Traps; Location Trigger

[AtlasSniperman]

Hey guys
I know this is probably a weird question, but in the last game the question of Trap Location triggers came up. Some people felt it was a square in the area of effect that triggers a trap, whereas others felt that due to the open ended nature of the definition of "location trigger" (See below) it could be placed anywhere, and even in guards rooms for the guards to activate.

"Location: A location trigger springs a trap when someone stands in a particular square."

The easy way to prove one way or another would be to find out if there are any official WotC adventures or encounters wherein the second method is used; e.g. a trap is triggered by a guard watching from a distance. WotC FAQ covering this would also work

Regards
Atlas

[Nanshork]

I've never seen any rulings about that one way or another (D&D trap rules are fairly vague about how things work sometimes) but the whole "I push a button and a pit opens up under you" evil mastermind thing is common enough that rules wise I don't see why a trap trigger couldn't be "when a level in the guard room is pulled" or something like that.

[NunoM]

I agree with Nanshork...

The traps with the "Location" trigger type are, well, triggered by stepping on a particular square, but there's nothing in the rules stating that the same trap can't be triggered by other means, or, in other words, the same trap can very well have multiple triggers. That includes, but doesn't limit to, levers/buttons in a guard room nearby.

As a simple example, most glyphs may be considered both "Proximity" and "Spell" triggered traps.

[AtlasSniperman]

Thank you both.
I've spoken with the DM and the whole situation has been cleared up

[awaken_D_M_golem]

The classic one is Indiana Jones 1st
where he steps on whatever the trigger
and a giant stone ball rolls after him.

Technically a good enough Search check
would find out all the details, but the party
Trapfinder doesn't always get the highest roll.

This veers toward Magic Tea Party, but you could
set a Search # that understands "part" of the trap
but not all of it.  Similarly a Disable Device check
could fix part of the situation, except a nasty surprise.
 
Hey guys, we gotta get hacked at once or twice.
Cleric volunteers 2 heals for the worst off.
etc