Hello, fellow Taletellers,
My party has to make it through tests that were designed by ancient Druids to keep unwanted guests out of their very hidden grove.
The tests number 4, one for each Element.
NOTE: these Druids would have had "special consideration" for making these tests as hard as possible for... arcane users/wizards ;)
I am questioning whether these tests should be "to the death" or just "you fail" (and get shunted out of the mountain) but since these are older Druids, truest of Neutral, I am leaning towards Death is ok. Nature... let it run its course... ya know?

Need one for Earth. Not just a riddle, nor just a puzzle. More like a puzzling-physical Group Challenge. lol
Takes place under a mountain. Cavern or chamber.
No teleporting or flying in this chamber will be possible. Otherwise magic can be used, items as well.
Party is 4 7th levels PCs, on the higher-powered side, Paladin Wizard Druid Rogue.

Yes, I know of a cave-in or pit "trap." Not against using those *with other stuff/challenges* but not just those.. these are 4 veteran players, they've seen a LOT of that over the years.

Anyone care to get creative & challenging & funnel their inner Elemental Druid??

Thanks in advance!

I'll offer up this one, I posted it to a trap thread last year:

Apologies, this one is a bit hard and lengthy to explain, I used it as a 'sewer' entrace into a temple of Ghanadaur, here goes:

(Puts on best Rod Serling impression)....

Imagine, if you will, a boulder concealing a cave, once the boulder has been moved a cave opening roughly 5ft wide by 5ft high is revelaed. From the mouth of the cave you see the start of a tunnel, light peeks in but is soon swallowed up by the impenetrable darkness that lingers a mere 20ft infront of you. The smell of oil, pitch and a variety of other less tangible smells wafts out of the tunnel, do you dare enter?

The tunnel is actually 500ft long and for the most part retains the 5ft wide by 5ft high dimensions, it is naturally dark inside so torches can illuminate the surrounding but if darkvision is used then only subtle changes in black and grey can be seen.

Roughly 50ft from each end of the tunnel is a concealed trap door in the ceiling (DC15 to detect if using a torch but they are not detectable if using darkvision), this trap door is locked but no mechanism can be seen as the lock is on the other side.

Roughly 100ft in the walls and ceiling become slick to the touch, from here on the tunnel is treated as if coverd on the walls, floor and ceiling by an natural effect that mimics the Grease spell (DC15 for saves). This effect covers the tunnel from here on meaning it is difficult terrain and anyone walking the tunnel needs to make a Dex save or be knocked prone.

225ft in the tunnel loses its 5ft height and rise up in a dome becoming 25ft at its highest point before curving back down to a 5ft high tunnel some 50ft away, the tunnel retains the same slick coating as before and is still only 5ft wide.

The next 50ft of floor under this dome is actually a pivoting floor, stepping onto it causes the floor to swing down, dropping anyone that fails a Dex Save into a curved pit (the mirror of the ceiling above) and the floor locks in place becoming a wall with a loud click. When this happens the concealed trap doors at each end of the tunnel swing down blocking off the tunnel entrances/exits. A Gelatinous Cube drops silently into the tunnel from each of the rooms hidden by the trap doors and they start to ooze their way towards the centre chamber.

The floor in the dome chamber can be pushed from the verticle position back to a horizontal one and vice versa.

The party of PC's need to work together to get past the pivoting floor whilst the two Gelatinous Cubes creep up on them. Because of the size of the tunnel the Gelatinous Cubes fill the tunnels preventing escape. Should a Gelatinous Cube be slain and the PC's make it to the end of the tunnel the trap doors can be lifted back itno place to enable them to exit the tunnel.

That should be about it.

Wow, that's pretty dam neat on its own.
I maybe could use parts of that, or tweak them.. hell, even if not for this, for something else, it's too cool not to haha!

Thanks!

(looks like, so far, no one else has played with this theme before... or peeps here aren't as active as those on WOTC forums in the past.. or giantitp forum)

Don't get too disheartened, different topics get different amounts of love.

I did have another idea involving Rust Monsters, a Xorn and a vent emitting poisonous gas but the exact details are proving a tad harder to put together. If I can work it out I'll pop it on here for you.

