Grimtooth’s Ultimate Traps Collection

627 Pages·063.067 MB·English

by  Grimtooth

A gigantic collection of over 500 awesome
engines of destruction, delver dicers, character
crushers, adventurer anxieties, minion munchers,
hero harangers, general tricks, traps, and other
rare and dangerous items for use in defending
game master treasures!
By GRIMTOOTH the TROLL
Foreword by Harley Stroh
Interview by Jim Wampler, Rick Loomis,
Paul Ryan O’Connor & Bear Peters
Graphics & additional material
by Steven S. Crompton
New material edited by Joseph Goodman
With art by Steven S. Crompton, Liz Danforth,
Michael Von Glahn, Steve Jackson,
Jim Wampler & Jeff Dee.
Additional credits for original books as
indicated in individual credit pages.
Published by Goodman Games
www.goodman-games.com
“Don’t steal anything... or else!” Grimtina
All new material in this volume is copyright © 2015 Goodman Games,
produced under license from Flying Buffalo, Inc. All rights reserved.
Grimtooth and associated imagery are trademarks of Flying Buffalo, Inc.
Original Grimtooth works are copyright of Flying Buffalo, Inc., as indicated
in scans of each volume, and published under license. No material in this
work may be reproduced without explicit permission of Flying Buffalo, Inc.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Table of Contents............................................ Here!
Foreword.................................................................. 4
Interview: Grimtooth & Friends.......................... 5
Grimtooth Letters & Submissions .................... 13
The Grimtooth Traps Boardgame?................... 17
Traps Cover Lost & Found ................................ 20
Traps Covers Around the World....................... 21
Traps Cover Gallery..............................................24
Grimtooth’s 250,000 Traps?...............................29
Grimtooth’s Traps (One).....................................31
Grimtooth’s Traps Too.........................................97
Grimtooth’s Traps Four......................................189
Grimtooth’s Traps Ate....................................... 267
Grimtooth’s Traps Lite....................................... 355
Grimtooth’s NEW Traps ...................................437
First time ever: The original black and white cover illustration
for Traps Too by Jeff Dee, with no tones or shading.
page 3
Foreword
By Harley Stroh
W
arning, dear reader: This book is a trap. drive helpless livestock (or hirelings) into the dun-
geon before them, pour water over flagstones in
Within you will find the occult renderings and mad search of trapdoors, and question whether the
scribblings of a monster responsible for the deaths smoke from their torches is being driven by the
of thousands. Between these covers are more than faintest of drafts, that's when it is time for
500 traps, tricks and ruses, created over the span of Grimtooth's Traps.
three decades and collected for the first time for
your grisly amusement. Herein, you will find what you seek: the devious
and the demented; traps that encompass entire
No greater catalog of gruesome death and dismem- rooms, or can be concealed within a keyhole; traps
berment exists in all the Known Worlds. that hide in plain sight, and traps concealed behind
traps. All rendered in sufficient detail to ensure that
* * * they can be defeated and circumvented by cau-
tious play, while offering death in ways never
Of all the tools in a judge's arsenal, the well-execut-
before imagined.
ed trap is the worst. Monsters - be they immune to
mundane weapons, titanic in size, or fearsome in
And a trap that can't be imagined by a character
their wrath - can all be undone by clever players,
(or his player) is a trap that can kill.
usually with not much more than a mule and a bar-
rel of flammable lard. Monsters are quantifiable; if
* * *
something has hit points then it can be killed. If not
today, then perhaps tomorrow, with better tactics If you read this far, is already too late.
and more mules. (There is a reason gods should
never be given stats.) This tome is perhaps Grimtooth's most nefarious cre-
ation: a temporal trap in the guise of a guide. Turn
But not traps. They are a betrayal of the player's these leaves, decipher these runes, and you will find
imagination: when the safe corridor or chamber that entire hours and days have vanished from your
they had pictured in their minds is revealed - all too life. In their place you will find that the spirit of
late - to conceal their doom. Worse is the realiza- Grimtooth himself has found a home.
tion that a beloved character's death could have
been avoided with different choices - now obvious Five hundred traps? That might satisfy an apprentice
in hindsight. Every veteran dungeoneer has experi- or journeyman. But surely the world could use just a
enced this initial disbelief and frustration, emotions few more. And before long you will be doing HIS
that eventually mature into a cagey wariness and work, designing your own ever-more fiendish traps
understanding of a simple truth: In the dim light of to inflict on PCs the Worlds over.
a flickering torch, anything could be a trap.
