100 Travel Encounters

All page numbers are in reference to Old-School Essentials Basic Rules Tome or can be found on the OSE SRD.

Outside the saftey of the walls lay untold terrors and equal untold fortunes. Those brave enough to travel know to use the roads to avoid shadows that lurk off the cobbled paths.

Road Travel: When players are traveling via roads roll 1d100 on table below every day of travel.

Wilderness Travel: When players forsake roads and travel via wilderness roll 1d20 on table below every day of travel.

Hostile Encounter 1-15

1. Cave Bear [pp. 142]
2. Crocodile [pp. 149]
3. Aurochs [pp. 168 as Large Herd Animal]
4. Grizzly Bear [pp. 142]
5. Dire Wolf [pp. 202]
6. Wild Boar [pp. 144]
7. Black Bear [pp. 142]
8. Gnolls [pp. 163]
9. Frog-men [pp. 173 as Lizard Man]
10. Wisent [pp. 168 as Medium Herd Animal]
11. Mule [pp. 177]
12. Wolves [pp. 202]
13. Wild Dogs [pp. 202 as Wolf; 1HD, THAC0: 19/+0]
14. Crocodile [pp. 149]
15. Goats [pp. 168 as Small Herd Animal]

Negative Encounter 16-30

16. Flagellants [pp. 150 as Dervish; No Mounts] moving to nearby camp. Seek to capture travelers for their religious practices.
17. Desecrated shrine to Lyra, Goddess of Roads and Travelers. Seeing this is a bad omen, causing any wounds the players have to take longer to heal. No healing occurs on the next rest.
18. Hanged witch, stripped and gutted. Carrion swarm around the tree/gallows she is hung on.
19. Brigand [pp. 144] ambush. Hand over all your items and prisoners or die.
20. A row of pikes with 1d12 heads.
21. Sleet. It is cold and sleeting. Consume an extra ration to keep energy up and stay warm.
22. Mire. Takes an extra day through wilderness to maneuver around with wagons. If traversed without wagons covers travelers in thick layer of mud.
23. Yellow jacket nest falls as travelers pass. Save versus breath or take 1d4 damage.
24. Pox-covered corpse thrown in a ditch. Searching the body incurs a save versus poison. A failed save causes the afflicted to have pox cover their bodies in 1d4 days. They have an ongoing -2 STR until healed. The effect ends in 2d4 weeks. While pocked, not allowed entry into towns. Contact incurs saving throw as above.
25. Bandit [pp. 140] ambush. Hand over your food and coins or die.
26. Toll road owned by the nearest town. 1gp fee per person plus 10gp for every cart. If unable to pay go through wilderness taking an extra day or be arrested.
27. Huge patch of poison-weed. Successful WIS check indicates the plants as poison-weed. If passed through traveler is afflicted with weed-rash taking -2 DEX for 1d4 days.
28. Meat Tree. A tree covered in meat hooks with large slabs of meat. Flies buzz in swarms around the tree.
29. Burst Barrel of plagued grain. It wreaks from several yards away and is covered in mice.
30. Witch [pp. 157 as Dryad; Not Bound to Tree] protects an area where she harvests mushrooms for her potions.

Neutral Encounter 31-70

31. Gibbet 1d6: 1-2. Skeleton, 3-4. Corpse, 5-6 Lvl 1 hireling
32. Army of largest nearby town. Negative reaction indicates forced draft in the army.
33. Pilgrims [pp. 181 as Normal Human] traveling to the capital city. They pass by without interaction unless disturbed.
34. Dying man with large infected wound. He begs the party to take a ring (2gp) to his true love in the nearest town. If they accept he asks them to put him out of his misery. Due to infection basic magic can't heal him. He dies 12 hours after encountered.
35. Flagellant [pp. 150 as Dervish; No Mounts] camp. Wooden walls with men outside whipping themselves calling to those along the road to repent. Roll reaction.
36. Merchant Caravan [pp. 176]. Roll reaction. On positive, provides goods for sale. On negative, will fight if not given right-of-way (lose 1 day).
37. Noble [pp. 180] from a nearby castle. Roll reaction. On positive wishes to hear a tale from adventurers. On negative, demands tribute of 5gp per person.
38. Witch Hunters [pp. 144 as Brigand] on a witch hunt. Neutral unless they recognize a magic-user or see magic used.
39. Trader [pp. 194] en route to new town.
40. A cairn with a red banner flowing from the top. The base stone has a poem inscribed: "Travelers have come, travelers have gone. All of them have heard my song. Bless ye now on the road ahead. If thy be like most, thy find thyself dead."
41. A recent fire has scored the grass and trees here.
42. Echinacea lines the road here. The flowers turn to follow the travelers as they pass. Otherwise normal flowers.
43. Three pairs of broken shackles and a hammer lies along the road.
44. An old pyre with the ashen skeleton of a presumed witch laying in the pile of ashes.
45. Lost child cries near the road. Tells the party their mother is in a caravan 1 day ahead of the party.
46. Drizzle.
47. Bloody footprints that lead off the road into the woods. INT Test to follow. If followed, find a dead woodsman with an arrow buried in his back, fully looted.
48. A Shepherd [pp. 181 as Normal Human] leads his flock of sheep across the road.
49. A bear trap with a bear caught in it just off the road.
50. Rotting horse corpse.
51. A rock outcropping with an old abandoned campsite.
52. Windy day.
53. A groundhog pops out of a hole just off the road and approaches to investigate the party. If approached, quickly flees back into his hole.
54. A cryptic old signpost. Reads "Thy bones rattle before thee."
55. Thunderstorm rolls on the horizon, but never reaches the travelers.
56. A corpse lies in the middle of the road.
57. A honey bee hive swarms in a tree above. If honey is collected without smoke take 1d4 damage a successful save versus breath indicates half damage.
58. A curious crow follows the travelers from above all day. If a coin is tossed to him, he caws "Penny given, penny earned!" and flies away with the coin.
59. Howling can be heard in the distance throughout the day.
60. Mercenaries [pp. 144 as Brigand] marching to battle. Roll reaction. Positive reaction, the mercenaries asking the share their ale with the travelers. Negative reaction, they attempt to force the travelers into their service as slaves.
61. Woman encounters the travelers from behind clearly running from someone/thing. Asks if she can travel with them and asks for a change of clothes and hat. 1 day later, a band of Witch Hunters [pp. 144 as Brigand] approach the party asking if they have seen a witch and offer a reward of 100gp. If they don't turn her in, she joins as a level 1 magic-user hireling. If they turn her in, the hunters immediately reward them with 100gp.
62. Woman's corpse laying in the road. Her nose has been cut off (indicating she was executed as a harlot).
63. Acolytes [pp. 140] that are transporting a silver tiara (1000sp) in a reliquary to the nearest town.
64. Messenger on a horse quickly speeds by the travelers ignoring them if possible.
65. A trade wagon has been flipped over on the side of the road. The coach driver is long dead and riddled with arrows.
66. Mosquitoes swarm all day. Massively annoying.
67. A shattered bow lies in the road.
68. Chilly winds. The weather is cooler than normal.
69. A Crocodile [pp. 149] can be seen trying to eat a goat drinking from a pool of water.
70. Coach flies by splashing the travelers with mud.

