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Post by rorrik on Jun 23, 2017 16:12:09 GMT
I've had a lot of internal conflict on traps and I think I'm a step closer to working it out with this article. I won't repeat the whole thing here, but the gist of my internal conflict is that I strongly feel traps have a role to play in any dungeon crawl, but the way I often see them used doesn't seem to serve the fun of the game at all. My solution is to look at the kinds of fun players come to table top RPGs for (Fellowship, Discovery, Fantasy, Narrative, and Challenge) and think about how traps can be used to serve those needs. Any thoughts or examples of traps you've used to serve fun at your table would be much appreciated. |
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Post by dmcaleb on Jun 27, 2017 0:32:29 GMT
A lit dead end hallway with a large eye frieze at the end with a ruby iris.
Anyone walking down the hall gets attacked by an eye ray.
(Trick) it only attacks if it SEES movement. Killing lights, invisibility etc prevent attacks.
Ruby is the obvious reward.
I love obvious traps. 'It's a long empty hallway with a thing at the end', 'it's a well with an arm in it, the part of the arm that's submerged is just bone', 'in the middle of the dwarves dungeon is a rose beneath a glass bowl'.
Traps are best presented as an obstacle from my experience.
I hate the I search for traps every 5 min loop, or the 'pop! it was trapped so save.' Neither I find carries much punch, or feeling of reward when overcome.
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Post by rorrik on Jun 30, 2017 15:01:35 GMT
From a narrative point of view, I love traps that weren't designed to be traps, just unexpected interactions in natural systems. For example: a trap from my backyard. The 'trapped' switch was connected to the open pipe to allow expansion of the sprinkler system, but the placement of the pipe was perfect to get someone trying to watch the sprinklers while not getting wet. I think accidental traps like this are amazing. |
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