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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mengu" data-source="post: 5681958" data-attributes="member: 65726">I don't do "random" encounters either. But to create that tension and possibility of wondering monsters, I will prep encounters to pull out and play. Perhaps the PC's are exploring some woods, looking for an old ruin. Before they set out on the journey they will hear of some threats in the woods, like perhaps gnolls, and the occasional dinosaur. They won't hear about the band of trolls, the insect swarms that come out at night, the dark fey that protect their territories vigilantly, or the mad wraiths of those who died in the woods, and haunt their scenes of death. So I prepare a few of these as combat encounters, maybe some as skill challenges, and some as simply tracks or clues they see, to keep them on their toes. I would likely be running the "search" as an extended skill challenge, and at appropriate points of failure, I might pull out one of the encounters I have prepared. And eventually, they will go through everything I have prepared, so my work is not likely to go to waste. I'm a lazy DM and don't want to put in time for things PC's will never do.The difference between "random" and "predetermined" is pretty inconsequential when you are in the player chair. Monsters appear, you fight them. Whether the DM rolled them randomly before the game, or during the game, is irrelevant, the monsters are there, and you're fighting them. The randomness can simply be built into the story, rather than a DM mechanic.</blockquote>

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