RtL Dungeons - Can the Overlord open doors that the party hasn't opened yet?

By Lord Infestus, in Descent: Journeys in the Dark

Couldn't figure out if the party comes into a dungeon that has monsters behind doors that have not been opened, can the Overlord open those doors and to attack the heroes if they are just sitting there? The room they are in is part of the same 'area' as the rest of the dungeon.

Lord Infestus said:

Couldn't figure out if the party comes into a dungeon that has monsters behind doors that have not been opened, can the Overlord open those doors and to attack the heroes if they are just sitting there? The room they are in is part of the same 'area' as the rest of the dungeon.

If the monsters are on the board then I believe they can open the doors. The exception would be rune-locked doors; I'm not sure about the rules regarding them but I know usually monsters cannot open them.

SkittlesAreYum said:

Lord Infestus said:

Couldn't figure out if the party comes into a dungeon that has monsters behind doors that have not been opened, can the Overlord open those doors and to attack the heroes if they are just sitting there? The room they are in is part of the same 'area' as the rest of the dungeon.

If the monsters are on the board then I believe they can open the doors. The exception would be rune-locked doors; I'm not sure about the rules regarding them but I know usually monsters cannot open them.

Not quite correct.
There are there are two different door 'differentiators'. There are doors that have Runelocks/not locked (differentiated by colour) and there are doors that open new areas/open existing areas (differentiated by a square/diamond on either side of the door).

Any monster can open a normal door that does not lead to a new area.

Any Named Monster can open a Rune locked door that does not open a new area.

No monster can open a door to a new area.

Lord Infestus said:

Couldn't figure out if the party comes into a dungeon that has monsters behind doors that have not been opened, can the Overlord open those doors and to attack the heroes if they are just sitting there? The room they are in is part of the same 'area' as the rest of the dungeon.

And if you are talking about RtL dungeons, then unless it says there are multiple areas (typically only the Rumor levels and OL Keep) they are treated as one fully revealed area.

I hope this is not a silly question but my team is using rune locked doors to lock monsters in rooms in SOB. If they use the rune to unlock the door, run through and run out while monsters are still inside can an un-named monster use the door then or are they trapped in there?

Un-named monsters cannot open runelocked doors. Named monsters, however, can open runelocked doors. So if the party closes a runelocked door, and there are no named monsters behind it to open it, they are trapped.

Thanks Fizz. Appreciate it.

Can a named monster stand beside a rune door, open it shoot at the characters then pull it shut, leaving the heroes locked out till they get the key?

Bibbles said:

Thanks Fizz. Appreciate it.

Can a named monster stand beside a rune door, open it shoot at the characters then pull it shut, leaving the heroes locked out till they get the key?

Yes, if it is the same area (it usually is in Advanced campaign numbered dungeon levels).

There is a level in RtL specifically doing this where the heroes start just a few spaces from the boss but there is a runelocked door between them. The heroes have to run around the whole level to get to the boss (and the runekey), but he can just step through the door if he wants.

Bibbles said:

Can a named monster stand beside a rune door, open it shoot at the characters then pull it shut, leaving the heroes locked out till they get the key?

Yes, provided it has enough movement, i.e. a speed of at least 4.