prevent the trap from going off. If the total of the check is equal to or lower than that number, the
trap activates.
Placing a Simple Trap
Context and environment are critical when it comes to properly locating a trap. A swinging log
trap that’s meant to knock characters aside is a mere inconvenience on a typical forest path,
where it can be easily circumvented. But it’s a potentially deadly hazard on a narrow trail that
hugs the side of a towering cliff face.
Choke points and narrow passages that lead to important places in a dungeon are good spots for
traps, especially those that serve as alarms or restraints. The goal is to foil or delay intruders
before they can reach a critical location, giving the dungeon’s denizens a chance to mount a
defense or a counterattack.
A treasure chest, a door leading to a vault, or any other obstacle or container that bars the way to
a valuable treasure is the ideal location for a slaying trap. In such instances, the trap is the last
line of defense against a thief or intruder.
Alarm traps, since they pose no direct physical threat, are appropriate for areas that are also used
by a dungeon’s denizens — assuming the residents know about the trap and how to avoid setting
it off. Accidents can happen, but if a goblin stumbles inside its den and activates an alarm trap,
there’s no real harm done. The alarm sounds, the guards arrive, they punish the clumsy goblin,
and they reset the trap.
Complex Traps
A complex trap poses multiple dangers to adventurers. After a complex trap activates, it remains
dangerous round after round until the characters avoid it or disable it. Some complex traps
become more dangerous over time, as they accumulate power or gain speed.
Complex traps are also more difficult to disable than simple ones. A single check is not enough.
Instead, a series of checks is required to slowly disengage the trap’s components. The trap’s
effect degrades with each successful check until the characters finally deactivate it.
Most complex traps are designed so that they can be disarmed only by someone who is exposed
to the trap’s effect. For example, the mechanism that controls a hallway filled with scything
blades is on the opposite end from the entrance, or a statue that bathes an area in necrotic energy
can be disabled only by someone standing in the affected area.
Describing a Complex Trap
A complex trap has all the elements of a simple trap, plus special characteristics that make the
trap a more dynamic threat.