Since the delay of the Dungeons & Dragons movie was announced, fans have been sharing their experiences of struggling to schedule sessions with their full party. It can be impossible to find enough time for a large group to get together, which ironically played out in real life as well.
Another common Dungeons & Dragons experience that would be fun to see with the movie is the way Dungeon Masters set traps for their players. Players have taken to Reddit to talk about the cruelest tricks they have used as DMs. From harmless pranks to surprises big enough to take out the entire party, these ten tricks are great ways to drive any party insane.
Shadow Steal
Redditor Perry-Hotter86 discussed how simple character design helped them torment their party: "College of Whispers Bard, level 6 ability: Shadow Steal. Used that for an ambush 'betrayal' that d**n near wiped the party. It's been an actual year and the players are still traumatized by that particular character."
Most DMs don't actually want to destroy their whole party, but for the more vindictive campaigns, the College of Whispers can be incredibly useful. At level six, they can steal the appearance and knowledge of a dead character, making it easy to infiltrate a party and slaughter everyone. However, anyone using this particular strategy should be prepared for their friends to hate them.
Subverting Expectations
Redditor MiraclezMatter has learned to take advantage of a long-term campaign, explaining, "One time I introduced a chest with a magic item in it as the end reward for defeating some beholderkin and didnt have it be a mimic. ... The next time I put a chest in the game it was a mimic. They didn’t hesitate. Best moment ever."
It's a common trope of the game that all obvious loot opportunities are hiding mimics. The shapeshifter isn't a major threat, but it can cause some serious damage to the unsuspecting explorer. By subverting the party's expectations the first time, this Dungeon Master was able to deal the ultimate blow the next time around.
Measuring An Impact Radius For Fun
When using D&D apps and websites during a campaign, party members can often tell when a major blow is coming. Redditor modwriter1 took advantage of that for their own amusement: "One time I stood up in the middle of combat, looked at where the players were bunched, counted a thirty foot radius quietly, then sat back down. Never had a bunch of players scatter in random directions so fast."
Spells like Fireball can take out everybody that's in a specific area, which prompts party members to keep their distance from each other. This DM trick is definitely cruel, but it's also ultimately harmless, teaching players an important message.
Silvery Barbs Strike Back
Many DMs ban Silvery Barbs from their campaigns. Others, like Dungeon Master ToFurkie, just use them back. As they explained, "I used Silvery Barbs on a player's WIS save against Hold Person. I still don't regret it. IF YOU TAKE THE SPELL, SO CAN I! [Evil Villain Laugh Track]"
Silvery Barbs were introduced in Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos as a massively overpowered 1st-level enchantment, letting players force their opponents to be at disadvantage and giving themselves advantage in turn. They make it too easy to win, so DMs like ToFurkie started retaliating by using them at critical moments. But beware, because this is a seriously divisive move. Fellow Redditor ragestarfish said, "I know the title said sadistic but thats some psycho stuff." Party members will probably agree.
What Am I Missing?
Some characters are oblivious to the world around them. Others are constantly looking for dangers. Even so, Redditor Miorky likes to take paranoia to a new level with an unnecessary stat check: "Roll a d20 and ask your most perceptive player what their perception bonus is, then mutter "nope" and look slightly smug as you pretend you didn't say anything."
When party members get bored, scrolling through social media as they wait for their turn, this trick can help make them stay focused. As a bonus, it's a good setup for any random future ideas the DM wants to throw in when players roll a Nat 1.
Spiders. Everywhere.
This DM trick might not be campaign-ending, but it's certainly disconcerting. Redditor ZoniCat explained that their campaigns have one common thread: "Spiders. Every single dungeon I run has giant spiders, somewhere. It is inevitable. The players will find them, everytime. They're perfect: describe seeing lanky, skinny sticks bristling on the walls. A soft fuzz coating the floor. A strangely woven web of massive size. And then they descend from the ceiling: down, down, down."
Arachnophobia is extremely common, and party members with overactive imaginations could have some serious problems with this strategy. Hopefully, ZoniCat's players are familiar enough with their style that it's more of a game of hide-and-seek, rather than a terrible surprise.
Never Expect Consistency
Redditor goresmash described a particularly cruel trick they pulled: "I had a trap in a dungeon where there was a 10 foot deep pit with spikes, but the floor on the opposite side was a trap door that dropped into another hidden pit of spikes. Rogue jump the visible pit, lands on the trap door and drops into the hidden pit. ... Cut to a couple levels later in the dungeon, another spike pit. ... This time the trap door is on players side. He makes a run toward the edge but before he can make his jump he drops into the hidden pit. Cue groans from the entire party."
Most people expect some degree of consistency in life, so when they figure out a trick, they expect to be able to use that knowledge to their advantage. This DM used their knowledge against them, which was a clever way to keep things suspenseful.
Countdown To A Surprise
When players take too long to pull their plans together, it increases the chance of metagaming and slows everything down. Not in someones_dad's party: "I've played mostly online for the last few years and I love dropping a timer on the virtual table. Sometimes I have something happen when the timer runs out other times I'm just trying to hurry them up. Watching them figure out their plans in a hurry makes me smile."
The key to doing this effectively is making sure that there are consequences for the timer running out, at least on occasion. It's actually a perfect strategy to speed the party up, but the surprise at the end of the timer can be a fun chance for the DM to be a little vindictive toward annoying players.
The Worst Kind Of Torment
Dungeons & Dragons can be a lot of fun, bringing a group of people together with immersive environments and unique characters. But TheOnin illustrated the flip side of that situation: "My most sadistic move is to create a world and a story that the players are invested in... and then have the story end. Gets 'em every time."
Whether the campaign comes to its natural end or it has to be stopped due to external factors, every story eventually ends. This DM definitely understands the emptiness that comes after a good finale, and it's the kind of pain every DM should strive to inflict on their party.
Buried Alive Before They Know They're Falling
The original poster, potato4dawin, got 560 upvotes for their cruelest DM tricks, and their Instant Burial Pitfall Trap is definitely their worst: "a pitfall trap with all the dirt (or a large stone block) suspended above it in a recess in the ceiling. a net is placed over the pit with your covering of choice and the dirt above is held in place by a trap door with a release attached discretely to the net. fall damage + prone + improvised damage roughly equivalent to falling rubble/compacting walls + suffocation + restrained + incapacitated. Watch your players scramble to rescue whoever was caught in this devious trap before they suffocate to death."
While most of the tricks that Redditors mentioned are relatively expected in a game of D&D, potato4dawin certainly gets points for creativity. The instant burial scenario could very easily kill a party member, especially if they've already been in combat. It's probably best left to DMs who are okay with their whole group hating them—or getting revenge if the group switches off Dungeon Masters.