I have some ideas

• How about a sand whirlpool using the rules from control water ? It's an interesting thing to describe and it applies strength checks to the entire room. This can be combined with other puzzles to turn it into a test of strength. For example you can have something like  3 buttons that need to be activated at the same time around the room forcing the party to spread out away from the door. Then the door needs to be held open  until they can all get through while battling the sand with the person holding it also needing to make checks to not be pushed away by the sand flowing through the door. If the door closes it locks and they have to push the buttons again. 
• Druids also don't like metal so spells like heat metal can be a nasty and flavorful option. You can have things like an enchanted room that heats all metal in it or has lightning lure attracting any metal to electrified objects.
• Hide and seek from a petrification ray could also be pretty interesting. Basically they make their way through the room and at the end of any turn you role a dice to see if it activates. Any one with light of sight has to save v flesh to stone. To make it more stressful you can also fill the room with slow moving stone cursed that chase the players.
• Blocking sight is also pretty brutal for wizards which can be done with a dust cloud, walls of sand  or magical darkness.. 

OK idea #2, apologies, this is a bit longer than I thought and became a mini-dungeon more than an isolated trap:

The party find themselves in what appears to be an old mine. It's dark but there are strange glowing mushrooms and a ankle deep layer of pinkish/purple fog that give off dim light, the fog covers the entire mine floor. The fog is Faerzress, this is a mystical substance (see wiki here: https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Faerzress), this fog inhibits certain types of magic and covers the floor of the entire mine and is seeping in through various vents in the floors, walls and ceiling. While in the mine no Diviniation or Conjuration Magic is possible, casting a spell from either of these schools of magic fails and if a spell slot was used for the casting the slot is also used up so make sure to ask them what school of magic the spell is from if party cast anything, notable spells this fog negates are Guidance, Misty Step, Detect Magic. Waftng hands or Gust of Wind style spells can move the cloud but this does not remove the effect and Divination and Conjuration magic still fails as the magical effect of the fog permeates the mine.

If the party make any sound the mine shakes and rumbles, stones fall and tiny cracks spread out along all the surfances. The party should get the hint fairly quickly they need to be quiet. If the party do anything that makes noise ask them to make a Dexterity Saving Throw vs what ever DC you think appropriate. If they fail, rocks fall, everybody dies....ok maybe not dies but at least have them suffer t1d6 bludgeioning damage and get knocked prone and if they fail by 5 or more have them suffer the restrained condition as rocks fall and pin them to the ground. Nature or Survival checks can reveal fissures in all surfaces and this would appear to be where ore veins have been extracted.

As they explore the area they find it is mostly abandoned except for one area where a nest of insectile creatures can be found. These creature are Rust Monsters. They can be seen rubbing their feathered antennae along ore viens and then eating the powdered residue. The party should also notice that the Rust monsters are making some noise but there is no tremors or rocks fallings in the area. Hopefully they can draw the conclusion that the area's where the Rust Monsters have eaten all the ore have become unstable. If the party observe the Rust Monsters they can eventually notice another stange creature. The creature looked to be nothing more than a rock but it suddenly animates and sprouts 3 arms and 3 legs and dashes over to a corner where the hands start to scoop up dirt and drop it into a gaping mouth, the party notice several glinting gem like objects as they fall into the mouth. This creature would be a Xorn. It appears the Xorn has formed a relationship with the nest of Rust Monsters, as they eat the ore they uncover gems and jewels which the Xorn eats.

Moving on, there are various collapsed corridors and shafts, rickerty rope bridges, pit traps hidden under the fog cloud etc and in one such area they should find a cage made from a heavy dark metal (Adamatine), there is no lock or door on the cage but inside it is a semi-transparent orb (Diamond) within which can be seen a skeletal hand.

The party explore some more and find a corridor is sealed by a well made stone door, it has hinges suggesting it can be opened but is missing any form of door handle. The Door has an embossed design made from ivory/bone running over it resembling a skeleton, one of the skeletons hands is missing and it would appear the hand would be roughly where you would expect to find the door handle.

Above the door is an insciption that reads "Destroy the Prison to Find the Key, Shake hands with the Door and Set Yourself Free". The prison is the afforementioned cage/orb with the hand inside it, given the nature of its construction it resists all attacks but happily there are a few creatures back down the mine that might be able to help out......lets hope the party didn't decide to murderhobo the Rust Monsters or Xorn! The Rust Monsters can turn the cage to powder and the Xorn can eat the Orb, the party just then need to figure out how to get the Xorn to give the hand back.

Once the skeletal hand is placed on the door it opens and the party can get out to whatever lies next for them.

