Children's Games as Puzzles
I've had the idea in mind for a little while now that one could relatively easily adapt any children's board game into a TTPRG as a puzzle. I've managed to figure out some basic ones(Operation, Guess Who, Don't Wake Daddy, SORRY), but I wanted to make this post in the hopes that other people would see it and share what ideas for board games they have that could work in D&D as puzzles.
I think this is a pretty good idea too, since it gets past the problem of players not understanding the rules of the puzzle at all(probably), or at least gives a chance they might be able to understand the idea of it first off. That way, the puzzle can be more about accomplishing the task as opposed to figuring out the rules in the first place.
Operation: A necromancer's lab with large shelves filled with preserved organs and limbs. On a surgical table rests a cut-open cadaver. The door out of this room is sealed, and resting beside it are four plates. Eat plate has written either above or in it the name of an organ or piece of the body(assume humanoid). The party must carefully remove the organs from the body(or find them hidden among the shelves if you want) and place them on the plates. If they don't roll high enough on the skill check to perform surgery, the body on the table wails out in supernatural horror. Could be a temporary condition infliction, could be damage, or maybe the body gets up and attacks them. If the latter, another, different body appears on the table.
Guess Who: A room filled with impressive and expensive looking relics. In the center is a well with a face at the bottom. It tells the party that four of the relics in the room contain powerful elemental guardians. They may ask four questions, and after which must place four relics in the well. If they guess one right, then that corresponding genie isn't summoned. Any wrong guesses result in that genie being released from it's prison to attack the party. If you want, the party could also destroy the prisons of any released genies to permanently free them, potentially ending what might be a more difficult encounter.
Don't Wake Daddy: A classic fantasy scenario. A powerful creature is sleeping or is otherwise dormant. Or perhaps an arcane guardian statue is placed to thwart intruders. The party must navigate a particular path and avoid dangers, traps, and otherwise make little noise to reach their goal(be it an exit or treasure). If anyone fails on a check that results in noise, the guardian wakes up and either attacks that PC, or casts a spell on them such as banishment or teleport. This should be more of a challenge than a repetitive scene where players are bamfed back to the start constantly. Though, if the party would be fine playing such a game, you may feel free.
SORRY!: The players find themselves in strange cross between a maze and a race track. Each character is given a color, and there are a number of camps and pylons equal to the number of players. The goal is for each player to run around the track and reach their pylon. Once all have been reached, the party is freed and continue. But in each camp is also a number of creatures(robots, undead, whatever you please. If you want to make it more challenging, pick creatures with high movement speed.) These creatures also are racing to touch the pylons, but will attack players of different colors. Creatures killed before all the pylons are touched simply reappear in the camp. If one of them touches the pylon instead of a player, then the race track disappears and all creatures attack the party. From this point, destroying the creatures and touching the pylons should free the players just the same.
I'd love to hear other ideas or suggestions from others!
Posted Aug 14, 2026, 12:29 AM UTC