Mazes

[Bonedagger]

Yes, they are. Anyone who protects his treasure with a maze is a moron.

You could call it crowdcontrol. (Not the bad guys fault that most DM's don't know how to make a maze a deathtrap... (Including those publishers).. ). Good advice: If you come upon a maze always check to se if there is a backdoor first... It's like making illusions without the use of magic.

 

[Psionicist]

You just need a minotaur or two and your done

 

[Bonedagger]

You just need a minotaur or two and your done

Nah.. They won't find all the traps. And what when they meet the dangerous monsters living there.

 

[LostSoul]

I don't think I'd ever use a maze in one of my games - at least not in the typical way.

Think about it - do you ever see mazes in movies or even books? "The warrior-knights travelled 60 feet east, then, after reaching a T-junction, turned north. They followed that passage for 30 feet, where they turned east again. At this point they were faced with a four-way intersection!" Oh my god, how exciting.

If you want to uze a maze, just give it an Int DC and a time rating. The PCs must beat the DC to get through the maze. Each roll takes 1 time rating. And they can "Take 20" and just keep turning to the right, too.

Your encounters in the maze, then, can be set-up like they might in a movie. You see the characters enter the maze; then, you cut ahead, when one of them hears a strange gibbering sound from the passage in front of them.

Only the important bits of the maze need playing out.

 

[Frosty]

You could call it crowdcontrol. (Not the bad guys fault that most DM's don't know how to make a maze a deathtrap... (Including those publishers).. ). Good advice: If you come upon a maze always check to se if there is a backdoor first... It's like making illusions without the use of magic.

Well then. Let's say you have turned an old maze into a deathtrap. Now, is it really a Maze any longer or is it a Deathtrap?

 

[Bonedagger]

Well then. Let's say you have turned an old maze into a deathtrap. Now, is it really a Maze any longer or is it a Deathtrap?

That depends on who is walking through it

 

[Frosty]

That depends on who is walking through it

WHAM-O!

 

[KnowTheToe]

The question is, if you build a maze and no one goes thru it, is it still a maze?

Now that is deep.

 

[Bagpuss]

I don't think I'd ever use a maze in one of my games - at least not in the typical way.

Think about it - do you ever see mazes in movies or even books?

"The Cube" - Not your conventional maze 3 dimensional for a start, but the entire film was based in a maze and all the rooms were effectivily identical except for lighting. Still was a very good movie and well worth gettting hold of. (If your in the UK its pretty cheap to buy on DVD or Video).

"Dungeons and Dragons" - Erm bad example.

The Minotaur's Maze from greek mythology. (Was that in Jason and the Argonaughts?)

Okay I can't think of that many.

I do agree that a maze in an adventure usually means the players are going to be bored silly and so will the DM.

Unless the maze is really a series of interesting traps that are overcome by logic rather than a simple skill check. But then puzzles like that can not be everyones cup of tea, and tend to result in OOC thinking.

 

[LostSoul]

"The Cube"
"Dungeons and Dragons"
The Minotaur's Maze from greek mythology. (Was that in Jason and the Argonaughts?)

My point was that the director isn't going to just follow the characters around while they wander through the maze. So should it be in your games.