Quote from Solarsyphon >>

I have some ideas

 

• How about a sand whirlpool using the rules from control water ? It's an interesting thing to describe and it applies strength checks to the entire room. This can be combined with other puzzles to turn it into a test of strength. For example you can have something like  3 buttons that need to be activated at the same time around the room forcing the party to spread out away from the door. Then the door needs to be held open  until they can all get through while battling the sand with the person holding it also needing to make checks to not be pushed away by the sand flowing through the door. If the door closes it locks and they have to push the buttons again. 
• Druids also don't like metal so spells like heat metal can be a nasty and flavorful option. You can have things like an enchanted room that heats all metal in it or has lightning lure attracting any metal to electrified objects.
• Hide and seek from a petrification ray could also be pretty interesting. Basically they make their way through the room and at the end of any turn you role a dice to see if it activates. Any one with light of sight has to save v flesh to stone. To make it more stressful you can also fill the room with slow moving stone cursed that chase the players.
• Blocking sight is also pretty brutal for wizards which can be done with a dust cloud, walls of sand  or magical darkness.. 

 

 GOOD stuff here too, def can use some of this, thanks!

Quote from Rob76 >>

OK idea #2, apologies, this is a bit longer than I thought and became a mini-dungeon more than an isolated trap:

The party find themselves in what appears to be an old mine. It's dark but there are strange glowing mushrooms and a ankle deep layer of pinkish/purple fog that give off dim light, the fog covers the entire mine floor. The fog is Faerzress, this is a mystical substance (see wiki here: https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Faerzress), this fog inhibits certain types of magic and covers the floor of the entire mine and is seeping in through various vents in the floors, walls and ceiling. While in the mine no Diviniation or Conjuration Magic is possible, casting a spell from either of these schools of magic fails and if a spell slot was used for the casting the slot is also used up so make sure to ask them what school of magic the spell is from if party cast anything, notable spells this fog negates are Guidance, Misty Step, Detect Magic. Waftng hands or Gust of Wind style spells can move the cloud but this does not remove the effect and Divination and Conjuration magic still fails as the magical effect of the fog permeates the mine.

If the party make any sound the mine shakes and rumbles, stones fall and tiny cracks spread out along all the surfances. The party should get the hint fairly quickly they need to be quiet. If the party do anything that makes noise ask them to make a Dexterity Saving Throw vs what ever DC you think appropriate. If they fail, rocks fall, everybody dies....ok maybe not dies but at least have them suffer t1d6 bludgeioning damage and get knocked prone and if they fail by 5 or more have them suffer the restrained condition as rocks fall and pin them to the ground. Nature or Survival checks can reveal fissures in all surfaces and this would appear to be where ore veins have been extracted.

As they explore the area they find it is mostly abandoned except for one area where a nest of insectile creatures can be found. These creature are Rust Monsters. They can be seen rubbing their feathered antennae along ore viens and then eating the powdered residue. The party should also notice that the Rust monsters are making some noise but there is no tremors or rocks fallings in the area. Hopefully they can draw the conclusion that the area's where the Rust Monsters have eaten all the ore have become unstable. If the party observe the Rust Monsters they can eventually notice another stange creature. The creature looked to be nothing more than a rock but it suddenly animates and sprouts 3 arms and 3 legs and dashes over to a corner where the hands start to scoop up dirt and drop it into a gaping mouth, the party notice several glinting gem like objects as they fall into the mouth. This creature would be a Xorn. It appears the Xorn has formed a relationship with the nest of Rust Monsters, as they eat the ore they uncover gems and jewels which the Xorn eats.

Moving on, there are various collapsed corridors and shafts, rickerty rope bridges, pit traps hidden under the fog cloud etc and in one such area they should find a cage made from a heavy dark metal (Adamatine), there is no lock or door on the cage but inside it is a semi-transparent orb (Diamond) within which can be seen a skeletal hand.

The party explore some more and find a corridor is sealed by a well made stone door, it has hinges suggesting it can be opened but is missing any form of door handle. The Door has an embossed design made from ivory/bone running over it resembling a skeleton, one of the skeletons hands is missing and it would appear the hand would be roughly where you would expect to find the door handle.

Above the door is an insciption that reads "Destroy the Prison to Find the Key, Shake hands with the Door and Set Yourself Free". The prison is the afforementioned cage/orb with the hand inside it, given the nature of its construction it resists all attacks but happily there are a few creatures back down the mine that might be able to help out......lets hope the party didn't decide to murderhobo the Rust Monsters or Xorn! The Rust Monsters can turn the cage to powder and the Xorn can eat the Orb, the party just then need to figure out how to get the Xorn to give the hand back.

Once the skeletal hand is placed on the door it opens and the party can get out to whatever lies next for them.

 Hehe, yes, it's a lot more than I planned, but having so many ideas within also gives me more to work with... ha, I may end up having multiple dungeons from all this!