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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Quickleaf" data-source="post: 7012579" data-attributes="member: 20323">Welcome to ENWorld <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" />Regardless of how experienced a player is with D&D, puzzles may or may not be their cup of tea. One of the most important principles of DMing is "know your players" (DMG page 6 describes some player types - Problem Solvers are often the ones most drawn to puzzles/riddles).What's an example of a "really simple puzzle" that your players were tangled up by?Here are some of the strategies I've picked up along the way for running traps/tricks/secret doors/puzzles:<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Put some thought into the trap/trick design. Why was it put here and by who? Were allies anticipated to be bypassing the trap on a regular basis? What clues foreshadow the trap's presence? Is it readily apparent that there's a trap and the challenge is in devising a creative solution, or is this meant to be a "gotcha" trap (and if it is meant to be a "gotcha" trap, have you properly foreshadowed the presence of such traps)? When the trap is encountered, what does it reveal about your dungeon or campaign world (e.g. a rolling boulder smashes a wall revealing a chamber of petroglyphs)? What's one creative way you can think of that the trap might be disarmed/circumvented besides a rogue using thieves' tool?</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">In placing secret doors, consider who it's meant to be secret from and what it's meant to hide. Is the mechanism of opening the door the cliched hidden switch or is it more flavorful/complicated (e.g. a dwarven sliding stone secret door whose hydraulic sliding mechanism must be powered by firing up the steamworks or allying with the water elemental in area 14)? Also make sure that discovering a secret door isn't necessary to continue the adventure – secret doors should open up new options, shortcuts, treasures, and secrets, but never create a chokepoint in the story.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Anytime you craft or borrow a puzzle for your game, make sure to integrate it into your story/dungeon; some players who sense that you're dropping in a puzzle just for your own pleasure as DM are really put off, whereas the same players facing a well integrated puzzle can be much more neutral or mildly interested. Also, is your puzzle solvable within 20-30 minutes of real time? If not, trim it down or simplify it. Is your puzzle highly visual? If so, consider making a handout for the players; a great example of this is the <a href="http://www.c64sets.com/pool_radiance/por_whe01.jpg" target="_blank">wheel codex decoder</a> from the old Pool of Radiance computer game.</li> </ul></blockquote>

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