Alternate Travel Encounter System

[robus]

(Reposting this from memory as it was lost in the great upheaval)


After reading the TOC of the new LotR 5e campaign sourcebook I was inspired to think up a way of improving the random encounter system for long journeys. The 0-1 encounters per day typically used doesn't really provide the cinematic feel (or the interesting challenge) that would make for a memorable journey. In a movie/story, the travelers often have a few days of uneventful travel before having a difficult challenge to overcome: a dangerous river whose only ford is guarded by monsters; a tight mountain pass fraught with peril; a huge storm threatens the ship the PCs are on etc this, of course, is our "adventuring day".


My alternate system attempts to capture at least some of that feel.


1) roll a 2d4 to determine how many days of uneventful travel the party has (or if there is an interesting terrain feature coming up use that as the source of the adventuring day)
2) for the day that encounters occur, roll 2d4 to determine the number of encounters
3) using the random encounter table, roll for (or choose) the encounters from the random encounter table (alternatively come up with your own encounters)
4) think of a narrative that might stitch the encounters together in an interesting manner.


Repeat this process until the party reaches the end of the journey. A couple of exciting days in the midst of a journey will be much more memorable than a constant trickle of trivial encounters.


Don't forget to utilize the excellent Motivated Encounters PDF to give more life to your monsters

 

[MonkeezOnFire]

Repeat this process until the party reaches the end of the journey. A couple of exciting days in the midst of a journey will be much more memorable than a constant trickle of trivial encounters.

I heartily agree. When my group first started playing Out of the Abyss we came from Lost Mines and were dropped in the middle of underdark wilderness. At first our DM ran the random encounters right as the book describes, so we were getting one about every other day. And it was a total, uninteresting slog.

I think your method of uneventful travel followed by one hectic day full of encounters makes for a much more interesting play experience as the players actually have to manage their resources. Of course the tying the encounters together phase will require some thought and creativity from the DM, but the end result is much more memorable if they are able to construct a small narrative of why the PC's encounter such hardship in a particular area.

 

[iserith]

This is the "Travel Phase" that I use for my town-to-dungeon campaign called The Delve. Each session involves going from town to dungeon and back again before session's end, so PCs do the Travel Phase twice per game.

1. Determine Weather

The normal daily temperature in this region is 72 degrees Fahrenheit during the summer, 52 degrees in the Spring and Fall, and 32 degrees in Winter, but can vary. A temperature that is 30+ degrees Fahrenheit colder or hotter than normal imposes disadvantage on Constitution saving throws made to avoid exhaustion due to Forced March. Hot weather requires double water consumption.

A strong wind imparts disadvantage on ranged weapon attack rolls and Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on hearing. Opens flames are extinguished, fog dispersed, and flying by non-magical means impossible.

The clouds carrying rain or snowfall cast the supernaturally dim forest into darkness. Heavy rain or heavy snowfall is lightly obscured, and creatures in the area have disadvantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on sight. Heavy rain also extinguishes open flames and imposes disadvantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on hearing.

See DMG, pages 109-110.


2. Establish Marching Order

Marching order will determine which characters are affected by traps, which ones can spot hidden enemies, and which ones are the closest to those enemies when a fight breaks out.


3. Set Pace

The distance between Grimdark and The Delve is approximately 9 miles. Due to the thickness of the foliage, low visibility, and supernatural effects, the entire trip is considered to be over difficult terrain.

A normal pace takes 6 hours of travel. There is no possibility of stealthy movement at this pace and a normal chance at noticing threats. Chance of random encounter is 45%.

A fast pace takes 4 hours of travel. Stealthy movement is impossible and passive Perception checks suffer a -5 penalty. There is a reduced chance of a random encounter when traveling at this pace as compared to a normal or slow pace. Chance of random encounter is 35%.

A slow pace takes 9 hours of travel. It is possible to move stealthily at this pace which can help with avoiding encounters or gaining surprise. There is a higher chance of a random encounter than when traveling at a normal or fast pace. At the end of this Forced March, all characters must make a DC 11 Constitution saving throw or suffer one level of exhaustion. (This save is made with advantage if the PC lives a comfortable, wealthy, or aristocratic lifestyle.) Chance of random encounter is 60%.


4. Choose and Resolve Exploration Tasks

Unless the character is a ranger in favored terrain, choose one of the following exploration tasks or describe one of your own. Background or other class features may grant benefits to these activities.

Draw a Map that records the group's progress and helps the characters stay on course. Make a DC 10 Intelligence check* to create an accurate map of the party's path through the forest. An accurate map to the Delve can be sold for 25 gp back in Grimdark.

