An endless stream of random encounters

[Imaculata]

The wounded knight

A severely wounded knight lies along side the road, the victim of a horrible beast. The DM can randomly decide what manner of beast it is, and what wounds the knight has. He pleads the party for healing. The DM may also decide that the knight is poisoned by the creature, which the players will need to detect in order to save his life.

If they help him, he promises to reward them. They should seek him out at his mansion in a nearby city, where he offers them food, lodging, and gold. The knight can also point the party in the direction of the beast that attacked him. But they will need to succeed at a wisdom (survival) check DC 16 to track it down.

The crone's hut

The players see a large tree in the distance, with a small hut hidden amongst its branches. A simple elevator with a counter-weight, takes the party up to the hut. An old crone lives here. She is only here during the day. At night she is out collecting herbs and magical components.

The crone offers to help the party, if they fetch some very specific herbs for her from a nearby treacherous location. In return she will make the party some healing potions, and provide directions. If they hand her the wrong ingredients, she will feel betrayed, and will attack the players.

The meteor

At night the party is witness to a meteor landing in a nearby forest. They will need to succeed at a Wisdom (survival) check DC 14 to locate where the meteor crashed. During the day it will be nearly impossible to locate the meteor. The meteor has caused a large crater, and set several trees on fire. The meteor can be harvested for precious metal, which can be used to forge weapons of a powerful steel at a skilled blacksmith. But the meteor may also be guarded by evil demonic creatures who hitched a ride along with it.

 

[Blue]

The Cages: 2d3 Thugs lead 8d6 Commoners trapped in wooden cages loaded onto the backs of 2 carts, each pulled by 2 Horses. The Thugs have no intention of attacking the party. Instead they will happily trade words, items or even services with party members, and only fight if they are attacked.

The real treasure here is the four horses that can pull up to 48 commoners.

 

[Hriston]

The party is travelling through a forest. They are standing on the lower slopes of a hill, about 10 ft. above the level of the surrounding forest floor. The hill rises behind them to a height of 200 ft. and is covered in dense woods. Straight ahead and to the right are more dense woods, but about 25' to the left is an area of rough open ground. About half a mile distant, they can see a large shell keep rising up out of the forest. If the party eventually travels to the keep, they will find it in disrepair and completely deserted.

About 50' ahead of the party is a patrol group moving stealthily on foot through the dense woods. The patrol is composed of a Ranger, his Lieutenant, a Sergeant, four Fighting men, and 21 Regular soldiers. It is accompanied by a Wizard. If the party averages below 5th level, there are only two Fighting men and no Regular soldiers.

Ranger: AC 18 (breastplate and shield); HP​ 54 (12d8); Speed 30 ft.

STR 10 (+0) DEX 14 (+2) CON 10 (+0) INT 13 (+1) WIS 14 (+2) CHA 15 (+2)
Saves Str +3, Dex +5; Skills Nature +4, Stealth +5, Survival +5; Languages any three languages
Land's Stride. Nonmagical difficult terrain costs no extra movement, and saving throws against plants that are magically created or manipulated to impede movement are made with advantage.​

Spellcasting. The ranger is an 8th-level spellcaster. Its spellcasting ability is Wisdom (spell save DC 13, +5 to hit with spell attacks). It has the following ranger spells prepared:​

• 
  [*=1]1st level (4 slots): cure wounds, hunter's mark, longstrider
  [*=1]2nd level (3 slots): ​pass without trace, spike growth

Multiattack. The ranger makes two attacks.
Rapier. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit. Hit: 6 (1d8 + 2) piercing damage.
Dagger. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, range 20/60 ft. Hit: 4 (1d4 + 2) piercing damage.​

Wizard: AC 12 (15 with mage armor); HP 24 (7d8 - 7); Speed 30 ft.

STR 16 (+3) DEX 14 (+2) CON 8 (-1) INT 20 (+5) WIS 11 (+0) CHA 8 (-1)
Saving Throws Int +8, Wis +3; Skills Arcana +8, History +8; Languages any one language
Spellcasting. The wizard is a 7th-level spellcaster. Its spellcasting ability is Intelligence (spell save DC 16, +8 to hit with spell attacks). It has the following wizard spells prepared:​

• 
  [*=1]Cantrips (at will): fire bolt, light, mage hand, prestidigitation
  [*=1]1st level (4 slots): detect magic, mage armor, magic missile, shield
  [*=1]2nd level (3 slots): misty step, suggestion
  [*=1]3rd level (3 slots): counterspell, fireball, fly
  [*=1]4th level (1 slot): greater invisibility, ice storm

Quarterstaff. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit. Hit: 6 (1d6 + 3) bludgeoning damage, or 7 (1d8 + 3) bludgeoning damage if used with two hands.
Dagger. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, range 20/60 ft. Hit: 5 (1d4 + 3) piercing damage.​

Lieutenant: AC 18 (breastplate and shield); HP 38 (7d8 + 7); Speed 30 ft.

