Hello all! I've made it 30+ sessions into DMing, and yet my players are only now about to hit their first official dungeon crawl. They aren't typically ones for a lot of combat, so I've put in several puzzles amid a couple of smaller battles. However, I've tried to make each puzzle relevant to a certain character to make them feel good and useful, and I'm stuck on one.
This is essentially the tunnels of an extinct underground civilization- think Fallout Vaults style, but medieval and magical. Each sector was locked down tight. So each "puzzle" is really just a way its inhabitant locked their area so others couldn't get in. For instance, to enter the arcanist's study and living quarters, they have to charge several orbs with certain types of magic (the arcanist fired off a couple of cantrips into the orbs rather than having keys).
Where I'm stuck is the religion puzzle. There's an underground temple dedicated to all non-evil deities in the pantheon, locked like everything else, with lore and loot inside. I need a puzzle/lock/etc for this temple that clerics could readily complete each day to open up the temple for guests. Since it was done regularly, it can't be anything TOO ridiculous or long-winded. Reciting a whole scripture, for instance, would be too long to do every morning. If it's tied to one specific deity, share it anyway- I may still be able to adapt it to my own.
Any ideas? Be as vague or as detailed as you like!
TLDR: In need of ideas for a locked door puzzle for an underground non-denominational temple. Anything that relies on religion or history checks/knowledge would be great- vague or detailed, and any deity.
I'd play around with the pantheon first. Have a carved stone or small figure or something representing each one, and certain ones need to be placed in a certain order or pattern in the "lock". Maybe the figures or symbols used in the "combination" retell the creation myth or another key story in the religion that a priest at the time wouldn't have had to think twice about, or it's just the equivalent of the Holy Trinity.
If the cleric in the group knows the pantheon/creation myth/whatever well, they should be able to figure it out, but if not you can still provide other clues (i.e. the most-used figures have more wear, or partially intact mosaics on the walls that depict the story in images that they need to recreate via the symbols on the stones, that sort of thing)
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Active characters:
Carric Aquissar, elven wannabe artist in his deconstructionist period (Archfey warlock) Lan Kidogo, mapach archaeologist and treasure hunter (Knowledge cleric) Mardan Ferres, elven private investigator obsessed with that one unsolved murder (Assassin rogue) Xhekhetiel, halfling survivor of a Betrayer Gods cult (Runechild sorcerer/fighter)
Have the doorway carved with all manner of gods, creatures, animals, and people. In the middle of the door, there is a small dish in which sits a single gold coin. In the bottom corner of the door, there is a beggar carved, with their hands extended pleadingly. If you give the coin to the beggar, the doors will open to the shrine of the good. If you keep the coin, the doors open onto the shrine to the evil.
You could make it a bit more difficult, such as having all the people of the world stood holding their hands out. a Queen, a Merchant, a Baker, a Beggar, and so on. When they decide who to give the coin to, it will open the door and bestow a blessing on them from the relevant deity. For example, if they give it to the baker, there might be a good god of health who favours those who make food for others, who will bless them with their next meal being delicious & giving some HP. If they give it to a smith, they may be blessed by a smith god with extra damage on their next swing, and so on. If they keep the coin, they may instead be cursed, or they might receive the blessing of an evil god of greed, meaning they will find more loot (but the door remains closed). The civilization might have selected the different gods depending on their needs that day, such as giving the coin to a farmer for the harvest, or to the beggar to show they desired nothing, or to the merchant for wealth, and so on.
There could be several statues, each one depicting a different environment but only one of them is in it's correct setting, and the script below the statue is the passphrase for the door. For example 5 statues depicting different gods, 4 of them are in a setting that does not represent their setting; Silvanus the Oak Father is on a rock in the sea, Myrkul The Lord of Bones is in a forest, Oghma the Lord of Knowledge is reading a book.
Some curse or other bad item relating to the deity could happen upon the party member that reads the wrong passage/quote related to the deity. Sword Coast Adventurers Guide is where I got those examples from.
You might consider having a tiny shrine to a handful of gods and the only way in is to offer a small sacrifice that each would like. Something minor, like a berry or a match or a breath of air - things anyone could just pick up on the way in or have on their person, but that requires knowledge of each of the gods to work.
You could have a series of slots in the door or wall each bearing the sigil of a deity. You would have to insert an item relating to each deity into the slot for the door to open. The items all disappear when every slot is filled, and appear in a box mounted on the wall on the other side of the door, so they can be reused.
I'd do a religion check to identify the deity and their domain, and investigation to determine that each slot is to accept an offering (maybe one slot still has its thing inserted, like a bandage/jar of ointment in a slot with the sigil of Ilmater, as a clue).