Forage for food and water as the group travels at a normal or slow pace. Make a DC 15 Wisdom (Survival) check* to find 1d6 + Wisdom modifier pounds of food and water in gallons.

Keep Watch for threats to the party's safety. Passive Wisdom (Perception) scores will determine whether those keeping watch notice a hidden threat.

Navigate carefully through the forest to avoid the risk of becoming lost. At least one member of the party must perform this task. Make a DC 15 Wisdom (Survival) check*. Gain a +5 bonus to the check if traveling at a slow pace or a -5 penalty if moving at a fast pace. An accurate map grants advantage to the check. Success means getting to the desired location without getting lost; failure adds +50% more time to the trip.

Track the path of other creatures in the forest. Make a DC 15 Wisdom (Survival) check* (+5 for each day since the creature passed, -5 if the creature left a trail such as blood). Success means catching up to your quarry or avoiding it entirely. Failure means losing the trail and the quarry or the quarry finding the party instead.

* This assumes something about the resolution of the task is uncertain. Grant automatic success or failure depending on the stated goal and approach plus the fictional circumstances at that time.


5. Check for Random Encounter

Roll 1d20 plus the number of hours spent traveling through the Duskwood. Random encounters occur on a 18+ on a d20 roll. In some cases, the check may have advantage or disadvantage.

 

[MrHotter]

I don't like fights that are just for the sake of fighting. My games tend to be more story oriented and less combat focused.

I like your idea of having a 'random' encounter be more of a mini-dungeon like a guarded bridge or coming across a small tower while traveling. That gives us a chance to have interesting encounters that add to the story with the potential for rewards.

For my game, travel has a planned event (not always combat), or I make it a skill challenge (like 4E). That makes it more than just teleporting to the new location, but does not fill up the game time with random boring battles that have no purpose.

An example from my game is my 'random' encounters table for my Curse of Strahd game. (minor spoilers)

I picked out the random encounters I liked from the random encounters tables in the book and sprinkle them in when I feel like it. I like the ones where the players come across something to investigate, or where they see something interesting. There are already interesting things along the roads to discover (like a windmill or a gallows) so I don't put in extra events unless the party is being reckless.

An example of a skill challenge for my game is when traveling from Vallaki to Krezk where the party is harassed by wolves. Each player tells me what they are going to do to try to arrive safely and we make skill checks. They each have two rolls and we pause as they reach crossroads in case they decide to change plans. If they fail the skill challenge then they would get to Krezk with a level of exhaustion and with half their hit dice. I just need to make sure that the adventure continues without an immediate chance to take a long rest.

If they tried to make the journey at night then they would have a level of exhaustion even if they succeeded in their skill challenge. Failing at night would mean they are forced to stop traveling and find a place to defend themselves. The sun would come up with them having no HD and a level of exhaustion with more miles to travel.

 

[iserith]

I don't like fights that are just for the sake of fighting.

They are, at a minimum, about acquiring experience points, treasure, and Inspiration, provided your game includes these elements. Depending on how you use them, they are also about resource management: Do you go looking for trouble in order to net XP or do you avoid trouble to marshal your resources for more difficult challenges?

 

[TheCosmicKid]

I don't like fights that are just for the sake of fighting. My games tend to be more story oriented and less combat focused.

"Your travels take you through hostile wilderness" is sometimes an important part of the story. A random encounter system can be a good way to model that. Especially if the decisions the party makes (speed, stealth, the main road vs. the shortcut, etc.) have a material effect on the roll.

 

[robus]

"Your travels take you through hostile wilderness" is sometimes an important part of the story. A random encounter system can be a good way to model that. Especially if the decisions the party makes (speed, stealth, the main road vs. the shortcut, etc.) have a material effect on the roll.

The problem with this approach is that the players become conditioned to the fact that there will at most one random encounter so the threat is not a big deal. My approach presents the hostile terrain in a much more unpredictable manner. And, sure, you can keep the random daily encounter if you want some ongoing flavor.

 

[TheCosmicKid]

The problem with this approach is that the players become conditioned to the fact that there will at most one random encounter so the threat is not a big deal.

Who said there would be at most one random encounter? My comment was encounter-roll-system-neutral.

 

[robus]

Who said there would be at most one random encounter? My comment was encounter-roll-system-neutral.

My apologies, I assumed you were referencing the standard random encounter tables. You certainly were not!

 

[wedgeski]

I don't rely on random encounter tables for much more than inspiration or flavour, and I don't see travel as just the thing that happens between adventures. It's prime real-estate for encounter design. You can expose so much of the campaign and its themes to the players by building encounters that illuminate their own goals and the goals of their enemies. Later, they're going to be teleporting and plane-shifting around like crazy, IMO you *need* to use those early levels effectively if you want to build a memorable campaign!