The Unearthed Arcana series of articles have quickly become the thing I look forward to most from DDI each month. This month’s article, “Henchmen and Hirelings” was especially strong, returning one of the classic tropes of earlier editions to the game. Players may now hire a variety of minions to act as support staff or extra muscle on an adventure. However, despite the high quality of the article, I found some things that I thought could use improvement, which I intend to address in this article. In particular, four things stood out to me as problematic.

• It is not stated definitely if hirelings die at 0 hit points like other minions do, and if they do, then hirelings are extremely fragile relative to their cost. In addition, more high-minded players will dislike the idea of regularly leading hirelings to their death.
• Hirelings appear to be priced with the intent that the hirelings will make themselves useful immediately upon hire. If an adventure includes a significant travel component, the cost per day of hirelings becomes prohibitive.
• Many hireling types provide little incentive to purchase them at higher levels, and too great a benefit to high level heroes when purchased at very low level.
• Many hirelings appear to be priced poorly relative to each other.

These issues are addressed through the addition of new traits for hirelings, as well as by revising the statistics of the hirelings presented. Lastly, six new types of hirelings are presented for use in your game.

Hireling Houserules

Paying Hirelings: Use the table in “Henchmen and Hirelings” as normal, but instead of paying the hirelings each day, only pay the hirelings on days when the hirelings’ services are utilized or when they are required to follow their employer into life-threatening danger (such as when they enter a dungeon or remain nearby as their employers do).  If a hireling remains employed for 30 days without such a situation occurring (or if it is dismissed before then), it is paid one day’s wages.

Additional Hireling Traits

Sturdy
When a hireling is reduced to 0 hit points, it is knocked unconscious but does not die or have to make death saving throws. It remains unconscious until the end of the encounter, until a character revives it with a DC 15 heal check, or until it receives any amount of healing (note hirelings lack healing surges and cannot benefit from abilities that allow them to spend one). A hireling that takes damage while unconscious dies. 

Noncombatant
Attacks that include a hireling take a -2 against non-minion allies of the hireling. A creature that attacks a hireling grants combat advantage until the end of its next turn. A hireling that makes an attack loses this trait until the end of the encounter. 

Unheroic
A hireling automatically flees if it encounters a creature 5 or more levels higher than it. It flees at its fastest movement speed until one round after it does not have line of sight to the creature. 

Unskilled
A hireling cannot typically make skill checks except for endurance and when using athletics to jump, climb, swim or escape a grab. Its skill modifiers are equal to one-half the hirelings’ level.

Optional: Morale Rules

Hirelings prefer to work for employers who treat them well and whom they admire. Happy and loyal hirelings are less costly to their employers than disgruntled and bitter ones. The morale score of your hirelings represents this fact. Your hirelings collectively have a single morale score, ranging from +5 to -5. When hiring new hirelings who have not worked for you before, this score starts at 0. Subtract this number from a hireling’s level when determining how much a hireling costs to pay. Note that this is an abstraction; happy hirelings are not paid less and angry hirelings do not necessarily demand more pay (though they might). Rather, morale represents the many ways that the happiness of hirelings makes them easier or more difficult to manage. A list of possible modifiers to morale is listed below; the DM should feel free to add to this list as desired.

Action; Morale Modifier

Employer…

• Passes a milestone; +1 morale (per milestone)
• Performs a notable favor for a hireling; +1 morale
• Risks his or her life to save a hireling; +1 morale
• Employs more than 4 hirelings at once; -1 morale
• Hires a disagreeable or incompatible hireling; -1 morale
• Allows one or more hirelings to be knocked unconscious; -1 morale (per encounter)
• Allows a hireling to be slain; -1 morale (per hireling)
• Subjects hirelings to poor conditions (low food, no water, etc.); -1 morale (per day conditions remain poor)
• Cruelty to hireling; -1 morale and mistreated hireling leaves as soon as possible

Inspiring Hirelings
Once per milestone, a single character may attempt a diplomacy check against a hard DC with a level equal to the highest level hireling employed. On a success, morale increases by +1. If morale is -1 or less, the character may instead make an intimidate check against moderate DC.