We have been warned.
But with experience also comes the wisdom that
any trap can be averted through clever, creative - Harley Stroh, October 2014
play; that with attention to detail and the proper
application of a 10' pole, even Sezrekan's famed
Passage of Ten-Thousand-and-One Dooms can be Harley Stroh has designed dozens of adventure mod-
discovered, dismantled, and finally repurposed. ules for the Dungeon Crawl Classics series, including
(Spikes with no-save poison, you say? I order the several with nefarious traps inspired by a longtime
hirelings to affix them to my shield.) appreciation of Grimtooth's work. The DCC series
has more than 80 adventures in print as of this writ-
At this level, the crime isn't in a trap being deadly, ing, and Harley's fearsome traps have been hard at
work killing characters since Dungeon Crawl Classics
but in being boring. When your players have
#12.5: The Iron Crypt of the Heretics. Harley lives in
honed their wit to a razor's edge and hang on your
Colorado with his wife, his dog, his daughter, and far
every word in the hopes of gleaning a vital clue,
too many gaming books.
another pit trap simply won't do. When their PCs
page 4
Grimtooth & Friends
Goodman Interview:
by Jim Wampler
Candid conversations with the chaotic crew that devised hundreds
of deadly and diabolical traps guaranteed to scare the plate mail
off even the most seasoned of dungeon delvers.
Rick Loomis hey, I can admit when I'm wrong
- I came home and asked Ken if I
Founder Flying Buffalo
could publish it.
Goodman Games: So, let's start
with a brief history recap: you Shortly afterwards, another
founded Flying Buffalo in 1970, friend of Ken's, Steve McAllister,
initially to facilitate a new play- in a conversation right after a
by-mail game that you had writ- local science fiction convention,
ten called Nuclear Destruction. suggested that someone should
You incorporated the company make an RPG adventure like a
later in 1972, and later still, even "programmed text." I probably
purchased a micro-computer should explain that: back in the
(before such a thing as personal 70's there was a fad in education
computers even existed) in order called programmed texts. The
to run your game so that you textbook would present a prob-
D&D rules. Tell us how that led
could play yourself. So Flying lem: "What is 7 minus 3? If your
to Tunnels & Trolls (T&T), the
Buffalo started out as the world's answer is 10, turn to page
world's second published fantasy
first play-by-mail game company? twelve. If your answer is 4, turn
role playing game.
to page fifteen." If you turned to
Rick Loomis: I bought the com- page twelve, it would say: "No,
RL: Ken had borrowed a copy of
puter so that I could handle as sorry, you added instead of sub-
D&D from an employee of mine,
many customers as would sign tracted. Now go back to page
read through it in an evening,
up for my game. Those MMOG's one and try again." If you turned
and decided it was too compli-
that are so popular with millions to page fifteen, it would say:
cated and "not done right." He
of players? That is exactly what I "Yes, congratulations, you sub-
invented his own RPG, and
had in mind back in 1972 when I tracted correctly. Now here is
played it with his friends, then
bought the computer. If I only your next problem." He thought
printed 100 copies to sell to his
had 100 customers, I could run it would be interesting if the
friends. He knew I was going to
everything by hand. But I knew book could lead you through an
the Origins game convention in
that would never make enough adventure that way. I agreed and
Baltimore and brought me his
money. The idea, and hope, was immediately went home and
last 40 copies and asked me to
to handle thousands, and possi- wrote Buffalo Castle, which was
sell them at the convention. I
bly millions. Yes, there were the very first solo adventure for
knew this was a stupid idea - the
other people running Diplomacy any RPG. It was in 1975, before
game had no board, no counters,
games by mail, but I was the first any of those Choose Your Own
and no one "wins" at the end. No
person to do it for a living, Adventure or Fighting Fantasy
one would want this nonsense.
