The Forest, CR 7 – Random Encounters for Dungeons & Dragons: Fifth Edition

by jmgariepy · April 27, 2016

“Oh. Oh no. You’re not going to like this.”

“Whatever it is, it can wait,” Tigbe responded while rubbing against a tree. “I got more dirt on me than fur, thanks to you. After pulling us out of the quicksand and fending off those wolves, I couldn’t care what lies ahead even if it’s a valley full of catnip. Wait. Are those… dinosaurs?”

“I count four—and of the raptor variety” Yasmin whispered. “But they’re facing away from us so I think we’re good.”

“That’s not how that works. Carnivores don’t all face the same direction unless they’re focused on something. I think… I think they’re trying to lull us into a false sense of security. Their playmates are probably circling around as we speak.”

“Great. What should we do? Climb a tree?”

“Climb a… I’m a catfolk in splintmail, not a squirrel. As soon as we turn to climb, our backs become targets to leap onto. Besides, the last time I climbed a tree, I couldn’t get down for days. We need to serpentine.”

“What?”

“Run back and forth in a zig-zag pattern. Saurians have terrible depth perception and…”

“Wait, that can’t be right. You zig-zag to avoid being hit by a spear. It’s something you do when running at someone, not when someone’s running at you.”

One of the raptors tilted its head and looked to the left. Yasmin and Tigbe followed its line of sight and spotted three more raptors in the brush, slinking their way toward them. The two adventurers turned to look at each other.

“Run!” yelled Tigbe, as he slammed past Yasmin. The raptors screeched as they crashed through the brush. Yasmin froze. She gibbered as she strained to unlock the spell trapped in her mind, but all she could focus on was the lead raptor. How it moved its head from side to side while each thundering step tore the Earth in its mad dash. How it coiled just before leaping. Then, in midair, brought the talons of its feet forward again, aiming them at her eyes.

artwork-dinosaurs-hunting-1733333-1920x1080

Art by Breathing2004

Appropriate random encounters for

Twelve fourth level characters
Six fifth level characters
Five sixth level characters
Four seventh level characters
A nineth level character with two eighth level characters
Two eleventh level characters
Or a lone fifteenth level character travelling through the forest.

For more information on random encounters, when they are appropriate, and how often they should occur, see the Dungeon Master’s Guide (DMG), page 85. For more random encounter charts, go to the Random Encounters for Dungeons and Dragons: 5th Edition page.

When determining a random encounter, roll 1d12+1d8 and consult the chart.

