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Ghoul TeethLevel 9 LurkerTrap XP 400A faint click deep in the floor is the only warning as a swath oftiny projectiles shoots through slots in the flagstones. The missilesare discolored by some vile coating, and appear to be formed fromhumanoid teeth.Trap: A number of hidden slots in the floor, coveringapproximately 10 to 20 squares, launch tiny projectilespoisoned with a paralytic agent. Dragons frequently set thesetraps in open areas so that intruders remain vulnerable to theirbreath weapons.Perception✦ DC 24: The character notices the holes in the floor.✦ DC 28: The character notices the pressure plate.Additional Skill: Heal✦ DC 19: If any character examines a hole before triggering thetrap, that character can identify the substance caking the holeas a paralytic toxin.Initiative +11TriggerWhen a character steps on the pressure plate, the trap rollsinitiative.AttackStandard Action MeleeTarget: All creatures in squares with holesAttack: +12 vs. FortitudeHit: 2d6 + 6 damage, and the target is immobilized (save ends).Aftereffect: The target is slowed (save ends).Countermeasures✦ An adjacent character can disable the pressure plate with a DC24 Thievery check.✦ A character can move through the room while spotting andavoiding the holes, with a DC 24 Spot check for each round ofmovement. If the character moves at half speed, the DC is 19.Upgrade to Elite (1,600 XP)✦ Increase each attack roll and skill DC by 2.✦ On a miss, the trap deals half damage, and the target is slowed(save ends).Volatile HazeLevel 12 BlasterHazard XP 700The ground is all but hidden beneath a blanket of mist, rollingand waving less than 2 feet from the floor. When activated, themist takes on a sickly bluish hue, somewhere between the flicker ofthe lightning and the fading edges of an ugly bruise.Hazard: A volatile haze occasionally forms in an area of highmystical energy concentration, such as a dragon’s lair. A fainthaze in a 10-square burst, hanging at roughly calf level on ahuman, absorbs the energy given off by characters within it andthen launches that energy back at those characters.When the hazard is triggered, it takes on a crackling bluehue, and a ball of energy forms in the square at the center of theburst. An active haze does not change damage types with futureattacks or spells; it retains its initial type until deactivated oruntil 24 hours pass.A dragon fortunate enough to accumulate a volatile hazemight wait until intruders have entered the haze and thenbreathe, knowing that the haze will continue to attack for it.Dragons even fight within the haze, counting on their ownresistance to protect them.Perception✦ DC 21: The character notices the faint haze near the floor.Additional Skill: Arcana✦ DC 26: The character recognizes the mist for what it is.Initiative +12TriggerA creature within the haze uses or is attacked by a cold, fire,lightning, necrotic, radiant, or thunder effect. The haze makesan attack instantly and then rolls initiative.AttackImmediate Reaction or Standard Action Area burst 10Target: All creatures in or adjacent to squares with hazeAttack: +13 vs. ReflexHit: 4d6 + 5 damage, and the target is dazed until the end of itsnext turn. Damage is the same type as that of the trigger effect.Miss: Half damage, and the target is not dazed.Countermeasures✦ A character at the edge of the mist or in a targeted adjacentsquare when the haze attacks can attempt a DC 21 Acrobaticscheck as an immediate interrupt. If successful, that charactertakes half damage and immediately moves to the nearestuntargeted square.✦ A character can attack the ball of energy at the center of thehaze, which has AC 23, Fortitude 23, Reflex 23, Will 23, and 87hit points and is immune to the damage type it uses to attack.If destroyed, the haze makes a final attack and then dies. Itremains inert for 24 hours, after which time another energyattack can activate it.Upgrade to Elite (2,400 XP)✦ Increase each attack roll, and all defenses by 2.✦ Increase HP to 130.✦ Increase damage to 4d6 + 14.Thief’s CurseLevel 16 BlasterTrap XP 1,400What appears to be a normal (if valuable) bit of artwork suddenlyproves itself to be far, far more, as any would-be-thief slowly turnsto gold at its slightest touch.Trap: An object in the dragon’s lair that appears as an art item—possibly a decoration, possibly part of the hoard—is in fact amystical trap that causes those who trigger it to turn slowlyto solid gold. A dragon that makes use of a thief’s curse mightwait until intruders trigger the trap. If the dragon takes thisapproach, it hangs back just out of range, allowing the trap todo its work. Meanwhile, the dragon breathes and makes meleeattacks against those who try to flee.Perception✦ DC 25: The character notices the tiny runes etched on the artthat indicate it has magical properties.Additional Skill: Arcana✦ DC 30: The character knows what the runes signify. Thecharacter must have detected or been shown the runes toattempt this check.Initiative +16TriggerA character disturbs the object that the trap protects.AttackStandard Action Area burst 2 within 10 squaresTarget: All creatures in burstAttack: +14 vs. FortitudeHit: 4d8 + 3, and the target is immobilized (save ends). On its firstfailed saving throw, an immobilized target is restrained. On itssecond failed saving throw, the target is petrified. (The targetbecomes gold, but the gold corrodes into worthlessness within24 hours. This is normal petrification in all other respects.)Miss: Half damage, and the target is slowed until the end of itsnext turn.Special: Destroying or deactivating the trap does not reversepetrification, which requires the Remove Affliction ritual.50CHAPTER 2 | DM’s Guide to Dragons