Here at Griffon Lore Games, we love us some random encounters. Set up ahead of time, the dice adds that element of “game world interjection” that can (and often is) better than a planned encounter or static location. In this post, you’ll find two helpful tables of random road encounter goodness.
DMs can use the random encounter ability to interject lore into their campaign without the Terrible Lore Infodump™. A handy framework would look like this:
- Geographical regions have their own table segmented out by locations. For example, Overland in the Viscounty of Kandra, On the Imperial Road, The Road Between Terganshire and Tegan’s Bridge,
- Random encounter tables should have a day and night version
- Random encounter tables should have a normal version and a hard version
Triggering the Random Encounter
Use one of the unsung dice heroes from RPG land, the d12. Roll a d12 when:
- The players are moving overland, or in a large city, from point A to point B
- Players arrive at point B
- Every four hours
- Players do something that generates attention
Resist the temptation to fudge the roll. The entire worth of the random encounter is the D&D game’s ability to mix things up in exciting and unexpected ways.
An 11 triggers an encounter. A 12 triggers an encounter from a table modified for difficulty. Roll 2d10 to select the encounter.
Many of your random encounter tables should have simple entires. When the area is short on monsters (in a civilized land), a more robust table provides flair.
Random Encounter: On a Semi-Patrolled Road
The Empire paved the Old Imperial Road in the Viscounty of Kandra—and now the horse-lords maintain it least their commerce traffic drops, and they lose tax income. However, in the land of the horse-lords, merchants are responsible for their own safety. While men-at-arms formally patrol the road, they are there to deal with issues after-the-fact, not to intercept trouble for weak and lazy travelers.
Once an encounter triggers, replace it with a new one for the next session, with “nothing happens,” until you replace it.
The below tables, while set in the Kingdom of Lothmar, are mostly generic with lore that a DM can easily change to suit their setting. And note these are encounters on a road, not camping in the woods at night! Unless the PCs are camping right next to the road itself.
Semi-Patrolled Road: 1d12 with an 11 Result
|
2d10 |
Day |
Night |
| 2 | A passing merchant from the opposite direction with a horse and two mules, flanked by a gnome guard riding a war dog | A camp-fire can be seen from a popular campsite, off the road, and on a bluff.
Camped there are a well-armed merchant and a competent guard—a gnome with a massive war dog. They’ll share a meal with friendly folk, but not their site |
| 3 | A letter courier, riding a swift horse, overtaking the party. He does not stop, but does wave. | A letter courier, riding a swift horse, from the opposite direction. He stops and trades road conditions and regional gossip before moving on
|
| 4 | A cloud of mosquitos hovering over the road | A cloud of annoying mosquitos attracted to any light source
|
| 5 | Four men and a watchful guard making a road repair | The road here was obviously recently repaired
|
| 6 | Circling vultures off the road. Upon investigation, a grizzly bear is munching on the corpse of a deer
|
A grizzly bear wanders into camp but will leave if shooed away. |
| 7 | An odd and unexpected change in the weather | No change
|
| 8 | An extensive merchant wagon train traveling in the same direction, complete with six guards | Off the road, a wagon train with six guards camps for the night
|
| 9 | A patrol of six lancers and their sergeant. They ask if the PCs have seen any trouble on the road. If the PCs look like they are the trouble, they attempt to arrest the PCs and take them back to their lord for questioning | A patrol of six lancers and their sergeant. They ask if the PCs have seen any trouble on the road. If the PCs look like they are the trouble, they attempt to arrest the PCs and take them back to their lord for questioning.
