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Salt-Slick Cart Snare

The salt cart has been tampered with and packed with loose salt. When disturbed, it rolls across the battlefield, bursts open, and sprays abrasive brine that stings the eyes and coats the ground. The hazard is dangerous because it changes the terrain around the cart, forcing creatures to choose between controlling the wagon and surviving the fight.

Hazard EntryMechanicalLevel1Complex

Salt-Slick Cart Snare

1LevelCommonRarityA dusty road, salt flat, market lane, or makeshift barricade where a loaded cart can roll downhill or across open ground.Environment
complexmechanicaltrap
Level1
|
HP12
|
AC17
|
TypeMechanical
|
ComplexityComplex
|
RarityCommon

Defenses

AC17
Hard3
HP12
BT 6
Fort++8
Ref++5
Will++2
Immune
critical hits, object immunities, mental
Resist
physical 2, except against bludgeoning damage dealt to the axle
Weak
fire 2 against the cart's rope and canvas, bludgeoning damage to the axle
complexmechanicaltrap

Detection

PerDC 17
Stl+7
InitPerception +7

A salt cart stands at an awkward angle in the road, its canvas cover sagging and its wheels half sunk in damp earth. White crystals glitter beneath it, while a length of rope disappears into a nearby drainage ditch.

Standard Engagement

Trigger

The hazard triggers when a creature moves within 5 feet of the cart, damages the cart, or pulls away the canvas cover. The raiders can also trigger it from up to 30 feet away by pulling the concealed release line.

Routine

On its initiative, the cart rolls 10 feet toward the nearest visible creature or along the prepared downhill path, then releases salt if it has not already done so. It repeats this routine for 3 rounds or until disabled. After the first round, the cart's path changes by up to 45 degrees toward the nearest visible creature if the terrain allows. Once Salt Spray occurs, the cart stops releasing salt but continues rolling until it strikes an obstacle or reaches the end of its path.

Reset

The hazard must be manually reset by replacing the release line, reloading the salt sacks, and positioning the cart. It does not reset on its own.

Runaway Cart

The cart rolls 10 feet in a straight line, pushing creatures in its path. Each creature in the path must attempt a DC 17 Reflex save. On a critical success, the creature is unaffected. On a success, it Steps 5 feet to either side of the cart's path. On a failure, it takes 1d6 bludgeoning damage and is knocked prone. On a critical failure, it takes 1d6 bludgeoning damage, is knocked prone, and is pushed 10 feet with the cart.

Salt Spray

The bursting salt sack creates a 10-foot burst centered on the cart. Creatures in the area must attempt a DC 17 Fortitude save. On a critical success, they are unaffected. On a success, they are dazzled until the start of their next turn. On a failure, they are dazzled for 1 round and take a -1 circumstance penalty to Perception checks and ranged attack rolls for the same duration. On a critical failure, they are blinded until the end of their next turn, then dazzled for 1 round.

Brined Ground

The ground in the cart's path becomes covered in loose salt and wet brine. The affected squares are difficult terrain until cleared. The first time each round a creature Strides into one of these squares, it must succeed at a DC 15 Reflex save or fall prone.

Heavy Cargo

The cart occupies a 10-foot-by-10-foot area and can move through allied creatures' spaces during its routine. It cannot move through solid obstacles or creatures that are two or more sizes larger than it.

Single Burst

The hazard releases Salt Spray the first time the cart moves during its routine. Afterward, Salt Spray does not occur again unless the hazard is reset.

Hold the Cart

A creature adjacent to the cart can use an action to hold onto it and attempt a DC 15 Athletics check. On a success, the creature reduces the cart's movement during that routine by 5 feet. On a critical success, it reduces the movement by 10 feet. A creature that critically fails is pulled 5 feet and falls prone.

Description

The salt cart has been tampered with and packed with loose salt. When disturbed, it rolls across the battlefield, bursts open, and sprays abrasive brine that stings the eyes and coats the ground. The hazard is dangerous because it changes the terrain around the cart, forcing creatures to choose between controlling the wagon and surviving the fight.

Discovery

A successful DC 17 Perception check reveals the concealed release line, fresh tampering around the axle, and the unnaturally loose salt beneath the canvas. Characters who examine the cart before the encounter gain a +2 circumstance bonus to this check.

Archival Lore

A character trained in Crafting or Engineering Lore recognizes that the cart's axle has been weakened and that the salt has been loosened to turn a simple wagon into a battlefield hazard. A character trained in Mercantile Lore knows that salt dust can cause intense eye irritation when mixed with damp air.

Environment
A dusty road, salt flat, market lane, or makeshift barricade where a loaded cart can roll downhill or across open ground.
Theme
Improvised roadside sabotage, desperate caravan defense, and hazardous battlefield movement.
Creator
A gang of road raiders and their wagon driver
Purpose
To scatter pursuers, break up a defensive line, and create an escape route for the raiders who attacked the salt caravan.
Game System
Pathfinder 2E
Art Style
Gritty fantasy illustration with sun-bleached wood, spilled white salt, muddy wagon tracks, and tense adventurers bracing against a runaway cart.
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