Sunday, March 10, 2019

Some Different Random Road Encounters

Moebius - Octotyr - From "La Faune
de Mars"  - Moebius Productions,
Stardom - Paris (March 2011)
Not to criticize our GM, but I'll probably scream the next time our party is on the road and we get attacked by stergis, goblins, wolves, or bears. Random encounters lose their interest when the same ones are repeated too often. With that in mind, I have tried my hand at creating some new encounters. I hope you can use some of them.

1.    Dog just off the road is barking. He does not act aggressive. As you get closer you see that he is wounded and keeps running back into the brush. There you find a young maid lying unconscious.
2.    Tracks cross the road indicate a large herd of beasts has crossed the road recently (dung is still soft). A naturalist in the party can identify the hoof prints (saurian).
3.    Vultures are circling the woods up ahead. Two corpse have been stripped of all valuables. They have been brutally hacked possibly by axes.
4.    A skunk has recently dropped its scent nearby. Your sense of smell is assaulted for the next quarter mile of travel.
5.    Sudden gale. Seek shelter in the nearby rocks. It lasts an hour and the party is completely drenched.
6.    Spot a bush of ripe blackberries beside the road.
7.    Cross a small, clear running stream.
8.    An ancient road marker indicated a crossroads, but there is little left to show of the old road that once crossed here.
9.    Just off the road you see a couple of fat rabbits grazing in the grass.
10.  A halfling tinker riding a goat cart. He will tell you rumors he has heard while sharpening your weapons.
11.  A family of prootwaddles (1d+2) camping in a gully just off the road.
12.  A wandering priest. He will ask for alms and give a blessing to each member of the party who contributes.
13.  A small trail leads off perpendicular to the road’s direction. You see heavy boot prints in the dirt.
14.  The wind picks up as a sylph (air elemental: ST: 20, DX: 12, IQ: 8, MA: 20) appears and begins dancing around your party. She will throw leaves and sand in your faces for 3d+2 minutes below leaving.
15.  The party takes a few minutes to rest in the shade of some rocks beside the road. One member disturbs a small one-foot Scolopendra (ST: 2, DX: 13, IQ: 2, MA: 8, Bite: 1 hit, DX -2) in a rock crevice. If captured alive it is it is worth $200 when sold as a pet. Its poison is a spell ingredient.
16.  You come upon a party with a broken wagon wheel. Two female figures inside the wagon refuse to get out even though it would make the repairs easier. The rest of the party contains a driver, an armed footman, and an intimidating looking man-at-arms.
o  Driver – ST12, DX11, IQ9, MA10, Brawling, crossbow, knife, lasso, animal handler (2), driver, toughness (2), light crossbow (2d), dagger.
o  Footman – ST9 DX12(11) IQ11 MA12, Knife, Sword, Alertness(2), Silent Movement (2), Courtly Graces, Horsemanship, Fencer (3), Rapier(1d), Dagger, Cloth Armor(1).
o  Man-at-arms - ST10 DX13(10) IQ13 MA10(6) Knife, Sword, Shield, Alertness(2), Charisma(2), Diplomacy, Unarmed Combat I, Tactics, Business Sense(2), Strategist(2), Cutlass(2d-2), Dagger, Small Shield(1), Chainmail(3).
17.  A bear cub walks out and sits in the middle of the road in front of you and calmly begins eating a large piece of fruit. Where is momma? 
o  Cub – ST: 10, DX: 10, IQ: 6, MA: 10, fur: 1, Claws: 1d
o  Momma - ST: 20, DX: 11, IQ: 6, MA: 10, fur: 2, Claws: 2d
18.  A saddled horse stands grazing in an open meadow. Upon searching the party finds a dead military officer. He has an arrow in his shoulder and it is apparent that he bled out after escaping an ambush. He has $40 in silver in his belt pouch, and sealed messages in his dispatch bag addressed to Sir Whitney. He is also carrying a saber and a dagger. The horse’s saddlebags contain a week’s rations, blanket, extra clothing, and a canteen of water. Light horse is ST: 28, DX: 13, IQ: 5, MA: 20 and is fully trained. Worth $1100. 
19.  A ring of mushrooms is growing in a dark spot next to the road. A Naturalist must make a 3-die roll against IQ to identify them; anyone else must make a 5-die roll. They are hallucinogenic. Anyone taking a couple of bites will loses 5 IQ for 24 hours and see a lot of strange things.
20.  Your party meets an elf. He does not speak the common tongue, only a strange dialect of elvish. An elf in your party will understand him, but with difficulty. Others who have elf as a second language will have more trouble. He is heading in the opposite direction of yours.

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