d100 encounters
Anthony Qualkinbush (Order #39013051)
RPG Random Encounter Collection
1
Credits
Author, Designer, Layout, and Cover Design: Luke
Hart
Editor: Danni Arriaga
Artwork: Adobe Stock
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Email: info@thedmlair.com
Twitter & Instagram: @TheDMLair
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Legal Stuff
Random Encounter Collection, Copyright © 2020,
Luke Hart, The DM Lair, LLC
Open Game License v 1.0a Copyright 2000,
Wizards of the Coast, LLC.
System Reference Document 5.1 Copyright 2016,
Wizards of the Coast, Inc.; Authors Mike Mearls,
Jeremy Crawford, Chris Perkins, Rodney Thompson,
Peter Lee, James Wyatt, Robert J. Schwalb, Bruce R.
Cordell, Chris Sims, and Steve Townshend, based on
original material by E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson.
Foreword
I host weekly live streams where the participants and
I create RPG resources for game masters and players
to use in their own games. I do this as my way of
giving back to the RPG community and helping others
in their games.
This Random Encounter Collection you have in your
hands now is a compilation of four random encounter
tables we created over the course of four live streams.
My hope is that you will find the random encounters it
contains interesting and useful for your own games.
I also want to express my sincere appreciation for
all the participants in my live streams who helped
brainstorm ideas for this resource. I feel the entire
RPG community owes them a debt of gratitude for
their enthusiastic efforts. Thank you!
What You'll Find Here
Here you’ll find four random encounter tables, each
one designed for a specific tier of play.
What, no art? Yep, that’s right. Artwork costs money
to commission, and I’m offering this resource free of
charge. If you’re looking for fancy artwork and other
frills, this resource probably isn’t for you.
However, if you’re looking for useful random
encounter tables, read on.
Anthony Qualkinbush (Order #39013051)
RPG Random Encounter Collection
2
Level 1-4 Random Encounters
d100 Encounter
1-2 1d4+1 gnolls are chasing a fox when the
PCs run across them
3-4 1d3 scarecrows are lurking inside a field of
tall grass that the players pass through
5-6 1d8+2 grung are harvesting herbs, and the
players walk into their territory
7-8 A goblin is stuck in a pit trap. It has a bag of
gold and looks rather tired and sad.
9-10 1d2 redcaps are tracking the PCs from
behind with the intent of attacking them
when they camp at night
11-12 1d8+2 winged kobolds are in trees or near
the ceiling waiting for their simple pit
trap to be sprung, and then ambush the
characters
13-14 1d2 quasits transformed into either toads,
giant centipedes, or bats are planning on
ambushing something and watch as the
PCs near.
15-16 An adult black dragon flies overhead but
doesn’t appear to notice the characters –
unless they do something stupid.
17-18 A trail of 1d4+1 pixies leads the party to
an injured dryad who throws a few attacks
their way out of panic at first. If the PCs
attack back, the pixies aid the dryad.
19-20 1d4 harpies start stalking the adventures,
thinking they’ll be easy prey
21-22 2d6 bandits are waiting along the road.
They demand a 25 gp payment from the
characters to pass; otherwise, they attack.
23-24 An acolyte con artist wants to gamble with
the adventurers. She’s down on her luck
and needs to pay for a mistake she made to
gain entry back into her religious order.
25-26 The party comes across 3 wolves hunting a
deer. They can either watch nature take its
course or save the victim.
27-28 1 troll is very hungry. It speaks Common
and demands food from the party. If they
give the troll food, it leaves them alone.
29-30 A band of 1d6+2 goblins are looking for
dead dragons to use their scales to make
shields. The goblins are not hostile and ask
the PCs if they have any leads.
31-32 1d3 duergar are blending into their
surroundings, waiting to ambush prey that
happens by. The PCs might just be that
prey.
33-34 The PCs come across two adult red dragons
fighting in the distance, having a territory
dispute.
35-36 The party finds a roadside shrine to the god
of travel. On it is an offering of food and a
few coins. If the PCs take anything from the
shrine, they have “bad luck” for the day.
37-38 They encounter an owlbear attacking a
small caravan of four wealthy nobles with
1d6+2 guards. If the PCs help defeat the
owlbear, the nobles give them a medal
worth 50 gp that gives them street cred in
any nearby city.
39-40 PC’s encounter a patrol of 1d4+1 hostile
hobgoblins. Killing them might bring the
rest of the hobgoblin hoard down on the
PC’s.
41-42 Patches of poisonous plants grow in a
field of plants that look very similar. The
plants can be used as an ingredient to make
potions of poison. If touched, the player(s)
must succeed a DC 13 Constitution saving
throw or be poisoned for 1d4 hours.
43-44 A well-known serial killer (use the spy stat
block) who broke out of prison passes by
the party wearing a hooded cloak trying to
disguise himself. The man is acting very
oddly. If apprehended, the PCs could earn a
lot of money. The PCs recognize the serial
killer on a successful DC 14 Intelligence
(Investigation) check.
45-46 A traveling merchant (thug) in a wagon
drops a rug as they pass by the PCs. It’s
actually a rug of smothering, and the
merchant is actually a highway robber
preying on good-nature people that try to
return the rug to him.
47-48 A random skeleton walks by carrying a mop.
It asks the PCs to buy it a drink at the next
village.
49-50 A trail of small oddly realistic animal parts
is scattered about the ground. Should the
party make too much noise, they hear a
squawk and see 1d4 cockatrices emerging
from a hole nearby.
51-52 A skeleton riding on a skeleton horse, that
only appears at night.
Anthony Qualkinbush (Order #39013051)
RPG Random Encounter Collection
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53-54 A succubus disguised as a regular woman
is roadside by a broken cart. She gets their
help fixing the wagon, and attempts to
charm one of the PCs and give him a kiss
(draining kiss).
55-56 The PCs encounter a bear stuck in a
hunter’s trap.
57-58 A traveling chef is passing through a town
and is looking for adventurers to search for
exotic creatures and herbs. The rarer the
animal or herb, the more the chef will pay.
59-60 2d6 twig blights are running from a fire
elemental that is trying to burn them up. If
the PCs do not interfere, the blights and fire
elemental just pass them by.
61-62 A druid is in a field hosting a planting/
farming class to promote the care of nature
to a group of halflings.
63-64 1d4+2 firenewt warriors have taken over
the blacksmith shop and taken shelter in
the forge’s fire, fighting anyone who tries to
come in
65-66 2d6 lepers (commoners) driven from a
nearby city ambush the party, seeking food
67-68 3 blink dogs are locked into battle with
a two doppelgangers. If the PCs help the
blinks dogs win, they will show them the
location of a hidden treasure.