Revised Hirelings

Only elements that were altered from the original hireling statistics are listed. For example, if cost is not listed, assume that it is the same as in the original “Henchmen and Hirelings” article.

Beast Handler
Traits
Beast Handler • Aura 5
All allied beasts in the aura gain a +1 power bonus to Fortitude, Reflex, and Will.

Standard Actions
Here Boy! • Encounter
Effect: Close Burst 5; One unmounted allied beast within the burst is pulled adjacent to the beast handler. 

Guide
Cost: Standard x2 (note, the cost does NOT double when a guide leads you into dangerous territory as in the original “Henchmen and Hirelings” article).
Special: The first time the controlling hero or any of its allies make use of a guide’s trailblazer aura, the guide is paid for its skills being utilized. The controlling hero may then make use of this ability for the remainder of the journey without additional payment.

Traits
Trailblazer • Aura 5
Allies in the aura gain a +2 power bonus to Dungeoneering checks and Nature checks when the DC does not exceed that of a Hard DC of the guide's level.
level 15: +3 power bonus.
level 25: +4 power bonus.

Standard Actions
Wilderness Lore • Daily
Effect: The guide automatically succeeds at a single Dungeoneering check or Nature check so long as the DC does not exceed that of a Hard DC of the guide's level.

Linkboy
Traits
Torch • Aura 5
Squares in the aura are illuminated with bright light.
level 15: Lantern: aura 10.
level 25: Sunrod: aura 20.

Standard Actions
Illuminate • At-Will
Effect: Close Burst 1; creatures in the burst lose concealment until the end of the linkboy's next turn.
level 15: Close Burst 2; creatures in the burst also grant combat advantage.
level 25: Close Burst 2; creatures in the burst also lose full concealment.

Mercenary
Special: Mercenaries do not have the noncombatant trait as other hirelings do. In addition, if morale rules are used, do not include mercenaries when applying morale penalties for hirelings being knocked unconscious (it is part of their job).

Pilot
Traits
Evasive Maneuvers
A vehicle piloted by the hireling has an AC of 14 + the pilot’s level, and a Fortitude and Reflex defense equal to 12 + the pilot’s level, or its normal defenses, whichever is higher.

Seasoned Pilot
When used as a pilot, the hireling grants the vehicle a +2 bonus to its overland speed.
level 15: +3 bonus.
level 25: +4 bonus.

Triggered Actions
Brace for Impact • Encounter
Trigger: A vehicle piloted by the hireling crashes.
Effect (Free): The vehicle and any creatures pulling it take half damage from the crash. Creatures on board the vehicle take one-quarter damage. Whatever the vehicle crashes into takes normal damage from the crash.

Porter
Traits
Beneath Notice
The Hireling does not provoke opportunity attacks for moving out of the square that it starts its turn in.

Strong
As written in “Henchmen and Hirelings”

Standard Actions
“Fetch me my…” • At-Will
Effect: The hireling may retrieve a single item from its pack and hand it to an adjacent creature. The creature may in turn hand the hireling an item which it immediately stows.

Sage
Cost: standard x 2
Special: a sage may have multiple skills associated with sage knowledge. For each knowledge skill beyond the first, the sages cost increases by standard x1 (i.e. a sage that chooses Arcana, History, and Religion would have a cost of standard x4).

Traits
Sage Knowledge • Aura 5
Choose one knowledge skill for the sage: Arcana, Dungeoneering, History, Nature, or Religion. Allies in the aura gain a +2 power bonus to skill checks involving the chosen skill when the DC does not exceed that of a Hard DC of the sage's level.
level 15: +3 power bonus.
level 25: +4 power bonus.

