History Main / LuredIntoATrap

* In the movie ''Film/Hounddog'', Lewellen is tricked by her best friend into going to the location where she gets raped, though it seems that the friend in question didn't know what was going to happen to her when he helped.

* HoundDog, Lewellen is tricked into going to the location where she gets raped by her best friend, though it seems that he didn't know what was going to happen to her when he helped.

* In ''DragonAgeOrigins'', as the Warden and party are travelling, a woman will run up to them and ask for help. Going along with her will lead to a trap sprung by Zevran and his fellow assassins.

* In an episode of ''Series/BurnNotice'', a character is offered a meeting in an alleyway. Michael tells him that it's an ambush nad that he'll go instead. H then makes a van bulletproof via phonebooks, before talking a man he wants to keep on his side with him into the alleyway and getting shot up. They get out of the alleyway unhurt.

* ''Franchise/StarWars Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'': Not only was the sheild still up, and not only was the Imperial Fleet on the scene to pin the [[LaResistance Rebel Fleet]] down, but it turns out that the half-completed Death Star was [[SuperweaponSurprise quite operational when they arrived]].

* Used in [[ScienceNinjaTeamGatchaman Gatchaman]] on Ken. He wants to find his father[[hottip:*:presumed dead for years]], so Galactor sends an old friend saying he's seen him.

* ''Film/StarWarsReturnOfTheJedi'': Not only was the sheild still up, and not only was the Imperial Fleet on the scene to pin the [[LaResistance Rebel Fleet]] down, but it turns out that the half-completed Death Star was [[SuperweaponSurprise quite operational when they arrived]].

** Not to mention investigating the derelict Collector Cruiser. Or the [[EldrichLocation dead Reaper.]] [[RunningGag Or activating]] the [[spoiler: Reaper IFF.]] Or the franchise's grand-daddy of all such traps, [[spoiler: establishing the center of galactic civilization on the Citadel.]]

If the trap is blatantly obvious, this becomes TrapIsTheOnlyOption.

* ''CallOfCthulhu'' campaign ''Shadows of Yog-Sothoth'', adventure "The Worm That Walks". Mr. Edwin sends the player characters out to investigate a haunted house, and they end up getting ambushed by a family of cannibals who knew they were coming (because [[TheMole Mr. Edwin told them]]).

* Happens in season 2 of ''CodeGeass'', when Kallen is sent by the Black Knights to take Lelouch to a warehouse as part of [[EtTuBrute their betrayal]].

* ''Film/{{Batman}}'' (1989): Boss Grissom sends [[TheJoker Jack Napier]] to retrieve the incriminating information from Axis Chemical [[UriahGambit so Lieutenant Eckhardt and his team of corrupt cops can kill him]].

[[AC:Literature]]

* In an episode of ''BurnNotice'', a character is offered a meeting in an alleyway. Michael tells him that it's an ambush nad that he'll go instead. H then makes a van bulletproof via phonebooks, before talking a man he wants to keep on his side with him into the alleyway and getting shot up. They get out of the alleyway unhurt.

[[AC:Theatre]]

* In ''MassEffect2'', picking up Subject Zero from Purgatory turns into a trap laid by Warden Kuril to imprison Shepard and sell him/her to the highest bidder.

* ''{{Film/Batman}}'' (1989): Boss Grissom sends [[TheJoker Jack Napier]] to retrieve the incriminating information from Axis Chemical [[UriahGambit so Lieutenant Eckhardt and his team of corrupt cops can kill him]].
* In the ''{{Disney/Aladdin}}'' movie, ''The Return of Jafar'', [[spoiler: Iaga betrays Aladdin and the Sultan by leading them into Jafar's trap. Of course, he later feels sorry and saves all of their lives...]]

* In the JorgeLuisBorges short story ''Death and the Compass'', [[spoiler:the series of [[ConnectTheDeaths connected deaths]] were done for the purpose of luring the detective to a specific location, where his enemy can kill him]].

A character is given a seemingly innocent reason to go to a specific location, but it turns out to be a trick; rather than what they were expecting, they find their enemy lying in wait to capture or kill them. There are many different ways this could be played out: they could be a detective looking for a vital clue or meeting an informant; someone trying to [[BigDamnHeroes heroically rescue]] one of their comrades; or even just someone delivering a message or package. But whatever they expected to find there, it was just a ruse; in fact, they've been lured into a trap.

This is usually a technique used by villains, though there are exceptions to this. Frequently, the one who sent the character is TheMole, in which case this will be played for DramaticIrony (in that the audience can guess it's a trap but the characters won't know any better) or as a clue to TheMole's identity. This can also be the result of a BatmanGambit by the character's enemy.

