When first we practice to deceive. . .
I was reading Robin Laws blog-post about secrecy in role-playing games. Though his post was about how secrecy in D&D works well, it doesn't fare so well in other games. This got me to thinking about secret doors in D&D and how they've never made sense to me in 4th edition. I suppose in earlier editions they weren't that great either, but there was a different sensibility then.
In first edition it was really a survival exercise and not finding a secret door was the least of a player's problems. More concerning was the poison dart trap in the statue or the pit trap in front of the treasure chest. Sure, missing a secret door that held behind it a treasure-laden room sucked but it wasn't going to kill you.
Even in 3rd edition there were many save or die effects. I still remember one session where a CR 8 Bodak (meaning it was suppose to be an appropriate challenge for 8th level PC's) killed over 1/2 our adventuring party when we couldn't make our saving throws from its death gaze.
However, 4th edition got rid of a lot of this instant kill effect in favor of more fun at the table. Sure, you can still be petrified, knocked unconscious and even killed, but more often than not it takes at least two failed saving throws and a nonchalant or careless party that doesn't look out for one another and help grant extra saving throws when they're needed.
Unfortunately 4th edition kept the whole secret door mechanic. I remember running Keep on the Shadowfell when 4th edition first came out and puzzling over a secret door in the adventure. What if the players don't find it or don't even think to look? It just seemed unfair and not fun to miss out on treasure because a PC's passive perception wasn't high enough or they didn't think to make a perception check.
It feels to me that combat in 4th edition is meant to emulate exciting scenes from a movie. If there were a secret door ina movie and the heroes didn't see it then for all intents and purposes it didn't exist. So, I say throw out the secret doors! Especially if you're running a self-created adventure you know what your players perception scores are and can basically decide based on the DC whether they'll find a secret door or not based on their passive scores.
If I'm going to hide something I'm much rather it be a knob that the villain can press in combat to trigger a trap or call in reinforcements. If the players do see it then it may make combat a litle easier and if they don't see it they'll still find out about it when the villain triggers it. Either way it exists in the story.
Secret plots - yes! Secret motivations - yes! Secret doors - no!
In first edition it was really a survival exercise and not finding a secret door was the least of a player's problems. More concerning was the poison dart trap in the statue or the pit trap in front of the treasure chest. Sure, missing a secret door that held behind it a treasure-laden room sucked but it wasn't going to kill you.
Even in 3rd edition there were many save or die effects. I still remember one session where a CR 8 Bodak (meaning it was suppose to be an appropriate challenge for 8th level PC's) killed over 1/2 our adventuring party when we couldn't make our saving throws from its death gaze.
However, 4th edition got rid of a lot of this instant kill effect in favor of more fun at the table. Sure, you can still be petrified, knocked unconscious and even killed, but more often than not it takes at least two failed saving throws and a nonchalant or careless party that doesn't look out for one another and help grant extra saving throws when they're needed.
Unfortunately 4th edition kept the whole secret door mechanic. I remember running Keep on the Shadowfell when 4th edition first came out and puzzling over a secret door in the adventure. What if the players don't find it or don't even think to look? It just seemed unfair and not fun to miss out on treasure because a PC's passive perception wasn't high enough or they didn't think to make a perception check.
It feels to me that combat in 4th edition is meant to emulate exciting scenes from a movie. If there were a secret door ina movie and the heroes didn't see it then for all intents and purposes it didn't exist. So, I say throw out the secret doors! Especially if you're running a self-created adventure you know what your players perception scores are and can basically decide based on the DC whether they'll find a secret door or not based on their passive scores.
If I'm going to hide something I'm much rather it be a knob that the villain can press in combat to trigger a trap or call in reinforcements. If the players do see it then it may make combat a litle easier and if they don't see it they'll still find out about it when the villain triggers it. Either way it exists in the story.
Secret plots - yes! Secret motivations - yes! Secret doors - no!
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