Standard Actions
Lore Use • Daily
Effect: The sage automatically succeeds at one skill check involving the skill selected for sage knowledge so long as the DC does not exceed a Hard DC of the sage’s level. 

Scribe
It is suggested scribes be eliminated as a hireling type. While scribes were very important in ancient cultures, in a world where the ability to write is common, a scribe is not a meaningful or useful hireling. 

Seasoned Crew Member
Cost: standard
Special: for each seasoned crew member purchased at normal cost, up to four additional seasoned crew members of equal or lower level may be hired at standard cost x 0.25 (thus, five seasoned crew members may be hired for a total cost of standard x 2).

Traits
Back to the Ship!
A seasoned crew member that encounters combat while not on board a vehicle flees if possible. It flees at its fastest movement speed until one round after it does not have line of sight to the creature.

Expert Crew
A vehicle crewed entirely by seasoned crew members begins an encounter with temporary hit points equal to the crew’s average level. For crews of 10 or more, multiply this number by x2 +1 for every 5 crew members above 10 (thus, x3 for a crew of 15, x4 for a crew of 20, etc.)

Jury-rigged
At the end of an extended rest, a vehicle crewed entirely by seasoned crew members regains enough hit points to bring it to half its full hit point value if it has been reduced below half.

Sea Legs
If a vehicle the seasoned crew member is on board crashes, the seasoned crew member falls prone instead of taking damage from the crash.

Spy
Cost: standard x2

Traits
Espionage
The controlling hero gains a +2 power bonus to Streetwise when the DC does not exceed a Hard DC of the spy’s level.
level 15: +3 power bonus.
level 25: +4 power bonus.

Free Actions
Shadow Target • Daily
Effect: The spy follows a target named by the controlling hero for a specified period up to 8 hours of time, then returns and reports what was observed. If the target named (or any nearby allies) has a passive perception that exceeds a Hard DC of the spy’s level, the spy is noticed and eluded (and may be killed or captured, at the DM’s discretion). 

Valet
Cost: standard x2

Traits
Etiquette • Aura 3
When dressed in suitable controlling, the controlling hero and all allies gain a +2 power bonus to diplomacy while in the aura so long as the DC does not exceed a Hard DC of the valet’s level.
level 15: +3 power bonus.
level 25: +4 power bonus.

Free Actions
Salvage Faux Pas • Daily
Effect: During a skill challenge, when the controlling hero or an ally gains a failure by failing a bluff, diplomacy, or intimidate check and the DC did not exceed a Hard DC of the valet’s level, the valet removes the failure.

New Hirelings

Alchemist
Cost: standard x3

A skilled alchemist or apothecary is typically used to craft useful items in the midle of a dungeon when the party does not wish to trek back to town. However, many an adventurer has been shocked when they realize how effective their strange creations can be in combat.

Traits
Minor Enchanter
During an extended rest, an alchemist can create a single consumable item of its level or lower, if components equal to the market value of the item are provided.

Standard Actions
Black Powder Bomb • At-Will
Attack: Ranged 5 (one creature or two adjacent creatures); level +3 vs. Reflex
Hit: one-half level + 3 fire damage.

Smoke Bomb • At-Will
Effect: Burst 1 within 5; the burst becomes a cloud of smoke until the end of the alchemists next turn.  The cloud blocks line of sight, squares within it are totally obscured, and creatures entirely within it are blinded until they exit. 

Burglar
Cost: standard x2

Falling short of being a daring rogue or wily thief, the burglar’s skills at breaking and entering and avoiding traps are still formidable.

Traits
Trap Sense • Aura 5
Allies in the aura gain a +2 power bonus to thievery checks, and to skill checks and passive perception when used to notice traps and hazards. These bonuses may not be applied if the DC of a check exceeds a Hard DC of the burglar’s level.
level 15: +3 power bonus.
level 25: +4 power bonus.

