05-15-2018, 06:49 AM
My problem with traps is that they are inherently dangerous and -- most of the time -- inherently hidden.
What does that mean for me?
1. Inherently hidden:
If you search for traps you must NOT know the result of the roll. You haven't found anything because nothing is there, or because you failed searching? Worse, what you've found is the whole trap, or just part of it? Even worse, what you found is just a fake trap to lull you into the false sensation that you have successfully found and disarmed it?
Same goes for disabling. You may never be completely sure.
Of course we can play-pretend that we are all serious adults who know all too well how to change diapers and stuff, roll for ourselves, and roleplay as if we didn't know the result of the roll, just the outcome. Takes away part of the excitement, but it's at your discretion.
2. Inherently dangerous:
Okay, you are intelligent and have ranks and various bonuses on Search, because you understand how traps (typically) look like, or generally, how do they feel, in terms of all of your senses. Is it ticking? Stinking? Vibrating? Does it have a mildly metallic taste? (okay, taste is maybe a bit of exaggeration but why not.) My point is, if you are just looking from a safe distance then you are probably not taking 20 on your search. If you are looking very closely, then maybe you are already springing the trap. If you sniff, the mild air current you cause may spring the trap. If you lean close to listen then you may trigger a proximity sensor. If you touch... Well I'm sure you get the idea what happens then
So... If you are willing to retry the search then you tell me when to stop (e.g. after something found OR after X retries)
As a side note, I never realised that there's no "Try Again" section for Search skill, and if I read the rules correctly it means "retry freely" just as we've always played this. There's one sentence that makes some wriggle space for me as DM (apart from being DM that is ), that being,
"Some skills, however, have consequences of failure that must be taken into account."
While Search has no "Try Again" section I consider the sentence above to apply for searching any place that involves danger (traps).
What does that mean for me?
1. Inherently hidden:
If you search for traps you must NOT know the result of the roll. You haven't found anything because nothing is there, or because you failed searching? Worse, what you've found is the whole trap, or just part of it? Even worse, what you found is just a fake trap to lull you into the false sensation that you have successfully found and disarmed it?
Same goes for disabling. You may never be completely sure.
Of course we can play-pretend that we are all serious adults who know all too well how to change diapers and stuff, roll for ourselves, and roleplay as if we didn't know the result of the roll, just the outcome. Takes away part of the excitement, but it's at your discretion.
2. Inherently dangerous:
Okay, you are intelligent and have ranks and various bonuses on Search, because you understand how traps (typically) look like, or generally, how do they feel, in terms of all of your senses. Is it ticking? Stinking? Vibrating? Does it have a mildly metallic taste? (okay, taste is maybe a bit of exaggeration but why not.) My point is, if you are just looking from a safe distance then you are probably not taking 20 on your search. If you are looking very closely, then maybe you are already springing the trap. If you sniff, the mild air current you cause may spring the trap. If you lean close to listen then you may trigger a proximity sensor. If you touch... Well I'm sure you get the idea what happens then
So... If you are willing to retry the search then you tell me when to stop (e.g. after something found OR after X retries)
As a side note, I never realised that there's no "Try Again" section for Search skill, and if I read the rules correctly it means "retry freely" just as we've always played this. There's one sentence that makes some wriggle space for me as DM (apart from being DM that is
), that being,"Some skills, however, have consequences of failure that must be taken into account."
While Search has no "Try Again" section I consider the sentence above to apply for searching any place that involves danger (traps).