STR 12 (+1) DEX 18 (+4) CON 12 (+1) INT 18 (+4) WIS 12 (+1) CHA 5 (-3)
Saving Throws Str +3, Con +3; Skills Athletics +3, Perception +3; Languages any one language
Weapon Bond. The lieutenant can't be disarmed of its rapier unless incapacitated.
Spellcasting. The lieutenant is a 4th-level spellcaster. Its spellcasting ability is Intelligence (spell save DC 14, +6 to hit with spell attacks). It has the following wizard spells prepared:​

• 
  [*=1]Cantrips (at will): fire bolt, light
  [*=1]1st level (3 slots): detect magic, mage armor, magic missile, shield

Multiattack. The lieutenant makes two attacks.
Rapier. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit. Hit: 8 (1d8 + 4) piercing damage.
Dagger. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, range 20/60 ft. Hit: 6 (1d4 + 4) piercing damage.​

Sergeant: AC 18 (breastplate and shield); HP 27 (5d8 + 5); Speed 30 ft.

STR 7 (-2) DEX 14 (+2) CON 12 (+1) INT 13 (+1) WIS 13 (+1) CHA 13 (+1)
Saving Throws Str +0, Con +3; Skills Athletics +0, Perception +3; Languages any one language
Multiattack. The sergeant makes two attacks.
Rapier. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit. Hit: 6 (1d8 + 2) piercing damage.
Dagger. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, range 20/60 ft. Hit: 4 (1d4 + 2) piercing damage.​

Fighting man: AC 18 (breastplate and shield); HP 18 (4d8); Speed 30 ft.

STR 12 (+1) DEX 14 (+2) CON 10 (+0) INT 14 (+2) WIS 8 (-1) CHA 11 (+0)
Saving Throws Str +3, Con +2; Skills Athletics +3, Perception +1; Languages any one language
Rapier. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit. Hit: 6 (1d8 + 2) piercing damage.
Dagger. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, range 20/60 ft. Hit: 4 (1d4 + 2) piercing damage.​

Regular soldier: AC 16 (chainshirt and shield); HP 13 (2d8 + 4); Speed 30 ft.

STR 11 (+0) DEX 12 (+1) CON 14 (+2) INT 10 (+0) WIS 11 (+0) CHA 10 (+0)
Skills Perception +2; ​Languages any one language
Shortbow. Ranged Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, range 80/320 ft. Hit: 4 (1d6 + 1) piercing damage.
Shortsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit. Hit: 4 (1d6 + 1) piercing damage.​

 

[Harzel]

A cloud of dust and... : The party is travelling across an arid plain. In the distance, perhaps a few miles away, a plume of dust appears and then slowly dissipates. After a few minutes, another plume appears, a bit closer. The phenomenon continues for about 15 minutes, with the plumes getting closer and closer, although they do not seem to be tracking a particularly straight line. Finally, a dust cloud erupts just 100 yards away, although there is no visible cause. A moment later the PCs see the earth being raised up from underneath, progressing in a path headed straight for them. A few seconds later, the ground just 10 yards away erupts, throwing a gout of earth into the air and creating a cloud of dust that obscures the area for 30 seconds or so. After the dust settles, there is an oblong metal dome about 10 feet long and 5 feet wide visible in the center of the disturbed area. A hatch in the top of the dome opens and after a brief pause, a small figure emerges. If the party has not fled too far away, the figure hails them. "Haloo!", says Finsten Weddlenob, the intrepid gnome explorer. "Say, can you tell me where I am?" If the party is not visible or is too far away to be easily noticed, Finsten wanders around for a few minutes, surveying the landscape, then re-enters the hatch, closes it, dives back into the earth and continues on in approximately the direction he was headed.


Flipper?: The party is on an ocean voyage. One day, as they are gazing over the rail, a pair of dolphins starts to swim along side the ship, leaping in and out of the waves. After a few minutes, the dolphins get a little ways ahead of the ship, then turn and "stand up" in the water (as dolphins are wont to do). Then, just as the ship is passing, they squeak out in chittery, but passable Common, "Come play with us! Come play!" Are they really dolphins, or something more... sinister? And what sort of games to they have in mind?