Standard Actions
Delay Trap • At-Will
Effect: One adjacent trap is deactivated until the end of the burglar’s next turn, so long as the DC of the thievery check to do so does not exceed a Hard DC of the burglar’s level.

Pick Lock • Encounter
Effect: One adjacent lock is disabled so long as the DC of the thievery check to do so does not exceed a Hard DC of the burglar’s level. 

Cook
Cost: standard

When adventurers get sick of stale bread and bland trail rations, a skilled cook can be an invaluable addition.

Traits
Hearty Meal
Allies who eat a meal prepared by the cook during an extended or short rest may gain additional hit points equal to 3 + one-half the cook’s level when they next use their second wind.
level 15: 6 + one-half level.
level 25: 9 + one-half level..

Standard Actions
Toss Bait • Encounter
Attack: Ranged 5 (one beast); level +3 vs. Will
Hit: Slide the target 2 squares to a square within 5 squares of the cook. The target cannot make attacks of opportunity until the end of the cook’s next turn.
level 15: slide the target 3 squares.
level 25: slide the target 5 squares. 

Healer
Cost: standard x2

A healer might be a local wise-woman or an acolyte of Pelor. They readily bind wounds and treat illnesses in any company they are added to.

Traits
Healing Arts • Aura 5
Allies in the aura gain a +2 power bonus to Heal checks and to Endurance checks to resist disease when the DC does not exceed that of a Hard DC of the healer's level.
level 15: +3 power bonus.
level 25: +4 power bonus.

Pacifist
A healer lacks the melee attack and ranged attack hirelings normally possess.

Standard Actions
Bind Wounds • At-Will
Effect: Close Burst 1; A dying ally in the burst becomes stable.

Fervent Prayer • Encounter
Effect: Close Burst 1; A dying ally in the burst expends its second wind or an unconscious minion ally becomes conscious.

Triggered Actions
Pacifist’s Rebuke • At-Will
Trigger: The healer is attacked
Effect (opportunity action): Close Burst 20 (triggering enemy); one-half level + 3 radiant damage.  

Magician
Cost: standard x3

A hedge-mage or arcane novice, the magician has little real skill with magic, but can assist more capable practitioners of the arcane arts or defend itself with rudimentary spells.

Traits
Ritual Assistant • Aura 5
Allies in the aura gain a +2 power bonus to skill checks made to perform rituals of the magician’s level or lower.
level 15: +3 power bonus.
level 25: +4 power bonus.

Standard Actions
Lightning Snap • At-Will
Attack: Ranged 20 (one creature); level +3 vs. Reflex
Hit: level +3 lightning damage.

Parlor Tricks • Encounter
Effect: the magician uses either prestidigitation or ghost sounds as the wizard powers of the same name. 

Performer
Cost: standard x2

A minstrel, dancer, singer, juggler or other artist can help relieve monotony, improve spirits, or even ward off mind-affecting spells.

Traits
Countersong • Aura 5
Allies in the aura gain a +2 power bonus to saves made against charm and fear effects.
level 15: +3 power bonus.
level 25: +4 power bonus.

Stirring Performance
Allies of the performer’s level or less who view the performer’s performance during a short or extended rest gain a +2 power bonus to the next initiative check made before a rest.
level 15: +3 power bonus.
level 25: +4 power bonus.

Standard Actions
Fascinate • Encounter
Attack: Ranged 10 (one creature); level +3 vs. Will
Hit: The target is slowed, grants combat advantage, and cannot make immediate or opportunity actions until the end of the performer’s next turn.

Trap Sense is finally complete! This last portion of the series is extremely late, and for that I apologize. In my original version many of the traps were either overly complicated, or used strange, confusing mechanics. I revised many of the traps several times, and I am finally happy with the result. As in part 2, part 3 is posted as a .pdf because the forums don't handle the trap's stat block well.