Items could be:
A quill or parchment for Deneir, god of writing
An instrument, for Milil, god of poetry and song
A magic item or spell scroll, for Mystra, goddess of magic
Have three alters or statues - a cleric needs to cast Guidance on one, Resistance on another and Thaumaturgy on the third in order to unlock the entrance. The cleric also needs to be good aligned and worship a good diety if you want to screen for the right type of character as well. This is a ritual that would take an actual cleric 18 seconds so it isn't long and involved. The statues could give some indication of the cantrips required.
You could use spell slots but that is more expensive and folks would not want to expend resources on a daily basis - though you might be able to use healing magic as the trigger perhaps combined with some words or other ritual content.
Many of the options presented above are all great. Here's an idea of mine.
So you could have a statue of each deity in the entrance area. Then, spread across the area are a ton of (seemingly) random objects that are each related to one of the deities. Each one needs to be brought to it's statue to open the door.
But my biggest advice is this: always try to have something physical for the characters (not players) to interact with. Word puzzles, riddles, and the sort are fun, but don't really make good dnd puzzles.
Having multiple idols placed around the room and a few spots to place them on or around the temple door. After placing the proper statuary in the proper order a Ceremony spell activates the door to open. This would be simple enough to do daily but complicated enough to keep the common folk out.
Good evening everyone! I wanted to thank you all so much for your assistance.
I ended up creating a puzzle that was a mash-up of several ideas here: in the temple door was five places where the door was cut away, revealing a bowl with stones in it. Each bowl represented a domain (I went for tempest, nature, combined light/life, knowledge, and trickery), and each stone represented a deity. A phrase above hinted at the domains represented there. They had to sort the correct stones into the correct bowls to unlock the door. They had a great time with it, so the puzzle was an absolute success!
Here is a crappy picture that I sent to a friend to give you an idea of how I represented it- they had to put pieces of paper under each domain symbol.
I took note of the ideas that I didn't use this time, and they will definitely come in handy in the future- they loved the puzzle, so they will be getting more in the future! Thanks again everyone!!
Bah sad I didn't see this until now or I totally would have pitched more, but great solution! Just be careful to make sure that you're very clear with the gods' domains, since a lot of them in different settings and backend lore have many many domains. If your players start to overthink it, try to give them opportunities to make ability checks that might help them out.
Good luck with your dungeoneering my friend- best of wishes to your party of guinea pigs!! : D
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
Hello all! I've made it 30+ sessions into DMing, and yet my players are only now about to hit their first official dungeon crawl. They aren't typically ones for a lot of combat, so I've put in several puzzles amid a couple of smaller battles. However, I've tried to make each puzzle relevant to a certain character to make them feel good and useful, and I'm stuck on one.
This is essentially the tunnels of an extinct underground civilization- think Fallout Vaults style, but medieval and magical. Each sector was locked down tight. So each "puzzle" is really just a way its inhabitant locked their area so others couldn't get in. For instance, to enter the arcanist's study and living quarters, they have to charge several orbs with certain types of magic (the arcanist fired off a couple of cantrips into the orbs rather than having keys).
Where I'm stuck is the religion puzzle. There's an underground temple dedicated to all non-evil deities in the pantheon, locked like everything else, with lore and loot inside. I need a puzzle/lock/etc for this temple that clerics could readily complete each day to open up the temple for guests. Since it was done regularly, it can't be anything TOO ridiculous or long-winded. Reciting a whole scripture, for instance, would be too long to do every morning. If it's tied to one specific deity, share it anyway- I may still be able to adapt it to my own.
Any ideas? Be as vague or as detailed as you like!
TLDR: In need of ideas for a locked door puzzle for an underground non-denominational temple. Anything that relies on religion or history checks/knowledge would be great- vague or detailed, and any deity.
Many thanks, everyone!
I'd play around with the pantheon first. Have a carved stone or small figure or something representing each one, and certain ones need to be placed in a certain order or pattern in the "lock". Maybe the figures or symbols used in the "combination" retell the creation myth or another key story in the religion that a priest at the time wouldn't have had to think twice about, or it's just the equivalent of the Holy Trinity.
If the cleric in the group knows the pantheon/creation myth/whatever well, they should be able to figure it out, but if not you can still provide other clues (i.e. the most-used figures have more wear, or partially intact mosaics on the walls that depict the story in images that they need to recreate via the symbols on the stones, that sort of thing)
Active characters:
Carric Aquissar, elven wannabe artist in his deconstructionist period (Archfey warlock)
Lan Kidogo, mapach archaeologist and treasure hunter (Knowledge cleric)
Mardan Ferres, elven private investigator obsessed with that one unsolved murder (Assassin rogue)
Xhekhetiel, halfling survivor of a Betrayer Gods cult (Runechild sorcerer/fighter)
Have the doorway carved with all manner of gods, creatures, animals, and people. In the middle of the door, there is a small dish in which sits a single gold coin. In the bottom corner of the door, there is a beggar carved, with their hands extended pleadingly. If you give the coin to the beggar, the doors will open to the shrine of the good. If you keep the coin, the doors open onto the shrine to the evil.