69-70 There is an illusionary camp with a warm
fire, a pile of food, and supplies that can
trick/charm players to come close. If they
do, 1d3 quicklings attacks the PCs.
71-72 The party is being stalked by 1d6+2 wolves.
If the party succeeds on a DC 15 Wisdom
(Perception) check, they notice the wolves.
Otherwise, when the wolves attack, they
gain surprise.
73-74 1d4+1 scouts ambush the PC’s. Looting
their bodies uncovers some gold and a note
saying someone has put a bounty on the
PCs’ heads.
75-76 2d4 boggles raid the PC’s camp at night,
attempting to steal bed sheets and dirty
clothes to make their own beds back home
77-78 A knight on a warhorse wielding a lance
claims the party are dragons in disguise and
charges them down.
79-80 A plague doctor is dumping a cart of dead
bodies into a freshly dug hole in the ground,
and is preparing to burn them. If asked, the
doctor will tell the PCs that the outbreak
seems to be a new disease.
81-82 A drunken paladin (knight) riding a horse
walks past the PCs. He is rude to them and
will provoke them. If they attack him and he
escapes, the party will be attacked two days
later by a group of 1d4+1 paladins (knights).
83-84 There is a plate of food on a table in the
middle of the road. That’s it.
85-86 Two hooded figures are leading a third
bound figure along the road. If questioned,
they claim the person is a captured criminal.
The two hooded figures are actually 1 cult
fanatic and 1 cultist taking an innocent
person to be sacrificed.
87-88 A dryad runs by, chased by a woodsman
(berserker) swinging his axe. If the PCs
help the dryad, she rewards them with
some treasure. Same goes if they help the
woodsman.
89-90 A satyr offers to show the party a magical
wonder, for a price. If they go there, there
are 1d4+1 additional satyrs waiting to jump
them. The satyrs are drunks that just ran
out of wine.
91-92 The PCs meet a friendly, medium-sized,
young dire wolf that is famished. Feeding
it and making a successful DC 12 Wisdom
(Animal Handling) check gains the group a
new friend.
93-94 An oni and a hag are in the middle of the
road, discussing who is prettier. They ask
the party to help settle the problem.
95-96 An ancient gold dragon approaches the
party disguised as a noblewoman. She jests
with the party for a while before moving
on. If provoked, she will perform a show of
strength to intimidate the party.
97-98 A cage containing a flail snail has fallen
off a caravan and is attacking the caravan
workers who come to close to it. The
workers will ask the PCs to help them get
the cage back in the wagon, rewarding them
if they help.
99-100 1d4+1 well-designed and expensive swords
lay on the ground and no one is nearby. The
swords were animated by a servant of the
God of Mischief and left in the road by his
followers. The swords are flying swords and
will attack any who come near.
Anthony Qualkinbush (Order #39013051)
RPG Random Encounter Collection
4
Level 5-10 Random Encounters
d100 Encounter
1-2 1d4+1 statues (helmed horrors) surround
a fountain filled with gold. If a player tries
to take the gold, the statues animate and
attack.
3-4 The group encounters 1d4 wyverns
attacking a merchant caravan. The
merchants reward handsomely if the PCs
help them.
5-6 There is a pile of tattered parchments in the
road. They are actually handbills, chewed
up by Horses and Goats, that advertise a
local theater group.
7-8 A pack of 1d6+2 centaurs approach the
players and request they stop hunting in
their woods. The centaurs are convinced
that the PCs are responsible for this.
9-10 The party encounters a small circle in
the ground devoid of plant life, black and
scorched. In the center of the circle is a clay
pot. Entering the circle causes a wraith and
2d6 specters to emerge from the pot and
attack.
11-12 There is an area covered with shrubbery. If
the party does not pass through carefully,
they step on an awakened shrub, who is
buddies with an awakened tree which that
attacks the party to defend the shrub’s
honor.
13-14 A pack of 2d4+2 drakes run across the path
in-front of the PCs. If the PCs are spotted or
intervene, they are attacked.
15-16 A cave filled with potatoes. A young
remorhaz guards them.
17-18 A wagon is ahead of the party on a cliffside
when out of nowhere a troll throws a
boulder at it, causing it to dangle off the cliff.
Upon investigation, the party finds 1d4+1
trolls moving to attack the wagon.
19-20 The PCs come across a shining sword in
the middle of a large flower bed. If they
touch the sword, a group of 1d6+1 yellow
musk creepers and 1d6+1 yellow musk
zombies rise up out of the flower bed and
attack.
21-22 A group of 1d4 giant goats are eating a
several corpses lying by the road.
23-24 You find a small toy bear lying in the road
in a town. The owner is a small child. If you
find the child and return the bear, the child’s
mother gives you a silver coin reward.
25-26 An adult green dragon swoops down in
front of the party. He demands a tribute to
his hoard in order to leave them alive. If the
party declines, he will fight.
27-28 The party hears cries for help. If they
investigate, they find a captured woman
harried by 1d6+2 spine devils. If the party
engages the devils, the woman reveals
herself to be a succubus who’d laid an
ambush for them.
29-30 A group of farmers approach the PCs and
ask them to help find their herd of goats,
promising a good reward. The PCs can find
the goats in a field. If they enter the field,
they are attacked by 2d6 ankhegs.
31-32 A dragon died, leaving a huge horde of
treasure nearby. Now, two groups of
treasure hunters are fighting each other
over the treasure at the mouth of the dragon
lair. Each group is composed of 1d6+1
veterans.
33-34 The group finds a baby owlbear being
attacked by 2d6 wolves.
35-36 A nightmare comes running down the road,
drawing a black carriage behind it. It stops
in front of the PCs, and from the inside the
carriage a harsh voice says, “Do you want to
buy something?” It belongs to a chain devil
merchant who is selling magic items that
are all cursed. However, the devil doesn’t
tell the party about the curses on them. If
the PCs attack, the nightmare joins in to
help the devil. The devil keeps all his wears
hidden away in a Tiny Chest spell where
only he can access them.
37-38 A kleptomaniac (bandit) is found beaten by
the side of the road. If the players help him,
they discover later that they are missing
items. They can attempt to recover the
items by tracking him down and getting
them back.
39-40 While walking through town, 1d4+2
children surround the players, admiring
their cool armor and weapons. They are
actually halfling thieves (bandits) trying to
pickpocket them.
Anthony Qualkinbush (Order #39013051)
RPG Random Encounter Collection
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41-42 The group finds 1d6+2 barrels marked
“wine” lying on the side of a road. They are
actually mimics and spring to life if touched
or picked up. The mimics have cult fanatics
controlling them through dark magic.
