Road and Travel Encounter Tables for D&D 5e
By Duncan Thomson on
"The path ahead is broken by a river, where the remains of a bridge offer a risky crossing. Amidst a herd of goats several locals are taking part in a ritual at river's edge. It is led by a woman with an antlered mask"
Random tables for Dungeons and Dragons road encounters
[Photo by Pat Whelen on Unsplash]
Unusual terrains - feywild | shadowfell | lower planes | elemental | jungle | roads | ruins
Roads and Trails Encounters
Roads and trails connect the cities and ports of fantasy nations. A few newly built but many fallen into ruin upon the causeways of older empires. A highway connecting two prominent cities, an ancient trail through sylvan woods or a road built by dwarves and now used by local tribes. Encounters happen at haunted crossroads and narrow paths, with desperate brigands, friendly pilgrims, hungry mercenaries, locals herding goats and any others on the path.
There is a 5e road random encounter generator at ChaosGen. And also a pdf of these and more tables at the DM's Guild as Road Encounters.
Road Encounter Tables - creatures | locations | non-combat | enhancements
Road Encounters Levels 1-4
| 1d8+1d12 | Road and Travel Levels 1-4 |
|---|---|
| 2 | 1 hill giant carrying a wagon |
| 3 | 1d4+1 scouts mounted on riding horses |
| 4 | 2d4 tribal warriors with a trophy |
| 5 | 1d4 carts pulled by draft horses accompanied by 2d4 acolytes |
| 6 | 1d4 giant vultures |
| 7 | A mercenary group of 1d4+2 bandits and 1 spy led by 1 bandit captain |
| 8 | 2d4 acolyte pilgrims |
| 9 | 1d3 centaur guards |
| 10 | 2d4 mastiffs |
| 11 | Patrol of 1d2 veterans mounted on mules |
| 12 | 2d4 local commoners with 1 druid |
| 13 | 1 spy |
| 14 | 1d3 tribal warriors with 4d6 goats |
| 15 | 1d3 perytons |
| 16 | 1d2 orcs mounted on dire wolves |
| 17 | 1 doppelganger |
| 18 | 1d4+1 wagons driven by commoners and 2d4 guards keeping watch |
| 19 | 1d3 griffons |
| 20 | 1 talkative night hag |
Road Encounters Levels 5-10
| 1d8+1d12 | Road and Travel Levels 5-10 |
|---|---|
| 2 | 1d3 galeb duhr |
| 3 | A pack of 2d4 dire wolves with 1d4 werewolves |
| 4 | 1 death slaad merchant with a pony and cart |
| 5 | 1 fire giant with 1d4 hell hounds |
| 6 | 1d4 knights on warhorses with 2d6 guard on riding horses |
| 7 | 2d6 thugs mercenaries led by 1 gladiator |
| 8 | Work crew of 2d6 commoners with 1 noble and 1d2 stone giants |
| 9 | 2d4 hobgoblins led by 1 hobgoblin captain |
| 10 | 1d2 priests in a wagon with 2d6 acolytes and 1d4 veterans |
| 11 | A patrol of 1d6 veterans with 2d4 scouts |
| 12 | 1 oni trader and 1d4 elephants |
| 13 | 1 half-red dragon veteran |
| 14 | 1 priest with 2d4 knights mounted on warhorses |
| 15 | 1d2 mages mounted on nightmares |
| 16 | 1d4 hill giants |
| 17 | 1 githzerai zerth |
| 18 | 2d6 lizardfolk led by 1 lizardfolk shaman with 1d6 laden giant lizards |
| 19 | 1 young silver dragon |
| 20 | 1d2 watchful treants |
Road Encounters Levels 11+
| 1d8+1d12 | Road and Travel Levels 11+ |
|---|---|
| 2 | 1d2 gynosphinxes |
| 3 | 1 adult dragon (any chromatic) |
| 4 | 1d6 fire giant mercenaries |
| 5 | 1 archmage with 1 gladiator guard and 2d4 doppelganger servants |
| 6 | 1 storm giant mounted on a roc |
| 7 | 1 dao trader with 1d4 gargoyles |
| 8 | 1d2 assassins with 2d4 spies and 3d6 cultists |
| 9 | 1d4 priests and 1d4 knights priests and knights and something else |
| 10 | 1d4 treants watching the road's edge |
| 11 | A caravan of wagons with 2d6 scouts and 1d4 veterans, escorted by 1d2 young silver dragons |
| 12 | Work crew of 1d3 dwarf mages and 1 stone golem |
| 13 | A family of 1d4+2 stone giants |
| 14 | 1 rakshas merchant with 1d2 nycaloth guards |
| 15 | 1 iron golem pulling a wagon |
| 16 | A patrol of 2d4 mezzoloth mercenaries |
| 17 | 1 adult dragon (any metallic) |
| 18 | A patrol of 1d4 knights with 1 deva |
| 19 | 1d4 cloud giant marauders with 1d2 wyverns |
| 20 | 1 planetar |
Ruins Encounter Tables - creatures | locations (soon) | non-combat (soon) | complications (soon)
More Encounters
There is a 5e road random encounter generator at ChaosGen. And also a pdf of these and more tables at the DM's Guild as Road Encounters.
You can get random generators updates on Patreon or join the Rand Roll Discord Server