Hussar
Legend
I'd say there isn't much of a difference, when you remove monsters/NPC's from the equation to be honest. But, by the same token, simply making traps bigger/stronger/faster isn't really a change either. If a chest has a poison needle trap at 1st level and a magical aura lightning trap at 15th, well, it's still just a trapped chest.
Only difference is, the magical trapped chest becomes the default and the non-magical characters become sidelined since they cannot actually contribute to things because they don't have any magic. Which means that the game pushes the players to always play magic using characters. 5e is, IMO, already very, very high magic. There are what, 3 non-magic classes out of 36 in the PHB? In vanilla D&D, because everyone in the party becomes a caster at some point, it means that every challenge becomes an exercise in just using spells. Need to travel long distance? No problem, we just teleport there.
I don't want mundane difficulties to become trivial. That's the point of a low magic game. A 1st level party would have a difficult time surviving in say, a desert or high mountain situation where survival checks and whatnot are quite a bit higher DC. The 13th level party, on the other hand, can survive in those areas because they can hit those higher DC's with enough accuracy. Remember, in a low magic campaign, DC 10-14 is actually pretty difficult and anything 15 or higher is VERY difficult. That 1st level fighter could adventure in an area of low dc verticality, for example. Hilly or whatnot. But, plunk him down on the floating iceburg with a frozen ship full of icy undead (an actual Thule adventure) where every movement is DC 12 and slipping means plunging down into icy waters with a couple of killer whales lurking, and you can see the challenge.
Just to give the actual text of the example:
Only difference is, the magical trapped chest becomes the default and the non-magical characters become sidelined since they cannot actually contribute to things because they don't have any magic. Which means that the game pushes the players to always play magic using characters. 5e is, IMO, already very, very high magic. There are what, 3 non-magic classes out of 36 in the PHB? In vanilla D&D, because everyone in the party becomes a caster at some point, it means that every challenge becomes an exercise in just using spells. Need to travel long distance? No problem, we just teleport there.
I don't want mundane difficulties to become trivial. That's the point of a low magic game. A 1st level party would have a difficult time surviving in say, a desert or high mountain situation where survival checks and whatnot are quite a bit higher DC. The 13th level party, on the other hand, can survive in those areas because they can hit those higher DC's with enough accuracy. Remember, in a low magic campaign, DC 10-14 is actually pretty difficult and anything 15 or higher is VERY difficult. That 1st level fighter could adventure in an area of low dc verticality, for example. Hilly or whatnot. But, plunk him down on the floating iceburg with a frozen ship full of icy undead (an actual Thule adventure) where every movement is DC 12 and slipping means plunging down into icy waters with a couple of killer whales lurking, and you can see the challenge.
Just to give the actual text of the example:
Lost Viondor said:PCs able to fly can circumvent the climb from
the waterline up to the wreck of the Golden Ghost.
The embedded corpses are frozen in various states
of decay, but all seem wracked with agony. However,
the presence of living creatures on the iceberg
begins to call them to life.
Moving on the Iceberg: Mooring a boat to the
ice is challenging, requiring a DC 10 Dexterity
check (water vehicles); on a failure, the boat must
back off 20 feet and approach again.
Climbing the ice cliff is very difficult (DC 20
Strength/Athletics check). The steep slope on the
western portion of the iceberg is easier to navigate,
although it still requires a DC 10 Acrobatics
check or DC 15 Strength/Athletics check to move.
Walking on the top is easier, but because of the
slippery ice, the DC of Dexterity checks (other
than those made simply to move) is increased by 5.
The eastern edge is uphill from the western edge.
A handaxe or similar weapon can be used to
create handholds, requiring 1 minute per 5-foot
square and reducing the Strength DC to 10 for
that square. Pitons can be used for the same purpose
and require only 1 round per 5-foot square.
Combat on the Iceberg: Creatures that move
downhill must succeed on a DC 10 Dexterity/
Acrobatics check or stumble and fall prone.
Creatures moving uphill must expend 2 squares
of movement to enter a square uphill from their
current position.
A creature climbing one of the vertical sides or
ascending the steep slope at the western edge must
use at least one hand to cling to the iceberg, and
grants advantage to enemy attack rolls. A creature
damaged by an attack while clinging in this fashion
must succeed on a Strength/Athletics check against
the DC of the wall or slide downhill 1d4 × 5 feet.