Traps preview

[LFK]

With the Flame Jets it's not a huge part of the XP budget, so if it were them alone I would expect the same level of "challenge" as steamrolling a single same-level kobold. Get the timing right and pass through. But what happens when you have enemy defenders using Tide of Iron to push you down the flame-jet hallway while Lurkers pincer you in from the other side? Now you've got two parties dancing on the same floor to different tunes.


Thievery is a lot more valuable a skill with all the sub skills rolled into it. Since it's only a single skill instead of several it's not a terrible burden to "build your team" by making sure someone picks it up as Trained.

Hmm, I winder if the PHB has a "how to build a party" section that covers all the assumptions like that.

 

[MindWanderer]

Another thing, why would a character use a DC28 skill challenge to disable the flame jets with a chance of failure and damage when he can use a DC 24 skill check to disable the jets with no negative effects when he fails?

Edit: although the danger of failure might be part of the skill description.

Because the one check disables one jet only--and you have to be standing in its range to try it. Disabling the control panel turns the whole thing off (especially good for the elite version) and you can do it from safety.

My unanswered questions:
- As others have asked, how long does a skill challenge take? If it's 4 or more rounds, that's pretty crazy.
- Do the Flame Jets get to aim? A creature with a Blast attack can place it in any orientation as long as they're at one edge or corner; does the trap get to do the same thing, or does it affect a fixed 3x3 area?

 

[Frostmarrow]

I wonder if the DC 28 thievery skill challenge isn't a skill challenge-template that allows for certain skills and bans others.

 

[Alkiera]

- As others have asked, how long does a skill challenge take? If it's 4 or more rounds, that's pretty crazy.

My guess is it depends on how quickly you roll the needed successes. It's likely you make one roll per round, so if you need 6 successes, it takes at least 6 rounds, maybe 8 if you fail twice. Maybe only 3 if you fail a lot right off.... but then we're back to the 'de facto penalty for failure', a. k. a. getting set on fire, and the jets don't stop.

I wonder if you have two people with thievery if they can co-operate on disarming the trap this way? That'd cut the time down.

Also, it's possible a skill check takes only a move action, so you could do 2 in one round, maybe spend an action point to get 3 checks in one round.

If it's 1/round, I think I'd still let you blow an action point to get a second attempt.

 

[Alkiera]

I wonder if the DC 28 thievery skill challenge isn't a skill challenge-template that allows for certain skills and bans others.

Oh yes, we need a paly standing over the rogue's shoulder, rolling Insight and making 'helpful' comments. "No, not that gear, the brown one!"

 

[TwinBahamut]

Also, it's possible a skill check takes only a move action, so you could do 2 in one round, maybe spend an action point to get 3 checks in one round.

If it's 1/round, I think I'd still let you blow an action point to get a second attempt.

I am willing to bet that this use of a skill is probably a minor action, so a player can make three attempts in one round, or maybe a move to the control panel, an attempt to disarm the trap, and a quick sneak attack against a guy nearby.

 

[FadedC]

The soul gem appears to be a reference to the ghost tower of inverness or however that was spelled. I believe it's a classic 1e adventure that featured a soul gem firing blasts around the room in a similar pattern to what was described. I believe the point was to get the soul gem (but could be wrong).

Still seems a bit inapropriate for a solo encounter though. The rogue just tries to disable it and if the trap goes away even if he fails. Of course the point may be to just get the gem, but still....the safest way to get is to just have the rogue in the room and everyone else outside. Unless you trap everyone there or something.

 

[Derren]

Of course the point may be to just get the gem, but still....the safest way to get is to just have the rogue in the room and everyone else outside. Unless you trap everyone there or something.

Or stand outside of its range & blast radius and pelt it with at will spells. (of course only id you manage to spot this rather big gem in the middle of a room. Thats not easy.)

 

[UngeheuerLich]

hmmh...

are there any complexity 0 challenges? 2 successes before one failure?

I am a bit unimpressed about that complexity thing... its a bit unbalanced to need so much more successes than failures...
but if DC´s are so low that you only fail on very low rolls...

 

[Ultimatecalibur]

My guess is it depends on how quickly you roll the needed successes. It's likely you make one roll per round, so if you need 6 successes, it takes at least 6 rounds, maybe 8 if you fail twice. Maybe only 3 if you fail a lot right off.... but then we're back to the 'de facto penalty for failure', a. k. a. getting set on fire, and the jets don't stop.

I wonder if you have two people with thievery if they can co-operate on disarming the trap this way? That'd cut the time down.

Also, it's possible a skill check takes only a move action, so you could do 2 in one round, maybe spend an action point to get 3 checks in one round.

If it's 1/round, I think I'd still let you blow an action point to get a second attempt.

I'm guessing standard actions are more likely than move actions, but the possibility of multiple characters working together to disable the trap does sound plausible.

Bishmon much of what you suggested either is very specific to the trap at hand (Arcana with magic traps), a fancy way of describing what is going on (cutting ropes and smashing mechanisms is just a fancy way of describing a character attacking the trap) or fall more into attempts to have one skill do everything (History to disarm a trap).

Derren the DC for the Soul Gem is to notice that the Gem is unusual, not to see what ever it is attached to.

Sojorn, the Countermeasures list in the stat block are the standard ones; while the stuff pulled by Mearls' players where most likely stuff he allowed as DM (maybe with several checks) because he thought that they sounded cool.