Positive Encounter 71-85

71. Coach lost a wheel. Players hired to escort passengers to next town.
72. Hermit [pp. 181 as Normal Human] traveling slowly. Invites the party to eat with him and provides them with a blessing. Everyone who eats his food gets +1 WIS for 1 day.
73. Shrine to Lyra, Goddess of Roads and Travelers. If a traveler prays at the shrine, they are cleansed of any diseases they are afflicted with.
74. Order of Ash Monks [pp. 181 as Normal Human] chanting as they travel down the road. They greet the party and offer them some food. During the meal they tell the party of their order - taking vows of poverty and wearing sack cloth giving all they have to the poor.
75. A gaggle of geese crosses the road - a good omen.
76. The weather is beautiful and the road is clear. You're able to make astonishing distance on your journey. Double movement speed for 1 day.
77. A coach has been flipped over. The horse is still alive with a broken leg and needs to be put down. In the coach driver's hand is a spell scroll.
78. A lightening bolt smashes into a nearby tree.
79. A lone man [pp. 181 as Normal Human] approaches the travelers. He is covered in fine jewelry (250gp) and is traveling at a quick pace and acts nervous. Is he running from something?
80. Rabbit caught in a trap.
81. Sunken monument of an old god lies off the road. It is shaped like a giant head made of stone.
82. A small tent is set up along the road. Next to it is a beggar wearing a cloak and holding out a small cup.
83. A sign on a nearby tree reads: "WANTED: The Red Priest, DEAD OR ALIVE. Reward of 100gp."
84. An empty noose hangs in a nearby tree. Above is a mocking bird that will imitate noises the party makes.

Helpful Encounter 86-100

86. A corpse surrounded by dogs. The dogs shoo easily, very much full from their recent meal. The corpse carries 100sp, and has a short sword.
87. A fruit tree stands near the road. Add 1 ration.
88. A cool stream of clean, fresh, drinking water babbles nearby.
89. An abandoned backpack lies on the road. Inside are 4 large bricks of dried tea (10gp ea).
90. A strange looking freshly picked mushroom lies on a stump near the road to dry. If consumed heals 1d4 HP.
91. A man dressed in filthy rags asking the travelers for directions. If they know the way to where he wants to go he gives them 10gp.
92. A well dressed man approaches the travelers and asks their business. If they oblige him, he asks to join their party as a hireling.
93. A quiver of arrows (20) has been abandoned on the side of the road.
94. A patch Priest-leaf, a rare herb (5gp) grows nearby. They could be sold or dried and used as components for a ritual.
95. A beer cart has been overturned along the road with no one or animals in sight. A huge cask lies on the ground nearby (~30,000 coins weight / 300lbs).
96. A traveler stumbles over something protruding from the ground. Closer inspection reveals a roughly buried chest. It is filled with 2000cp and a small sapphire (10gp).
97. A man catches up with the travelers. He plays them a song and tells them a tale about a valiant knight and a princess.
98. A beheaded knight. He has a set of well-kept plate armor.
99. Runestone. A runestone carved and left by the ancients. Praying here restores all spell slots.
100. Strange Glade. A strange and dreamy glade just off the road. Entering reveals dozens of fruit trees. The grass is lush and soft and the sun seems to always been in twilight. If the night is spent here, heal to max HP and skip encounters over night. The strange glade cannot be sought out and must always be rolled on the encounter table to find.

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