Searching for traps and secret doors

[The Admiral]

In my old EU days one search found all, but the NA rules made each search a separate action, and that's how I've been playing for almost 20 years now. But I got to thinking that maybe Europe had it right? The thought of a Hero meticulously combing the room searching for a hairline crack in the wall, or a hair breadth trip wire and only finding one and not the other actually seems less realistic to me. This would also speed thing up dramatically, and we have so much to play!

[Maurice76]

Let's face it, while searching adds flavor as well as triggering the reward center of the brain when something is found, it is a tedious action. The player announces which action he's taking and the EW announces the result of that search - whether it's secret doors or traps. Why require the players to do two separate searches, which only adds to tedium and adds nothing of real tangible value? Especially since they're thematically so close to one another.

The way I play it with my group of friends is that the search is combined.

[Anderas]

I have my dwarf - Thor-In, actually - combine the search, and the rest of the world separate the search. One little advantage more for the dwarf. He has not many, anyway.

[The Admiral]

I have my dwarf - Thor-In, actually - combine the search, and the rest of the world separate the search. One little advantage more for the dwarf. He has not many, anyway.

That's a great idea. So now I've got my Wizard taking his turn when he wants, and the Dwarf searching for all in one action.

[Maurice76]

I have my dwarf - Thor-In, actually - combine the search, and the rest of the world separate the search. One little advantage more for the dwarf. He has not many, anyway.

We use Slev's rules, and the Dwarf gets a load of stuff that makes him stand out from the rest; he's not the "mini-Barbarian" that he is in the base game that way anyway.

[lestodante]

not the first time I heard someone mention Slev's rules... could you post a link please? Today I am too lazy to perform a search and I don't want to waste my action too!!

[mitchiemasha]

The thought of a Hero meticulously combing the room searching for a hairline crack in the wall, or a hair breadth trip wire and only finding one and not the other actually seems less realistic to me. This would also speed thing up dramatically, and we have so much to play!

Exactly... Please see my countless posts where I cover that exact reasoning. Basically, a Trap and Secret Door is the same thing, until it reveals it isn't (like the cat in a box), suspicious chains, pressure pad, cracks in the wall, a lever! A Treasure search action without a Trap search first is a quick snatch and grab, moving to whatever the top card happens to be and picking it up. A Trap search is a more cautious Treasure search, meaning it will take 2 turns or 2 heroes to safely pick the card.

"Wait! before you check that boot for a gem, lets see what this levers for!!!"

I'm 100% against the idea of 3 separate searches.

[Jalapenotrellis]

The thought of a Hero meticulously combing the room searching for a hairline crack in the wall, or a hair breadth trip wire and only finding one and not the other actually seems less realistic to me. This would also speed thing up dramatically, and we have so much to play!

Exactly... Please see my countless posts where I cover that exact reasoning. Basically, a Trap and Secret Door is the same thing, until it reveals it isn't (like the cat in a box), suspicious chains, pressure pad, cracks in the wall, a lever! A Treasure search action without a Trap search first is a quick snatch and grab, moving to whatever the top card happens to be and picking it up. A Trap search is a more cautious Treasure search, meaning it will take 2 turns or 2 heroes to safely pick the card.

"Wait! before you check that boot for a gem, lets see what this levers for!!!"

I'm 100% against the idea of 3 separate searches.

I think the rationale of searching separated into three actions is not to make it tedious but to require careful decision-making per turn. There are four action points per hero round. It dilutes a number of attack actions sorta.

[The Admiral]

I think the rationale of searching separated into three actions is not to make it tedious but to require careful decision-making per turn. There are four action points per hero round. It dilutes a number of attack actions sorta.

Unfortunately, I find, It does make it a little tedious. Not terribly so, but we do occasionally struggle to remember if we have searched for one and not the other, and that goes for both the Heroes and the EW player.

As the EW player I can, and frequently do, house rule things, but in this case I don't have to. It is an official rule, and as I mix and match my EU/NA rules anyway, I am going EU on this in the future (sorry Nigel ).

[Maurice76]

not the first time I heard someone mention Slev's rules... could you post a link please? Today I am too lazy to perform a search and I don't want to waste my action too!!

Here you go: https://www.freewebs.com/heroquestrevised/downloads.htm. Note that it's still a work in progress. The original thread by Slev is here: http://forum.yeoldeinn.com/viewtopic.php?f=38&t=2580. Slev hoped to return to it about a year ago and while he did make an appearance in Q3 last year, he has since gone off-radar mostly again.