You could make it a bit more difficult, such as having all the people of the world stood holding their hands out. a Queen, a Merchant, a Baker, a Beggar, and so on. When they decide who to give the coin to, it will open the door and bestow a blessing on them from the relevant deity. For example, if they give it to the baker, there might be a good god of health who favours those who make food for others, who will bless them with their next meal being delicious & giving some HP. If they give it to a smith, they may be blessed by a smith god with extra damage on their next swing, and so on. If they keep the coin, they may instead be cursed, or they might receive the blessing of an evil god of greed, meaning they will find more loot (but the door remains closed). The civilization might have selected the different gods depending on their needs that day, such as giving the coin to a farmer for the harvest, or to the beggar to show they desired nothing, or to the merchant for wealth, and so on.
Make your Artificer work with any other class with 174 Multiclassing Feats for your Artificer Multiclass Character!
DM's Guild Releases on This Thread Or check them all out on DMs Guild!
DrivethruRPG Releases on This Thread - latest release: My Character is a Werewolf: balanced rules for Lycanthropy!
I have started discussing/reviewing 3rd party D&D content on Substack - stay tuned for semi-regular posts!
There could be several statues, each one depicting a different environment but only one of them is in it's correct setting, and the script below the statue is the passphrase for the door. For example 5 statues depicting different gods, 4 of them are in a setting that does not represent their setting; Silvanus the Oak Father is on a rock in the sea, Myrkul The Lord of Bones is in a forest, Oghma the Lord of Knowledge is reading a book.
Some curse or other bad item relating to the deity could happen upon the party member that reads the wrong passage/quote related to the deity. Sword Coast Adventurers Guide is where I got those examples from.
You might consider having a tiny shrine to a handful of gods and the only way in is to offer a small sacrifice that each would like. Something minor, like a berry or a match or a breath of air - things anyone could just pick up on the way in or have on their person, but that requires knowledge of each of the gods to work.
You could have a series of slots in the door or wall each bearing the sigil of a deity. You would have to insert an item relating to each deity into the slot for the door to open. The items all disappear when every slot is filled, and appear in a box mounted on the wall on the other side of the door, so they can be reused.
I'd do a religion check to identify the deity and their domain, and investigation to determine that each slot is to accept an offering (maybe one slot still has its thing inserted, like a bandage/jar of ointment in a slot with the sigil of Ilmater, as a clue).
Items could be:
and so on...
Symbol puzzle
maybe something with that gods holly symbol has to be pressed onto it to make it open?
Have three alters or statues - a cleric needs to cast Guidance on one, Resistance on another and Thaumaturgy on the third in order to unlock the entrance. The cleric also needs to be good aligned and worship a good diety if you want to screen for the right type of character as well. This is a ritual that would take an actual cleric 18 seconds so it isn't long and involved. The statues could give some indication of the cantrips required.
You could use spell slots but that is more expensive and folks would not want to expend resources on a daily basis - though you might be able to use healing magic as the trigger perhaps combined with some words or other ritual content.
Many of the options presented above are all great. Here's an idea of mine.
So you could have a statue of each deity in the entrance area. Then, spread across the area are a ton of (seemingly) random objects that are each related to one of the deities. Each one needs to be brought to it's statue to open the door.
But my biggest advice is this: always try to have something physical for the characters (not players) to interact with. Word puzzles, riddles, and the sort are fun, but don't really make good dnd puzzles.
I am an average mathematics enjoyer.
>Extended Signature<
Having multiple idols placed around the room and a few spots to place them on or around the temple door. After placing the proper statuary in the proper order a Ceremony spell activates the door to open. This would be simple enough to do daily but complicated enough to keep the common folk out.
Good evening everyone! I wanted to thank you all so much for your assistance.
I ended up creating a puzzle that was a mash-up of several ideas here: in the temple door was five places where the door was cut away, revealing a bowl with stones in it. Each bowl represented a domain (I went for tempest, nature, combined light/life, knowledge, and trickery), and each stone represented a deity. A phrase above hinted at the domains represented there. They had to sort the correct stones into the correct bowls to unlock the door. They had a great time with it, so the puzzle was an absolute success!
Here is a crappy picture that I sent to a friend to give you an idea of how I represented it- they had to put pieces of paper under each domain symbol.
I took note of the ideas that I didn't use this time, and they will definitely come in handy in the future- they loved the puzzle, so they will be getting more in the future! Thanks again everyone!!
Bah sad I didn't see this until now or I totally would have pitched more, but great solution! Just be careful to make sure that you're very clear with the gods' domains, since a lot of them in different settings and backend lore have many many domains. If your players start to overthink it, try to give them opportunities to make ability checks that might help them out.
Good luck with your dungeoneering my friend- best of wishes to your party of guinea pigs!! : D