43-44 A pixie asks the party to make a dress for an
upcoming date. If they agree, they receive
gold. If they don’t, she runs away crying and
returns later with her oni date and the oni’s
sister, both very upset.
45-46 One of the religious PCs gets a vision of a
five-headed dragon, attempting to coerce the
PC into changing their religious following to
that of her own.
47-48 The party encounters a traveling
merchant selling potions dirt cheap. Upon
investigation of a potion, it is discovered to
be poison. Turning the merchant over to the
local authorities brings a nice reward.
49-50 A monster hunter (knight) approaches the
party for assistance slaying a mark, which
turns out to be a tyrannosaurus rex. She
promised the party a nice reward if they
help her. On round 3 of the battle, the
T-rex’s mate, another tyrannosaurs rex,
arrives to join the battle.
51-52 The plants in a forest form a maze which
leads the party to a tree that is home to a
dryad vampire (use vampire stat block). The
vampire demands one PC as an offer to let
the rest of them go.
53-54 The PCs find a pair of boots endlessly
walking in a circle. If put on, the boots allow
the wearer to endlessly walk without tiring.
If taken off, the boots return to where they
were put on.
55-56 A massive herd of 8d6 stench kows is
crossing through the area.
57-58 A masked figure approaches the party,
requesting aid in smuggling themselves
and their partner out of the city. If the party
probes for details, they learn that the couple
are medusas.
59-60 3d6 skeletons are playing dice in a roadside
ruin. If disturbed, they will attack, as they
are all extremely irritable due to the dice
falling between their bony fingers.
61-62 The party can hear complaining coming
from inside a chest (locked, DC 13 to open)
Once opened, the party finds a helmed
horror that complains when it’s not being
used for its purpose, which is to be a guard.
It will happily agree to work for the party,
but only for the purpose of guarding things.
It will not just follow them about and fight
stuff.
63-64 The PCs find 3d6 kobolds talking about a
terrible being they worship and hope for the
honor of being eaten by. After investigating,
the party finds it’s an orphan young white
dragon they are taking care of.
65-66 A dwarf brew-master travelling by wagon
to the nearest city. He has a broken wheel
without a replacement. Should the party
help, they are rewarded with a cask of fine
spirits.
67-68 A group of 1d4+2 hunters (spies) are
hunting unicorns, and ask the party to assist
them for a reward. Two unicorns dwell in a
nearby forest.
69-70 A friendly mimic. That acts as a guide for
the local area, only to lead the party to a
dangerous area
71-72 A young treant awakens to discover
1d4+1 driders occupying its limbs and is
desperately trying to shake them off. It cries
out to the passing PCs for assistance.
73-74 A pair of young brass dragons are arguing
because their wyrmling baby was born
a Red Dragon. The brass “father” wants
the party to kill the young red dragon
responsible, believing he lives somewhere
nearby.
75-76 The PCs come across a pond filled with
black ooze. If they approach it, out comes
1d4+2 black puddings that attempt to kill
the party.
77-78 A blind chicken farmer hears the party
approach and calls for their assistance,
wanting them to find out what happened
to his wife and sons. His chicken coop has
been overrun with 3d6 cockatrices that
have turned his wife and sons to stone. (The
farmer isn’t too bright, and his chickens
never were real chickens. They’ve been
cockatrices the entire time.)
Anthony Qualkinbush (Order #39013051)
RPG Random Encounter Collection
6
79-80 A friendly orc war chief and 2d6 orcs are on
a crab fishing trip. They have accidentally
caught three chuul which are attacking
them as the party walks by. If the party
helps the orcs, they may mistake the help
as an attack or reward them, depending on
what the PCs do.
81-82 The party is ambushed all of the sudden,
as 1d4+1 bulettes come bursting out of the
ground, possibly getting a surprise round.
83-84 The party sees a trail of biscuits leading to
a huge wooden box that is propped up with
a branch. A pile of biscuits sits underneath
the box, and a rope connected to the box is
tied to a branch that leads to a snickering
hill giant. The hill giant believes he is
invisible, and he’s trying to trap his dinner.
85-86 A group of 1d6 mages are fighting a group
1d6 druids. The mages want the magical
mushrooms the druids are protecting.
87-88 The party comes upon a camp in a
picturesque location. Camping here is an
artist with easels set up. The artist is a
horned devil in disguise and offers to paint
the PCs into a landscape painting for a few
gold. If they agree, it uses a special paint
brush to brush the PCs’ souls into the
painting.
89-90 The party sees a chest on a hill made of
rocks. It turns out there are 1d4+1 galeb
duhrs guarding the chest. Inside the chest is
a nice prize.
91-92 The PCs come across a river with a
destroyed bridge. Hidden nearby and
invisible is an archmage. When the party
begins to wade across the river, it attacks
them.
93-94 The party sees a giant boulder blocking
the road. It is actually a stone golem that
attacks if disturbed.
95-96 An unarmed ogre runs past the party,
chased by 1d2+1 ogres armed with clubs.
(The unarmed ogre was accused of stealing
food from the others.) The players can help
either side or just ignore them. They get
10d6 gold from helping either side.
97-98 The party sees an adult red dragon fly away
from a blasted battlefield. On the battlefield,
they can find a dying adventurer (he took an
arrow to the knee) who begs them to avenge
the deaths of his friends. He can tell them
where the lair of the dragon is, but then
dies.
99-100 A group of bacchanalian revelers welcomes
the party in for drinking (clothes optional).
Level 11-16 Random Encounters
d100 Encounter
1-2 The party is ambushed by 1d6+2
weretigers.
3-4 The group encounters a traveling
apothecary that has potions that have
strange, random effects. Roll on the Wild
Magic table when a player drinks one.
5-6 A group of 2d6+2 elven bandits who only
talk in questions. They will allow the
characters through if they can stump them.
7-8 There is an abandoned house. Inside a coat
rack lurk 1d3 cloakers.
9-10 They come across what appears to be a
wizard on a farm casting spells at a pig.
The wizard is actually a lich, and it’s having
trouble targeting the pig with its spells. The
lich is only hostile if attacked.
11-12 The party encounters a group of 3d6
veterans escorting a notorious killer to be
executed. The killer is actually an innocent
man and pleads for the PC’s help.
13-14 A dwarven tax collector approaches the
party and demands 15% of the takings from
their last adventure as taxes to be paid to
the local ruler. There are 1d6 bodyguards
(gladiators) with the dwarf who attack if the
PCs refuse.
