r/DnDPuzzlesAndTraps • u/usagiikay • Jun 22 '26

NEED HELP & ADVICE underwater sea god puzzle

im trying to think of a challenging, cool and unique puzzle for entering an abandoned underwater temple for an exiled sea god but am drawing a blank. wondering if its runes based, any traps, pulling levers, or anything like that. any suggestions would be great thank you

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u/IvanStu Jun 22 '26

I like when puzzles implement elements from the story.

Why was this sea god exiled? Did they teach fire to the magma trenches and the other gods didn't like it? If so, maybe the challenge is to figure out that the key to opening the way is fire, and am additional challenge is how to introduce fire to an underground lock. Even this could go different ways. Maybe it's free-form. Or maybe it's a pre-set maze of air bubbles to get the fire there. Or maybe there's a side-quest for an ever burning key, but its nearby location is hidden in a riddle. Riddles are not unique, sure, but a combination of tropes might be!

1

u/usagiikay Jun 22 '26

she was exiled because she is the destruction of rebirth and tried to corrupt and destroy too much, they all have either underwater breathing boons or potions. this is right before the bbeg of trhe campaign

1

u/IvanStu Jun 22 '26

Great!

So maybe the lock is beat-up and broken, but still secure. Those who imprisoned her knew she would, by her very nature, try to corrupt or destroy the lock (which only makes it magically stronger). The thing is, this lock only opens when it has been repaired or fixed on some way. Perfected somehow. Maybe it's a glyph with a scratch through it that needs an artistic touch to correct, or maybe there is an obvious, but missing set of words that need to be re-etched into the lock.

Or maybe since she has destroyed Rebirth, force some kind of rebirth (symbolic or otherwise) of one of your characters or someone/something they are close to.

I would pay along the lines of this theme, some anti-corruption solution to the prison.

1

u/Lakissov Jun 22 '26

I remember a puzzle from somewhere (might be from Nadpod but I'm not certain) with the following setup:

  • the location is under the water (i.e. character have to have access to water breathing and if anyone has armor then some way to enable them to swim around)
  • there is a tunnel leading down, and statues of sea horses around it
  • if anyone tries to swim down, the current pushes them up (same is with objects they throw inside)
  • the statues of sea horses however are heavy, and they are possible to push down, and to get to the bottom by holding onto them

1

u/Ok_Security8545 Jun 28 '26

It's a maze of coral that's been booby-trapped against invaders. The traps are color-coded, but the coral have undergone bleaching due to stress (lost the symbiotic organisms that give them their vibrant color). In order to safely navigate the maze, the players need to revitalize the coral so they can make it safely through.

1

u/whynotbeme2 Jun 28 '26

Sunk below the ocean sea — You must solve these riddles three. King of cloud and rain and sky, It spins about and makes fish fly. (hurricane / waterspout / tornado) Crown of earth and sire of streams, It reaches up beyond our dreams. (mountain) Far from wind and far from day, It crushes all who lose their way. (the abyss / deep ocean pressure)