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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Ilbranteloth" data-source="post: 7956968" data-attributes="member: 6778044">Yes, but...If goblins are known to use poisoned arrows, then you would approach potential encounters with goblins differently. There are also ways to mitigate that in game. For example, while poisoned arrows could be very effective, you can gate it behind some safeguards. For example, a critical hit. Or an attack that rolls maximum damage on the die. Or the dosage could be insufficient, granting advantage on the save unless those conditions are met. After the first attack, where the poison is known, the players/PCs will alter their tactics. Just like they would in real life.If certain centipedes, spiders, snakes, etc. are venomous enough to be deadly, then the people who have lived with them in their world for thousands of years will be aware of that fact. Sure, adventurers far from home might run across a lot of unknowns but they should also be treating such unknowns with caution. You can also provide some clues to the risks involved if appropriate.Traps, too. I pointed out the pits in ToH specifically because the traps were designed in such a way to make it unlikely the first person to trigger it would be unlikely to die. At which point, the presence of traps is now known and they can take appropriate actions. Traps have always been a challenge in D&D, because a lot of DMs like to use them frequently. It shouldn't really be a surprise when traps are likely to be present, and in many cases they should be obvious, set as a deterrent.In addition, traps are often mechanical devices. I have frequently had older traps either non-functioning, because mechanics have rusted, wood has dry-rotted, crossbow strings have rotted away, etc. Or poison has lost its potency, granting advantage on saves, etc.The point is, if they know that save or die is a possibility, and they aren't sure how dangerous this particular circumstance is, you can reasonably, and believably, give them a way of knowing what the danger is that they face, so they can adjust.But other effects, like energy drain, are also known. In our campaign, necrotic damage doesn't heal naturally. It requires magical healing, which is also harder to come by. Not all undead cause necrotic damage, but since they can't tell just by looking at a given undead creature, they treat them all with respect. Falling is more dangerous and deadly in our campaign, as are fire and acid. So they treat them with respect and act appropriately.Not all of these are factors from earlier editions, of course. But they approach grew out of the energy drain and save or die effects of AD&D.</blockquote>

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