The following tables help to generate four types of threats that regularly face adventurers.
Note: my apologies for the ugly formatting of some of these tables! Things got uglier in the transition to WordPress. Luckily they’re still readable – just not as pretty as they used to be. Sigh. I’m hoping to sort this out at some stage.
- Obstacles are barriers to movement: steep cliffs, narrow ledges, deep chasms filled with lava, raging rivers, and so on. They are big and obvious, so PCs notice them automatically. They can’t be “disarmed”: they must either be avoided entirely or passed through. Passing through often requires rolls against DX, Acrobatics, Climbing, or similar.
- Hazards are dangerous features of the environment that might go unnoticed by the unwary – until it’s too late! Examples include rotten rope bridges, crumbling columns ready to fall, and flooring that will give way at the slightest pressure. PCs do not notice these automatically – indeed, doing so requires Per-based rolls against skills like Architecture, Geology, Mining, Survival, or similar. They can sometimes be “disarmed” – or rather stabilized – by those with the right skills.
- Wards are magical, divine, or infernal forces intended block or damage interlopers: think exploding Runes, divine barriers, and the like. Noticing them requires Per-based rolls against skills like Thaumatology, Occultism, Theology, Religious Ritual, or similar; “disarming” or dispelling them required IQ-based rolls against the same.
- Traps are mechanisms constructed specifically for the purpose of harming intruders. They are usually concealed, requiring a Per-based Traps roll to notice; they can also usually be disarmed using Traps.
If you don’t yet know which of the four you’re facing, roll below!
In Dungeons: Are We Dealing with an Obstacle, a Hazard, a Ward, or a Trap?
If you’re in a Dungeon, roll 1d (need a die roller?) to determine whether the threat is derived from the Dungeon Type, the Dungeon Theme, or the Monster Type. Alternatively, simply decide based on whatever seems most appropriate.
Then roll 1d (need a die roller?) and refer to the appropriate line of the table to determine whether you’re facing an obstacle, hazard, ward, or trap.
| 1-2 Dungeon Type | 3-4 Dungeon Theme | —————5-6 Monster Type————– | ||||||
| 1-3 | Cavern | Hazard | Ancient | Hazard | Aberrations | Ward | Insect-Kin | Obstacle |
| 4-5 | Obstacle | Ward | Obstacle | Hazard | ||||
| 6 | Obstacle | Trap | Hazard | Trap | ||||
| 1-3 | Castle | Trap | Base | Trap | Beast-Kin | Trap | Rat-Kin | Trap |
| 4-5 | Ward | Obstacle | (misc) | Obstacle | Trap | |||
| 6 | Obstacle | Ward | Hazard | Obstacle | ||||
| 1-3 | Labyrinth | Obstacle | Bewildering | Obstacle | Demon-Kin | Ward | Serpent-Kin | Ward |
| 4-5 | Trap | Trap | Hazard | Trap | ||||
| 6 | Ward | Ward | Trap | Hazard | ||||
| 1-3 | Mine | Hazard | Haunted | Ward | Dragon-Kin | Ward | Spider-Kin | Obstacle |
| 4-5 | Obstacle | Hazard | Trap | Trap | ||||
| 6 | Trap | Obstacle | Hazard | Hazard | ||||
| 1-3 | Prison | Trap | Infested | Hazard | Dwarf-Kin | Trap | Troll-Kin | Obstacle |
| 4-5 | Ward | Obstacle | Trap | Trap | ||||
| 6 | Obstacle | Ward | Obstacle | Hazard | ||||
| 1-3 | Ruin | Hazard | Testing | Trap | Elementals | Hazard | Undead | Ward |
| 4-5 | Obstacle | Ground | Obstacle | (Any) | Ward | Hazard | ||
| 6 | Ward | Ward | Obstacle | Obstacle | ||||
| 1-3 | Rift | Hazard | Mad | Trap | Elf-Kin | Ward | Wolf-Kin | Obstacle |
| 4-5 | Obstacle | Menagerie | Ward | Trap | Obstacle | |||
| 6 | Ward | Obstacle | Obstacle | Hazard | ||||
| 1-3 | Sewer | Obstacle | Place of | Ward | Extra-Planars | Ward | ||
| 4-5 | Hazard | Power | Ward | Trap | ||||
| 6 | Trap | Trap | Hazard | |||||
| 1-3 | Tomb | Ward | Planar | Hazard | Faerie-Kin | Trap | ||
| 4-5 | Trap | Intrusion | Ward | Ward | ||||
| 6 | Hazard | Obstacle | Hazard | |||||
| 1-3 | Temple | Hazard | Possessed | Hazard | Goblin-Kin | Trap | ||
| 4-5 | Ward | Ward | Hazard | |||||
| 6 | Trap | Trap | Obstacle | |||||
| 1-3 | Warren | Obstacle | Unsealed | Ward | Goo | Hazard | ||
| 4-5 | Hazard | Hazard | Hazard | |||||
| 6 | Trap | Obstacle | Hazard | |||||
Elsewhere: Are We Dealing with an Obstacle, a Hazard, a Ward, or a Trap?
