Taffy-Line Snapback | Fantasy Hazard Generated by CharGen

The hazard

The Taffy-Line Snapback is a crank-and-guide-wheel rig that keeps the production line under constant tension. When someone crosses its marked lanes or batters the cable, the machine answers with whipping strands and a sticky spray. It is dangerous to the troll, but a careless defender can be yanked off their feet just as easily.

Mechanical
Complex

Stealth: Expert +14 (trained) to notice the dangerous tension and concealed release pawl among the workshop machinery; the crank and taffy line themselves are visible.
Trigger: The hazard rolls initiative when a creature enters a marked snapback lane or damages the taut taffy line while the crank is engaged. The creature that triggers it is not automatically targeted, but may be targeted by its routine.
Disable: Thievery (expert) to unhook the tension pawl, or Crafting (expert) to jam the winding gear. Two successful checks are required to disable the hazard. A creature adjacent to the crank can instead use two Interact actions to slacken the line, which disables it without a check.
Initiative: +14 Perception
Routine: The hazard uses 3 actions each round. It uses Taffy Snap once against a creature in a marked snapback lane, then uses Sticky Spray once against a creature in a marked lane that has not yet been targeted by Taffy Snap this round. If no creatures are in the lanes, it does nothing. Taffy Snap is a ranged attack against one creature in a lane, +14 vs. AC, with a range of 30 feet. On a hit, the target takes bludgeoning damage and is pushed 5 feet toward the nearest guide wheel. On a critical hit, the target also falls prone. Sticky Spray forces a creature in a lane to attempt a Reflex save. On a failure, the creature is immobilized by the adhesive taffy until it Escapes with Athletics or Acrobatics, or an adjacent creature spends an Interact action to peel it free. A creature can be targeted by each routine action only once per round.
Reset: The hazard resets automatically at the start of each round while its crank remains engaged and the line remains intact. If disabled by the release lever or slackened manually, a creature must use two Interact actions at the crank to reset it.

Damage

Immunities

critical hits, object immunities, precision

Effects

1

Taffy Snap
DC 22
The creature must attempt a Reflex save. On a failure, it takes bludgeoning damage and is pushed 5 feet toward the nearest guide wheel. On a critical failure, it also falls prone.

Special rules

Marked Snapback Lanes.The lanes are the 5-foot-wide strips of floor directly beneath the taut taffy strands. They are difficult terrain while the hazard is active. A creature pushed into a guide wheel stops adjacent to it and takes no additional damage.

A Threat to Both Sides.The hazard's attacks and effects can target the troll if it enters a marked lane. The troll is not automatically immune to the adhesive or the line's force.

Spotting it

Discovery

A creature that examines the floor grooves or the taut taffy can identify the snapback lanes with a successful Perception check.

Perception

+14

Stop it

Signs of dangerA groove in the floor is polished smooth in a wide arc around each guide wheel. · A snapped strand of taffy is embedded in a wooden post at chest height. · The crank clicks under strain, and the line shivers when a heavy creature steps near it.

Countermeasures

A creature adjacent to the crank can use Interact to throw its release lever, making the hazard inactive until reset. The lever is obvious once found.
A creature adjacent to the crank can use two Interact actions to slacken the taffy line. This makes the hazard inactive until someone resets the crank.
Cutting a taffy strand requires dealing 20 damage to it. The strand has AC 22 and is immune to mental and poison effects. Cutting one strand disables the hazard, but also leaves that section of the taffy line broken.
A creature can avoid the hazard's snapback lanes by moving around the marked floor grooves. The machinery does not target creatures outside those lanes.

In short

Keep clear of the marked snapback lanes, jam or cut the crank assembly, or use the crank to slacken the line.

Its story

What it looks like

A waist-high copper crank anchors several glossy ropes of pink and amber taffy.

Why it is here

Keep intruders away from the moving taffy line and its rollers, though in this encounter its snapback can hinder the troll as well as the defenders.

Who made it

Mara Vell, a confectioner-engineer who built the line to keep workers clear of the candy under tension.

Lore

The line was designed to keep a continuous ribbon of taffy moving through the workshop, not to stop a troll.

Where it is found

A candy workshop, factory floor, or fortified confectionery where a taut taffy line crosses the battlefield between the troll and the production line.

Variants

For a more protective setup, the crank can be placed behind the defenders, forcing the troll to cross a lane to reach it.

For a more chaotic workshop, add a second set of guide wheels. Increase the hazard's HP to 55 and let it target a different lane with each routine action.

For a damaged rig, lower the hazard's attack modifier and DC by 2, but have the line snap completely after three rounds, breaking the taffy line regardless of how the encounter ends.

Plot hooks

The taffy line carries a rare medicinal ingredient. If it breaks, the workshop loses a valuable batch and the people relying on it may go without treatment.

A saboteur has wedged the tension pawl so the line will lash at whoever tries to protect the production line.

The troll has learned to bait the snapback, hoping its whipping strand will scatter defenders or break the machinery.

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