15-16 The party encounters an adult copper
dragon that just want to tell some jokes and
listen to a story or two from the heroes.
17-18 An ancient dragon (pick a color appropriate
to local area) running a protection racket
offers to sell the party “dragon insurance”
for 500 gold. If the PCs refuse, it attacks.
19-20 The party comes across an abandoned
inn by the side of the road that, despite its
dilapidated looks, it is a hideout for 1d4+1
assassins.
21-22 A group of 2d6 teenagers (bandits) who
style themselves “demon hunters” and call
themselves The Order of the Holy Sword,
approach the heroes and ask if there are any
demons nearby. One of the members insists
that the PCs may be demons and demands
proof that they are not.
Anthony Qualkinbush (Order #39013051)
RPG Random Encounter Collection
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23-24 A recently exploded house of a wizard, who
failed to transport to another plane. There
are two vampires in the ruins, fighting over
the territory.
25-26 There are two people on a farm arguing
over who owns a cow. One person
abandoned the calf and the other person
took it in. The first person wants it back
now. The players must decide who the
owner is, and whomever receives it gives
them a 20 gp reward as thanks.
27-28 The party hears wailing somewhere off the
road. If they investigate, they find a young
gold dragon weeping for her fallen sister. A
poisoned arrow pierces the sister’s heart.
29-30 The group encounters a drunken archmage
with the hiccups who accidentally casts a
spell each time he hiccups or burps. Some
of the spells are very harmful and target the
party.
31-32 A djinni appears, granting one wish. If the
wish is a selfish wish, it shall be twisted like
a monkey’s paw.
33-34 There’s a group of 4d6 tribal warriors
celebrating around a massive bonfire. If
party joins in the celebrations, they warriors
give them some nice gifts.
35-36 The party finds a fortune tellers wagon with
a broken wheel. If they help the fortune
teller, he reads their fortune. The fortune
teller is an alhoon with two mages as
thralls.
37-38 1d4+2 duergar warlords approach the
party and accuse them of having stolen
their gems. The duergar attack if the party
doesn’t give them at least 500 gp worth of
gems.
39-40 1d4+2 invisible stalkers decided to steal
from the party at night. The next day, feeling
much braver, they assault the party.
41-42 The group fights a paladin (champion) being
mind-controlled by a sentient sword who is
trying to find a worthy master. The sword
chooses one of the players it wants to be its
master and telepathically begs the player to
defeat the paladin in one-on-one combat in
order to claim it as their own.
43-44 The party encounters a traveling merchant
selling items dirt cheap. The items are
actually stolen, and that could come back to
bite the party later.
45-46 A mummy lord confronts the party, claiming
they raided its tomb, and demands they
hand over the stolen items. The party can
avoid a combat by giving it at least one
magical item and 1000 gp worth of treasure
or coin.
47-48 The PCs stumble across a group of 4
harried newbie adventures (veteran) who
are gravely wounded and running for their
lives out of a troll cave with 1d4+1 venom
trolls in it.
49-50 An extremely stressed woman (a siren in
disguise) approaches the party and begs for
them to help her dying sister. If they follow
her, she leads them to an ambush of 1d6+2
other sirens!
51-52 A very young storm giant and its pet behir
request the party’s assistance in hunting
a local ancient (area appropriate color)
dragon. The giant boasted his way into this
deadly hunt, and now needs assistance.
53-54 There’s a rickety bridge above rushing
water. Some of the bridge is missing, and
the party needs to jump over the gaps to get
across. If they all go on the bridge at once, it
collapses.
55-56 The party encounters a man wearing no
clothes and drunk out of his mind running
along the road. The man challenges them to
a dance off.
57-58 They find a very wise, talking duck by the
side of the road with a chess board. One of
them may challenge the duck to a game. If
they win, the duck shows himself as a druid,
granting a request.
59-60 The party finds a bed of colorful flowers of
exceptional beauty and heavenly aroma.
The flowers do nothing, but are valuable.
61-62 A mysterious figure appears from nowhere
and offers the players a chance to draw a
card from the Deck of Many Things.
63-64 A group of 2d4+4 fire elementals are
fighting a group of 2d4+4 water elementals.
If the group helps the fire elements, they are
rewarded with a magical sword. If they help
the water elementals, they are rewarded
with an Alchemy Jug.
65-66 There is a drunk guy making moves on the
PCs.
Anthony Qualkinbush (Order #39013051)
RPG Random Encounter Collection
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67-68 The PC’s crest a hill to see the unthinkable,
a mighty kraken on dry land. A split second
later, it turns into a cow, then an ancient
red dragon, then a mouse. The local friendly
wizard’s polymorph spell has gone amok.
69-70 A travelling con man (secretly a vampire)
attempts to con the party into joining him
on a quest to save a loved one from a group
of goblins. He leads them into an ambush
and two vampire spawn join the vampire in
attacking the PCs.
71-72 A kobold philosopher, surrounded by other
kobold intellectuals, asks the party what
came first: the egg or the first dragon?
73-74 The group encounters a local champion
(gladiator, STR 18) who challenges the
strongest member of the party to a boulder
rolling contest (a series of Athletics checks
contested by the gladiator’s).
75-76 The party comes across a travelling dragon
turtle with a city on it back. (Contributed by
Daniel Treanor.)
77-78 The group finds a large, dismembered horse
leg. It does not rot, and no animals have
eaten off it. The leg belongs to Sleipnir,
Odin’s horse, and was lost when Thor took
the horse without asking.
79-80 At a farm along the path, a farmer
complains about a weed infesting his farm.
The party can cut the weed back for a small
reward or find a natural parasite to the
weed for a larger reward.
81-82 The party meets a deva with a broken
wing. He was stabbed by dagger which
cursed him, and now he can’t receive any
magical healing. The deva will reward them
handsomely if they aid him.
83-84 A chosen of the god of dragons (any area
appropriate adult dragon CR13-17 )
approaches the party, demanding a fight
to the death to appease its god. The party
might be able to talk the dragon down.
85-86 The group finds a dead delivery man with
a bag full of mail. The mail contains intel
on a certain city, and there is a note on
the man describing where the mail should
be delivered. If the party delivers the mail
without opening it, they receive a reward.
87-88 A well-known paladin who’s wounded and
dying asks the party to carry word back
to his family of his fate and heroic deeds.
(He doesn’t admit to the fact that many of
his deeds were actually done by his lowly
squire.)
89-90 The party encounters a Bard entertaining
an adult red dragon who is in love with the
Bard. If the group approaches, the bard will
start mocking them and making fun of them.
The Dragon will defend the Elven Bard
from the party by any means necessary.
91-92 10d10 spooked cows stampede through the
road.