If you’re not in a Dungeon, and you’re trying to work out what kind of threat you’re facing, roll 3d6 and refer to the following table. (Need a die roller?) Research re-rolls may be used.
Note that in many cases, the system will already have decided this for you – for instance, if you’re encountering an Obstacle or Hazard during a Journey.
| 3-8 | Obstacle |
| 9-10 | Hazard |
| 11-12 | Ward |
| 13-18 | Trap |
Difficulty and Damage
If you don’t yet know how difficult the Obstacle, Hazard, Ward, or Trap is to detect or bypass – or how much damage it does if those efforts fail – then roll 1d (need a die roller?)
| Difficulty | Damage | |
| 1-2 | Trivial | 1d+Peril |
| 3-5 | Standard | [Peril] dice -Peril |
| 6 | Deadly | [Peril] dice +Peril |
Damage type depends greatly – see the tables below!
Obstacles
Roll 3d6 (need a die roller?), then 1d6 (need a die roller?). Research re-rolls may be used. If you’re stuck, don’t forget workarounds, below!
| In Generic Outdoor Areas | In Generic Indoor Areas | In Mountains or at Heights | In Watery Areas | In Mazes and Labyrinths | To pass through this obstacle, roll against… (penalized by Peril) |
Damage Type |
To avoid or resist damage, roll against…. |
|
| 3-8 | 3-8 | 3-10 | 3-7 | 3-7 | DX or Climbing | 1-4 | Crushing | DX-Peril |
| 5 | Leads to Swimming obstacle. | – | ||||||
| 6 | Random | DX-Peril | ||||||
| 9-10 | 9-10 | 11-12 | 8-9 | 8-9 | DX, Acrobatics, or Jumping | 1-4 | Crushing | DX-Peril |
| 5 | Leads to Swimming obstacle. | – | ||||||
| 6 | Random | DX-Peril | ||||||
| 11 | 11-13 | 13 | 10 | 10 | ST, Forced Entry, or Lockpicking (if apprt.) | 1-4 | No damage.
Impassable. |
– |
| 5 | Crushing. | Dodge | ||||||
| 6 | Random | Dodge | ||||||
| 12 | 14 | 14 | 11 | 11-14 | IQ | Random | IQ or Dodge | |
| 13-18 | 15-18 | 15-18 | 12-18 | 15-18 | Swimming | Drowning, as per p. B354. Once you inhale water, you must succeed on a number of Swimming rolls equal to Peril. | – |
Hazards
Roll 3d6 (need a die roller?), then 1d6 (need a die roller?). Research re-rolls may be used. If you’re stuck, don’t forget workarounds, below!
