Need ideas for a good Greed Trap

[Lord Zardoz]

I am looking to set up my players for some self inflicted pain with a typical greed trap. By greed trap, I mean the kind of trap where you put something nice and shiny in plain view, and when the players go ahead and grab it, they get nailed.

While I have the rough basics of the idea sorted out, I could use some ideas regarding specifics.

- I want to do this in a non dungeon environment.
- I want a trap that will force a temporary party split
- I want the nature of the trap to provide a measure of ongoing danger
- I want to hit the players with some monsters that can exploit the ongoing danger.
- I want the bait for the trap to be basically worth while.
- My players are all 8th level.
- There is no Rogue in my party.

So, what have you got for me?

END COMMUNICATION

 

[DaveyJones]

nymph in a bottle.

she pleads to be released.

the party good guys argue about the good thing to do.

but releasing her will cause serious save vs die type stuff. edit: well blindness in the new edition.

 

[DaveyJones]

you could also bait and switch.

have the vessel speak of being released with an illusion image.
and inside have a bodak.

 

[Lord Zardoz]

Nymph in a bottle is not quite what I have in mind. I want something a bit more obvious for lack of a better term. Basically, some kick ass treasure on a pedestal. The treasure is meant to be legit. The pain / difficulty of the trap is meant to make them earn it.

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[kinem]

How about 2-3 gold figurines ? As soon as they have _all_ been grabbed, those that took them are teleported somewhere.

 

[+5 Keyboard!]

Lots of different options for splitting parties and exploiting their greed.

Forest
Along a dangerous trade route through a forest the characters find the remains of a merchant's wagon and his slaughtered horses and guards, a few coppers and bolts of cloth are strewn around the wreckage that has obviously been looted and the looters didn't find the few pennies and cloth worth bothering with. However, the party notices that a coffer is lying partially concealed in a nearby bush where the looters must have missed it.

The Trap: The looted caravan is about a week old, but a group of gnoll barbarians are using it to attract "man meat" for their stew kettles in their nearby lair. PCs that approach the coffer must avoid a net trap with a high enough Reflex save to avoid it so that the DC makes it about a 50/50 chance of them jumping out of the way when the trap is sprung (say about DC 25). The net is made of chemically hardened ropes, so cutting through it is difficult to do while netted, but not impossible.

Gnoll archers with poisoned arrows (ability score damage type poison) make sniper attacks against spellcasters and lightly armored characters while the rest of the ambush party closes in with greataxes.

The Treasure: Well, whatever you have in mind, but something the gnolls might not recognize for what it is, like a magical gem mixed in with some other ordinary gems or a lucky coin that functions like a luck stone.

If I think of another, I'll post it.

 

[DaveyJones]

Nymph in a bottle is not quite what I have in mind. I want something a bit more obvious for lack of a better term. Basically, some kick ass treasure on a pedestal. The treasure is meant to be legit. The pain / difficulty of the trap is meant to make them earn it.

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sword in the stone style. the stone is alive. a bowler iirc should work. the party member who grabs the sword takes an AoO. the bowler grapples and rolls with the party member down an escape shoot it was rest on top of...

 

[Lord Zardoz]

Well, I happily managed to come up with a trap situation that I like. However, I will post it later / tomorrow. It will probably get used in my game, so I will let you know how it went.

Thanks though, for the suggestions.

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[DaveyJones]

Well, I happily managed to come up with a trap situation that I like. However, I will post it later / tomorrow. It will probably get used in my game, so I will let you know how it went.

Thanks though, for the suggestions.

END COMMUNICATION

yeah, please do let us know what you used and how it went.

 

[Derren]

Take a very deep pit ( 30x30xvery big number) and make a illusion of a 20x20xalso very big number stable surface with lots of treasure on it.
For the PCs it will probably look like nothing more than a slightly intimidating looking pedestal with treasure on it just a 5 ft. jump away.

WWWWWWW
PPPPPPW
PIIIIPW
PITTIPCCCC
PITTIPCCCC
PIIIIPW
PPPPPPW
WWWWWWW

W = Wall
P = Pit
I = Illusionary surface
C = Corridor
T = Treasure

Now when the PCs jump on this platform they fall right trough it into the pit with no real way to avoid this fate. Depending on the splatbook you use, place a Dispelling Wall directly in front of the illusion to dispell any fly effects.
When you use the stronghold builder guidebook and/or Draconomicon use the enchantment which disallows flying spells and make the walls of the pit slick.

Now you can place whatever you want at the bottom of the pit. Monsters, another trap, a mini dungeon, etc.