93-94 A pair of a succubi and an incubus, along
with 1d4+2 cambions, attempt to relieve the
party of their gold for some schemes they
have planned.
95-96 The PCs find a hungry and wounded cat
that, if healed and fed, will transform into a
treessym and follow the party
97-98 The party comes across a single sad
monodrone that asks them the meaning of
life and then walks off dejected.
99-100 A planetar stops the party and demands that
they repent for the sins of their past. If each
PC doesn’t confess to at least one major sin
and then repent, it attacks.
Level 17-20 Random Encounters
d100 Encounter
1-2 The PCs are surrounded by two adult black
dragons who demand the PCs service in
retrieving a magic item for them. If they
refuse, the dragons attack.
3-4 The group encounters a dragon turtle.
5-6 The PCs encounter a unicorn grazing near a
pond. While they are there, a flock of 1d6+2
wyverns swoop down to attack the creature,
seeking revenge for a previous slight.
7-8 An adult gold dragon got his head stuck
inside a wall when he was chasing some
gnolls.
9-10 The characters encounter a demigod,
Valerifalar, who asks them to burn a nest of
1d4+1 green dragon wyrmlings. If the PCs
do it, sometime later in the campaign, the
ancient green dragon mother, tracks them
down for revenge.
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11-12 A group of 1d6+2 kenku mimes
(commoners) want to play a game of
charades with the PCs. If they refuse, the
mimes open doors in the air and walk away
with sad faces.
13-14 The group encounters an ancient red
dragon, named Slathbog the Bearded,
sitting on its treasure hoard contemplating
what to do with its life other than killing and
hording treasure. She asks the party their
advice.
15-16 The PCs encounter two ice devils chasing
after a low-level group of 1d4+1 adventurers
(thugs, scouts, and apprentices) who are
wounded and shouting for help. If the PCs
help, the adventurers give them 2d10x100
gold.
17-18 1d4 hungry remorhazes ambush the party,
burrowing out of their hidden positions
under the ground. When a remorhaz
swallows a PC, it turns and leaves the
encounter, burrowing underground where it
can consume its meal in peace.
19-20 A group of 1d4+1 elves approach the party,
accusing them of poaching in their forest.
They demand reparations, or they become
hostile.
21-22 An adult brass dragon asks for the party to
retrieve an egg stolen by the minions of a
rival white dragon. The egg has been moved
to the white dragon’s lair where the brass
dragon doesn’t dare to travel. In return,
the party will receive a nice piece of the
brass dragon’s treasure as a token of her
gratitude.
23-24 The party encounters a death knight named
Luke Lightbane at the side of the road
selling hoodies. The death knight becomes
upset if they don’t buy some.
25-26 The PCs come across three green dragon
eggs on a fire being cooked by a group of
4d6 gold-scaled kobolds. If the players save
the eggs, there will be an ancient green
dragon looking for them who will reward
them handsomely for their return (or blame
them for stealing the eggs).
27-28 A giant ape has been pushed out of its
habitat due to a growing city spreading
more and more. It has started attacking
and even killing those who attempt to push
further into the wild, putting a halt to the
growth of the booming city. The party will
be rewarded a handsome amount of gold if
they kill the beast.
29-30 A PC gets shot with an arrow in knee.
(That’s it.) The assailant cannot be found.
31-32 The PCs come across an old beggar man
who asks for 250 gp for medicine for his
dying daughter. If they refuse, he reveals
himself as an ancient brass dragon who
punishes them for their heartlessness.
33-34 The party stumbles across a massacred
village. In the center, they find demons
and devils drawing up an alliance (1d4+1
glabrezu and 1d4+1 chain devils.) If they
see them, they invite the PCs to join them.
Otherwise, they attack.
35-36 The party encounters a pile of dead
bodies with a large pot on top of it. (The
pot contains 500 gp.) Anyone who comes
too close has to succeed on a DC 17
Constitution saving throw or become
infected by a horrible disease.
37-38 When the party enters a random building
they come across, they spot a glowing
sword on the floor. If touched, it releases
a surge of power, animating everything
not nailed down to the floor. The animated
objects converge into 1d4+2 trash golems
(use crystal golem stats) that attack.
39-40 The party finds a pair of kids being beaten
by 6 goblins. If they kill the goblins, the kids
thank them. When the party isn’t on guard,
the kids turn back into vampire form and try
to rob the PCs.
41-42 A hibernating purple worm is found curled
up, unaware of the party’s presence. The
worm does nothing but slumber unless it
takes more than 20 points of damage from
a magical source. Non-magical damage has
no effect on the worm while in hibernation.
If woken, the purple worm immediately
attacks the party.
43-44 The players witness a wounded planetar fall
from the sky near the party.
45-46 The characters find a magical +3 sword.
However, when the sword makes contact
with a monster for the first time, it spawns
1d4 young blue dragons and crumbles to
dust.
47-48 The party is approached by a group of
dwarves asking for their help clearing a
mine they were working. It now has 1d6+2
medusas in it, running about and turning
people to stone.
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49-50 A tabaxi pirate captain tries to enlist the
PCs help in retrieving treasure that they lost
because they don’t like water. If they agree,
they get a cut. If they disagree, the pirates
trail them.
51-52 The party finds an ancient gold dragon
who is convinced that the party are demons
in disguise. He wants to enact justice for
slaughtering a village.
53-54 A group of 4d6 minotaur plane travelers are
stuck in the material plane and need the
PC’s help to get back to the Astral Plane.
55-56 A woman approaches the party frantic
that her daughter has gone missing. Upon
investigation, they discover she wandered
into the cemetery and is now hiding from a
mummy lord.
57-58 A young boy has become bonded to a grey
render. The party meets a group of 1d6
knights led by a warlord that wants to
kill the beast, even if it means killing the
innocent child. The boy is pleading with the
knights to let him and his friend go.
59-60 The PCS find a friendly necromancer who
raised 3d6 skeletons and 2d8 zombies,
which follow him. He robs peoples’ graves
and is genuinely convinced he’s giving them
a second chance at life.
61-62 Two ancient red dragons are discovered
arguing about the exact shade of red of their
scales. Each of them demands the party
help settle the argument, but it’s impossible
to please both.
63-64 An aboleth who was turned into a frog tells
the party he needs to be kissed by royalty to
lift the curse.
65-66 The characters find a kraken and a
leviathan fighting while traveling across the
sea. Their combat is making the ocean very
turbulent, threatening to sink their ship if
the PCs do nothing.
67-68 A sinkhole forms under the party, and they
fall into a cave with two adult rust monsters
and a group of 2d10 juvenile rust monsters
(1/2 hp of a rust monster).
