In theory, making a trap was easy. Dig a hole. Drop some spikes inside. Cover it up. Done. But if Ben wanted it to be effective he needed to ensure it worked flawlessly.
The key wasn't just how lethal the spikes were inside. It was how much weight would trigger the collapse. Ideally, it needed to be sensitive enough to trigger only when a Ravager stepped on it—not wasted on something as light as debris or a stray Krell.
Ben clicked his tongue. 'If Elvira were here, she could probably make some kind of detection magic to handle that…' But as he looked at the stronghold, still in the middle of reconstruction, he let out a sigh. That wasn't an option. Not yet. What if the Ravagers came while he was away?
At the very least, the base needed to withstand another wave. 'There's another method… What if I make one that can be triggered manually?'
A Krell Supervisor could control it directly. If a Ravager stepped into range, it could activate the mechanism at just the right moment. A hybrid system—part automated, part controlled. Ben grinned. 'Yeah. That could work. Time to design the trap.'
Even if this world was different, physics didn't change. And with his experience as a construction worker, he knew exactly what to do.
The first step was designing the trigger mechanism. If he just dug a pit and covered it with a weak surface, the trap would trigger too easily. One wrong move, and random debris could collapse it before the enemy even got there.
No, he needed a delayed collapse. A support structure—thin but strong enough to hold weight temporarily. He imagined something woven, like layered rope or plant fibers, stretched across the pit. Enough to hold just long enough for the Ravager to put its full weight on it—then snap. That would ensure they fell at the worst possible moment, when they couldn't react.
The second step was the spikes. Ingot was good, but it wasn't necessary. He had Ravager bones and Chitin plating from the corpses. Sharp Durable. More than enough to impale. If he reinforced them with ingot tips, they could punch through even Brute-class Ravagers.
This way, he could stretch his resources further. Than a manual trigger. Something that would allow the Krell Supervisor to activate the trap from a distance. Ben tapped his chin, thinking. One option was a tension-based mechanism. A rope system connected to a locking pin beneath the surface. The Krell Supervisor could pull the rope, yanking out the pin—And instantly collapsing the support structure, sending anything above crashing down.
It was simple, reliable, and easy to reset. But there was one more issue. 'How far can this method works?'
Ben needed a second option—something that work better. His mind flashed to something simple Weighted triggers. Instead of a direct manual pull, he could set counterweights on hidden levers. Once a heavy enough force stepped on the designated area— The weight imbalance would tilt the lever, pulling the pin automatically. This will make it work in different way as the spkie will shoot out form the groudn instead.
A manual trigger when needed, but also capable of functioning on its own. Ben smirked. 'That would do nicely. Now for the final step…'
Ben didn't have endless materials to keep rebuilding these. If the traps were one-use, they'd be worthless. So he designed them to be reloadable. The bottom of each pit would have a release latch—after a battle, Krell Workers could open it, clean out the corpses, reset the spikes, and seal it again.
With that done, Ben opened the creation interface and started designing the latch mechanism. The frame was simple. The spikes would be removable, needing only to be reinserted after each fight. No need to waste materials every time the trap triggered. His fingers moved swiftly, setting the parameters. 'To make the counterweight lever, I'll need a separate setup… I'll build a basement later to house the pull system.' With that, he finalized the blueprint.
As for how the Krell Supervisor would trigger it without even seeing the battlefield— Ben wasn't worried. With the hive mind, every Krell had a shared picture of the battlefield. 'I should build a watchtower—no, a high tower—so every Krell can have a clear view of the field.' If he had flying units, this would be even easier. Ben's grinned as he thought of this new possibility. 'What if I design tiny Krell scouts? Ones that can fly around the battlefield, keeping full surveillance?'
He filed the thought away for later. For now, the next step—designing the outer wall layer and planning trap placements. The manual-triggered spike traps would be placed closer to the inner wall, allowing the Krell to control them more efficiently. For the outer sections, he'd use automated traps—the ones that triggered based purely on weight.
And some of them? Ben grinned darkly. They'd be fitted with explosive talismans on the tips. If a Brute Ravager fell into one, it wouldn't just get stabbed—it'd get blasted apart.
Finally, he moved on to fortifying the outer wall. This layer would be twice as thick as the inner one, reinforced with ingots for extra durability.
And to prevent scaling He designed angled wall spikes—slanted at 45 degrees outward to make it nearly impossible to climb.
Even if the Ravagers piled on top of each other, the spikes would force them to push away instead of gaining leverage. With the defenses coming together, Ben moved on to the last layer of failsafe traps.
Because if the spikes weren't enough?
If the Ravagers pushed through?
Then he'd drop an entire damn tree on them. His next design—a log drop mechanism. Ben scanned the battlefield, eyes landing on the massive mushroom stalks surrounding the fortress. 'Perfect.' He'd cut them partially, leave them rigged with counterweights, and when the time was right— Drop them directly onto invading forces.
A crushing, instant kill. Ben smirked. 'Let's see them try and break through this.'