Summary

  • Introduce unexpected and deadly traps to challenge seasoned players in D&D, like flooding rooms with water monsters.
  • Rotating hallways with gaps, sliding staircases with spikes, and noxious gas chambers can heighten the dangers within.
  • From blinding sunlight to charmed portraits, and magic manacles, varied traps bring new challenges for DMs to keep players entertained.

Traps are always a great way to keep even the most seasoned of Dungeons & Dragons players on their toes. From devastating spike traps to poison blow darts, the 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide has a lot of suggestions for how to trick your players into a false sense of security. But, if you're DM-ing a high-level table, it's easy to run out of ideas.

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That's why we've created this list of great traps to use against your expert or high-level players. Even if you think they've seen it all, they're likely to fall prey to at least one of these dastardly traps.

All of these traps are balanced to be considered 'deadly' according to the trap balancing rules in the 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide.

10 Flooding Room

Water Elemental by Chris Cold

Trap Stats

Details

Party Level

5-10

Save DC

15

Damage

N/A

This first trap offers a twist on a tried and true classic. For this trap, place a pressure plate in the center of a small room that the party has entered, whether that be in a shop, tavern, or full-on dungeon. Should the players fail a Dexterity saving throw to avoid the plate, the room will suddenly begin to flood with water.

Players will need to find a way to escape before drowning. But, there's a twist. Several Water Weirds seem to be part of the water that's flooding the room. Players may need to fight these creatures off should they wish to escape in one piece.

9 Rotating Hallway

Tomb of Horrors by Mark Behm

Trap Stats

Details

Party Level

11-16

Save DC

17-19

Damage

10d6 Force

For this trap, place the players in a long hallway. Once again, you can use either a pressure plate and a Dexterity saving throw, or simply have the trap activated once they enter the space. From there, the corridor will begin to rotate, revealing a large gap on one side of the walls.

Should players fall down this gap, they'll receive 10d6 Force damage from the fall. Players will need to make either Strength or Dexterity throws of increasing value for every round they're in the hallway to avoid falling into the trap. Holding onto the walls as they spin faster and faster is always an option, or moving lithely to escape unscathed.

8 Sliding Staircase

Exploration By William O'Connor

Trap Stats

Details

Party Level

8-12

Save DC

15-17

Damage

6d10 Piercing

This classic trap has a version of it available in the Curse of Strahd module. For this trap, place a switch next to a locked door at the top of a long staircase. Should players throw the switch, the staircase will transform into a slide, sending anyone on the landing or the stairs sliding down into a pit of spikes.

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Players must make a Dexterity or Strength saving throw to avoid taking 6d10 piercing damage from hitting the spikes head-on. Players can also use spells or other magic items they have to avoid damage if the effects of the magic apply to the situation.

7 Noxious Gas

Vitriolic Sphere by Ignatius Budi

Trap Stats

Details

Party Level

3-6

Save DC

13

Damage

2d10 Poison

Poisonous gas is a tried and true trap that's usually reserved for higher levels. However, if you have veteran players playing at lower levels, bring this trap down to a lower-level party for a real challenge. In a small room, players may accidentally trigger a trip wire that fills the room with noxious gas.

Players will need to succeed on a DC 13 Constitution saving throw or be poisoned. However, this gas is extra potent, and inflicts 2d10 Poison damage every minute the players are in the room. You can use initiative order to track this.

6 Animated Objects

Animated Objects by Simon Dominic

Trap Stats

Details

Party Level

3-6

Save DC

N/A

Damage

N/A

In a large manor, players discover a long hallway filled with inanimate suits of armor. Or rather, animated suits of armor that just aren't moving yet. Midway through the hallway, if players are not perceptive, they may pass over an arcane glyph on the floor which, when triggered, casts the Animate Objects spell on the room.

The suits of armor will spring to life, attacking the players. Use the Animated Objects stat block available in the 2025 Monster Manual for this encounter to determine things like attack bonuses and damage inflicted on the party.