69-70 The players witness a group of 2d6 cultists
throw an innocent into a portal to the
negative plane, releasing a night walker that
begins a rampage.
71-72 The party encounters a merchant selling
a wolf cub, only the cub is actually the
merchant’s werewolf child that they are
trying to get rid of. If one of the party
members buys the cub, it bites them.
73-74 Due to a misspelled word in a contract
signed in the Halls of Concordance, a marut
shows up to punish one of the PC’s for
breaking a contract that they didn’t sign.
75-76 The party is ambushed by a group of 1d6+1
assassins. Apparently, somebody they
killed in the past put his entire net worth
as a bounty on their heads in his will. The
assassins can be paid off.
77-78 The party stumbles upon a marilith and her
young daughter. Protective of her daughter,
the mother threatens the party by whipping
her tail at them. If they back away, she only
watches until they are gone then returns to
whatever she and her daughter were doing.
If the party draws their weapons or attempts
to attack either her or her daughter, both
mariliths attack.
79-80 Party encounters what they believe is a
starving kobold offering to cast the mend
spell in exchange for food. If the party
interacts with them, an entire horde of
kobolds ambush them.
81-82 An ancient blue dragon has a +2 magical
sword piercing it to the ground by the tail,
making it impossible to move. The dragon
cannot remove the sword due to a curse
and it is immune to all damage and spells as
long as it’s pinned in place. The players can
remove the sword quite easily, but there’d
be a loose ancient blue dragon.
83-84 A talking goat explains that it is a warlock
polymorphed by its patron after angering
him. The goat wants someone to cast dispel
magic on it. Dispel magic only works if the
caster succeeds on a DC 20 spellcasting
ability check.
85-86 The PCs run across a sentient sword (use
mage stat block) with arms and legs walking
along the road. The sword communicates
telepathically and engages them in small
talk.
87-88 The party encounters a very depressed
and misled aspiring undead cleric (war
priest) who is in constant danger of “healing
himself to life.”
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89-90 The party comes across some old ruins
that have many valuable items in organized
piles. If the party tries to take any of the
items, 1d4 stone juggernauts animate from
among the ruins and attack them.
91-92 A king asks the characters to rid the
countryside of a bothersome troll. The
players find out the troll is really the King
polymorphed by an evil wizard, who took his
place.
93-94 1d10+5 adult elephants charge across
the path. The party needs to make DC 15
Dexterity saving throws to avoid trampling
damage. They can attack the elephants if
they wish, gaining 5d10x100 gp worth of
ivory from each kill.
95-96 The party finds a beaten up, tired little
goblin who tells them that his cave got
invaded by an ancient red dragon that killed
everyone else inside. The goblin begs the
PCs to get revenge.
97-98 A portal from the astral plane releases an
astral dreadnought that attacks.
99-100 The group encounters a waking tarrasque.
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Credits
Author, Designer, Layout, and Cover Design: Luke
Hart
Editor: Danni Arriaga
Artwork: Adobe Stock
Contacting the Author
Email: info@thedmlair.com
Twitter & Instagram: @TheDMLair
Game Master Resources
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Legal Stuff
Random Encounter Collection, Copyright © 2020,
Luke Hart, The DM Lair, LLC
Open Game License v 1.0a Copyright 2000,
Wizards of the Coast, LLC.
System Reference Document 5.1 Copyright 2016,
Wizards of the Coast, Inc.; Authors Mike Mearls,
Jeremy Crawford, Chris Perkins, Rodney Thompson,
Peter Lee, James Wyatt, Robert J. Schwalb, Bruce R.
Cordell, Chris Sims, and Steve Townshend, based on
original material by E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson.
Foreword
I host weekly live streams where the participants and
I create RPG resources for game masters and players
to use in their own games. I do this as my way of
giving back to the RPG community and helping others
in their games.
This Random Encounter Collection you have in your
hands now is a compilation of four random encounter
tables we created over the course of four live streams.
My hope is that you will find the random encounters it
contains interesting and useful for your own games.
I also want to express my sincere appreciation for
all the participants in my live streams who helped
brainstorm ideas for this resource. I feel the entire
RPG community owes them a debt of gratitude for
their enthusiastic efforts. Thank you!
What You'll Find Here
Here you’ll find four random encounter tables, each
one designed for a specific tier of play.
What, no art? Yep, that’s right. Artwork costs money
to commission, and I’m offering this resource free of
charge. If you’re looking for fancy artwork and other
frills, this resource probably isn’t for you.
However, if you’re looking for useful random
encounter tables, read on.
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Level 1-4 Random Encounters
d100 Encounter
1-2 1d4+1 gnolls are chasing a fox when the
PCs run across them
3-4 1d3 scarecrows are lurking inside a field of
tall grass that the players pass through
5-6 1d8+2 grung are harvesting herbs, and the
players walk into their territory
7-8 A goblin is stuck in a pit trap. It has a bag of
gold and looks rather tired and sad.
9-10 1d2 redcaps are tracking the PCs from
behind with the intent of attacking them
when they camp at night
11-12 1d8+2 winged kobolds are in trees or near
the ceiling waiting for their simple pit
trap to be sprung, and then ambush the
characters
13-14 1d2 quasits transformed into either toads,
giant centipedes, or bats are planning on
ambushing something and watch as the
PCs near.
15-16 An adult black dragon flies overhead but
doesn’t appear to notice the characters –
unless they do something stupid.
17-18 A trail of 1d4+1 pixies leads the party to
an injured dryad who throws a few attacks
their way out of panic at first. If the PCs
attack back, the pixies aid the dryad.
19-20 1d4 harpies start stalking the adventures,
thinking they’ll be easy prey
21-22 2d6 bandits are waiting along the road.
They demand a 25 gp payment from the
characters to pass; otherwise, they attack.
23-24 An acolyte con artist wants to gamble with
the adventurers. She’s down on her luck
and needs to pay for a mistake she made to
gain entry back into her religious order.
25-26 The party comes across 3 wolves hunting a
deer. They can either watch nature take its
course or save the victim.
27-28 1 troll is very hungry. It speaks Common
and demands food from the party. If they
give the troll food, it leaves them alone.
29-30 A band of 1d6+2 goblins are looking for
dead dragons to use their scales to make
shields. The goblins are not hostile and ask
the PCs if they have any leads.
31-32 1d3 duergar are blending into their
surroundings, waiting to ambush prey that
happens by. The PCs might just be that
prey.
33-34 The PCs come across two adult red dragons
fighting in the distance, having a territory
dispute.
