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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Magus Coeruleus" data-source="post: 4432728" data-attributes="member: 1704">That's why I'm thinking the best of both worlds may be to have an active check mod and a static passive DC for the trap. Sure, active trap vs. passive PCs means you'll normally never have a less perceptive character notice the trap while the more perceptive one doesn't, but that's true for all uses of passive perception, insight, etc., and so totally consistent with 4e's design.Once you get to active checks, if you use the static DC and active perception checks I don't think you need to worry about the fact that the probability of at least one person perceiving the trap gets very high given the number of attempts, because now you are assuming a party of PCs all spending actions to investigate the place, just like active checks for everything else.  There is an opportunity cost involved in everyone making those checks, and I think they should earn the benefits.I don't think it's much different than a scenario where a party ambles into a potential ambush (active stealth vs. passive perception) and gets into a fight with some stealthy foes who try to hide to get combat advantage or other benefits (active stealth vs. active perception).  The only difference is that I don't I like active for both the trap and the PCs the way I'm okay with it for creatures using stealth, perhaps because I think there ought to be a bit more consistency in how effective a trap is at "hiding."  A trap usually has one context and one set of circumstances that should prevent it from being exceptionally well or poorly hidden for a given encounter.  I don't mind the roll for the passive scenario because really you're just throwing one d20 into the mix; doesn't matter whether you call it the trap's roll or a roll for the party as a whole.  In fact, that's another idea.  One could just use a static DC but instead of a passive check for the PCs or active checks for each PC, one d20 modified by each PC's perception.  Again, 6 of one half a dozen of the other.</blockquote>

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