d12+d8	Description	Relationship to Players	Result
2	Very Rare	Deadly Encounter	A guardian naga has gone mad, extending her instinctual duty to protect to encompass everything, everywhere, at all times. She’s willing to negotiate with the players: their possessions and unwavering loyalty for their lives.
3	Rare	Hard Encounter	A hobgoblin captain, An orc eye of gruumsh, a lizardfolk shaman, a gnoll pack lord and a goblin boss secretly meet in the woods to divide the forest between their individual tribes. Instead of conducting business however, they stumble upon the characters.
4	Rather Unlikely	Hard Encounter	A druid leads five brown bears and three black bears on an unnatural hunt.
5	Unlikely	Hard Encounter	Nine allosauruses work to separate and outflank the party.
6	Uncommon	Medium Encounter	An oni, shapechanged into a human woodsman, seeks to gain the party’s trust only to betray them later.
7	Plausible	Medium Encounter	A trio of displacer beast siblings tail after the players.
8	Common	Medium Encounter	Three orog, as punishment for insubordination, are getting pushed around by a goblin boss.
9	Most Common	Friend or Foe Medium Encounter	A giant ape, who is unused to being challenged, is perplexed by the party and their actions.
10	Most Common	Easy Encounter	A hobgoblin captain and his hobgoblin underling are separated from their group and caught by surprise.
11	Most Common	Easy Encounter	An elf veteran riding a pegasus thinks she can make a name for herself by challenging adventurers to combat.
12	Most Common	Common Roleplaying Encounter	A tiefling warlock is hiding in the woods after she was run out of town by a mob of fearful and ignorant peasants. She’s happy to feel useful and help the party, but she also desires retribution against the small-minded fools that treated her so poorly. And she knows better than to be too forthcoming about her need for revenge.
13	Most Common	Common Beneficial Find	The characters stumble across a five foot tall hive. Any character who makes a Nature Check at DC 10 recognizes this as a splendor hive. Hidden deep in the core are combs of honey which are a powerful and pleasing narcotic when eaten (DC 15 Constitution check, or the creature is left in a state of stupor for four hours, then suffers a long-term madness. See DMG, p. 259.) Splendor Bees aren’t willing to give their honey away. So unless the players find a creative way of sneaking the comb out, invading characters can expect ten swarms of insects (bees) to attack them. Twelve combs line the inside of the nest, each comb worth 300 gold a piece to the right bidder (Oh, and did you know that 3% of all people are allergic to bees and experience anaphylaxis when stung?)
14	Common	Piece of Flavor	Evidence of charring scars the trees. Eventually, the characters find themselves at the heart of what was a great forest fire. As long as the players remain in this region, whenever a check for random encounters are made, instead roll 1d6 and characters stumble upon the corresponding creature(s): 1. a chain devil 2. a hezrou 3. a fire elemental 4. two red dragon wyrmlings 5. a salamander and a fire snake 6. five magma mephits, five smoke mephits, and three dust mephits
15	Plausible	A Trap!	The character at the front of the party must make a DC 15 Perception or Survival check or fall into a 20 foot deep pit (2d6 damage). This tiger trap has an actual tiger in it, which is very upset with the current predicament. Climbing out of the pit requires a DC 12 Athletics check, though that check is made at a disadvantage as long as a the character is squeezing with a tiger (also, successfully climbing will likely give the tiger an opportunity attack.)
16	Uncommon	Uncommon Roleplaying Encounter	A treant makes herself known to the characters. She’s concerned about a nearby grove. Many of the trees in the grove show potential, and are likely to become treants of their own someday. But nearby woodsmen are moving through the area; and if they continue, they will be in the same grove. The treant wants the players to talk to the woodsmen, and convince them to go somewhere else… but she doesn’t want the players to reveal their motives, or lead them on that the trees in the grove is in any way important. The last thing the treant needs is for the woodsmen to think they have a bargaining chip to use against treants.
17	Unlikely	Environmental Hazard	Strong winds pick up as a hurricane moves through this region. For the next hour, anything that isn’t driven into the ground is picked up and thrown about. Characters must make four separate checks, at at a DC of 10: Survival, Investigation, Athletics, and Constitution. For each failed check, that character takes 2d6 bludgeoning damage from flying debris. After the hour passes, the hurricane moves on. All characters must make a DC 15 Constitution check. If a character fails the check, they suffer two levels of exhaustion. If they pass, they only suffer one level of exhaustion.
	Rather Unlikely	A Barrier	Mild quakes reverberate through the forest. As the players travel, the quakes appear to be getting worse. The shaking comes to a head as the players approach a shrine in the woods. A Religion check made at DC 5 tells the players that a holy object was taken from this shrine, and needs to be put back or the forest and all the creatures in it are at risk. Roll 2d6-1 and consult this same random encounter chart. The result is is the creature(s) that stole the holy item. The creature(s) in question also left noticeable tracks, though the party must make three separate Survival checks made at DC 10 to follow the tracks. Each check, whether the party passes or fails, takes an hour to complete. (See DMG, p. 244 for more on Tracking.)
19	Rare	A Lucky Find	An intelligent weapon, tossed in a nearby lake, calls to a player telepathically (DMG, p. 214).
20	Very Rare	Incredibly Fortuitous Find	An adult gold dragon, disguised as a wandering old bard, temporarily joins the party and offers some very sage advice. Unfortunately, the dragon isn’t interested in fighting. And he really enjoys talking in riddles, since he believes true wisdom is gained from learning what you already know.