35-36 The party finds a roadside shrine to the god
of travel. On it is an offering of food and a
few coins. If the PCs take anything from the
shrine, they have “bad luck” for the day.
37-38 They encounter an owlbear attacking a
small caravan of four wealthy nobles with
1d6+2 guards. If the PCs help defeat the
owlbear, the nobles give them a medal
worth 50 gp that gives them street cred in
any nearby city.
39-40 PC’s encounter a patrol of 1d4+1 hostile
hobgoblins. Killing them might bring the
rest of the hobgoblin hoard down on the
PC’s.
41-42 Patches of poisonous plants grow in a
field of plants that look very similar. The
plants can be used as an ingredient to make
potions of poison. If touched, the player(s)
must succeed a DC 13 Constitution saving
throw or be poisoned for 1d4 hours.
43-44 A well-known serial killer (use the spy stat
block) who broke out of prison passes by
the party wearing a hooded cloak trying to
disguise himself. The man is acting very
oddly. If apprehended, the PCs could earn a
lot of money. The PCs recognize the serial
killer on a successful DC 14 Intelligence
(Investigation) check.
45-46 A traveling merchant (thug) in a wagon
drops a rug as they pass by the PCs. It’s
actually a rug of smothering, and the
merchant is actually a highway robber
preying on good-nature people that try to
return the rug to him.
47-48 A random skeleton walks by carrying a mop.
It asks the PCs to buy it a drink at the next
village.
49-50 A trail of small oddly realistic animal parts
is scattered about the ground. Should the
party make too much noise, they hear a
squawk and see 1d4 cockatrices emerging
from a hole nearby.
51-52 A skeleton riding on a skeleton horse, that
only appears at night.
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53-54 A succubus disguised as a regular woman
is roadside by a broken cart. She gets their
help fixing the wagon, and attempts to
charm one of the PCs and give him a kiss
(draining kiss).
55-56 The PCs encounter a bear stuck in a
hunter’s trap.
57-58 A traveling chef is passing through a town
and is looking for adventurers to search for
exotic creatures and herbs. The rarer the
animal or herb, the more the chef will pay.
59-60 2d6 twig blights are running from a fire
elemental that is trying to burn them up. If
the PCs do not interfere, the blights and fire
elemental just pass them by.
61-62 A druid is in a field hosting a planting/
farming class to promote the care of nature
to a group of halflings.
63-64 1d4+2 firenewt warriors have taken over
the blacksmith shop and taken shelter in
the forge’s fire, fighting anyone who tries to
come in
65-66 2d6 lepers (commoners) driven from a
nearby city ambush the party, seeking food
67-68 3 blink dogs are locked into battle with
a two doppelgangers. If the PCs help the
blinks dogs win, they will show them the
location of a hidden treasure.
69-70 There is an illusionary camp with a warm
fire, a pile of food, and supplies that can
trick/charm players to come close. If they
do, 1d3 quicklings attacks the PCs.
71-72 The party is being stalked by 1d6+2 wolves.
If the party succeeds on a DC 15 Wisdom
(Perception) check, they notice the wolves.
Otherwise, when the wolves attack, they
gain surprise.
73-74 1d4+1 scouts ambush the PC’s. Looting
their bodies uncovers some gold and a note
saying someone has put a bounty on the
PCs’ heads.
75-76 2d4 boggles raid the PC’s camp at night,
attempting to steal bed sheets and dirty
clothes to make their own beds back home
77-78 A knight on a warhorse wielding a lance
claims the party are dragons in disguise and
charges them down.
79-80 A plague doctor is dumping a cart of dead
bodies into a freshly dug hole in the ground,
and is preparing to burn them. If asked, the
doctor will tell the PCs that the outbreak
seems to be a new disease.
81-82 A drunken paladin (knight) riding a horse
walks past the PCs. He is rude to them and
will provoke them. If they attack him and he
escapes, the party will be attacked two days
later by a group of 1d4+1 paladins (knights).
83-84 There is a plate of food on a table in the
middle of the road. That’s it.
85-86 Two hooded figures are leading a third
bound figure along the road. If questioned,
they claim the person is a captured criminal.
The two hooded figures are actually 1 cult
fanatic and 1 cultist taking an innocent
person to be sacrificed.
87-88 A dryad runs by, chased by a woodsman
(berserker) swinging his axe. If the PCs
help the dryad, she rewards them with
some treasure. Same goes if they help the
woodsman.
89-90 A satyr offers to show the party a magical
wonder, for a price. If they go there, there
are 1d4+1 additional satyrs waiting to jump
them. The satyrs are drunks that just ran
out of wine.
91-92 The PCs meet a friendly, medium-sized,
young dire wolf that is famished. Feeding
it and making a successful DC 12 Wisdom
(Animal Handling) check gains the group a
new friend.
93-94 An oni and a hag are in the middle of the
road, discussing who is prettier. They ask
the party to help settle the problem.
95-96 An ancient gold dragon approaches the
party disguised as a noblewoman. She jests
with the party for a while before moving
on. If provoked, she will perform a show of
strength to intimidate the party.
97-98 A cage containing a flail snail has fallen
off a caravan and is attacking the caravan
workers who come to close to it. The
workers will ask the PCs to help them get
the cage back in the wagon, rewarding them
if they help.
99-100 1d4+1 well-designed and expensive swords
lay on the ground and no one is nearby. The
swords were animated by a servant of the
God of Mischief and left in the road by his
followers. The swords are flying swords and
will attack any who come near.
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Level 5-10 Random Encounters
d100 Encounter
1-2 1d4+1 statues (helmed horrors) surround
a fountain filled with gold. If a player tries
to take the gold, the statues animate and
attack.
3-4 The group encounters 1d4 wyverns
attacking a merchant caravan. The
merchants reward handsomely if the PCs
help them.
5-6 There is a pile of tattered parchments in the
road. They are actually handbills, chewed
up by Horses and Goats, that advertise a
local theater group.
7-8 A pack of 1d6+2 centaurs approach the
players and request they stop hunting in
their woods. The centaurs are convinced
that the PCs are responsible for this.
9-10 The party encounters a small circle in
the ground devoid of plant life, black and
scorched. In the center of the circle is a clay
pot. Entering the circle causes a wraith and
2d6 specters to emerge from the pot and
attack.
11-12 There is an area covered with shrubbery. If
the party does not pass through carefully,
they step on an awakened shrub, who is
buddies with an awakened tree which that
attacks the party to defend the shrub’s
honor.
13-14 A pack of 2d4+2 drakes run across the path
in-front of the PCs. If the PCs are spotted or
intervene, they are attacked.
