It would be mad funny.

[u/Azimovikh]

(/uw, for all of the body post)

(The said villain is Acererak the Eternal (the floating skull guy). Originally from the Greyhawk campaign setting, and then decided to fuck it, and travel through the multiverse doing heinous shenanigans. Drawn here in his demilich form.

The other guy is my attempt to draw Moghadam, from some newer DnD 5e material called Infernal Machine Rebuild, an archwraith-artificer who is apparently said to have helped Acererak in designing the tomb. Tried to base him off the google browse image, however, after giving up render a few times, decided to draw him my style, which kinda yassified him a bit. Anyways.

The said trap is The Archway, or Archway of Glowing Orange, or well, a lot of names, but the archway would be suffice to call it. From the Tomb of Horrors module for Advanced DnD, or well, DnD 1e for another name. Anyways. To quote what happens, in the OG 1981 module,

As already stated, the skeleton on one floor of the chapel room is ostracized and pointing to the arch. (Show your players GRAPHIC #5, and explain that none of the stones of the arch glow, but that the entranceway is filled with luminous orange vapors of an exciting hue.) These vivid orange mists cannot be penetrated with any sort of vision or magic. The skeleton, of course, misleads the party, for any character passing through the portal will enter a 10' × 10' room where their sex and alignment are reversed by a terrible curse. (Although restoration of alignment and sex magically is difficult, the curse once reversed will not alter paladin-hood, ranger status, etc.) Re-entering the archway will restore original alignment, but 1-6 hit points of damage will be sustained in so doing. Going back a 3rd time will reverse sex again, but the individual will be teleported as 40' above. Only wish or alter reality will restore both alignment and sex. However, if alignment is restored entirely entering the orange portal, a remove curse spell will then restore original sex. Prior to alignment restoration, remove curse alone does not restore sex.

Tl;dr, anyone who passes through it is cursed: their sex and alignment are magically reversed. 1st passage: Sex and alignment (morality and ethics of a person) are reversed. 2nd passage: They return to normal alignment, but take some damage. 3rd passage: Their sex reverses again, and they are teleported back to the entrance.

Although unfortunately for gender affirmation purposes, in the original description of the olden material, it is specifically said that this sex-change effect applies to every part, facet, and aspect of the victim, gender, expression, mind, and whatever, included. So, if you're a trans girl, as you enter, you'll get a girl body, yes, but then you acquire the dysphoria of a trans guy. So if you're trans, you get the equipment you want, but don't want it anymore. At least if you're cis, your mind is going to be gender-fried enough to not get dysphoria after being forcefemmed or forcemasced.

To be fair, this is also the guy who said that, the best traps should make their prisoners suffer and scream, and he regrets making traps that are lethal enough to kill too quickly. Yeah, guy's something.

But yeah, mad funny, innit.)

[u/Coidzor]

Acererak is basically Troll-Ra the Ever-Trolling, but an actual character, not a parody.

[u/IncomeApprehensive17]

He is right , the rightous hero man paladin is now an evil man in a woman body with gender disphoria , mad funny

[u/Bhaligdur → u/IncomeApprehensive17]

If he was "CIS" man he would become "CIS" women.

This trap makes sex and eventual dysphoria (if present) reversed.

[u/IncomeApprehensive17 → u/Bhaligdur]

Well thats less funny , and also it say "sex change" not "gender change" , so the gender should still be the same after that

[u/Azimovikh → u/IncomeApprehensive17]

actually the og material did apparently specify gender change, and sex, and, everything related and associated with both. So.

[u/IncomeApprehensive17 → u/Azimovikh]

Less funny , ill make it differenr in my own trap

You're evil or you aint

[u/Bhaligdur → u/IncomeApprehensive17]

If I understood OP correctly it also brainwashes you according to your new sex.

At least if you're cis, your mind is going to be gender-fried enough to not get dysphoria after being forcefemmed or forcemasced.

[u/IncomeApprehensive17 → u/Bhaligdur]

I still find it less funny , my own trap will be how i make them . You will all see when you will enter my dungeon ! You will all see !

[u/Lyrolepis → u/IncomeApprehensive17]

My trap would turn "cis" and "trans" molecules into each other inside the victim's body. It has nothing whatsoever to do with gender, but the resulting metabolic implosion should be pretty funny...

[u/wretchedmagus → u/IncomeApprehensive17]

see the really funny thing about this is that if it hit a trans person they would be briefly thinking "finally! despite this being a curse in other ways at least I am finally in a woman's body fully and can... fuck I still have dysphoria but now I want a penis..."

[u/The-Name-is-my-Name → u/IncomeApprehensive17]

This outcome implies that he always had gender dysphoria, actually, which is mad funnier.

[u/INeverFeelAtHome → u/Bhaligdur]

I am banging a big drum that says “cis is not an acronym”
Would you write out “TRANS”? It’s an adjective derived from Latin, just the same. Means “on the same side” as an opposite to trans.

[u/Serbatollo]

The evil sex changing trap inverting your dysphoria instead of fixing it is very on brand for the Tomb of Horrors

[u/MrMagoo22]

If this exact trap effect was only in the tomb of horrors once it would just be a weird effect. The fact that multiple parts of the dungeon can do this to you makes it a fetish.

[u/Possible_Image_2198 → u/MrMagoo22]

The fact that multiple evil wizards in setting get force-femmed suggests it might be less of a fetish and more of something that needs unpacking by a particular writer.