5 Collapsing Bridge

Goblin Raiders by Robson Michel

Trap Stats

Details

Party Level

11-16

Save DC

15-17

Damage

7d10 Bludgeoning

This trap is similar to the Collapsing Roof trap available in the 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide but is restaged on a bridge rather than inside a room. For this trap, have players crossing either a bridge inside a dungeon or in an exterior setting. Midway through the bridge, lies a trip wire.

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Should players fail to notice this wire, they may trigger it, causing the bridge to collapse. The bridge collapses in five sections which are 60 feet long each, one section per round. Have players roll initiative, using their movement or abilities to try to outrun the collapsing bridge. Should they fail, they'll take 7d10 Bludgeoning damage from the fall and collapsing rubble.

4 Trap Elevator

Candle Keep Mysteries via Wizards of the Coast

Trap Stats

Details

Party Level

17-20

Save DC

19-21

Damage

Various

This expert-level trap is complicated but can be cosmetically tailored to your liking. Set this trap inside a vast dungeon, and have players discover an arcane elevator that can take them to various parts of the dungeon. However, each time they get on it, roll on a d100. If you roll a 15 or below, the trap activates.

The elevator will start to move wildly between floors, thrusting the players back and forth across the chamber, inflicting 3d6 force damage each time. Plus, the doors may open, revealing other floors with other traps on them like poison darts, spikes, or whatever your heart desires as a DM. You can have this elevator work in tandem with any number of other traps.

3 Blinding Sun

Archmages of Greyhawk by Kai Carpenter

Trap Stats

Details

Party Level

14-17

Save DC

17

Damage

N/A

Not all traps have to cause damage to be incredibly deadly. Place this trap in a combat encounter room, perhaps with a dungeon's antagonist or other campaign villain. Before the battle starts, have the antagonist or enemy trigger this trap, which reflects the light of the sun from nearby windows through thick glass, blinding any characters who fail a DC 17 Constitution saving throw.

From there, any characters that fail the save will have the Blinded condition through the fight, giving them disadvantage on saving throws, attack rolls, and more, unless their team uses spells like Lesser Restoration or other effects to end the blinstatic.aayyy.com/topic/dn/ess prematurely. You can also set a one-minute limit on the blinstatic.aayyy.com/topic/dn/ess if you wish to be more merciful.

2 Charmed Portraits

Dungeon Room by Kent Davis

Trap Stats

Details

Party Level

5-10

Save DC

14

Damage

N/A

This trap turns members of the party against one another. In a large manor or estate, have players enter a portrait hall. Here, they may discover portraits of the former owners of the house. Any player who looks at one of the portraits must make a DC 14 Wisdom saving throw or be Charmed.

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The charm of the portraits forces anyone under its spell to attack their compatriots, creating some fun PvP action for the party. Have the players continue to control their characters and actions, but force them to attack if they are charmed. The effect lasts for one minute or until they make a successful Wisdom save, increasing in DC by one for every round of combat.

1 Magic Manacles

Poison Trap by Linda Lithen

Trap Stats

Details

Party Level

5-10

Save DC

16

Damage

3d10 Fire

This last trap assumes that the party is traversing a prison, dungeon, or fortress of some kind. Perceptive players may notice a set of golden manacles lying on the floor in a cell or hallway. Should the party investigate, anyone who comes within five feet of the manacles must make a DC 16 Dexterity saving throw or be restrained by the manacles.

The manacles are magic, and spring to life, attaching themselves to the party member. They are also incredibly heavy, and force the player to remain still, unable to attack. What's more, for each round they're in the manacles, they incur 3d10 fire damage as the manacles burn their skin.

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Dungeons and Dragons

9.0/10 Franchise Dungeons & Dragons Original Release Date 1974 Publisher Wizards of the Coast Designer E. Gary Gygax, Dave Arneson Player Count 2+ Expand Collapse