Top 10 Ways to Make Your Traps More Fun

10. Reward the PCs with treasure. Perhaps the last victim’s skeleton

is still impaled on the spear trap, including his belt pouch.

9. Reveal a world detail. Perhaps the falling block from the ceiling

reveals the ghoulish carving that represents the true deity of the

temple.

8. Have an encounter with the trap keeper. The PCs can discover

information about later traps (assuming the clever trap keeper

doesn’t figure out a way to deceive them).

7. Give an adventure tip. The iron portcullis that drops down to seal

the PCs in the hall of spinning blades has a representation of the

dungeon complex in the pattern of its iron bars. It’s a map!

6. Give the players something to learn. If removing the green gem

set off the statue’s trap, stepping on the green mosaic in the floor

sounded the alarm, and turning the green-handled crank made the

bridge turn sideways, the PCs might think twice about opening that

giant green door.

5. Reveal a new section of the dungeon. The spiked pit might have

an access tunnel so that bodies and valuables can be retrieved without

a risky climb into the pit.

4. Team it with other traps. The trapped chest is a bit more interesting

when it sits on the lap of a fire-breathing statue in a room where

poison darts shoot from the wall.

3. Give the PCs control. The PCs reset the trap and trick their foe

into stepping into it.

2. Provide ways for every PC to contribute. Maybe the wizard

can make an Arcana check to reveal a panel hidden by an illusion.

Perhaps the fighter can try to hold the trap open with a Strength

check.

1. Combine it with combat. The room with pit traps is a lot more

interesting if the PCs can push monsters in the pits.

For more advice about how to use traps, check out this article:

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dd/20060302a

Although its traps are designed for the third edition of the game,

much of the advice in the article remains useful.