City Random Encounters #1
Towns, villages, and cities. Civilization. The markers of safe respite from the beast-filled wilds, and the unprotected roads. Nothing could go wrong here… right?
Typically when one thinks of random encounters, they usually imagine bandits on the path, or stumbling on a hydra drinking from a lake. These are the dangers of travel, after all. If anything happens within these ‘safe havens’ it tends to be part of your plot. However, this list can serve as a great way to keep your players off balance if you do roll for a random event and want to throw in something they won’t expect OR as a great way to stall the players if they do something you weren’t prepared for.
Either roll a D10 if you know whether you’d like the encounter to be combat or non-combat, or roll a D20 to see what lady luck thinks.
COMBAT BASED ENCOUNTERS
“THIEF! THIEF!” A clearly homeless man storms out of a door in front of the party, a furious baker followed shortly behind. In his late age he can’t hope to keep up and looks around for somebody who might help grab the boy who stole his food.
From the shadows of an alleyway you hear a sultry voice; “Psst. Hey. You look like you could be in the market for potions of health. I know a guy. I’ll get you some for 30 gold a pop.” Are they stolen? Are they fake? Or is this a trap to rob rich adventurers?
“Hold it, right there!” A patrolling guard shouts to a member of the party. He promptly begins padding them down. Before long they pull out some contraband. It wasn’t there before though… but it doesn’t matter, they’re under arrest.
A loud unexpected CRASH is accompanied by people flying out the window of a tavern the party is walking past. It seems a brawl has made its way onto the streets, and a stray punch cracks across one of the party members.
There’s a strange squeaking and scratching sound coming from somewhere, but nobody can place what it is or where it’s coming from. A manhole bobs up and down, before sliding itself off from a group of giant rats clambering out, attacking the party before skittering off.
A hand grabs a party member’s arm, and a slender woman with a mane of red hair swings around them and uses them for cover from a fast approaching tower of a half-orc. He’s drunk and looking to have words with his wife.
Roll a steath check - somebody is attempting to pickpocket the party! They’re prepared to fight for that money, if need be.
The party find themselves in the middle of a turf war between two of the area’s smaller gangs vying for ‘easy’ territory.
A full moon rises over the settlement. An uncomfortable amount of howls come from within the walls, as everyone looks around at each other rather uneasy. An innocenty bystander begins sweating profusely, they keep over and begin their transformation.
The sound of chinking gold is unmistakable and hard to resist. A mysterious person offers a hefty reward if the party were to start a fight outside a nearby store.
NON-COMBAT ENCOUNTERS
“Weird weather we’re having” - For a brief hour, the weather suddenly shifts to the opposite season. Hail, snow, heatwave, tornado.
Get a party member to roll a DC14 perception check - Succeed and they catch themselves from accidentally stepping on a potion vial. Fail, and they’ve cracked open a potion of invisibility and are now invisible for the next 30 minutes.
“Mmmreeeeooowww!” A disgruntled cat calls from a nearby tree. Much to its chagrin it needs help getting down.
“REPENT! THE END IS NIGH!” - Just your standard mad doomsday prophet. Or are they? Plot hook: Some of their prophecies have already happened to the party.
Get the party to roll a DC17 perception check. The highest above 17 spots a coin pouch on the ground, but instead of coins it instead contains 3 gems of about 50gp worth.
A spirit seems to be lingering above a passerby - not doing any harm, but only the party can see her. She just wants somebody to tell the man he’s being robbed by his business partner. She then disappears.
A party member notices a splotch of dried blood on the ground. Looking around it seems to lead down the road to a house that has been converted into a small warehouse. The inside is unnaturally clean… of anything.
A stocky woman runs up to the party, carrying a bundle of scrolls in her arms. Out of breath she asks if she may sketch a particular member of the party. She won’t object to sketching the others, if they ask, but it will take time.
There’s a large gathering of people ahead, all looking at something further along the path. They quickly begin to part in the middle as a large elk confidently strides through the gap. Nobody really knows how or why its here, and are watching with piqued curiosity. If the party follow it, the creature explores the area for a while, before leaving the way it came.
A frazzled and hectic looking lady, with what looks like a wand through her done up frizzy hair, shuffles hurriedly down the street. Her arms are filled with bundles of scrunched up scrolls, threatening to come tumbling out at any moment. She awkwardly opens a door, slides in, and closes it with her foot. If the party look away, even for a moment, the door is gone.
We hope you have fun with these! A lot of these have some great potential for party antics, and we would love to hear what kind of craziness your heroes (or villains, we know how it goes) get up to.