 Trap Sense (Part III)

Part 2 of Trap Sense is ready, but due to formatting issues with some of the stat blocks, I am posting this installment as a .pdf.  This installment provides tools to help monsters fight in encounters with traps without being harmed. Hope you enjoy it!

Trap Sense (Part II)

 Part I: Two Problems and Four Solutions

                With the advent of 4^th edition, the philosophy of trap design experienced a number of changes. One change that breaks with previous editions of the game is the notion that the typical trap encounter includes a mixture of both traps and monsters. Previous editions of the game viewed traps as mostly occupying a place outside of combat, as dangerous elements to be placed on doors and treasure chests, not as a supplement to monsters. I love this philosophy in theory as it makes traps into exciting challenges and not random annoyances. In practice however, there are a number of difficulties with traps that often stop them from fulfilling their potential. In this article, I discuss the two problems that I feel most limit the effectiveness of traps, and discuss four possible solutions.

The Problem of Perception and the One-Shot Problem

                Suppose a player proposed a new daily power that on a successful hit reduces a monster to 0 hit points. Most DMs would immediately cry foul and disallow such an obviously broken ability to function even once per day. However, many traps suffer from a nearly identical problem, namely, that of being rendered completely ineffective by a single d20 roll. Any trap that relies on a character accidentally activating the trap (for example, a pit trap or tripwire), is usually rendered useless if a player rolls a perception check and locates its area of effect or trigger squares. Worse yet, passive perception often allows a player to ruin a trap without even the effort of expending a minor action to make the check. Traps are worth an entire monster worth of XP, and should require some serious effort to defeat.

                Some might argue that while traps are sometimes completely foiled with no effect on the party, they are devastating when they are activated. Thus the argument goes that traps are as effective as monsters “on average”. I think this argument is false; traps do not seem to devastate a party when activated. However, even if this were true, it means that at best in any given trap encounter, one side of the DM’s screen is likely frustrated - either the DM (who saw an entire monster’s worth of the encounters XP budget go to waste), or the players (who are being curb stomped by a trap). Swingy encounters are by definition poor encounters.

                Others will argue that a trap need not rely on the players to bumble into activating it; monsters that can push or slide the players can force them to trigger it. However, this argument seems flawed on a number of grounds. Players receive a save versus such tactics, so the trap is not likely to be activated in this way consistently in an encounter. In addition, the DM is free to place hazardous terrain in an encounter without it subtracting anything from the XP budget of an encounter; a trap that costs XP to place ought to add something more. Finally, unless the DM has optimized his choice of monsters well, the players are free to use the exact same tactics on the monsters making a trap a neutral element and thus not worth XP.

                A closely related problem to the perception problem is that a trap, even if it is triggered accidentally by the players, ceases to be a concern once the players become aware of its presence. While such traps can often theoretically attack each round, in practice players simply avoid the area after the trap reveals itself. I call this the one-shot problem, since the trap at best receives one shot at the players. Pit traps, glyphs of warding, electrified floors, and many other traps all suffer from this problem. Both problems can be summed up by a single observation: in order to be an effective addition to the encounter, a trap must be able to threaten the players consistently over multiple rounds of combat.

Solution One: Spotted, but Not Spoiled

                Not all traps suffer from these problems. For example, the “Magic Crossbow Turret” trap in the Dungeon Master’s Guide can be triggered by any monster if the players avoid the trigger plates. Once triggered, it distinguishes magically between friend and foe and fires bolts at the players each round. Likewise, the “Cave-in” trap can be randomly triggered and attacks a different square each round, making it a continuous threat while it is active.  Many traps could be modified in order to possess similar qualities. Traps could be modified to allow them to attack the players directly. For example, a pit trap might be filled with a quasi-intelligent ooze that grabs the players and pulls them into the pit. A trap may instead change its area or method of attack each round, forcing the players to remain active if they wish to avoid its effects. For example, an electrified floor might randomly electrify a different set of tiles each round, making it a threat even after being initially spotted. Of all the trap solutions offered here, this one most directly addresses the hindrances to using traps in combat. The problem with this solution is that it does not work for all traps. Many highly iconic trap concepts lend themselves poorly to round after round attacks. In fact, the most iconic traps tend to be those that only attack when a hapless character stumbles across them. This sort of trap ought to still have a place within D&D, and requires other solutions.