 

[Hriston]

While travelling across an uninhabited plain, the party spots a group of 7 hippogriffs about 720 ft. away. Apart from a stream that crosses the party's path about halfway to where the hippogriffs are busy foraging for food, the plain is otherwise featureless. If the party's average level is below 5th, there are only 6 hippogriffs.

 

[Imaculata]

The fisherman's hut

The party encounters a small fisherman's hut near a body of water (river/lake/ocean). The fisherman can provide the party with a means of crossing a nearby water obstacle, or make catching fish a little bit easier.

He sells boats and oars at low prices:

Rowboat (3 persons): 25gp
Canoe (1 person): 13gp
Oar: 1gp

He also sells bait and lures that reduce the DC of Wisdom(survival) checks for catching fish by 1 or 2, aslong as it is in a location where fish can be found at all.

Bait (5 uses, reduces DC by 1): 1sp
Lure (reduces DC by 1): 1gp

Crocodile Creek

The party encounters a large lake, with several rope bridges across. There's a small island in the middle of the lake. The lake is surrounded by trees, and the water is muddy and full of leafs and wooden logs. A successful DC 10 Wisdom(Survival) check reveals that the lake is full of crocodiles. They can also see a small 2-person wooden boat lying at the shore, with 2 oars. A successful DC 16 Wisdom(Survival) check reveals that a crocodile is waiting near the boat. If the players get close to it, the crocodile will rush out of the water at lightning speed.

Four rope bridges span the lake:

• The first rope bridge is perfectly safe, and well maintained.
• A successful DC 12 Wisdom(Perception) check reveals that the second bridge is unsafe, and will collapse if more than one person steps at it at a time. Once across it leads to a small island in the middle of the lake, where 2 crocodiles are sleeping. The players can pass them with a successful Dexterity(Stealth) check.
• The third bridge is fine.
• The fourth and last bridge is hanging partially in the water. The players can attempt a 12 ft. jump across the gap. If they fail, they end up in the water with the crocodiles.

The top of the waterfall

The players encounter a raging river that plummets down a 40ft. waterfall. The players can attempt to jump across some rocks, which requires two successful 14 ft. jumps. They can also attempt to swim across, which is a DC 16 strength(athletics) check. Climbing down the waterfall is also a possibility, and requires a DC 14 strength(athletics) check. It is much easier to cross the river once the players climb all the way down. They can also travel up-river to look for a way across, but this will easily add half a day to their traveling time.

The dust storm

A massive dust storm moves towards the party, obscuring all sight as soon as they enter. The DM must decide from which direction the dust storm is coming. Treat the effect of the dust storm as if it is very dense fog. It takes at least an hour to travel through the dust storm on foot, and any faster mode of travel would simply be too dangerous (you can't see where you are going). The party must make a navigation check with disadvantage each hour. If they fail, add an extra hour of travel to their journey, and roll for a random direction they traveled in. If after an hour they are still inside the dust storm (for example if they move directly in the direction the storm is coming from), they must make a new navigation check.

The dust storm can have an environmental or super-natural cause. It may even have been caused by a creature. Optionally, the DM can decide that hostile creatures live inside the dust storm, or that there is a lightning hazard while inside the storm.

 

[Gwarok]

Some friends and I made up a whole list of random encounters we wanted to turn into adventure cards back in 3.5 days, but we never could find a good artist to work with. Here are a few of them, apologies for any lingering 3.5ness in them I may have failed to scrub.

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EVIL SHRINE - Description: Carved into the side of a hill deep in the woods, are steps where step should not be. They lead to a clearing at the top, a clearing which of not visible from the valley or surrounding hills. As you enter the circle, an uneasy feeling comes over you, unclear visions of of dark things and words spoken in alien tongues play briefly in the back of your mind. Around the clearing in the trees are small totems. Straw figues of people and animals hang from branches. They are stained with symbols written in blood or ink upon them. Twigs and small branches are bent and tied in strange, arcane shapes and placed on the ground and also hung in the trees like the totems.

In the middle of the clearing is a large stone slab, stained dark with what you can only assume is a copious amount of dried blood. The top of this slab is flat and smooth save for a depression in it that would accomodate a human figure. On the south side of the stone are carved characters and pictograms whose meanings are obvious and make your blood run cold.

