When do you get XP for traps?
- Thread starter Lauberfen
- Start date
Thundershield
First Post
If you use the trap as part of an encounter, staging the fight around it and effectively letting it count as one of the monsters in the fight, then the players get XP for it no matter if they disarm it, trigger it, or never find it. It was there, and as long as it was a genuine threat to them, they count as overcoming it.
If the trap is an encounter in itself (crushing walls and perhaps a sort of skill challenge to escape this), the players only get the XP if they escape or disarm it. If they don't ever find it, they don't encounter it, after all.
EDIT: Note that by "genuine threat" above, I mean that the trap was in the encounter and a player could've stepped in it, not that it almost killed someone. I merely added that to clarify that an exposed pit 30 squares away from the actual battle hardly constitutes a threat... Yes, Ben, even if there's poisoned spikes at the bottom of it.
If the trap is an encounter in itself (crushing walls and perhaps a sort of skill challenge to escape this), the players only get the XP if they escape or disarm it. If they don't ever find it, they don't encounter it, after all.
EDIT: Note that by "genuine threat" above, I mean that the trap was in the encounter and a player could've stepped in it, not that it almost killed someone. I merely added that to clarify that an exposed pit 30 squares away from the actual battle hardly constitutes a threat... Yes, Ben, even if there's poisoned spikes at the bottom of it.
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Oompa
First Post
In a non-combat situation i give only xp for traps that can be triggered once or traps that are disabled..
In combat i use the rules above..
Thundershield
First Post
Only for traps that can only be triggered only or that are disabled?
If the players get past the trap, survive it and move on, does it matter if the trap could reset or not? They overcame the obstacle, after all.
Oompa
First Post
I give xp for both..
And if a player triggers a (reset) trap and he takes 10 damage from the 30 he has, he won't get xp unless he disables it.. Cause he could take a surge and walk over the trap again.. and again.. and again.. and again..
I know my players and they would do this for fun
Its like facing your pc's with a group of goblins, if the pc's turn around and flee do they get xp? If they fight the goblins and don't kill one of them and the players flee halfway, do you give them xp? I don't..
Thundershield
First Post
Ah, that's why you don't award XP for traps that can reset and don't get disabled... Well, just rule that they can only encounter it once. If he jumps into it again after having suffered it once, that's not much different from jumping a cliff, and I presume you're not awarding XP for that..I give xp for both..
And if a player triggers a (reset) trap and he takes 10 damage from the 30 he has, he won't get xp unless he disables it.. Cause he could take a surge and walk over the trap again.. and again.. and again.. and again..
I know my players and they would do this for fun
Its like facing your pc's with a group of goblins, if the pc's turn around and flee do they get xp? If they fight the goblins and don't kill one of them and the players flee halfway, do you give them xp? I don't..
Ultimately depends on whether they overcame the encounter. In your example of the characters turning tail and running they didn't overcome it. The encounter is still there and still blocking their progress. If they overcome it but let one goblin flee they still overcame it. Letting that goblin flee might have consequences, but they overcame it nonetheless. In theory, the players could just run past enemies if the goal is to reach a later encounter, and then they've theoretically overcome it, but leaving all of them alive will no doubt have dire consequences.
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Oompa
First Post
Solutions are so simple.. but sometimes damn hard to find
Good idea 
And jumping off a cliff will get you some xp with a damn good reason..
