The Trapper
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Basic Information

The Trapper is a combat role of the character who is in the business of Terrain Denial by means of placing traps and devices. Tends to stay put, or act stealthy, and wait for the enemy to bumble into range.

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Game and Story Use

  • You see this a lot more in video games than tabletop RPGs, for two reasons.
    • Videogames often have more "gamey" elements, and have more acceptable breaks from reality. In a video game you don't really question the instant digging of a pit trap, creation of a deadfall, or placement of a landmine. You don't have to try to wrap your brain around it because there's a pretty visual there showing you that it's already happened. At the tabletop we have to imagine what's happening, so we expect a little more logic and reality.
    • In a videogame, you might be moving so fast you run right into a trap without realizing it's there. On the tabletop, you've got a little more time to plan your actions, and may have more concise situational awareness. A trap set in the middle of a tabletop battlefield is more likely to be avoided than it's digital counterpart.
  • That said, there's probably ways to make this work in your RPG if you really like the idea. First off, make them traps magical, so they can be deployed in a single action. Then, work out some sort of coordinate system so you can secretly mark the location of traps on your battlemap. Alternately, you could not worry as much about exact placement, and make the traps rely on some sort of mental attributes or notice roll to avoid them.
    • Alternately, a Trapper might have some level of narrative editing and have placed traps in an area beforehand. This can lessen the scry vs scry involved in dealing with traps that have fixed locations, but is also less of a headache to map.
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