Interaction: In the old language above the pictograms is the inscription "New blood on the new moon, and ye shall learn to tread on dark paths." At this shrine, every new moon, if blood is sacrificed, lethal to the giver, he or she who leads the ceremony becomes more powerful. With a DC 20 Religion check and a sacrifice you get xp based on what you sacrificed. Plus 1 to the check for each follower you have that assists in the ceremony. XP as follows:

Animal Blood - 100xp, Goats Blood 500xp, Human Blood 1000xp, Virgins Blood 2000xp. The ritual can be performed but once per month and failure on the DC check means that the ritualist is cursed with a random curse.

Background: This was once the site a local druid who invoked dark gods as well as the light to protect the people of this region and see that the blood rituals were observed lest the dark gods come and take what they wanted instead of what the people were ready to give. That particular group of druids was destroyed long ago. But if thats true, who put the totems up?

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Troll Under The Bridge -Old Greenbelly

Special: Old Greenbelly's mother was a scrag troll; like a scrag, he has a 30' swim speed and can breathe underwater. Unlike normal scrags, he can regenerate out of the water. He's a bit arthritic now, but still strong and tough. He's also considerably brighter and more personable than your average troll.

Possessions: none (treasure buried at the bottom of the river, see below).

Trap (creaky bridge) CR0; Mechanical; location trigger; automatic reset; allows Old Greenbelly a second unpenalized Listen check to catch passersby; Search DC 15, Disable Device 20. Market Price: 0gp. (No XP should be awarded for the trap -- just fold it into the XP for the overall encounter.)

Description: "The path leads you to the banks of a 80' wide river. A 10' wide wooden bridge spans the river only about five feet from the surface of the dark, turbulent water. The bridge looks old, but sturdy and serviceable. A weathered sign by the side of the road says, 'Beware Old Greenbelly! Be sure to pay the Toll!' Someone has carved in an extra 'r' between the 'T' and the 'o'."

Background: Old Greenbelly has been living under this bridge for decades. In his youth, many young knights and warriors came to slay him. He ate them all. Now Old Greenbelly is arthritic, feeling the effects of age, and just wants peace and quiet. On occasion, he'll rise from the river to collect some sort of nominal toll from passersby -- food (a few sheep or goats), gold, whatever. As long as he's pacified with a bribe, he's not particularly dangerous... and he's even been known to have brief conversations with passersby. The local townspeople know of Old Greenbelly, and take a strange pride in their famous local resident. "He's our troll, and he's never been defeated," they say proudly. Ah, those countryfolk.

Interaction: The river is quite deep (30') and rapidly widens to over 150' not far from the bridge. It will take a day's travel to find a suitable fording point. PCs who try to swim across face a DC 15 swim check, with an additional -2 circumstance penalty due to the rapids. Old Greenbelly is hidden just underwater, taking a light afternoon snooze on a submerged rock just underneath the bridge. A DC 20 spot check will detect the troll's form just under the water, near the middle of the bridge. Characters with Knowledge (local) may make a DC 10 check to have heard stories about Old Greenbelly and have a decent guess at his hiding place.

Old Greenbelly's hearing is still quite sharp, and he will hear PCs who enter the river and start splashing around. He may also make Listen checks (at -10) for PCs who try to sneak across the bridge. If the PCs trigger the creaky bridge "trap", Old Greenbelly may re-roll his Listen check for each traveller, this time with no penalty. If roused, he hauls himself up onto the bridge in one smooth motion and roars at the PCs. "Whur's ma TOLL!" Old Greenbelly always tries to charge newbies much more than regular travelers; he'll ask for 100gp per head, but he's willing to accept as low as 25gp. (For locals, the charge is 1gp or less.) He'll also take food offerings ("yer horsies luk TASTY!"). Old Greenbelly also has a soft spot for music and stories; a DC 10 Perform check or DC 20 Diplomacy check will get the PCs by for free.

This encounter can be quite dangerous for a low-level party; award XP for a CR2 encounter if the PCs successfully cross the bridge by either sneaking across or negotiating with Old Greenbelly. If the PCs foolishly attack Old Greenbelly, he simply tries to chase them off by slapping them around a bit with one claw. He'll only start rending the PCs if he is seriously hurt. Should the PCs somehow manage to slay him, his treasure lies buried in a chest just under the mud at the bottom of the river: 2000gp in silver and gold coin, 500gp in assorted jewelry, and a +2 cold iron dagger. (DC 25 Search check in the murky water.)

