Doors, Traps, & Secrets
Doors can be ajar, closed, locked, or stuck.
Ajar Doors
The Underworld works in odd ways. Doors left ajar by the party can randomly swing shut and potentially become stuck.
Closed Doors
Some doors are closed, but not locked or stuck.
PCs can attempt to listen at a closed, locked, or stuck door to detect subtle sounds coming from the next room with each character having a 1-in-6 chance of succeeding.
Stuck Doors
You can try to force a stuck door. A tool like a battering ram or crowbar provides favor to this test.
Some Underworldly creatures are capable of opening all doors, regardless of whether they are stuck for the party, unless they are blocked, barred, or wedged shut.
Locked Doors
If the door has a keyhole, you can try to pick the lock with lockpicks.
It is possible, but difficult, to force a locked door.
Some doors can only be opened by a mechanism or puzzle—you need to say a particular pass phrase, twist the taxidermied moose head, depress all four pressure plates in the room, etc.
Secret Doors
These doors might be obscured (behind a bookshelf) or built to be all but invisible (stone doors that only open when you twist a candle sconce).
You find secret doors by describing how you search for them. A non-exhaustive list of examples:
- You can look at a wall to see if you can see any seams.
- You can tap on a wall to hear if it sounds hollow.
- You can look behind curtains, inside wardrobes, and under rugs to see if there’s anything there.
- Look at your map and check for any gaps where a room would logically make sense.
Look for patterns. Secret doors are hidden in places that make sense for them to be.
Checking for Traps
Some doors, rooms, or passageways are trapped. You find traps by describing how you search for them.
- Open the door very slowly to feel if there’s a trigger in the hinges that activates a trap.
- Bend down and check to see if there’s a tripwire in the door frame.
- Walk carefully to check if there are any pressure plates in the hallway.
Hidden Elements
Anything not in plain sight, such as a secret door, trap, or obscured mechanism, will be referred to generally as a hidden element.
Dealing with Traps
Some traps might be unavoidable no matter how carefully you search.
You decide how to deal with the traps you trigger. Some traps will simply occur—the way you describe your actions when a trap is triggered will determine how the GM adjudicates what happens next.