Glyphs on the ground as trap triggers?

[MustacheManny]

My group is about to enter the lair of a mage who serves an evil god, and I'd like to place some traps in the form of magical glyphs on the ground or on a wall. Basically, if they're stepped on or over or touched then the trap activates with things like forcing someone to be so thirsty that they want to drink any water/liquid they come across (I have an icky pool of stagnant water near that glyph that will cause a disease if a CON save is failed) and some other fun ideas. However, I don't know how to make them fair. Should I make the players roll a perception check when they get near the trap? Should they have to make a wisdom/intelligence save after they activate it? Should I just be a totally evil DM and make whoever steps on the trap instantly take the effect?

[Vaz]

Glyph of Warding (Suggestion) should do the trick.


The glyph is nearly invisible and requires a successful Intelligence (lnvestigation) check against your spell save DC to be found.

The first time something like this happens, the party should begin to be particularly wary. A Dispel Magic, or simply avoiding the area will cause them to be more careful.

[MustacheManny]

So when the first one is encountered should I force an investigation roll or just let them stumble upon it?

[Vaz]

If they're going through dungeons without Investigating rooms for traps in any case, they're going to have a bad time against mundane traps, magical or otherwise. I'd throw in some mundane traps at first - say something as obvious as a Bear Trap at first, followed by maybe a trapped treasure chest (chest locked to a plinth, with a small dart trap linked to a pressure plate) which could poison anything stupid enough to go open it without checking).

You can choose what the trigger is, but I'd advise for simple reasons that it starts off as a simple touching/standing on the glyph itself until the party gets more used to it. I'd save the true paranoid Lich/Wizard (seriously, the Tomb of Horrors has a lot to learn from a truly paranoid wizard with plenty of spare time) for when they get high enough and well enough practised to deal with it.

[Azgeroth]

if they don't call out for investigation, its passive investigation (10 + invest. score)

don't be afraid to just make a glyph that releases a small cloud of noxious gas, DC save vs con or diseased, you can work it like a poison, or use a curse, if its a more dangerous trap straight up contagion is a nasty spell.

crown of madness is another good one, or sleep (especially if you pair it with a pit trap, auto fail on the save if your snoozing..)

or illusions, say there's a door around a corner that suddenly disappears, the pc's know they triggered something, but it isn't immediately obvious.. should get them nice and paranoid.