 

[Gwarok]

Rodrick the Cruel, Black Jack, Fighters 5th

Possesions: +1 Battle Axe/+1 Longsword, Studded Leather Armor, Lrg Wooden Shield, Light War Horse,

Mob Member(14), 1st Lvl Commoner

Description: Suddenly you hear the thunder of hooves, sounds like a heard heading your way. Riding in your direction is a large, unsavory looking band of men. All of them are armed and scowling. One of them sees you and shouts to the others. They whoop and ride up and form a loose circle around your party. The group seems to be made up of drunken brawlers and other degenerates. DC 10 spot check to notice several of them have nooses on their saddles.

Interaction: The leader of the mob, Scarl, will canter his horse in front of the others. "Yar there lads, have you seen two rotten scoundrel dogs wot look like outta werk soldiers dressed in rags? One had him a patch on his eye. Tha o'er of em knifed good 'ole Slim Jones in the back, and we aim to see em swing afore the days out. Pay for deputizin be 1 silver a day, plus food. When we catch'd em, ya get a piece o' gold. By the looks uv ya lot ya know which end o'the sword means business." Scarl is the town deputy and has hastily assembled this posse to track down the attackers.

Background: Rodrick and Jack are worshippers of Erythuul. They thought it would be a good idea to rile up this small community and lure out the few men of fighting worth into a trap. They went to town, started a fight in the local saloon and did indeed stab Slim jones in the back. Slim is still alive, but in bad shape. He was the tavern owner. After they deal with the men, they are going to go back to town, kill everyone they can find and burn the small village to the ground.

The posse most likely will be in dire straights if they go head to head with killers like these two, but hopefully the PC's balance out the struggle. If the PC's are obviously well armed or the fight goes sorely against them, Rodrick and Jack will try play for the PC's sympathy. They will claim that the fight was instigated by the townsfolk, and that Slim Jones was cheating. They will ask to go their way and leave in peace, even giving up a potion of Cure Lights Wounds to heal Slim as a goodwill gesture. They will of course come back and get revenge when the PC's are no longer around. Any character with Gather Information or similarly appropriate skill can make a DC 20 check to know that both Rodrick and Black Jack are wanted men with a 200gp reward on the both of them.

 

[Imaculata]

Cursed ruins

In the distance the party can see the silhouette of a castle on a hill. As they approach the fortification, they notice it is in ruins. The castle has a drawbridge with broken chains and rotten wood. The walls have crumbled on multiple sides, and the castle lacks any ceilings or furniture. One of the towers leans to one side, while another has been destroyed completely. There are many charred spots in the castle where fires have burned. Most of the castle is covered in vines now, and any catapults and other weapons have rotted away. The players can find a cellar full of old weapons, but most of them will be rusted and useless. With a successful Intelligence (Investigation) check DC 14, the players can salvage some weapons (DM's choice).

The castle has an inner moat as well as an outer moat. There's a second defensive wall in the courtyard, to protect the inner part of the castle. The water in the moats is green and dark, and the remains of many corpses fester below the surface. Many of the castle walls have old broken siege weapons on them, as if a war had been waged a long time ago. Catapults and ballistas are slowly rotting away, and they are useless.

The castle is also cursed. Determine the nature of the curse by rolling a D8 on the table below:

1> The castle is haunted, and every night the ghosts reenact the war that killed them. An army of ghosts attack the castle, while another army of ghosts tries to defend it.
2> All of the former inhabitants are encased in stone. This curse cannot be undone, even with a stone to flesh spell, since the people inside the stone are quite dead.
3> The castle is infested with giant vermin. This could be giant spiders, or centipedes, or something else.
4> The castle is occupied by an army of kobolts, who defend the castle fiercely.
5> The castle slowly drains the health of anyone in it. Every night everyone suffers 1 temporary constitution damage and is unable to get a full night's rest due to terrible nightmares.
6> The skeletons in the castle come alive at night, and attack anyone they see.
7> The castle is the home of a vampire, who may be either hostile or friendly.
8> The castle is home to an evil dragon who sleeps below the surface of the castle's inner moat.

 

[Hriston]

The party encounters a road that stretches in either direction across an uninhabited plain. On the other side of the road, about 360 ft. away, the ground begins to rise in a steep slope up to a height of more than 300 feet. Another 360 ft. beyond the road, part way up the slope, is the ramshackle habitation of a band of ogres. Living here are 10 regular ogres* (as per MM), 10 "noncombatant" ogres: HP 51 (6d10 + 18), that melee only with javelins (+6 to hit, 11 (2d6 + 4) piercing damage), and 6 young ogres: size medium, HP 7 (1d8 + 3), STR 14 (+2), Javelin: +4 to hit, 5 (1d6 + 2) piercing damage.

*If the party's average level is below 5th, there are only 6 regular ogres present in the lair.