Unearthed Arcana Unearthed Arcana: Traps Revisited

Actually an interesting article. I'm still scanning through it, though. I like the way they discuss the traps, their creation, and countermeasures (something that was missing, I think, from the DMG).

Poisoned Tempest is an absolutely inspired and devious trap! I love it!!!

 

[Gardens & Goblins]

But the sample traps in the document are pretty much all "thieves' tools to disable," with no real description of what being clear and explicit should look like when dealing with them.

Hmm, well for me at least, there's enough to work with.

They talk of a single ability check to disarm -- but I reckon not every trap has all the bits readily available, within arms reach to disarm. Some prep might be required. Not too much of course - these are simple traps, a minute or so at the most to disable should be enough unless I specifically wanted play to crawl along at a slow, slow rate (which we've done, in a very deadly one-shot dungeon crawl.)

Likewise, there's talk of possible consequences for traps being triggered. A smart adventurer will no doubt take precautions to mitigate the penalty for failure, even if they're confident in their skills (for example, in the crossbow trap below, a single alarm bell rigged to ring when the trap fires could ruin an infiltration attempt). Which again, leads to a greater variety of action options and skill checks.

The simple traps are.. simple. So we get a simple description. For example:

It consists of a tripwire run across a hallway and connected to a pair of carefully
hidden heavy crossbows. The crossbows are aimed to fire down the hallway at anyone who
triggers the tripwire.

Crossbow. Tripwire rigged to trigger. That's a fair amount of information to work with. Even if just the crossbow is visible, or the tripwire, an attempt to Investigate: I'm looking to see where the wire connects/goes to find the rest of the trap, is a start. Then, depending on where everything is:

''Fluffy tries to use her thieves picks to:''

- disconnect the trip wire and attach it to a placed piton/substitute, in order to maintain tension and avoid the trap triggering.
- jam the crossbow's firing mechanism. Assuming the crossbow is reachable. It might involve an Athletics check to reach, and perhaps an Acrobatics check to balance while doing so.
- remove the bolt/whatever is to be fired from said crossbow. Again, assuming it can be reached.
- check for any other mechanisms attached to the tripwire/connected to the trap. Perhaps a bells also rings or the crossbow trap is part of series of traps.

and so on.

Granted, for the Firey Blast Trap, we have less to work with. Still we get:

A mosaic on the floor of the entryway to the inner sanctum delivers a fiery rebuke to intruders.

Still, Fluffly might use her Knowledge: Religion to connect the mosaic with the firey religious practitioners, their Investigation to notice scuff marks/signs of use on around the area in the hopes of finding either a safe path or deactivation mechanism, her Slight of Hand to carefully remove the pressure plate so that she can then use her thieves tools to disable the mechanism or heck.. her Persuasion, to convince the barbarian to trigger the thing, soak the damage and be done with it.

As they say, it does help to try and imagine how the trap works, who set it and for what reason. Sure, if we imagine a trap as just a trick to do X damage, then to be honest, 'I look for the mechanism and try to disable it with my thieves kit' is about right as it's at least as imaginative as the context we've presented the trap within - and sometimes that's all I'd need. If I really want my players to pick their brains then I'll present traps placed in a more connected/holistic scenario.

 

[Quickleaf]

The article's distinction of Perception and Investigation is well done.

One thing the article sorely needs is an explanation of the logic behind traps. For example, a trap should make sense and be well hidden. This shows up in a couple places...

1. Nonsensical Traps. A good example is the Sleep of Ages trap, which has a 9th level sleep spell trigger when a pressure plate is stepped on. Wait what? A pressure plate? Why is that needed to trigger a spell effect? Now, if it was sleeping gas – that's a different story, and also presents more ways the PCs could creatively counter it or use it to their advantage.

2. Obvious Traps. A Pit Trap that can be noticed with a Perception check is kind of useless (unless combined with other hazards/monsters). This also encourages a "Perception optimization" practice among players. Instead, look at monsters with the False Appearance trait: Animated Objects, Blights, Cloakers, Darkmantles, Galeb Duhr, Mimics, Shriekers, etc.

[SECTION]False Appearance.While the galeb duhr remains motionless, it is indistinguishable from a normal boulder.[/SECTION]

Why on earth wouldn't a trap have a similar property if well-designed? Where it gets interesting is what does the trap appear to be, and how players can learn to recognize that as a pattern of a given dungeon, and how the DM/module writer can get fiendishly creative within that pattern as a guiding/limiting design principle. For example, in a dungeon with galeb duhr, the players might quickly grow paranoid over large boulders they encounter...the entire dungeon design should then play on that "is it a galeb duhr or not?" mentality, maybe including boulders that need to be moved to access certain areas or that can be dropped on enemies, etc.

