Flood Season is going to give you some problem with no trap detector. Zenith Trajectory is not trap-heavy and will be OK. Demonskar Legacy is fine without a trap detector. By this point, the PCs are high enough level that traps aren't such a problem.
Flood Season is going to give you some problem with no trap detector. Zenith Trajectory is not trap-heavy and will be OK. Demonskar Legacy is fine without a trap detector. By this point, the PCs are high enough level that traps aren't such a problem.
I agree with DMFTodd
Detect Snares and Pits is a first level druid/ranger spell...if no one can cast it by the time they get to Flood Season, you might consider slipping a wand into a treasure hoard somewhere along the way. Just a thought.
--Fang
|
Something I did in my own campaign (and am very glad I did), is to relax the rule on the Trapfinding ability (ie that only someone with a level of Rogue can find or disable devices over a certain DC (DC20? I forget...).
Note that this does not make the device itself any less difficult; it's the same DC, and requires the same level of Spot/Search/Open Lock/Disable Device, etc.
A highly intelligent character, with cross-class skill points to burn, a dwarf with stonecunning, an elf with racial modifiers to Spot/Search, or a character with Skill Focus or masterwork tools, could all bodge their way through the type of security/dangers likely to be set by most normal citizens, though it may not be as certain, and may take longer.
Of all the classes, a Rogue is still the very best choice, by far, and after being blown to bits a few times, the party may decide to relent and recruit one.
It just means that you reduce the level of metagaming in the campaign, by cancelling the need for the spurious multi-classing that I see in most groups (I've seen whole parties, who took Rogue at first level, for the skill points and trapfinding, then forgot about it...).
The restriction seems completely arbitary to me; unlocking doors and disabling traps are skills like any other, and should be available to anyone who is prepared to expend the ranks.
It seems bizarre that only one class can perform these skills (regardless of ranks), yet any fool can Use Magic Device (which is a far more specialised ability)?
|
|
As an aside, in our SCAP campaign, the party rogue failed to find a single pit trap in Jzadirune, and fell in at least 6 of them! We lost count after a while, thus the legend of Badvock Trapspringer was born, along with the quote "Are you sure you're a rogue?"
See my campaign journal (Diary of Tycho al-Baragu)from this week for a description of the buggering about we had to do to fish him out of the 'tilty-pit spike trap'.
So it's not any guarantee, even if you do have one!
In my campaign the only rogue left (one has gone) is dead the last session (Lucky monkey), he was not heavy on trapfinding, playing more the way of the hide/silent to be a shadowdancer.
I think that I will not accept new adventurer, there still 6 technically, going to be 5 soon because one player is dead (Yes, the player, not the character!!!!).
I have 2 clerics in the group and they can cast "find traps" the second level spell.
I am going to see if my wife play at last her rogue....the only hope for them to get a trapfinder (usually she falls in the traps...)
As an aside, in our SCAP campaign, the party rogue failed to find a single pit trap in Jzadirune, and fell in at least 6 of them! We lost count after a while, thus the legend of Badvock Trapspringer was born, along with the quote "Are you sure you're a rogue?"
See my campaign journal (Diary of Tycho al-Baragu)from this week for a description of the b@%!~&ing about we had to do to fish him out of the 'tilty-pit spike trap'.
So it's not any guarantee, even if you do have one!
As I recall, there are three 'tilty-pit spike traps' in Jzadirune. My party found the levers to all of them and flipped them to disable the traps before they ever walked across even one of them. (They still don't really know that the levers disabled the one trap they've discovered.) Quite amusing.
I think that it is possible but probably more difficult than with one. The first couple of adventures are probably where you will suffer the most.
Olaf the Stout
Jzadirune is where it is needed the most. It is needed later on, but the first chapter is definitely the worst for traps.
|
My players just hit the beginning of the last chapter, and have had a rogue throughout. While he doesn't have any of the normal thief type of skills(sleight of hand, gather information, ect) he did make sure to have a top of the line search, disable device, and open locks.
The traps in parts of the game can be pretty gruesome, but most of the worst can be avoided either by a spellcaster who is willing to drop a little xp on a vision/legend lore type of spell, or from characters who keep their eyes open. If your players made it through the locks and traps of jzadirune they should be alright from this point forward, though they may want to pick up a wand of knock or the like.
I know my players found a chime of opening early on(maybe flood season) and the cleric announced that if he ever had to use it that was the rogue admitting he wasn't very good at his job. Certainly was incentive for the cocky rogue to stay on his toes and keep an extra set of masterwork picks about. I think they have only used a few of the charges and those were when the rogue was downed and they were trying to quickly find an exit.
Of course, you are not obliged to use all the traps in the adventure. You're the DM and you have to make sure all have fun. If there is no rogue, leave out some of the traps or tune them down a bit if the PCs have to set all of them off to be able to bypass them.
My guys just finished Smoking Eye and heading to Soul Pillar. Never had a rogue ever and no one has any reasonable level search ability anyway. They tend to ignore the traps and just take the hit since they have 2 clerics and lots of healing power. Or they send the monk in first to be a pseudo-rogue. If he triggers something with his high reflex save and evasion he usually gets away with little to no damage.
The only place I have noticed it being an issue is with treasures. For example the party was incapable of finding Alakast even after a take 20. This doesn’t bother me. If the group choses not to up skill then they lose treasure. Not a game breaker. If it becomes an issue I will drop in a want of trap detection or some such. The tilt a trap was a nail-biter but they got out of it after some creative thinking :)
Also the cleric has Bloodcrier which opens all doors once a day which has been useful.
both of our rogues died somewhere arround jzderun or maby the malachite stronghold. we've not had any problem with traps afterwords and we are now in occipitus at the third test.