instead of a hobby. books. Then Ken quickly wrote
But Ken was a friend and I didn't
"Deathtrap Equalizer Dungeon"
GG: Then in 1975 a very young want to hurt his feelings. I figured
and "Naked Doom" and solo
Ken St. Andre approached you I'd take them to Origins, put
adventures became T&T's niche.
to sell a game that he had written them on the corner of the table,
primarily out of frustration with and then when no one bought
GG: In 1981, Flying Buffalo con-
trying to understand the original them, I could tell Ken I tried. But
tinued to pioneer the burgeoning
to my surprise I sold all 40. So
page 5
RPG market by publishing the in a dungeon, after all. Is it the with all the Traps books, it was as
Catalyst series of system-neutral pure insidious nature of each and much or more a writing job as an
role playing supplements. How every trap? The humorous editing job, as we never had
did that come about and what approach of the books? Or being enough submissions to fill out a
made you decide to go with a such a collaborative effort with given book, and most of what we
system-neutral approach? It's a dozens of contributors, did the received had to be heavily re-
common practice now, but not whole concept simply metamor- written.
back then... phose into something greater
than any of the individual parts? GG: What was it like trying to
RL: D&D was obviously a huge ride herd on such a diverse and
market, much bigger than T&T, and RL:I'm not really sure. I suspect it highly creative group of contribu-
we wanted something we could was because Paul O'Connor, the tors? Did you feel like the lone
sell to all those game players. first editor, decided to go with Lawful Good guy at a Chaotic
humor. It's like you and Neutral rave party?
GG: Although the Catalyst series Grimtooth getting together and
went on to include adventures, laughing about how you and he PRO'C: It was more like being
campaign settings, and treasure are going to terrorize that poor, Sauron among the Hobbits. On
and magic books, the very first hapless adventurer. Humor is dif- the first Traps book, I had plenty
Catalyst series book was ficult to bring off properly, and of old Buffalo pros (chiefly Mike
Grimtooth's Traps. How did that Paul did it just right. People don't Stackpole and Larry DiTillio,
come about and why a book fea- just buy the books to get trap though all the staff pitched in) to
turing just dungeon traps? ideas. They are always telling me create content, sometimes under
they just love reading them. multiple names, but with every
RL: Other folks had published instance of Traps the books were
books of spells, monsters and largely written by the "editors,"
Paul Ryan O'Connor
treasure. I wanted to publish with most fan-submissions being
something no one else was heavily edited or re-written. Artist
Editor, Grimtooth's Traps
doing, and at the time no one Steve Crompton was also heavily
else had done a book of traps. involved on the creative side,
often taking crazy notes and
GG: At what point did you real- making them into working traps
ize that you had a massive hit on that were then written and
your hands - one that would "designed" to fit his very fine illus-
eventually lead to a series of trations.
eight books?
I was always happy to award
RL:We released Grimtooth's Traps credit to the fans - that was half
at the San Jose Origins Convention the fun of these books - but for
and sold over 100 copies at $10 the most part, the books were
each. That was our best Origins up written by staff, and in this
to that point, and we were very regard, I have to thank Liz
pleased. After the convention, I Danforth for letting me lead the
heard from other publishers that it Traps project. She handed me
had been a terrible Origins - sales the assignment when I was a
were awful. When I discovered teenager and let me see it
Goodman Games: You were the
how bad everyone else's sales had through with minimal oversight. I
editor on Grimtooth's Traps,
been, I realized we had a hit on will always be in her debt for the
Grimtooth's Traps Too, and
our hands. trust she afforded me with this
Grimtooth Traps Lite (tell me if I
series.
missed anything)?