| In Generic Indoor Areas | In Generic Outdoor Areas |
In Caves and Mines |
In Ruins |
In Magic Areas |
In Leafy Areas |
To notice the hazard, and then again to stabilize it, roll against… (Notice roll is based on Per, Stabilize roll is based on IQ. Both rolls are penalized by Peril.) |
Damage Type |
To avoid or resist damage, roll against… |
|
| 3-7 | 3-6 | 3-5 | 3-6 | 3-10 | 3-5 | Alchemy, Chemistry, or HazMat (Magical) | 1-3 | Toxic | Dodge or Block, followed by HT-Peril. |
| 4-6 | Corrosion | Dodge or Block | |||||||
| 8-10 | 7-8 | 7-9 | 7-11 | 11 | 6-7 | Architecture, Masonry, or Engineer | 1-5 | Crushing | DX-Peril, or Dodge |
| 6 | Random | DX-Peril, or Dodge | |||||||
| 11-13 | 9-11 | 10-15 | 12-13 | 12 | 8-9 | Geology or Prospecting | 1-5 | Crushing | DX-Peril, or Dodge |
| 6 | Random | DX-Peril, or Dodge | |||||||
| 14-18 | 12-18 | 16-18 | 14-18 | 13-18 | 10-18 | Gardening, Herb Lore, Naturalist, or | 1-5 | Toxic | HT-Peril |
| Survival (appropriate type) | 6 | Random | IQ-Peril |
Wards
Roll 3d6 (need a die roller?), then 1d6 (need a die roller?). Research re-rolls may be used. If you’re stuck, don’t forget workarounds, below!
|
In Generic areas |
In Magic Areas |
In Divine/ Infernal Areas |
In Special Areas (10-11: choose aprprt.) | To notice the Ward, and then again to dispel it, roll against… (Notice roll is based on Per, Dispel roll is based on IQ)
Both rolls are penalized by Peril. |
Damage Type |
To avoid or resist damage, roll against… |
|
| 3-7 | 3-8 | 3-6 | 3-7 | Alchemy, Chemistry, or HazMat (Magical) | 1-3 | Toxic | Dodge or Block, followed by HT-Peril. |
| 4-5 | Corrosion | Dodge or Block | |||||
| 6 | Random | Dodge or Block | |||||
| 8-10 | 9-12 | 7-8 | 8-9 | Occultism or Thaumatology | 1-3 | Random | Will-Peril |
| 4-6 | Random | Dodge | |||||
| 11-13 | 13 | 9-12 | 12-13 | Theology or Religious Ritual | 1-3 | Random | Will-Peril |
| 4-6 | Random | Dodge | |||||
| 14-18 | 14-18 | 13-18 | 14-18 | Exorcism or Hidden Lore | 1-3 | Random | Will-Peril |
| (appropriate type) | 4-6 | Random | Dodge |
Traps
Roll 1d6 (need a die roller?). Research re-rolls may be used. If you’re stuck, don’t forget workarounds, below!
| To notice the Trap, and then again to disarm it, roll against… (Notice roll is based on Per, Disarm roll is based on IQ)
Both rolls are penalized by Peril. |
Damage Type |
To avoid or resist damage, roll against… |
|
| Traps | 1-2 | Pi- and Toxic | Dodge or Block, followed by HT-Peril |
| 3-6 | Random | Dodge or Block |
Random Damage Type
Roll 1d6 (need a die roller?). Research re-rolls may be used.
| 1 | Burning |
| 2 | Corrosion |
| 3 | Crushing |
| 4 | Cutting |
| 5 | Impaling |
| 6 | Toxic |
Workarounds
There are times when none of the PCs have the necessary skills to disarm a trap or dispel a ward – or even to notice them. If so, hope is not lost! It’s time to look for workarounds. The table below provides sets of substitute skills that can be used instead. When necessary, roll for one set, only. Half the joy here lies in coming up with a justification for why this particular skill works! As always, the rule should be “if it leads to more fun, allow it.”
Rolls against all these skills take a penalty equal to Peril, as normal – but because they’re workarounds, they also take an an additional -1 penalty. That’s the price of doing things in an unexpected manner!
Workaround Skills
Roll 3d6 (need a die roller?). Research re-rolls may be used.
| Obstacles | Hazards | Wards | Traps | |
| – | 3-8 | 3-5 | – | Herb Lore or Gardening |
| 3-6 | – | – | 3-8 | Mechanics |
| 7-9 | 9 | – | 8-10 | Sleight of Hand or Throwing |
| 10 | 11 | 6-8 | 11 | Hidden Lore (appropriate type) |
| 11 | 12 | 9-10 | 12-14 | Architecture, Heraldry, or History |
| 12 | 13 | 11-12 | 15 | Literature or Poetry |
| 13-16 | 15-16 | 13-14 | – | Philosophy or Meditation |
| – | – | 15-17 | – | Musical Instrument or Singing |
| 17-18 | 17-18 | 18 | 16-18 | Jeweler or Connoisseur (appropriate type) |
The Collaborative Gamer 