" An armoured troll sniffs at a corpse, looking around suspiciously at a huge statue and dangling rope nearby..."
Simple encounter tables for caves in any fantasy setting. Tables for Combined Dungeon Encounters, Dungeon Encounter Details and Dungeon Encounter Locations.
Fantasy Dungeon - trinkets | cave encs | dungeon encs | sewer encs | all
[art by Bob Greyvenstein]
Fantasy Dungeon Encounters
Dungeons in fantasy can consist of ruined buildings, twisting tunnels, maddening labyrinths, carved caves and rooms large and small. Secret doors, wandering monsters, hidden treasures, perplexing puzzles, old magic and memories of the past.
Populated by ancient guardians, hungry undead, subterranean beasts and desperate humanoids.
There is a fantasy encounters generator at ChaosGen. There is also a pdf of these and more tables at the DriveThruRPG as Dungeon Encounters.
Dungeon Combined Encounters
These reference Dungeon tables for Encounter Prompts, Hazards and NPCs
| 1d10 | 10 Dungeon Encounter Prompts |
|---|---|
| 1 | a pair of levers, one marked with a smiley face by it; or roll on Hazards |
| 2 | a scavenging (or aggressive)... d10 (1-2. giant lizard 3. fungal slime 4. rat pack 5. monstrous spider 6. bat swarm 7. undead beast 8. snake 9. familiar 10. orange ooze) |
| 3 | ragged wild-eyed hermit, who claims to be a demigod or roll on NPCs |
| 4 | several (or a pair of)... d10 (1-2. mercenaries 3. fungi folk 4. small warriors 5. undead sentries 6. goblinoids 7. captives 8. nonhumans 9. adventurers 10. troglodytes) |
| 5 | a group of curious giant glowing beetles or roll on Enc. Descriptions |
| 6 | a few (or many)... d10 (1-2. ogres 3. giant spiders 4. animated objects 5. glowing spirits 6. undead workers 7. gargoyles 8. monstrous rats 9. ghouls 10. imps ) |
| 7 | a rotting body, left as a warning or roll on Hazards |
| 8 | guardian... d10 (1-2. metal statue 3. cursed angel 4. elemental 5. clockwork sentry 6. undead knight 7. shadow fiend 8. fire ghost 9. troll 10. stone spirit) |
| 9 | an alert sentry, who politely offers to find their boss or roll on NPCs |
| 10 | a potential (or signs of a) danger, a(n)... d10 (1-2. local villain 3. vampiric ghost 4. sentient ooze 5. demon spirit 6. minotaur 7. wraith 8. predatory jelly 9. basilisk 10. wight & minions ) |
Dungeon Encounter Details
Use 1d6 for beasts or non-sentient creatures.
| 1d10 | They are... (or one is...) |
|---|---|
| 1 | attracted to (or afraid of) any source of light; or recently injured |
| 2 | trapped (or other side of) in a(n) ... d10 (1-2. cage 3. large web 4. magic circle 5. pool of slime 6. life of servitude 7. collapse 8. pit 9. brown liquid 10. tricky situation) |
| 3 | hiding from (or about to confront) a nearby threat; or near an alarm |
| 4 | looking for food or not what they first seem to be |
| 5 | investigating (or watching) a(n) ... d10 (1-2. corpse 3. set of claw marks 4. lit candle 5. secret door 6. lever 7. worrying mould 8. barrel 9. strange noise 10. piece of art) |
| 6 | connected to nearby creatures or drinking from a water source |
| 7 | guarding (or patrolling) the area; or resetting a trap |
| 8 | hiding behind furniture or arguing loudly |
| 9 | currently...... d10 (1-2. resting 3. nervous 4. celebrating 5. playing a game 6. scavenging 7. cursed 8. eating rats 9. bored 10. calling for help) |
| 10 | building (or repairing something); or on high alert |
Dungeon Encounter Locations
| 1d10 | Area | Feature |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | storage (or circular) room; | wall of mould (or mosaics); or chute |
| 2 | set of sloped (or tiny) tunnels | staircase up (or down); or sturdy chest |
| 3 | dining (or imposing) hall; | pile of bones (or debris); or bookcase |
| 4 | huge statue (or mechanism) | recent collapse or lifelike statue |
| 5 | decorated temple (or tomb) | large table (or column); or illusory wall |
| 6 | sleeping (or flooded) chamber | dangling rope (or chain); or handcart |
| 7 | barracks or unusual cavern | reinforced (or secret) door; or hole |
| 8 | bridge over a chasm (or river) | pool (or fountain) of water (or slime) |
| 9 | warded vault (or prison); | array of wooden (or stone) furniture |
| 10 | cluttered workshop (or library) | exit to caves (or a maze); or trapdoor |
More Encounters
There is a fantasy encounters generator at ChaosGen. There is also a pdf of these and more tables at the DriveThruRPG as Dungeon Encounters.
If you liked these there are Fantasy Generators at Chaos Gen, a monthly random tools Newsletter and an instagram of Random Tables.
