"The hulking ruin in orbit appeared to be made of...wood? They had heard rumours of rare ship technology inside, warded by a tentacled creature from another dimension. Surely a jest. Was that a...lifeform attached to the outside, made of some kind of crystal?"
Simple tables for ruins in space fantasy settings adding to earlier tables. Tables for Materials & Treasures, Features of Note and Ruins Wards & Dangers.
[Art by Gary Dupuis]
Space Fantasy Ruins
Space fantasy ruins come in many forms and varieties, as detailed in the first Space Fantasy Ruins tables.
Here we add more details, with options for materials, rewards for exploring the ruins, dangers to be encounters and features of note to distinguish them from others.
Alien time-travellers, ships of amber, lost relics, star charts, spectacular views and slime guardians await.
There is a fantasy sea encounter generator at ChaosGen. There is also a pdf of these and more tables at the DriveThruRPG as Space Fantasy Ruins.
Ruins Material and Treasure for Space Fantasy
| 1d10 | Primary Material | Reward or Treasure |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | steel or marble | a potent potion or a vital clue |
| 2 | bone or precious metal | star charts or a makeover |
| 3 | stone or organic matter | a book collection or a rare herb |
| 4 | wood or ivory | clues to a mystery or a model ship |
| 5 | bronze or amber | a chest of gold or a deity's gratitude |
| 6 | crystal or carapace | something edible a ship upgrade |
| 7 | silver or chains | gemstones or a treasure map |
| 8 | clay or ectoplasm | a challenge to be solved or a lost relic |
| 9 | glass or fungi | an offer of help or rare trade goods |
| 10 | ice or a mix of materials | an artifact or a marriage proposal |
Ruins Feature of Note for Space Fantasy
| 1d10 | The ruin... |
|---|---|
| 1 | has a complex (or alien) device for controlling a weapon (or world). |
| 2 | is inhabited by... d10 (1. scientists 2. ghosts 3. smugglers 4. sentient slimes 5. mutants 6. constructs 7. crystal lifeforms 8. outcasts 9. pirates 10. cultists) |
| 3 | has a famed fugitive (or pirate) hiding here, driving off visitors. |
| 4 | was once home to... d10 (1. dwarves 2. druids 3. elves 4. a cult 5. scientists 6. giants 7. pirates 8. an archmage 9. aliens 10. a zoo? ) |
| 5 | a spectacular view of a famed space anomoly (or alien mystery). |
| 6 | is located... d10 (1. on a moon 2. orbiting a planet 3. in a star 4. on an asteroid 5. on a giant space monster 6. in a moon 7. in deep space 8. on several dimensions 9. in a time loop 10. on a deserted planet) |
| 7 | has a portal (or warp hole) to another system (or dimension). |
| 8 | has something very out of place,... d10 (1. an egg 2. toys 3. a tidy garden 4. a friendly guide 5. a statue 6. alien symbols 7. cute animals 8. trees 9. a mimic 10. an advertisment) |
| 9 | is being investigated by a rival faction (or an npc the group knows) |
| 10 | is surrounded by... d10 (1. psychic fish 2. debris 3. a force field 4. arcane runes 5. glitter 6. asteroids 7. space wrecks 8. curious spirits 9. spores 10. lights) |
Ruins Wards and Dangers for Space Fantasy
| d10 | It is protected by... |
|---|---|
| 1 | an illusion that disguises its true nature (or acts as a decoy) |
| 2 | guardian... d10 (1. ghosts 2. aliens 3. slimes 4. undead 5. constructs 6. fiends 7. mercenaries 8. clockwork horrors 9. wraiths 10. gnomes) |
| 3 | a curious (or sinister) intelligence possessing the structure |
| 4 | a distortion field that makes gravity (or magic) fluctuate. |
| 5 | a hidden danger,... d10 (1. a mutant virus 2. shapeshifting aliens 3. psychic illusions 4. an ancient entity 5. fiery traps 6. a treacherous npc 7. teleporter traps 8. a friendly fiend 9. a psychic breeze 10. a shifting labyrinth ) |
| 6 | a flashing (or mental) beacon that warns others away |
| 7 | a barrier of glowing force powered from elsewhere |
| 8 | a watching time-travelling alien in a strange ship |
| 9 | rumours of an imprisoned... d10 (1. demon 2. god 3. intelligence 4. artifact 5. ruler 6. virus 7. spaceship 8. undead bard 9. elemental spirit 10. magic weapon ) |
| 10 | a tentacled being from another dimension |
More Ruins
There is a fantasy sea encounter generator at ChaosGen. There is also a pdf of these and more tables at the DriveThruRPG as Space Fantasy Ruins.
If you liked these there are Fantasy Generators at Chaos Gen, a monthly random tools Newsletter and an instagram of Random Tables.
