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So once again, my assumptions regarding a game mechanic have been misguided. I used to think that the 'open doors' roll applied to "stuck" doors, while locked doors had to be picked or broken down (which didn't involve a roll). But according to LL, it's breaking down the door that requires the 'open doors' roll.

LL, pg. 44 wrote:Labyrinths often have many doors, some secret and others obvious. Many are locked, and a thief will need to attempt to pick locks. However, characters can attempt to break a door down. In this case, the player rolls 1d6. A result of 2 or less means the door has been broken down.

I guess, then, that doors that aren't locked can be opened without any ado, whether "stuck" or not. So how do the rest of you handle this? How long would you say it takes to break the door down? And would it require a crowbar or something else beyond just bare hands?

I think this is case of poor wording. B/X page B21: "A lock must usually be picked by a thief. An unlocked door must be forced open to pass through it. To force open a door, roll 1d6; a result of 1 or 2 (on 1d6) means that the door is forced open."

If it's poor wording, then it's really poor wording, because it says explicitly that succeeding on the open doors roll breaks down the door. I wonder if Dan intended to alter the rules from what Moldvay had.

I suspect the wording here may be something to do with creating LOTS and LOTS of noise! In other words, breaking the door down triggers an instant wandering monster check as the heavy door SLAMS into the floor and the bang echoes down the passages.

In Moldvay (and OD&D) the assumption is that all doors in a dungeon are stuck shut and require an open doors check to get open, except locked doors. Further, all doors will close again by themselves unless wedged open, presumably meaning they become stuck closed again.

So, In LL all it is saying is that a door can be broken down. There is no stated assumption that all dungeon doors are stuck, it is left up to the discretion of the LL.

Edit: re locked doors, I assume if there is no thief to pick it or if the picking fails you fave to roll to break it down.

Edit again: even in Moldvay the wording says "usually" doors are stuck, so there is referee discretion.

Very good. I was never keen on the idea that all doors have to be stuck. Rolling 'open doors' becomes a bit tedious after a while.

I play this totally by ear. If it makes sense that a door is stuck and requires a roll to open it then I call for a roll. If it is not locked and I see no reason to have it stuck I just let them open the door. And I don't do the automatic closing thing unless the door or room is specifically magical or something came behind you and closed it.

As an aside, this is one of those rules that really reveals the "humanocentric" nature of the game. Most PCs are going to be within a given range of size and strength so everyone rolling a d6 to open a stuck door makes sense. But I'm working on a game wherein you play cartoon animals...and the size differential truly challenges this rule! A mouse PC and an elephant PC should not be separated by a mere 3-4 pips. In LL I would simply say that if a very tiny creature such as a pixie is trying to force open a stuck door he simply cannot do it without some aid. Likewise, a very large creature such as a hill giant should have no problem at all with a typical stuck door. PCs are right in the middle with their d6 roll.