GG: On that same note - what do
you think gives these books such GG: The Grimtooth's Traps
Paul Ryan O'Connor: I'm pretty
enduring popularity? These books books are full of solid gold game
sure I edited Traps Ate and Traps
are all basically about how to kill content with the traps alone, but
Lite, too, as a freelancer for Rick,
player characters more efficiently starting almost immediately with
well after I left Flying Buffalo. As
page 6
Traps Too, the books began to would limit our market and player characters did it kill?
include metacontent, like cross- pushed for a generic approach. PRO'C: The Infamous Wheel
word puzzles and even a In this, Traps was part of a wave Trap, of course, which as part of
Grimtooth comic. Whose idea of products reacting to the dom- my editor's prerogative I gave the
was all of that madness? inance of Dungeons & Dragons, lead-off spot in the first Traps
a kind of precursor to the more book. It must have killed dozens
PRO'C: I left Buffalo during pro- formal Open Game License pro- - hundreds? - of characters. We
duction of Traps Too, so you'd gram that later publishers would used to splash a lot of blood in my
have to ask Liz or Mike or Pat use. I don't think we were the games. The guys wouldn't even
Mueller about their thinking, but first to do generic (that was prob- name their characters until they'd
I expect it was a mixture of their ably Judges' Guild) but along gotten through the wheel room
desire to stretch the genre, of a with Chaosium we really pushed (and the decapitating roller coaster
dearth of ready traditional traps that form forward. Traps lost the ride that preceded it in my gonzo
content for the book, of a loom- Origins award to Chaosium's gauntlet of doom - the Blitz Pitz).
ing deadline, and their own cre- Thieves World, which was a ter- Ah, memories. We'd kill characters
ative nature that caused them to rific product that has kind of by the page. Kids these days, they
arrive at that particular decision. been lost to the mists of time, I have no idea … (grumbles).
think largely because it wasn't
GG: What special challenges did generic so much as multi-system, Steven S. Crompton
the Grimtooth's Traps books but it was still part of that mak- Primary Illustrator
present that were different from ing-the-best-of-things that all RPG Grimtooth’s Traps, et al
the other Catalyst series books? publishers who weren't TSR had
to deal with at the time.
PRO'C: The biggest challenge
was in being first. Grimtooth's GG: Many gamers prefer to
Traps was the first of what would mainly either play in games as
become Buffalo's generic players or to run them as refer-
/Catalyst series books, so we ees. As a former editor, I imagine
were figuring that part of it as we that you prefer to referee games?
went along. Traps was always
more free-wheeling than the PRO'C: I suppose I ran games
more serious Citybooks and more often than I was a player,
such, but we still had to blaze a yes. The thing that struck me as
trail for the way generic books odd - as a teenager moved out to
were written and presented. Phoenix, run away to join the cir-
cus with Flying Buffalo - was how
I made two decisions as the edi- infrequently the Buffalo folks
tor of Traps that I think really actually sat down to play games.
made an impact on the series. I think I ran as many T&T games
The first was that the book need- as the rest of them did combined
Goodman Games: The
ed a "narrator." I was thinking of during my eighteen months on
Grimtooth's Traps series is a
someone like the Crypt Keeper the staff. Now, as an older and
near-perfect storm of creative
from the old EC horror comics, hopefully wiser hand, I under-
collaboration by a large and
and Liz suggested that I use the stand how making a job of things
eclectic group of gamers. But if I
Grimtooth character that she and reduces your enthusiasm for
were to single out any one con-
Ugly John Carver had created for what was formerly your hobby.
tributor who seemed to especial-
Sorcerer's Apprentice magazine. And to be fair, we did game quite
ly symbolize the esprit de corps
a bit back then, just not as much
of these books, that would have
The second was deciding that as eighteen-year-old me might
to be you. How did you first get
the project should be generic, have liked! As a kid, I had that
involved with Flying Buffalo and
rather than Tunnels & Trolls spe- crazy impression that the job
the Grimtooth books?
cific (it had begun by soliciting would be all gaming, all the time.
