Obstacle

An Obstacle is an obstruction that can spawn in the hallway of dungeons. It will prevent the party from moving through the corridor and can be removed either by using a shovel or by hand. If no shovel is used, the party will suffer high health and stress damage as well as reduction of the light meter.

They appear in every dungeon, especially in the Weald, so it is recommended to take at least 2 shovels on any expedition, as the penalties for removing an obstacle by hand are quite severe.

There is also a special obstacle in the Courtyard named "Shifting Mist" that requires a torch instead of a shovel to clear it. If a Torch is not used and is instead cleared by hand, the party will take around 18 stress damage each and be teleported to a random explored location.

Trivia

 * The Ancestor encountered in the final mission of the Darkest Dungeon in corridors counts as an obstacle, but he must be removed manually, because no tool works on him; however, there are no penalties for that.