Recommendations for a few skill puzzles & similar matters [Archive]

Trum4n1208

2016-12-27, 11:22 AM

Hey all,

Got a question for you all. Going to be running a session shortly where the players, after having defended a village and slogged their way through a swamp, come upon a small complex of ruins. There's a hidden passageway in these ruins that can only be opened when a number of tiles are put into a recess in the proper chronological order.

There are 5 tiles, and one of them is already in its proper place in the recess. The other 4 need to be found and placed. I was hoping you all could help me come up with a more fun way for the players to find these tiles than "Roll perception. You made the DC, you see the tiles in these locations," and then some fun ways for the players to use their skills, spells, etc. to get to the tiles.

Very appreciative of any recommendations. Thanks!

CursedRhubarb

2016-12-27, 03:36 PM

Knowing what the party is made of would help a lot to come up with some ideas. I'd guess from the sound of it that there are 4 members.

If you know the spells and abilities they have some examples would help too.

But, some ideas for if they have certain things:

Mending: party finds a bag of fine powder or rubble. Casting mending on it will restore the piece. Also nifty for having then restore a door handle to a door so it will open or to fix a lever so they can pull to activate various things.

Mold Earth: sheer wall with an alcove they can see but the earthen wall is too smooth to climb? Mold Earth can be used to create rough terrain in two 5' square spaces, creating a way to climb up, casting as they go.

Fabricate+tool proficiency: a piece missing but a still with a drawing of it was found? A caster with tools proficiency for the materials can cast fabricate to make the needed piece.

Strength: have someone with crazy strength? Perhaps a suspicious boulder needs moved to find a chest with a piece.

(Super evil move here with props!) they find a puzzle cube. Hand them a rubics cube that's mixed and they need to solve it to open the box and get a piece.

Wizard/caster path of Riddles! A locked box that requires them to solve a series of riddles, each correct answer opening a lock, a wrong one setting off a spell. (Polymorph, hypnotic pattern, color spray, disabling ones are fun, damage ones can be bothersome). For more fun make the box hidden in a mural carving on the wall. Mural can tell where the path to each piece's box is. Deciphering the mural lets them figure the box is actually real and not just part of the artwork.

Rogue's path: a simple tunnel with a box at the end. Upon entering they find the hall is a zone of silence and antimagic. Progression through the hall will have traps to disarm (spikes, darts, pendulum blades, nauseating gas) and the box at the end is locked and sealed in place. Has to be picked, but is trapped as well with a sleep dart.

Perception path: they find a magic shell game. Can either let them roll for it, or for more fun you can actually play it. Get 3 cups and a ball or something and make them play it. Wrong choice summons a creature to fight.

Path of constitution: a small, simple maze to navigate but full of gasses, plants, magical lights, and sounds that they will have to deal with. Each causing a Con save or check to not vomit for their next turn. If they vomit the space becomes a Dex check to not slip. Save equals 10+Con modifier of the one that made it.

Two almost identical rooms. Each room is completely empty but decorated with illusions. Party has to figure what room A has but room B does not, then use an illusion spell to complete room B. Doing so makes a chest with a piece be summoned in the room.

A prison call with a Banshee who's gone mad and is obsessed with a play where it can't quite remember one scene. Players must search the stacks of books to figure which play it is and which scene. They must then act it out for the Banshee. Completion gets a piece as a "Token of a lady's favor"(Making them do a scene from Romeo and Juliet has much potential for fun. Prepared printouts of a love scene to hand out would be useful. So they know what to do and say. Or they can be boring and do Performance checks)