If the PCs are friendly or indifferent, the patrol offers to camp with them, and share the elk they shot earlier |
| 10 | A local lord with his twenty men-at-arms, armored and armed to the teeth and all on horseback. If the PCs are wanted criminals, they give chase | Several men, looking hungry and grim, armed with inferior quality weapons, ask the PCs if they can spare any food. The men are from a city, wanting to go somewhere else due to reduced employment opportunities. They have been contemplating banditry, but are not that desperate—yet
|
| 11 | A merchant with a broken wagon, berating a lone guard trying to fix it | A dead merchant and a broken wagon, filled with supplies for the general store in the next village. The merchant died of sword wounds
|
| 12 | A trio of foxes chasing a hare run across the road | A trio of domesticated foxes are on the side of the road, waiting for some food scraps
|
| 13 | An old elf walking down the road. If questioned, the elf claims he is going to die soon, and always wondered where this road went. He asks PCs not to spoil it
|
A dead elf leaning against a tree by the road, a smile on his face. He died of old age |
| 14 | Over 200 King’s Soldiers marching down the road from the opposite direction. A scout on horseback asks the PCs if there is anything unusual from the direction they came from
|
Camped alongside the road is a small army of professional soldiers wearing the King’s livery. They do not approach the PCs. If approached, they state they are on King’s business, and the PCs need to move along |
| 15 | An apple tree in the middle of the road, out of place, and undoubtedly odd. When the PCs investigate the tree, it disappears, and faint giggling can be heard off in the distance |
A group of pixies with a well-lit fruit stand. Payment must be made in silver only.
The fruit is fresh, even if out of season. If questioned on where they got the fruit, the pixies say, “the archmage gave us a few boxes in return for some dust.” |
| 16 | A ranger on a mighty warhorse with a rather large sword, a dual-bolt crossbow, and a hunting falcon, coming from the opposite direction, with a younger man. The ranger looks grim and capable, and the young man needs better shoes.
If questioned, the ranger indicates he and his nephew are going to visit a friend in a nearby city to talk about some religious matters |
A beautiful woman and a young man, from the opposite direction, walking a rather large warhorse. They ask the PCs if they’ve seen their pet dire wolf.
If questioned, the woman indicates she and her nephew are going to visit a friend in a nearby city to talk about some religious matters |
| 17 | Six bandits chased by 20 men-at-arms. If the soldiers catch them, they hang them on the nearest tree
|
No change |
| 18 | Traveling in the same direction, a farmer, his son, and his comely daughter with a wagon of vegetables and fruit bound for the next town.
If questioned the farmer is friendly, and claims crops were so good this year he has more than he can sell locally |
Two dead farmers and an overturned wagon of fruit and vegetables. If the PCs search, they find a torn dress |
| 19 | An old, ugly woman traveling in the same direction. If the PCs stop and question her, she claims to be an “old witch with tired feet and needing to save her spells.” She requests a ride if the PCs have horses or a wagon, as far up the road as the next town.
As a reward, the Old Witch gives either the prettiest woman a philter of love, with a wink, or the most handsome man a bag of 100 gold pieces, coin of the realm from one hundred years ago. If attacked, she teleports away with a rude gesture |
No change |
| 20 | A pack of dire wolves decides the PCs look like lunch | A fog rolls in and deposits an encounter:
(Party Average Level) +4 Challenge Rating undead Time to roll for initiative |
Semi-Patrolled Road: 1d12 with a 12 Result
|
2d10 |
Day |
Night |
| 2 | A group of merchants and their guards in a heated argument about business practices, ready to come to blows | Off in the distance, PCs can easily hear an argument about business practices. If they investigate they find a group of merchants and their guards, ready to come to blows
|
| 3 | A letter courier, riding a swift horse, overtaking the party. He is wounded and asks for healing, warning that behind him are a “group of nasty stirges” | A letter courier, riding a swift horse, overtaking the party. He is wounded and asks for healing, warning that behind him are a “group of nasty stirges.”
Said stirges show up and attack |
| 4 | A cloud of mosquitos hovering over the road | A cloud of annoying mosquitos attracted to any light source. If they come into contact with a PC, they turn into a giant mosquito swarm and attack
|
| 5 | Four men and a watchful guard making a road repair. They flag the PCs down and ask for help, which will take the rest of the day.
The guard is really a local knight. He won’t bother the PCs if they refuse, but he sure will remember their faces |
The road here was obviously recently repaired, and five tired men, one of them a guard, are resting near the repair.
If the PCs offer them beer or wine, the “guard” tells the PCs to stop by his manor home for a dinner served by his wife and with their “three marriage age” offspring. The knight has significant funds |
| 6 | Circling vultures off the road. Upon investigation, a dire grizzly bear is munching on the corpse of a deer | A dire grizzly bear wanders into camp and will eat all the PCs food. If attacked, he becomes enraged and attacks first every round
|
| 7 | An odd and unexpected change in the weather for the worse:
Spring: Downpour Summer: Summer storm with lightning Fall: Hail and sleet Winter: Blizzard |
The same except with 90+ MPH winds doing 1d4 damage per round to any unsheltered PC, animal companion, or mount.
