thin layer of wax. after several minutes in the room, the door (only one) automatically close. a thievery DC 25 check (adjust DC as appropriate for your party: my party had a rogue specialized in that skill) will defeat the lock.
ed
using the large statue trap from keep on the shadowfell: the statue is standing on a raised pedestal. on the 4 squares of the pedestal are a host of gold coins. anyone touching the coins triggers the trap.
the party enters a room strewn with silver coins several inches deep. the coins are all coated in a thin layer of wax. after several minutes in the room, the door (only one) automatically close. a thievery DC 25 check (adjust DC as appropriate for your party: my party had a rogue specialized in that skill) will defeat the lock.
ed
Quite an interesting "trap" might be to have some kind of final chamber containing one, very powerful magic item, attractive to all the PCs, free for the taking. This may cause the PCs to fight each other, or if one of them takes it, something triggers when they leave the dungeon with the item, as punishment for their greed. They could be rewarded for leaving the dungeon if no one tries to take the item.
Pour
First Post
A ruined Temple of Greed, that once championed the sin of greed, makes me wonder how it came into disarray. A plausible and parable-like cause could likely have been that they bit off more than they could chew, that they took something beyond their power to control or house. An evil or cursed magic item seems a likely choice.
Now what if this item was in fact intelligent, your BBEG for this romp. The idea that in a ruined temple of greed the prime loot at the end is the villain is pretty entertaining to me. Here's a few ideas off the top of my head:
For monsters, I think dragons epitomize greed more than any other in D&D. Insects do a nice job of that too, in their way. Whenever there is food or material for hives, nests or the like they will take it, regardless. Some animals are also that way, especially with shiny things... maybe have ferrets or ferret people hehe.
Now what if this item was in fact intelligent, your BBEG for this romp. The idea that in a ruined temple of greed the prime loot at the end is the villain is pretty entertaining to me. Here's a few ideas off the top of my head:
- This magic item is putting out a call to other intelligent items, in which case the group encounters everal different intelligent items as enemies along the way (unbeknownst to them or not).
- This magic item, having destroyed this temple and its supplicants, wants out to repeat the process somewhere else, hoping to be taken by a group such as the heroes.
- This magic item wants its own hoard, a hoard of people, admirers or status symbols perhaps. Basically its the treasure's equivalent to some miser and his gold. Have traps meant to capture and contain people versus outright annihilation, and the lower levels might be filled with a wide variety of races and monsters like so many gems contained as if in a zoo, or more aptly a bank.
For monsters, I think dragons epitomize greed more than any other in D&D. Insects do a nice job of that too, in their way. Whenever there is food or material for hives, nests or the like they will take it, regardless. Some animals are also that way, especially with shiny things... maybe have ferrets or ferret people hehe.
UltimaGabe
First Post
You hit the nail right on the head, in fact. My adventure is a bastardized version of the Fallen Angel Eberron adventrue from Dungeon 117. The temple was originally a floating golden tower, built by people so full of themselves and in love with their greed that they built this tower and filled it with everything devoted to greed. Then, they get wind of a statue that supposedly brings money and power to all that lay eyes on it, so they seek out the statue and bring it to their floating tower. What they don't realize is that the statue is actually a Radiant Idol (a fallen angel, cursed with the inability to ever fly again, through natural or magic means), somehow turned to stone. They bring it into their tower, and eventually, the magic holding up the tower breaks down and it falls and crashes.
The PCs are told of this statue by a wanderer (and presented with the statue's arm, which produces a gold coin whenever struck against a surface), and are told they can get even more treasure if they find the rest of the statue. The thing is, the radiant idol's soul is still quite alive, and is influencing people to do its bidding (such as the wanderer), trying to re-unite itself. The wanderer, however, has his own motivation for telling the PCs- he hopes the PCs will destroy the statue, freeing him from his servitude to the radiant idol. The radiant idol, unknown to the wanderer, WANTS to be destroyed, since that'll hopefully set his soul free to inhabit something other than an immobile statue.
So, yeah, you kinda figured it out pretty well.
Nope, that one's easy:
They invested all their money in super-expensive, over-complicated traps and consequently ended up being bankrupt
Greed Traps:
My take on a temple of greed would be knowing when something is too good to be true and when to take the money and run.
A trap might include two paths. One clear and cleanly swept. The lined with gold coins and small piles of wealth. The clear path is to fool the uninitiated and it is trapped. The gold path has small amounts of easily grabbed gold which should be taken.
The next trap has piled of gold and gems on one path, and another path that requires a small sum to access. This could go either way. But observant PCs might see the gold path would be difficult terrain to walk over and the gems look to be sharply cut. After the PCs get halfway across the gems start limiting movement and doing damage. Then monsters attack. Teaching the lesson that the easy road will cost you but sometimes you've got to fight to get the extra bit.
The last trap just relies on the PCs learning greed is great, but the builders of this temple were the best at it and won't let anyone leave the temple with their gold. (Even once the PCs do get it out of the temple it should be cursed. Give them exceptional wealth and struggle to haul it all out only to learn that the greedy are spiteful and if they can keep it nobody can as they watch the gold ignite burning their carts, animals and everything else after the first few moments of glittering in the sun.)
My take on a temple of greed would be knowing when something is too good to be true and when to take the money and run.
A trap might include two paths. One clear and cleanly swept. The lined with gold coins and small piles of wealth. The clear path is to fool the uninitiated and it is trapped. The gold path has small amounts of easily grabbed gold which should be taken.
The next trap has piled of gold and gems on one path, and another path that requires a small sum to access. This could go either way. But observant PCs might see the gold path would be difficult terrain to walk over and the gems look to be sharply cut. After the PCs get halfway across the gems start limiting movement and doing damage. Then monsters attack. Teaching the lesson that the easy road will cost you but sometimes you've got to fight to get the extra bit.
The last trap just relies on the PCs learning greed is great, but the builders of this temple were the best at it and won't let anyone leave the temple with their gold. (Even once the PCs do get it out of the temple it should be cursed. Give them exceptional wealth and struggle to haul it all out only to learn that the greedy are spiteful and if they can keep it nobody can as they watch the gold ignite burning their carts, animals and everything else after the first few moments of glittering in the sun.)
Eric Finley
First Post
I'm seeing a high priest who was a known, and even notorious, embezzler from church funds... a situation which got him respect, but also made him a target. So a very richly appointed suite with lots of treasure, on the other side of a seemingly innocuous corridor that is astonishingly full of nasty traps - like, a full-on level+3 encounter of just traps. Put a desk outside of the entrance to the corridor and a sign on the corridor entrance along the lines of "Warning: Appointments Mandatory. You have been warned." in your choice of funky script. Overtones of modern executive offices (long-dead potted plants?) come to mind, depending on how tongue-in-cheek you're willing to go.
In other words, definitely play with the greed-themed traps others have suggested (I love the gold igniting as it's removed from the temple), but also hint at the greedy people behind it. Let their stories leak through. Oh, and at least one shade who just won't accept the old maxim "you can't take it with you when you go."
In other words, definitely play with the greed-themed traps others have suggested (I love the gold igniting as it's removed from the temple), but also hint at the greedy people behind it. Let their stories leak through. Oh, and at least one shade who just won't accept the old maxim "you can't take it with you when you go."
My first thought was a fight in an atrium with a fountain in the middle. In the fountain are many gold coins, but the magic of the temple makes it so the coins grow mouths and attack like piranha if anyone touches the pool. make sure that the enemies have ways of pushing or sliding the PC into the pool.
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