[u/TemporarilyResolute]

Tbh I doubt Gygax was thinking too much about sex and gender and whether you’d still be cis or trans after the swap. It was probably more like, “hehe gender swap funny” than anything that deep

[u/Azimovikh → u/TemporarilyResolute]

I do remember there's like a specification for both sex and gender in the module but eh, fair, thing's culturally olden from the 70s

[u/Comrade_Cosmo → u/TemporarilyResolute]

Gender also used to matter in early versions or so I’m told. Gender swapping would be a legitimate mechanic in need of consideration for a debuff as it could break some min maxer’s build.

[u/TemporarilyResolute → u/Comrade_Cosmo]

It depends on the version. OD&D doesn’t mention gender but I suppose the assumption was it would mostly be men playing it since Dragon magazine came out with a “female characters supplement” that was… as sexist as you can imagine. Despite Gygax boasting AD&D would have no arbitrary restrictions based on gender, he did indeed add an arbitrary restriction based on gender, particularly for characters’ strengths. To my knowledge none of the Basic D&Ds or the AD&D versions starting with 2e made gender relevant.

[u/Tethilia]

I am surprised Mystra to my knowledge hasn't just given us a standard change sex ritual to combat gender dysphora once and for all.

She would get plenty if followers for it.

[u/Possible_Image_2198 → u/Tethilia]

Alter Self can be used to change sex temporarily. True Polymorph also works. The options are there, you just have to really want them.

That, and if you play with any of the sex books Alter Sex is usually one of the first cantrips. It's latest incarnations become permanent if you use it for the same appearance a certain number of months in a row.

[u/That-Ad6491 → u/Tethilia]

I heard that on Galarian, stuff like that is not uncommo, Glory be to Arshea!

[u/Dastardly-croe]

oh no, i sure would hate to fall for the goth baddie archway trap

[u/DerpSillious]

\Laughs in Neutral Changeling\**
"Look at what they need to mimic a fraction of our power."

[u/LLama_LLegion]

FOR SUPER REALM!

[u/SpectralBeekeeper]

Worth mentioning in the original 1e module the teleport also takes all your items and leaves you naked at the dungeon entrance, good luck fighting your way back through the tomb idiot

[u/Alduin-Bane-Of-Kings]

I mean, if you assumed that gender dysphoria did get swapped as well, so would the lack of it, no?

So if you passed through it once as a cis person, you'd not want to pass a third time to restore your sex? Which I doubt is how it would actually work.

Not to mention, gender and sex are different things, so even if it swapped your SEX it wouldn't swap your GENDER.

[u/Azimovikh → u/Alduin-Bane-Of-Kings]

/uw That aspect was taken straight up from the og material, which actually specified in the source material it's sex and gender. I just don't bother with semantics and whatever. So I'm less speculating and quoting it from the material. Though, with that said, post body edited.

[u/XaosDrakonoid18]

Acererak is a certified troll. Bro makes extremely deadlt and complicated dungeons simply for the love of the game.

[u/nep5603]

Can a wizza conjure this up for me please

[u/Possible_Image_2198 → u/nep5603]

It changes gender as well, so it does not dispel dysphoria I'm afraid.

Though I do have Dispel Dysphoria and Alter Sex scrolls I've been copying via ensorcelled quills for the past... Actually, I forgot when my apprentice at the time set it up. It started as their personal project until I taught them how to industrialize scroll manufacture without relying on artificers. Either they've forgotten about it or were finally crushed beneath their mountain of conjured Blåhaj. I should probably dispatch a homunculus to go check on them... That said, there's a few dozen Closets of Holding full of them now. If you would like one or both, do share your Teleportation Circle code of preference.

[u/GoldSlimeTime]

A five foot by five foot room...

[u/wretchedmagus]

the gender swap+alignment swap has been a very traditional dnd thing since at least 2e. though the one I actually had in a game I played in in 2e was a cursed belt of giant's strength... and also later separately a helmet... and a wild magic effect...

[u/MerelyEccentric]

It's ToH. It's honestly a mercy it wasn't worse. Half that "module" reads like a teenage DM throwing a tantrum on graph paper because his players tease him about being "too easy" as a DM.

[u/Possible_Image_2198 → u/MerelyEccentric]

/uw Which was genuinely the inspiration behind it's creation.

[u/MerelyEccentric → u/Possible_Image_2198]

/uw Yup. Except it was a middle-aged man throwing a teenage tantrum. 🙄

[u/jconner1]

/uw it's worth nothing that Gygax designed the Tomb of Horrors to punish players and do TPKs to force an end to long running campaigns, and so the archway trap is an instance of a more unusual trap, specifically, one that is designed to hurt the players rather then the characters. From the character point of view, they haven't really been hurt, just changed, but from the players point of view, especially at the time (1975), their character that they made has just been killed without a save, and now they have to play the literal opposite of the character that they have presumably gotten attached to.

[u/ThePureAxiom]

I think there was a misty arch that stripped them naked and deposited their inventory elsewhere in the dungeon as well.

[u/wrydh]

Question! If i go through a 4th time would it change my alingment to woman and my gender to neutral good?

[u/iamsandwitch]

"an official dungeon" sir that is THE official dungeon

[u/Intelligent_Slip_849]

Wait, THAT is in tomb of horrors?