See also DefensiveFeintTrap. NastyParty and the Malicious Trap variant of PrankDate are subtropes.

'''Spoilers may follow.'''
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!!Examples:

[[AC:{{Film}}]]

* In the ''{{Dragonlance}}'' series Kitiara does this to Laurana by convincing the elfmaid that their mutual LoveInterest, Tanis Half-Elven, has been mortally wounded and wants to see her before he dies which coincidentally enough will require Laurana to leave the safety of the fortified city where her army is stationed and come in person without guards to a meeting site of Kitiara's choosing.

* ''{{Shadowrun}}'' supplement ''Super Tuesday'', adventure "Ghost Story". Fletcher Quinn lures the player characters to an abandoned sporting goods store with a faked message so he can blow them up with the bombs he's planted inside it.

[[AC:Theatre]]

[[AC:VideoGames]]

* In ''DragonAgeOrigins'', as the Warden and party are travelling, a woman will run up to them and ask for help. Going along with her will lead to a trap sprung by Zevran and his fellow assassins.

See also DefensiveFeintTrap. NastyParty and Type 6 of PrankDate are subtropes.

->"It's a trap!"
-->--'''Admiral Ackbar''', ''StarWars Episode VI: ReturnOfTheJedi''

[[AC:{{Comic Books}}]]
* In ''ComicBook/AllFallDown'', [[spoiler:AIQ Squared]] creates this using a [[spoiler: hoax]] massive asteroid and a shrink ray on the moon that runs on Living Batteries.

* ''{{Film/Batman}}'' (1989). Boss Grissom sends Jack Napier to retrieve the incriminating information from Axis Chemical so Lieutenant Eckhardt and his team of corrupt cops can kill him.
* In the Alladin Movie, ''The Return of Jafar'', [[spoiler: Iaga betrays Alladin and the Sultan by leading them into jafar's trap. Of course, he later feels sorry and saves all of their lives...]]

[[AC:Literature]]
* In the JorgeLuisBorges short story ''Death and the Compass'', [[spoiler:the series of [[ConnectTheDeaths connected deaths]] were done for the purpose of luring the detective to a specific location, where his enemy can kill him]].
* In ''{{Deryni}} Checkmate'', Morgan and Duncan have to pay their respects at Saint Torin's shrine to obtain pilgrim badges and enter the city of Dhassa. [[spoiler: Some of Morgan's foes put a drug on a needle on the gate latch, just where anybody would put his hand to open the gate.]] Morgan is drugged and abducted this way.
* In ''HarryPotter/HarryPotterAndTheOrderOfThePhoenix'', Harry and his friends are lured to the Department of Mysteries under the pretense that Voldemort has Harry's godfather, Sirius. It turns out (surprise, surprise) to be a Death Eater ambush.

[[AC:LiveActionTV]]
* ''Series/TheShadowLine'' has an example of this being pulled on a villain. [[spoiler:Gatehouse is sent to kill Jonah Gabriel for [[HeKnowsTooMuch his assumed knowledge of Counterpoint]], yet Gabriel's just bait and Glickman intends to kill Gatehouse when he goes to find him.]]
* In an episode of ''BurnNotice'', a character is offered a meeting in an alleyway. Michael tells him that it's an ambush nad that he'll go instead. H then makes a van bulletproof via phonebooks, before talking a man he wants to keep on his side with him into the alleyway and getting shot up. They get out of the alleyway unhurt.

[[AC:TabletopGames]]
* ''CallOfCthulhu'' campaign ''Shadows of Yog-Sothoth'', adventure "The Worm That Walks". Mr. Edwin sends the player characters out to investigate a haunted house, and they end up getting ambushed by a family of cannibals who knew they were coming (because [[TheMole Mr. Edwin told them]]).
* ''{{Shadowrun}}'' supplement ''Super Tuesday'', adventure "Ghost Story". Fletcher Quinn lures the player characters to an abandoned sporting goods store with a faked message so he can blow them up with the bombs he's planted inside it.
* Classic ''{{Traveller}}'' supplement ''The Traveller Adventure'', adventure "Kidnapped on Aramanx". The villains who kidnapped Lisa Fireaux demand that Gvoudzon deliver the ransom so they can kidnap him as well.

* A mission in the West Side Rollerz mission chain in ''SaintsRow'' features you being lured to a pool hall only to be attacked by Rollerz.

* In ''MassEffect2'', picking up Subject Zero from Purgatory turns into a trap laid by Warden Kuril to imprison Shepard and sell him/her to the highest bidder.

* In the Alladin Movie, ''The Return of Jafar'', [spoiler: Iaga betrays Alladin and the Sultan by leading them into jafar's trap. Of course, he later feels sorry and saves all of their lives...]