The effect lasts for 1d4 hours |
| 8 | An extensive merchant wagon train traveling in the same direction, complete with six guards.
One of the wagons is on fire. In 1d4 rounds, it blows up, doing fireball damage to anything nearby |
An extensive merchant wagon train camped on the side of the road, complete with six guards.
One of the wagons is on fire. In 1d4 rounds, it blows up, doing fireball damage to anything nearby |
| 9 | A patrol of twelve lancers and their sergeant. They ask if the PCs have seen any trouble on the road. If the PCs look like they are the trouble, they attempt to arrest the PCs and take them back to their lord for questioning | A patrol of twelve lancers and their sergeant. They ask if the PCs have seen any trouble on the road. If the PCs look like they are the trouble, they attempt to arrest the PCs and take them back to their lord for questioning.
The patrol warns friendly PCs that traveling at night without a light source is an arrestable offense. Any PCs guilty of this are simply given a warning. If the PCs are friendly or indifferent, the patrol offers to camp with them, and share the elk they shot earlier |
| 10 | A local lord with his twenty men-at-arms, armored and armed to the teeth and all on horseback. If the PCs are wanted criminals, they give chase.
Accompanying the party is a squad of rangers, one with tracking hounds, and a mid-level druid |
Six paladins and their men-at-arms stop the PCs. They seem cautious and wary, and claim they are “looking for an aberration.”
They ask each PC to take a test—a pinprick on the finger to see if their blood is red, and they will also do the same in return. f the PCs ask about the Paladin’s quarry, their leader says, “You don’t want to know.” If the PCs persist, the paladins will claim they are chasing some type of “uber slaad.” If the PCs insist on helping the paladins, sometime in the night, the party is attacked by 2d4 Death Slaad. If the PCs refuse the blood test the paladins and their men-at-arms attack—they try to subdue the PCs until one of their own dies in combat, and then, as they say, it’s on. During a lethal battle, the 2d4 Death Slaads show up and attack both groups. |
| 11 | A merchant with a broken wagon, berating a lone guard trying to fix it. The guard suddenly stands up and attacks the merchant | A dead merchant and a broken wagon, filled with supplies for the general store in the next village. The merchant was staked naked over a fire-ant hill
|
| 12 | A trio of foxes chasing a pixie with a broken wing across the road | A trio of domesticated giant foxes with halfling riders stop the PCs and ask them if they have seen “an old elf walking down the road.”
Thus far, the PCs have not |
| 13 | An old elf walking down the road. If questioned, the elf claims he is going to die soon, and always wondered where this road went. He asks PCs not to spoil it.
If the PCs spoil it, he says “ah, man,” and dies of old age right there |
A dead elf leaning against a tree by the road, a smile on his face. He died of old age.
If the PCs deal with the body in the local elf tradition, a courier delivers a package from an anonymous shipper, addressed to the PC that first suggested to take care of the body. Inside is a suit of elven chainmail +2 |
| 14 | Over 200 King’s Soldiers marching down the road from the opposite direction. A scout on horseback asks the PCs if there is anything unusual from the direction they came from | Camped alongside the way is a small army of professional soldiers wearing the King’s livery, secured by a lot of guards.
They ask the PCs pointed questions about the region, seeing if the PCs are local or not. If the PCs refuse to answer, the guards tell them to bugger off down the road or be set upon. If the PCs do not bugger off, the entire camp will attack them. ¼ are awake right now |
| 15 | An apple tree in the middle of the road, out of place, and undoubtedly odd. When the PCs investigate the tree, it falls over, making a mess in the middle of the road | An apple tree in the middle of the road, out of place, and undoubtedly odd. When the PCs investigate the tree, it turns into a confused treant.
If the PCs attack the confused treant, 2d4 other treants animate from a nearby copse of trees and attack. If the PCs help the treant, it gives them all apples that when eaten, cures any diseases or poisons |
| 16 | A ranger on a mighty warhorse with a rather large sword and a hunting falcon, coming from the opposite direction, with a younger man. The ranger looks grim and capable, and the young man needs better shoes.
