Woodland Encounter Table
Do you often struggle to make up encounters on the fly? One of our most celebrated Rolldark Game Masters Jacob Warr has kindly shared an encounter table for you to steal, enjoy and punish your players with!
When an encounter is rolled while travelling in the woods, roll 1d8 and consult the table below:
Forgotten Barrow - 1d3 sword wraiths skirmish eternally beneath shaded boughs, cursed to war without end for failing their chief. Can possess living creatures as action (WIS 13 negates, re-roll on damage). Can be distracted w/ gallon fresh blood. On initiative 20/every 5 mins play-time, 1d3 more appear (recharge 5-6). Cannot move more than 300ft from barrow, nor within 60ft of it. - ECL 5-8 Single room Barrow contains Chief Myrrdach (sword wraith commander), who will pass sword off to worthy successor (pers/dec DC 18, adv if case presented IN EPIC SONG!), or fight to final death on fail (“none worthy, so what’s the point in waiting?”). Loot: either rare magic sword (empowered by Myrrdach’s spirit) or gold torques, rings & cloak pins worth approx. 250gp - ECL 8
Phase spider ambush - 1d3+1 phase spiders Waiting in ambush (Perception 18 to spot) in trees above. They web down to tag people at the back as quietly as possible. Will attempt to grab & flee w/2+ pc’s, taking them back to their nest in canopy (remember: predators! Don’t fight to death/if spotted - they only have to be lucky once). Chase sequence if they get away. - 20gp in webbed-up corpse in nest, else harvest poison/ethereal jaunt component? - ECL 3/5/8/9
Woodsmen - Arii pioneers - know local area, reticent, but with encouragement (DC 13 whatever) can inform pc’s about destination of choice & threats. Threats: Preroll next encounter - woodsmen know this is there. Knowledge is generic (“don’t go near that hollow, phasies use it for ambush!). Have woodsman-y equipment for barter, can be hired??? Names: Condo, Manno, Vanissi, Tosca, Armatius If combat, 1d6+2 commoners, 1-in-3 chance 1d3 are scouts - ECL 1
THE PLOT THICKENS - insert expedition-dependent encounter here: cf. Well of Desire, Price of Knowledge, One for Sorrow, Rooting for You, What Dies in Darkness, Great Hunts
Green horse barded for war munches grass in a glade. Animal-handling 15 for it to approach & not flee, disadv. If steel visible, presents as fey to relevant magics. No bit or bridle, but barded w/ leather, bone and bronze scales. Clearly a fine beast, colour aside. Can offer to attune if enough of rapport is built. can pluck feather token - bird from headdress if bold. Will leave or go back to munching once it gets bored. Stats as nightmare if necessary. Ember’s favoured steed (cf. Doom Pool) - ECL 2
Minotaur Knight - Figure slumbering against tree, wearing antiquated, bronze plate armour (AC 17) half-covered in moss and soil. Tree releases sleeping spores to anyone w/in short distance of trunk (Stealth/Survival 13 to avoid, CON 13 to resist). Ser Mora, a Knight (as statblock, but w/ AC 17 & +2d6 charge) is weakened from his slumber, but thankful. Will ask for rations to refuel, and then wander off to find some kind of reference point. Carrying potion of gaseous form & potion of mind reading, 25gp in old denomination.
Connaid tribe religious procession - 30-odd folk, mostly civilians, lead a musical procession down the forest trail. They are on the way to the Torretor as a coming-of-age ritual for the young folk in their tribe. They will stonewall pc’s as they likely resemble “colonists” (persuasion 10 to open up, adv if done by minotaur/tiefling/visibly connaid-aligned). They know of an old threat (persuasion 15 to inform about something from the Doom Pool table) Names: Berna, Tandulla, Boudia If combat - 2d4 tribal warriors, 1x berserker, 1x bard - ECL 5-6
Fey trader - A satyr (“Buck”) sitting on a stump offers magical items for a promise or two. Baahing goat voice, chatters teeth. Gets pissy if you mention his estranged sister, Doe. Feature: fey glamour - WIS 12 vs charm w/in 15ft, immune on success. Items = assortment of uncommon wondrous items, whimsically reskinned w/cruel sting in the tale, a Geas for each (as lvl 5 spell, no save ‘cos willingly undertaken). Couple rare items for 2 Geas. Wishes to trade away the meanest item for the greatest bane. Empowered to offer archfey warlock pact to one person. Patron = the lady of winter - her power is limited here, so wants agents/leverage. ECL 2, 5 once Geas resolved.
Supplement - 1d6 fey Geases
A lock of hair/scales - can be tracked unerringly by whoever they sell it to
Memory - loss of proficiency in instrument/artisan’s tools
Forgo touch of iron - wearing iron/steel armour affects as if heat metal, 1d6 radiant damage if touching/hit by iron - can be averted with gloves, for a time.
Become a moon hound for seven days, enacted at any time within 30 days - see “ember” below
Give your single darkest secret to the merchant - will definitely come back to haunt you
Speak only in rhyme for the next seven days