Solution Two: Minionizing

                Dungeon Master’s Guide II and Dungeon magazine have introduced several improvements in trap design. Among the most important was the introduction of minion traps. The true value of this sort of trap seems to lay in the fact that it allows traps to operate in the same manner that they operate currently, but at a reasonable XP cost. A minion trap is activated once, makes a single attack, and then ceases to be a threat to the players. In essence, a minion trap eliminates the one-shot problem by embracing it as the natural way the trap should operate. Many traps could be turned into minions with little effort and fulfill the trap’s concept better than a standard version of the trap can. In some cases, such the “False-Floor Pit Trap” in the DMG, the trap could probably be used as is and simply awarded one-quarter of the XP listed. In other cases, the damage may need to be reduced or the number of successes needed to disarm the trap reduced to one. In addition, savvy readers may notice that this solution does not do anything to remedy the perception problem (four minion traps are as easily foiled by perception as one standard trap). This brings us to the third solution…

Solution Three: Active-only Perception

                Bordering on a house-rule, this suggestion is simple: some traps may only be spotted with active perception checks. In cases where there are multiple traps or multiple trigger squares, each active perception check reveals only the nearest trigger that remains hidden to the character. In many cases, the players may not begin searching for traps until one has already been activated and it may take several rounds until all of a trap’s triggers are discovered. This allows a trap to remain a danger for most of a combat. A note of caution: it is likely best to tell your players up front that such a rule is in play, or players will likely feel cheated when the elven ranger with “skill focus: perception” fails to notice the poison dart trap. In addition, if a character’s passive perception is higher than the DC to spot a trap, consider giving the player a small clue that there may be traps in the area. This may help to reassure players that they will have a chance to spot a trap before it attacks them and prevents the game from slowing to a crawl as players minesweep the dungeon one 5-foot square at a time.

Solution Four: Front-loaded Traps

                As mentioned above, minion traps often work well because they unload their entire effectiveness in a single round. Unfortunately, if one were to attempt to do the same with a standard trap (four times as powerful as a minion trap), the results would be a trap that dealt so much damage that triggering it would result in instant unconsciousness or death. Not fun for the players! However, consider a trap that delivers a powerful effect that lasts for several rounds. Such a trap is effective yet does not instantly destroy a player when activated. I call this a front-loaded trap. It answers the one-shot problem in the same way minion traps do: by only needing to be activated once. However, since a front-loaded trap represents an entire monster rather than ¼ of a monster, it needs to dole out damage and effects over time rather than all at once to not be overwhelming. Typically such a trap would have an encounter power that it uses the first time it is activated, and a weaker at-will power that it uses if activated thereafter. For example, opening a rune-covered box summons a swarm of abyssal hornets that swarm the character wherever it goes, dealing ongoing damage each round (no save). Three successful Arcana checks banish the swarm. If the trap is activated again, the swarm is weaker and merely stings the character for a round and dissipates.

Conclusion

                The perception problem and the one-shot problem cause many traps to fail to properly challenge players, but with the solutions listed, traps can be created that are exciting, dangerous, and fun for both players and DM (well…maybe slightly more for the DM). However, the perception problem and the one-shot problem are not the only difficulties a DM may face in adding traps to an encounter. Many traps, attacking without intelligence, are as deadly to the enemy as they are to the players. If a trap is to be added to a monster encounter, a trap must be able to distinguish friend from foe. In part two of Trap Sense, I discuss ways to modify traps to make them monster friendly while remaining deadly to the players.

            Until then, keep the rogue happy and the 10-foot pole handy!