The best DnD traps are Rube Goldberg traps

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QUESTING KNIGHT PATRONS
Allen Opperman, Angel of the Dawn, Doug Vieira, Dwayne Boothe, Dwiz, Elliot Heigert, fikle, J. Case Tompkins, James Endres, Jose Trujillo, Klozee, Kurtis Bright, LeMorteGames, marzan, Paulie, Ricardo Sedan, RollStats

[@QuestingBeast]

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[@TheBreadPirate]

Keep making these videos! I'm new to using the tables so seeing a hands on example helps me. The spherical room puzzle was EVIL GENIUS! I'm also curious to see more about Alchemy and Relics. I'm not sure how to use the ingredients table or what the Relics should be like.

[@witchesbruise8792]

This video is so good. A bunch of us have lots of books of random tables, but seeing in real time how someone uses them is really valuable. I'd love for you to do more of these - it might be nice for you to do one slowly telling us all the little things you are thinking along the line. For example in this video you said "that won't work very well, let's do a reroll." What made you decide that? How do you choose when to re-roll vs. when you don't? I'd love to hear more about your internal thought process between table results and fully fleshed out trap.

[@kcrad1527]

The best way I can come up with is think of the worst injuries or deaths you have heard of through any means and just imagine a machine or setup that would do that job explicitly. Medieval-ify it then just bury it in the ground at some location. Nothing is too goofy.

[@Mop-Tollsy]

For the last prompt rolled, I like the idea of just a bucket on a door to a kobold cave full of bats. Very straight forward, with cracked open door signpost. Good tone setting trap encounter.

[@Nuffle]

If you're looking for a video idea I'd love to see more on sign posting danger, I think it's something that doesn't really get talked about enough. It's a great technique for letting your players know what they're getting into without leaving them feeling spoon-fed. It's equally important for traps as it is for ambushes and random encounters. Did you just roll a deadly encounter on your wilderness travel chart? Maybe the first time that dragon is rolled the party finds signs of its recent kill or some form of territorial marking, maybe the second time the player's find themselves in a close encounter narrowly missing detection (assuming they act quickly or had the forethought to safeguard against such a scenario). Hopefully by the third encounter they've prepared themselves... I'd love to see some more in-depth theory crafting and/or actionable information on the subject, maybe even a methodology for sign posting dangers. Any blog posts on the subject?

[@RabidHobbit]

When it comes to rolling encounters, a lot of old school players also roll on a reaction table (even though packaged adventures often don't include one). In that way, rolling a dragon doesn't automatically mean death, it could mean a striking a bargain or other form of parlay. In other words, don't think of random encounters the same way as traps, because monsters don't always automatically wish to harm the adventurers (like traps do). The way that I play is one of 2 ways, depending on the adventure: 1. I make my own encounter table, and I include each monster's reaction in the random table (like I do for dungeon rooms themselves) 2. I use a table that doesn't include each monster's reaction, and I roll for reaction after rolling for the encounter That being said, if you do want an encounter to be an automatic danger for the adventurers, then yes I agree that having some kind of danger sign ahead would be a good idea. However, the players have to be able to act and make a choice after seeing the sign. If you roll and describe to the them the signs of the dragon, and then automatically have them run into the dragon later, that doesn't count. So personally, I wouldn't say that *random* enounters are a great substitute for traps, but planned enounters work fine because you can prepare alternative choices for the players. That's why traps are traps, because they have a geographical element to them: you place them on your dungeon map so that players are able to make a choice about where they explore. For example, if they heed the signs of danger, but they can't figure out how to locate or disarm the trap, they can choose to take another hallway, or not enter the trapped room, etc. I hope some of this makes sense, heh.

[@Nuffle]

@RabidHobbit I didn't mean to imply that random encounters were interchangeable with traps, just that the same concept of foreshadowing danger can be applied to both. You can even apply it social situations by highlighting an exchange between NPCs. Reaction tables are great for variation, a simple d6 chat works well. I like to draw inspiration from the Adventures in Middle Earth random encounters chart, it includes social encounters by default, things like children play fighting with sticks on the edge of town. I agree the best chart is one you create yourself, tailored to your game.

[@Nuffle]

@RabidHobbit I actually prefer progressive charts with multi-stage entries like the dragon example I gave earlier. Not all of the entries are like that though, many are just one offs that get removed and replaced between games after being encountered. When the players encounter signs of a difficult enemy they're free to pursue or avoid it.

[@nin0f]

1:54 it's 45, I can't unsee it, help

[@GenuineMattyC]

Love this! more videos demonstrating the utility of Knave 2e please!

[@Acewarren]

I need to implement more traps into my adventures. Thanks for the video!

[@duieb]

Great video Ben. I`d like to see more videos like this one where you give examples of interesting uses for the tables in the book.

[@israelmorales4249]

Great video!, thx! Let's put some rats! How about Dire Rats!? May be Mechnical Dire Rats!? no, no Undead Dire Rats!!!

[@macoppy6571]

The best traps are obvious and still catch a Wookie.

