" A few mounted warriors are resting among the rocks by a circle of trees. One is poking around a concealed mine entrance..."
Simple encounter tables for hills in any fantasy setting. Tables for Combined Hill Encounters, Hill Encounter Details and Hill Encounter Locations.
Fantasy Wilds - all | trinkets | coastal encs | cold encs | desert encs | forest encs | hill encs | plains encs | swamp encs
Fantasy Hinterlands - all | trinkets | farmland encs | hill encs | plains encs | road encs | tavern encs
[Photo by Jack Gibson on Unsplash]
Fantasy Hill Encounters
From fertile hills to wet moorland, craggy badlands to rocky foothills, valleys and hills of farmland, scrub and wilderness. Miners making lots of noise in an abandoned quarry, a stone spirit in a haunted orchard associated with a nearby village or a giant eagle, investigating a dead goat in a grassy valley with a mossy cairn.
A place of hunters, views, streams, caves, sheep, dwarves, herders and stone
There is a fantasy hill encounter generator at ChaosGen. There is also a pdf of these and more tables at the DriveThruRPG as Hill Encounters.
Hill Combined Encounters
These reference Hill tables for Encounter Prompts, Hazards and NPCs
| 1d10 | Hill Combined Encounters | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | a thick mist, that hides the sound of a loud wailing or roll on Hazards | |
| 2 | a solitary (or giant)... d10 (1-2. boar 3. eagle 4. lynx (or other cat) 5. owl 6. mule 7. bear 8. wolverine 9. weasel 10. ape) | |
| 3 | bounty hunter, comparing a poster to all they meet or roll on NPCs | |
| 4 | several (or a pair of)... d10 (1-2. herders with livestock 3. goblinoids 4. labourers 5. miners 6. bandits 7. warriors 8. travellers 9. dwarves (or kobolds) 10. hunters) | |
| 5 | a sinister scarecrow, among dead birds or roll on Enc. Descriptions | |
| 6 | a few (or many)... d10 (1-2. faerie spirits 3. baboons 4. large goats 5. entertainers 6. birdfolk 7. giant rats 8. gargoyles 9. ogres 10. mounted warriors) | |
| 7 | swarm of wasps defending a bush of weird berries or roll on Hazards | |
| 8 | group (or pack) of... d10 (1-2. goats (or sheep) 3. geese 4. deer 5. ponies 6. cows 7. llamas 8. wild dogs (or hyenas) 9. crows 10. pigs) | |
| 9 | an outcast priest, seeking understanding of the world; or roll on NPCs | |
| 10 | a potential (or signs of a) danger, a(n)... d10 (1-2. pack of wolves 3. few mercenaries 4. harpy 5. rock drake 6. hill giant 7. griffon 8. stone spirit 9. lost ghost 10. group of raiders) |
Hill Encounter Details
Use 1d6 for beasts or non-sentient creatures.
| 1d10 | They are... (or one is...) |
|---|---|
| 1 | on a long journey (or quest); or making lots of noise |
| 2 | studying (or hiding from) something on a nearby hill, a(n) ... d10 (1-2. strange mist 3. winged creature 4. tent 5. bright light 6. lone child 7. large fire 8. flock of birds 9. waving figure10. flag) |
| 3 | hiding (or resting) among rocks; or with their young |
| 4 | following (or being followed by) something; or guarding the area |
| 5 | investigating (or watching) a(n)... d10 (1-2. cave entrance 3. dead goat 4. stone carving 5. wobbling rock 6. wooden sign 7. tree hollow 8. food basket 9. pile of furs 10. tomb) |
| 6 | associated with a nearby settlement; or on a long journey |
| 7 | foraging for herbs (or particular stones) or accompanied by a dog |
| 8 | constructing (or destroying) something; or telling a story |
| 9 | looking for a particular hill or admiring the view |
| 10 | herding (or stealing) goats (or sheep); or flying a kite |
Hill Encounter Locations
| 1d10 | Area, a(n)... | Feature, a(n)... |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | grassy (or muddy) valley or track | patch of brambles or low stone wall |
| 2 | stairway to a tower (or ruins) | steep, narrow trail or unlit beacon |
| 3 | haunted orchard (or meadow) | sacred (or hot) spring by a pool |
| 4 | bridge (or ford) over a rocky river | concealed cave (or mine) entrance |
| 5 | circle (or line) of stones (or trees) | beast pen holding goats (or ponies) |
| 6 | trail along a steep ridge (or lake) | stone cottage (or statue); or pigsty |
| 7 | abandoned quarry (or hamlet) | thorny (or tall) hedge; or scarecrow |
| 8 | fence (or tower) at a clifftop | mossy bench (or cairn) or beehive |
| 9 | hillock (or slope) of bracken | ford over a stream or huge nest |
| 10 | isolated farmstead (or windmill) | stack of unstable stones (or wood) |
More Encounters
There is a fantasy hill encounter generator at ChaosGen. There is also a pdf of these and more tables at the DriveThruRPG as Hill Encounters.
If you liked these there are Generators at Chaos Gen and a monthly random tools Newsletter. Or find us on the Rand Roll Discord or an instagram of Random Tables.
