Trap

A trap is a dungeon feature designed to make life hard on the unprepared adventurer. A common trap consists of two components. A pressure plate which acts as a trigger, and one or more nearby floor vents that act as the delivery system for a harmful gas. Not all traps incorporate floor vents as not every trap is one that releases a gas. A scroll of magic mapping will locate all traps and vents on a given level and is the only failsafe way to discover traps. Traps cannot be disarmed.

Pressure plates and vents remain hidden until noticed by the player or the trap is triggered by the player, an ally or an enemy (within line of sight). You have a chance to notice a trap each turn, and searching will greatly increase the probability that you spot a nearby trap or vent. A ring of awareness improves your ability to notice traps, with or without searching.

Traps can be triggered from afar by throwing an item onto the pressure plate. In this way, a previously discovered trap can be used as a weapon against your enemies. If an object is resting on a trap, it can be safely picked up without setting off the trap, and your allies will not step on a pressure plate with an item on top of it (even if confused). Your allies will never spot a trap, but they will also never step upon a trap that you have discovered (unless confused).

An altar that holds a key is typically protected by something that resembles a trap. This is in fact a specialized machine and should not be confused with a randomly generated trap. These machines are often much more elaborate.

The number of traps on a given level is random between (depth-1)/4 to (depth-1)/2 inclusive.