[@MemphiStig]

I hear garbage chutes work really well.

[@MichaelJHinds]

0:59 New minigame idea: we’ll call it D&D&D

[@sumdude4281]

TY Ben. I just picked up my copy a week ago and this is a timely video showing practical use.

[@OldJRMozer]

Got my kick starter books and SO stoked to run some in-person sessions for my groups! This video def helps understand how some of the tables are to be used. I was very curious if the book is to be used on the fly or mainly in prep for a GM.

[@QuestingBeast]

Both!

[@anselmoffrisia2930]

That's fun stuff! I'll have to add this book to my wishlist.

[@bolicob]

This is great! I like the idea of alternating im my imagination, making nonsensical magical traps and then making logical and realistic traps

[@janmipen]

I backed this on Kickstarter and have been having a blast rolling up NPC’s! Most of my TTRPG experience isn’t with OSR dungeon crawls though, so this walkthrough on creating traps was really helpful.

[@Bogrin]

Might actually finally make some traps! Would love to see you use the tables to create other things too! Npcs, dungeons, magic items and monsters!

[@Beastlango]

Sounds like a good tool for writing as well, good thing I have the book

[@dantherpghero2885]

I Love ALL Questing Beast videos!

[@gpn962]

Excellent video! Really helpful to see how to actually use random tables like this. Could do one for magic item generation too.

[@vektracaslermd743]

Just got my copy in the mail today! Woohoo!

[@kuraishinobi]

Thank you for making this video to show how to just these tables.

[@bobbylind1145]

Put a bunch of tables in your book? I will buy it.

[@LRBeforeTheInternet]

Giving the players a reason to look for traps by showing them previously tripped traps is a great idea, and possibly something I've overused in the past. However, It's just as fun to make players feel like they've tripped a trap/alarm, even if they've done nothing wrong. :)

[@AgranakStudios]

So good!!!

[@paulmartin4298]

Awesome video! I would love someone similar for how you create Blessings 🙏

[@egregoros1898]

These tables are pretty helpful. I have several I've saved up over the years along with an ever-growing spreadsheet of tables for lots just like this. Ben reading is percentile dice backwards drives me nuts!

[@Shattered_Entertainment]

i had to sadly cancel my backing of this but im definitly going to buy it at somepoint

[@GabrielKerr]

Just bought it ❤

[@double_initial]

Pushing me so much closer to purchasing this game system….

[@HowtoRPG]

Thanks

[@Miguel-bk3yo]

At this point im a little ashamed i havent ordered neither knave nor the waking of willoby hall(which ive wanted to check out for a long time now), but ive corrected that neglect just now. Been a long time listener and i really appreciate your channel and camera presence, and particularly your mind, i should have shown support earlier.

[@connorkennedy1794]

As far as incredibly well designed adventures go, you should pick up Waking of Willowby Hall if you're a DM and love rambunctious one shots. It's brilliant.

[@Miguel-bk3yo]

@@connorkennedy1794 I ordered it right before that comment. I keep hearing great things about it. I'm excited to see the adventure and eager to see the design choices Ben went with for Knave.

[@ryhmorhaz]

To shreds, you say?

[@Rodrigo_Vega]

My problem with this kind of charts for things that need to be reasoned is that they take almost as much creative effort to interpret and make sense of than to just coming up with a reasonable trap from scratch.

[@Coyote-oy1oo]

They dont give answers, but can Help give you a theme to Work with.

[@sirsimon6562]

I don‘t think these charts are suppost to give you a trap without additional work. If you want finished traps, then you need a list of traps. If you want to have something that kickstarts your imagination, theb these charts will be helpfull.

[@Ike_of_pyke]

This is where I'd plainly state :You can always go back to the list and replace it with a thing you feel works better ...OR Create a thing that works better than the thing you don't.

[@macdd7257]

The purpose of these tables ain't to give you a full fledged trap, but to help you overcome blank page syndrome, redundancy and unoriginal ideas

[@RabidHobbit]

To each their own, certainly, but for me the problem in creativity is starting from a blank slate; so this kind of thing is really helpful for me personally.

[@jaykaye594]

I miss my old copies of Grimtooths books of traps. So very inventive sickos out there.

[@jackcoldstone7235]

Inventive yes; but from what I remember they were also a bunch of bullshit gotchas

[@jaykaye594]

@@jackcoldstone7235 old school D&D was more akin to Dwarven Fortress, you knew your character was going to die, so you kinda appreciated it being weird and memorable and not just stabbed by orcs again.

[@connorkennedy1794]

You can still get Grimtooth's books. No need to miss them!

[@jackcoldstone7235]

@@jaykaye594 yeah I always preferred running things impartially, so I remember flipping through the Grimtooth book and thinking it was specifically made for an adversarial gm just out to screw with players. That might work at a con or for running oneshots but wouldn't be appropriate for an actual campaign imo.

[@NeedAChanify]

First by accident?

[@oskar6661]

It's not an accident...it's fate.