3. Placing Traps. While the complex traps rules are neat, I feel like there's more foundational stuff missing from the DMG and this UA article about how should a DM use traps? How should they be placed? All editions of D&D have said "Pit Trap", and modern editions have all said something like "DC # Perception check to notice it." Yeah, duh. That tells a DM nothing about how to use such an obvious pit trap – what other elements are needed to make the threat of that pit actually manifest as more than background color. Now if they address #2, then it's all good, you can have just a pit trap, nothing else. If not, however, there needs to be a section on "Encounters with Pit Traps" that says something like...

[SECTION]Encounters with Pit Traps. When putting a pit trap in a dungeon, consider the inhabitants means of ingress and egress. They should be able to easily bypass the pit trap, and yet also able to easily leverage its presence in their defense. For example, there might be a closing metal grate that can be winch-tightened by monsters in an adjoining room. Or there might be a concealed passage at the base of the pit for monsters to attack through. A gelatinous cube could wait at the bottom. There might even be a wind funnel in the dungeon that the monsters can remove a stone cap from, blasting intruders who successfully cross the pit back into it.

Monsters that force movement often design Pit Traps. This includes many humanoids that will Shove intruders into the pit using spears and polearms, often Helping one another's Shove attempts. Brass dragons, bronze dragons, and minotaurs make frequent use of pit traps in their lairs.[/SECTION]

4. AngryDM's Click Rule. I see one of the things this article does is trying to distinguish the uniqueness of a trap according to its design. One of the things you see in Indiana Jones is "click" and then Indiana realizes he's triggered a trap. However that doesn't mean the trap immediately takes place. I think that idea should be incorporated into triggers. Maybe tripwires are usually instant effect, but pressure plates are delayed effect?

For example, that Sleep of Ages trap triggered by pressure plate? What if the trap triggers only when weight is put on the pressure plate and then removed? What if that was just how pressure plates generally worked in D&D? All of a sudden that trap becomes so much more interesting! From a players' perspective, now they are thinking:

• What heavy stuff do we have or have we seen in this dungeon that we could place on this pressure plate so it doesn't release the trap?
• Can the rogue lift up nearby flagstones to get in and use Investigation to figure out the pressure plate's mechanism of action? Could that be jammed maybe...and would it last long enough for the rogue and trapped PC to get clear?
• What happens if we encounter monsters in the midst of this?
• Does my PC want to stay near a potential hazard to help his/her fellow, or get him/herself clear to safety?
• Once we're clear could we set an ambush for monsters and use a rope/spell/ranged attack to knock the stone we put on the pressure plate off, thus triggering the sleeping gas?

With these principles in mind, here's how I'd redo the simple Pit Trap...

Pit Trap
Simple trap (level 1–4, moderate threat)

This trap consists of a 10-foot deep pit, concealed by a brittle stone worked into the likeness of the surrounding stonework. This type of trap is useful for blocking off the entrance to a monster lair and usually has narrow, safe ledges along its sides.
Trigger. Anyone weighing 50 pounds or more stepping on the brittle stone might fall into the pit.
Effect. The triggering creature must make a DC 10 Dexterity saving throw. On a successful save, the creature feels the stone shifting under their feet and may use a Reaction to respond with an action; if they remain above the pit trap they fall as the brittle stone crumbles away, grasping the edge at the last moment with both free hands (dropping anything they were carrying). On a failed save, the creature falls into the pit and takes 3 (1d6) bludgeoning damage from the fall.
Countermeasures. A dwarf immediately recognizes the different stone used. A DC 10 Wisdom (Perception) check reveals scuffing along the edges of the floor by the walls (where monsters bypass pit & replace brittle stone). A 1-foot wide ledge around the edge of the pit is safe to cross. Placing an object 50 pounds or more on the brittle stone causes it to break, revealing the pit. The brittle stone can also be destroyed (AC 17, hp 5).
Using a Pit Trap. Combine with monsters using Shove or forced movement like minotaurs, as well as hazards or spells forcing movement like gust of wind. Consider where the pit trap leads to, whether its a simple pit, a lower dungeon level, or a room with murder holes.

 

[EborElf]

Newb question. Is there a Rouge trap subclass detailed in Unearthed Arcana? Would be interesting to see that played.

 

[Sacrosanct]

Newb question. Is there a Rouge trap subclass detailed in Unearthed Arcana? Would be interesting to see that played.

Too much rouge is a trap. Moderation is your friend. So...I guess so?

 

[maceochaid]

Love this! A couple points though,

the rule of three. There might be some good advice about class composition. If you are a bladelock, wizard, and Cleric party, you could possibly dispel magic three times in one turn. You can reward groups that do that, but you might also still want the story to have a slightly extended scene with the trap. Maybe increase it to 5 dispel magics in this case.

