The limiting factor in 1e, discouraging long resting in the dungeon and using spells to recover hp was random encounters. The Tomb unusually does not have random encounters, but you’re not supposed to tell your players that.

From what I understand, players were scored individually. So those players who convinced the others to take on the dangerous parts fared better.

I scanned through the 1e DMG and PHB, but I didn’t see anything about a base chance a trap does not trigger. These two traps, the needle and the pits, have their specifics listed in the module.

The needle trap is always found if the box is searched, and always triggers if precautions aren’t taken. It harkens back to skill play, where the player is meant to find alternate means instead of rolling dice. It’s like how the west false entrance specifically says there’s no saving throw.

The pit trap does have a percentage chance not to fall in, but it still triggers. Being as the pits are 10’ square I do enjoy the idea of catching multiple PCs at once. And that was possible back in the day with how turns were organized, which I’ll cover in my next post.

I definitely agree about the the HP and other resource management. I’ll be covering some of that in my next post.