I love puzzles in games, especially in role-playing games. Puzzles can be so many things: a coded message, the method for turning off the traps in a vault, or even the mystery of who killed the king. It is all just a matter of scale. So, let us talk about building good RPG puzzles.
Why Puzzles Fail
There are a few main reasons why puzzles fail. And they tend to relate to the players both finding and understanding the clues you are leaving for them.
The first and greatest issue is the players never finding the clues in the first place. One of the biggest mistakes I see, and something it took me a long time to learn to avoid, is hiding the clues and making players roll to them. For those of us who grew up on an older generation of RPGs, the idea of rolling for every action is sort of ingrained. Want to hit something? Roll for it. Want to jump across that gap or climb that tree? Roll for it. So of course, it makes sense that if you want to search that bookcase, you need to roll for it. This is a mistake.
While it may seem counterintuitive, when designing a puzzle, you don’t want players to have to roll for anything. If they search a bookcase, they should find the hidden switch or discover the hidden note. Otherwise, you are leaving the chance of failure up to a random die roll and cutting the players off from that part of the adventure. Instead, base your finding of clues on player actions and use the Rule of 3.
The Rule of 3
As every good game master knows, no matter how meticulously you plan an adventure, the players will make their own path. Players will ignore, misinterpret, and generally frustrate you to death as they wander around the answers. They will dismiss your seemingly perfect clues as red herrings and follow your red herrings to the ends of the earth.
This is not their fault; we as human beings are designed to see patterns. We will create patterns even if there are none to find. It is why people see faces in potato chips and on the moon. Our minds are hardwired this way. But as the game master, we can take advantage of this. Use it to create the patterns we want the players to follow.
The first step in building good RPG puzzles is to have at least three clues that lead to the puzzle and its solution. This gives players three possible sources of information to help them find the solution. It is important to understand that this is not a case of players needing all three to solve the puzzle. Each is a stand-alone hint towards the solution. As an example, say the puzzle is a simple coded message using a substitution cipher. Your first clue might be a book on codes that explains the type of code that is being used. The second clue might be a letter using the same code, already partially decoded. And the third is a letter with the full key to decode it.
Now, while I call this the Rule of 3, that doesn’t mean you have to stop at 3 clues. Feel free to use as many as you need. The goal is to provide the players with the tools to find and solve the puzzle.
Now, while I call this the Rule of 3, that doesn’t mean you have to stop at 3 clues. Feel free to use as many as you need. The goal is to provide the players with the tools to find and solve the puzzle.
The second step in building good RPG puzzles is knowing how to place these clues.
Those Who Search Will Find
So you have your clues; now where do you put them to make sure the players find them? Remember I mentioned that you shouldn’t really be hiding these. They should be in obvious places, and if you are doing simple puzzles that are self-contained in one location, it's very easy just to have them all spread around the room. However, for more complex puzzles, especially in, say, an adventure with an overarching mystery and nonlinear paths, this can lead to issues.
If clues have fixed locations and players fail to search those locations, they may never find the clues. This can break the game very quickly. So, an alternative method is to provide not just your three clues, but multiple ways for players to find them.
Going back to our example of the coded message, one location could be a bookcase the players need to search. Another might be the body of a bad guy they defeat, and the third could be sitting out in the open on a not-so-bright minion's desk. The locations don’t need to be fixed at the start of the game. You just need your list of clues and where they might be found. And then, when a player interacts with one of those locations, provide a related clue.
So, if they have already skipped the room with the bookcase, you might decide to have them find the partially decoded message when they search the body. Or if they manage to skip all your planned locations, you can always drop the clue in some other way depending on what your players are doing. One great benefit of tabletop RPGs is the ability to improvise and change things on the fly.
So, if they have already skipped the room with the bookcase, you might decide to have them find the partially decoded message when they search the body. Or if they manage to skip all your planned locations, you can always drop the clue in some other way depending on what your players are doing. One great benefit of tabletop RPGs is the ability to improvise and change things on the fly.
Puzzle Depth
Now, while we’ve talked about some things to consider when adding puzzles to your game, a final but very important thing to consider is how much your players enjoy puzzles. For instance, I have some players who love them. So, in the example we have been using, not only would I start with the book on types of codes, but I’d also give the players an actual handout with the coded message on it so they could try really deciphering it as we continued playing. But I have played with folks who don’t enjoy puzzles much. For those players, I might have them find a few clues, then have them tell me they decoded it, and I would tell them what the message said.
Take this into account when designing your puzzles. If you have players who love puzzles, then come up with a couple of intricate puzzles and brain teasers for them. If your players aren’t really puzzle people, grab some simple classic ones they might have encountered before. Every GM has probably used the “Speak Friend, and Enter” door riddle from The Lord of the Rings at least once. I have reused plenty of classic basic puzzles from movies and TV shows—for instance, I’ve used the scene at the end of The Fifth Element with opening the element stones.
Take this into account when designing your puzzles. If you have players who love puzzles, then come up with a couple of intricate puzzles and brain teasers for them. If your players aren’t really puzzle people, grab some simple classic ones they might have encountered before. Every GM has probably used the “Speak Friend, and Enter” door riddle from The Lord of the Rings at least once. I have reused plenty of classic basic puzzles from movies and TV shows—for instance, I’ve used the scene at the end of The Fifth Element with opening the element stones.
Final Thoughts
Puzzles are really just another hook you can use in a game to keep things interesting and give the players something to do. If they don’t want to engage with them, don’t try to force it. Also, be ready to accept solutions to the puzzle that aren’t exactly what you had planned. If players come to a locked puzzle door and can’t work out how to unlock it, let them blow it up if that's what they prefer to do. But also be ready to add some complications to their lives if they go that route.
Puzzles are just another tool to make a game interesting. They can be as simple or as complicated as you want them to be. They can be all theater of the mind, or you might use props. It's all about flexibility. And when using a prewritten adventure, you should not be afraid to make your own tweaks to make it easier or more challenging for your players based on their puzzle preferences.
In the end, what puzzles you use and how you use them is completely up to you. The goal is to keep the game interesting and entertaining for everyone playing.
Puzzles are just another tool to make a game interesting. They can be as simple or as complicated as you want them to be. They can be all theater of the mind, or you might use props. It's all about flexibility. And when using a prewritten adventure, you should not be afraid to make your own tweaks to make it easier or more challenging for your players based on their puzzle preferences.
In the end, what puzzles you use and how you use them is completely up to you. The goal is to keep the game interesting and entertaining for everyone playing.
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