Also going back over options that players can take during trap events. My players tend to forget about the help and dodge actions, which are worthwhile during trap attacks. I would also think that certain disarming attempts could be slotted up as "readied" actions. The scything blades can be slowed down if you grab their chains but only at the right time. Heroes can ready an action to grab the blades' chains but can only take their reaction AFTER the blade attacks.

Also they could add some damage minimizing effects as part of the dynamic part of a trap so heroes can feel successful in the middle stages.

 

[MrHotter]

I like how the rules say to not have players roll perception to find traps, but I'm not a fan of comparing 2 static numbers. I don't want a trap to always be found by one player and never found by another.

I'd prefer to have the DM roll against the static perception. If the trap can be detected with a 10 on a perception roll, then I have the trap roll 1d20+0 against passive perception. If the trap can be detected with a 20 on a perception roll then I would have the trap roll 1d20+10 against the player's passive perception.

That still makes it so that a player does not roll for detecting traps (so they don't know if they rolled good or bad), and still adds some variation to the search.

 

[Jester David]

I approve of the flavour in the Sphere of Crushing Doom.

There's definitely a desire for more traps. It is a niche, and the DMG rules are pretty bare bones. And my Traps document on the DMs Guild is my second best selling product. This is a solid idea for a UA and an immediate favourite.

I like the clearer formatting, with subheadings. While much less plain text, it is much easier to find what you're looking for. (I almost want to redo my document with these guidelines and formatting in mind.)

 

[FitzTheRuke]

I like how the rules say to not have players roll perception to find traps, but I'm not a fan of comparing 2 static numbers. I don't want a trap to always be found by one player and never found by another.

I'd prefer to have the DM roll against the static perception. If the trap can be detected with a 10 on a perception roll, then I have the trap roll 1d20+0 against passive perception. If the trap can be detected with a 20 on a perception roll then I would have the trap roll 1d20+10 against the player's passive perception.

That still makes it so that a player does not roll for detecting traps (so they don't know if they rolled good or bad), and still adds some variation to the search.

Yeah otherwise you have the problem that every DC 10 trap automaticly noticed by anyone without a negative wisdom modifier. That's not a moderate threat. It's no threat at all.

As the article is, unless an idiot goes off alone, no one will EVER fall in a pit trap without someone first saying "What's that tarp on the ground?" first.

Sent from my LG-D852 using EN World mobile app

 

[Saeviomagy]

This article seems a lot like empty page count to me.

More random selection between perception and investigation.

More random arbitrary rules on how hard it is to perform basic physical actions (ie - why do you need thieves' tools and a successful roll to disable a bear trap? Why do you need thieves' tools and a roll to disable a tripwire-crossbow?)

Thieves' tools and rolls should be reserved for things that are actually difficult, like re purposing a trap, moving it's tripwire, changing it to trigger only after multiple hits on it's trigger etc.

More arbitrary disable methods (why can't you disable the pressure plate of sleep of ages with thieves' tools?)

More nonsensical traps and rules (why does the path of blades get more deadly when you tamper with the rune? Why would the trap creators hobble the first part of the trap like that? Why can't I work out the rhythm of the crushing pillars? Why do I have to be in the trapped area to use thieves' tools? What is the strange magic that stops multiple creatures from messing with the rune? Why do so many traps require three castings of dispel magic when dispel magic can remove multiple effects with a single casting? What does a disable device roll do to the vents in the poison tempest that requires a character to stand next to them? Or for that matter why does busting up the statue make the gas flow quicker?)

Any of these traps, run as written, are just going to be frustrating except to the player who just says "I roll disable device". Well, unless the DM follows the article advice, and he asks "what do you do?" and the player says "I don't know, you didn't describe the trap".

 

[Jefe Bergenstein]

That's a good point but what if it is disabled by depressing a switch that is several feet away from the apparent location of the trap mechanism. In that situation if one were to tell me "I attempt to disable the trap with my thieves tools", I am going to declare that more detail is needed in the player's description of exactly what is being attempted in disabling this trap.

"With the skills and knowledge my character has, but I do not" would be my response. Same way I don't have to describe how I cast a spell, repair armor or tie a knot with the climbing kit. Unless it's granting an auto success, I don't see the point of delaying the thieves tools roll by also requiring them to guess the magic phrase the DM thinks makes sense. Most of us arent engineers and dont know, or care to know, how traps work mechanically. And lots of the examples dont even make sense!

If a bear trap is spotted, you really should be able to disable it automatically, unless they want to imply that these things are so unreliable that they go off a significant amount of time when a reasonably nimble user goes to reset them (14 dex vs DC 10 disable). What kind of hunter uses a tool that malfunctions or hits them that often? The tripwire also seems like just noticing the tripwire beats it. If you know where the bolts shoot, I dont get why a roll is required to cut the wire or untie them.

Avoiding the roll should really generally be the reward for pixel bitching, not the ability to roll.