If questioned, the ranger indicates he and his nephew are going to visit a friend in a nearby city to talk about some religious matters. Insightful PCs will realize this party is composed of ghosts, acting out something that happened to them hundreds of years ago. If confronted as such, they fade away |
A beautiful woman and a young man, from the opposite direction, walking a rather large warhorse. They ask the PCs if they’ve seen their pet dire wolf.
If questioned, the woman indicates she and her nephew are going to visit a friend in a nearby city to talk about some religious matters. Insightful PCs will realize this party is composed of ghosts, acting out something that happened to them hundreds of years ago. If confronted as such, they both fade away, and a pack of dire wolves follow the party for a few miles, sadly howling if approached—before they too, disappear |
| 17 | Six bandits chased by 20 men-at-arms. If the soldiers catch them, they hang them on the nearest tree.
One of the bandits is armed with a wand of fireballs |
Six bandits chased by 20 men-at-arms. If the soldiers catch them, they hang them on the nearest tree.
One of the bandits is armed with a wand of fireballs, and one of the men-at-arms is a high-level ranger |
| 18 | Traveling in the same direction a farmer, his son, and his comely daughter in a wagon of vegetables and fruit, bound for the next town.
If questioned the farmer is friendly, and claims crops were so good this year he has more than he can sell locally. Insightful PCs will note that the daughter seems distressed. The farmer says pay that no mind, she is always skittish around strangers. The young woman suffers from a brain injury and doesn’t like to travel. Everything the farmer and his son says is true. What also is true is that the farmer can’t find a husband for the girl, so he is going to sell her to a brothel |
Two dead farmers and an overturned wagon of fruit and vegetables. If the PCs search, they find a torn dress.
PCs will have a hard time tracking what happened, as the farmers were set upon by a vampire. He plans to make the young woman he took his vampiric paramour If the PCs manage to confront the vampire, he first offers the PCs a bribe to leave him be. Failing that, he will offer to cure the young lady and give her back to the PCs if the PCs in turn pledge to not tell the local authorities of his existence. And failing that, he’ll tell the PCs what he found out—the farmer and his son were going to sell her to a brothel (true), and that the vampire knew he shouldn’t have killed the farmer and his son, but the injustice of it all “just turned my crank, if you know what I mean.” And if that doesn’t go anywhere, he simply teleports away, leaving the farmer’s daughter behind |
| 19 | An old, ugly woman traveling in the same direction. If the PCs stop and question her, she claims to be an “old witch with tired feet and needing to save her spells.”
She requests a ride if the PCs have horses or wagons, as far up the road as the next town. She will also tell curious PCs that “You don’t want to know what my business is, so I’m not gonna tell you.” As a reward for a ride, the Old Witch gives either the prettiest woman a philter of love, with a wink, or the most handsome man a bag of 100 gold pieces, coin of the realm from one hundred years ago. If attacked, she reveals her form as the Goddess of Love. She curses the party and departs in a clap of thunder. Curse: PCs that were married find themselves still married, but their spouses hate them. Unmarried PCs with lovers have them turn bitter at a perceived, terrible insult and will hire an assassin to have the PC killed. One (and only one) PC without a paramour eventually finds out they are married to three argumentative, but attractive young women. Once a month, each will demand the PC divorce the other two, becoming more belligerent with each refusal. The PC is unable to convince any of the wives that he or she has chosen a favorite. If the PC survives this for a year, the wives stop collectively trying to browbeat the PC, tell the PC that next time be nice to old ladies, and reveal themselves as witch-priestesses. The PC then has the option of ridding himself of the trio or staying married |
No change |
| 20 | A giant green dragon flies over the PCs and sits on a road, and demands the PCs cook her bacon. If the PCs don’t have bacon, she will tell them there are plenty of wild boars in the nearby woods.
Refusal of bacon results in one angry dragon |
A giant green dragon flies over the PCs and sits on a road, and demands the PCs camp and share their dinner with her after polymorphing into a beautiful human maiden. She just wants a good meal, but will respond to flirting with “Seriously? Just stop. You’re embarrassing yourself.”
The dragon knows a surprising amount of local gossip, along with regional history. If the PCs refuse or attack the dragon, she disappears, leaving behind a 60ft x 60ft death cloud |
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