Sorcerers Apprentice readers to
Steven S. Crompton: My
send in their best T&T traps). I GG: And I have to ask... your
younger sister Gina (and the
loved T&T, but recognized it favorite trap ever? How many
page 7
inspiration for Grimtina) met Rick some of that sort of humor in the material again in this day and age
Loomis at summer camp. He Traps books as well. Liz also has of the Old School Renaissance?
hired my sister and I to work at a decidedly dark sense of humor
collating T&T solos and putting and I think that remains in SSC: Well it always great to be
together box sets, back in 1980. Grimtooth to this very day. able to go back and adjust some
Eventually, I ended up working in things that either didn't print well,
the Flying Buffalo store, where I GG: Did you ever get tired of or weren't as funny as originally
met Liz. I had been taking com- drawing new and gruesome drawn. In looking back at the
mercial art classes in high school ways for player characters to older books, I was surprised by
and she saw I could draw decent meet their doom? how little Grimtooth actually
diagrams and floor plans, so she appeared, so I added him into
gave me the task of diagramming SSC: I think occasionally when I illustrations and the margins to
all the traps for this book they was working on a Traps book and give him more of a visual pres-
were working on. That book would get about three-quarters of ence. The other thing I noticed
became Grimtooth's Traps. Paul the way through, I'd get "traps was that some of the traps I had
O'Connors' warped humor took fatigue." Really though, I pretty drawn did not have any people
the book from being a semi-seri- much loved drawing all the Traps. in them, which tended to make
ous tome into something filled The tricky part was trying not to the traps less interesting. So I
with dark, sardonic humor. As his go too gory with the art. I liked to added victims into the illos to
twisted editing of the submitted try to experiment using different give you a better idea of the size
traps progressed, my art reflect- styles and techniques in each of the trap and how it would
ed more and more that same book, which always kept me work. It's been great to be able
humor. excited with the results. to do that on art I drew over 30
years ago!
GG:I understand that the charac- GG: How much of the humorous
ter Grimtooth began life as Liz approach to the material had its GG: What do you consider the
Danforth's humorous take on the origin in actual play experience? single deadliest dungeon trap
troll depicted in the first edition Those were the gonzo days early that you've created or been
Tunnels & Trolls box art. How in the hobby... asked to illustrate?
much of the Grimtooth character
SSC: In Traps Ate there is a trap
SSC: Well Paul and I played with
in the Traps books is your doing,
called "One Orc's Sauna is
Bear Peters and Ken St Andre,
how much Liz's, and how much a
Another Man's Body Liquid."
and those two definitely have a
product of a group gestalt?
Delvers fall into a superheated
sense of humor when they run
tube, where their liquefied
games, so certainly what they
SSC: Well I always thought I was
remains are pored into a large
contributed was taken from that.
just carrying on what Liz started
"hot tub" while Grimtooth relaxes
Most of the submissions were
with Grimtooth, but she says I
in while he drinks from a wine
from fellow RPGers, but most of
took him in a whole different
goblet. I don't know if it's the
them were not meant to be
direction. Grimtooth was her
deadliest - but it's the most dis-
funny, they were serious traps
design and her creation. As I
turbing - and I drew it!
used to kill over-powered players
drew him, certainly I was heavily
(a quite common problem back
influenced by MAD magazine One last thing I wanted to add
in the early days of RPGs). We
and some of the humorous was that although I drew the vast
added the humor to the best
comics put out by DC & Marvel majority of the traps in the
traps we could find or create.
in the 1970s. I was a big fan of books, there are five artists who
Superman and if you think about actually did art for the Traps
GG: Decades later, you re-
classic Superman comics and books. Liz Danforth has a dozen
teamed with Rick Loomis to
Grimtooth, you can see that both illos of Grimtooth that appear in
remaster many of the early
of them seem indestructible and the books (she also designed the
Grimtooth's Traps books. They
both have a white dog and a original cover to the first book).
say you can never go home
blonde younger "sister." One of Jeff Dee did the illo that is on the
again, but apparently you can go
the other things Paul and I used cover of Traps Too; Michael Von
back to the dungeon. What was
to talk about all the time was the Glahn did most of the illos in
it like revisiting all that great
Dr. Phibes films and you can see Traps Fore and Scott Jackson did
page 8