15-16 A cave filled with potatoes. A young
remorhaz guards them.
17-18 A wagon is ahead of the party on a cliffside
when out of nowhere a troll throws a
boulder at it, causing it to dangle off the cliff.
Upon investigation, the party finds 1d4+1
trolls moving to attack the wagon.
19-20 The PCs come across a shining sword in
the middle of a large flower bed. If they
touch the sword, a group of 1d6+1 yellow
musk creepers and 1d6+1 yellow musk
zombies rise up out of the flower bed and
attack.
21-22 A group of 1d4 giant goats are eating a
several corpses lying by the road.
23-24 You find a small toy bear lying in the road
in a town. The owner is a small child. If you
find the child and return the bear, the child’s
mother gives you a silver coin reward.
25-26 An adult green dragon swoops down in
front of the party. He demands a tribute to
his hoard in order to leave them alive. If the
party declines, he will fight.
27-28 The party hears cries for help. If they
investigate, they find a captured woman
harried by 1d6+2 spine devils. If the party
engages the devils, the woman reveals
herself to be a succubus who’d laid an
ambush for them.
29-30 A group of farmers approach the PCs and
ask them to help find their herd of goats,
promising a good reward. The PCs can find
the goats in a field. If they enter the field,
they are attacked by 2d6 ankhegs.
31-32 A dragon died, leaving a huge horde of
treasure nearby. Now, two groups of
treasure hunters are fighting each other
over the treasure at the mouth of the dragon
lair. Each group is composed of 1d6+1
veterans.
33-34 The group finds a baby owlbear being
attacked by 2d6 wolves.
35-36 A nightmare comes running down the road,
drawing a black carriage behind it. It stops
in front of the PCs, and from the inside the
carriage a harsh voice says, “Do you want to
buy something?” It belongs to a chain devil
merchant who is selling magic items that
are all cursed. However, the devil doesn’t
tell the party about the curses on them. If
the PCs attack, the nightmare joins in to
help the devil. The devil keeps all his wears
hidden away in a Tiny Chest spell where
only he can access them.
37-38 A kleptomaniac (bandit) is found beaten by
the side of the road. If the players help him,
they discover later that they are missing
items. They can attempt to recover the
items by tracking him down and getting
them back.
39-40 While walking through town, 1d4+2
children surround the players, admiring
their cool armor and weapons. They are
actually halfling thieves (bandits) trying to
pickpocket them.
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41-42 The group finds 1d6+2 barrels marked
“wine” lying on the side of a road. They are
actually mimics and spring to life if touched
or picked up. The mimics have cult fanatics
controlling them through dark magic.
43-44 A pixie asks the party to make a dress for an
upcoming date. If they agree, they receive
gold. If they don’t, she runs away crying and
returns later with her oni date and the oni’s
sister, both very upset.
45-46 One of the religious PCs gets a vision of a
five-headed dragon, attempting to coerce the
PC into changing their religious following to
that of her own.
47-48 The party encounters a traveling
merchant selling potions dirt cheap. Upon
investigation of a potion, it is discovered to
be poison. Turning the merchant over to the
local authorities brings a nice reward.
49-50 A monster hunter (knight) approaches the
party for assistance slaying a mark, which
turns out to be a tyrannosaurus rex. She
promised the party a nice reward if they
help her. On round 3 of the battle, the
T-rex’s mate, another tyrannosaurs rex,
arrives to join the battle.
51-52 The plants in a forest form a maze which
leads the party to a tree that is home to a
dryad vampire (use vampire stat block). The
vampire demands one PC as an offer to let
the rest of them go.
53-54 The PCs find a pair of boots endlessly
walking in a circle. If put on, the boots allow
the wearer to endlessly walk without tiring.
If taken off, the boots return to where they
were put on.
55-56 A massive herd of 8d6 stench kows is
crossing through the area.
57-58 A masked figure approaches the party,
requesting aid in smuggling themselves
and their partner out of the city. If the party
probes for details, they learn that the couple
are medusas.
59-60 3d6 skeletons are playing dice in a roadside
ruin. If disturbed, they will attack, as they
are all extremely irritable due to the dice
falling between their bony fingers.
61-62 The party can hear complaining coming
from inside a chest (locked, DC 13 to open)
Once opened, the party finds a helmed
horror that complains when it’s not being
used for its purpose, which is to be a guard.
It will happily agree to work for the party,
but only for the purpose of guarding things.
It will not just follow them about and fight
stuff.
63-64 The PCs find 3d6 kobolds talking about a
terrible being they worship and hope for the
honor of being eaten by. After investigating,
the party finds it’s an orphan young white
dragon they are taking care of.
65-66 A dwarf brew-master travelling by wagon
to the nearest city. He has a broken wheel
without a replacement. Should the party
help, they are rewarded with a cask of fine
spirits.
67-68 A group of 1d4+2 hunters (spies) are
hunting unicorns, and ask the party to assist
them for a reward. Two unicorns dwell in a
nearby forest.
69-70 A friendly mimic. That acts as a guide for
the local area, only to lead the party to a
dangerous area
71-72 A young treant awakens to discover
1d4+1 driders occupying its limbs and is
desperately trying to shake them off. It cries
out to the passing PCs for assistance.
73-74 A pair of young brass dragons are arguing
because their wyrmling baby was born
a Red Dragon. The brass “father” wants
the party to kill the young red dragon
responsible, believing he lives somewhere
nearby.
75-76 The PCs come across a pond filled with
black ooze. If they approach it, out comes
1d4+2 black puddings that attempt to kill
the party.
77-78 A blind chicken farmer hears the party
approach and calls for their assistance,
wanting them to find out what happened
to his wife and sons. His chicken coop has
been overrun with 3d6 cockatrices that
have turned his wife and sons to stone. (The
farmer isn’t too bright, and his chickens
never were real chickens. They’ve been
cockatrices the entire time.)
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RPG Random Encounter Collection
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79-80 A friendly orc war chief and 2d6 orcs are on
a crab fishing trip. They have accidentally
caught three chuul which are attacking
them as the party walks by. If the party
helps the orcs, they may mistake the help
as an attack or reward them, depending on
what the PCs do.
81-82 The party is ambushed all of the sudden,
as 1d4+1 bulettes come bursting out of the
ground, possibly getting a surprise round.
83-84 The party sees a trail of biscuits leading to
a huge wooden box that is propped up with
a branch. A pile of biscuits sits underneath
the box, and a rope connected to the box is
tied to a branch that leads to a snickering
hill giant. The hill giant believes he is
invisible, and he’s trying to trap his dinner.
85-86 A group of 1d6 mages are fighting a group
1d6 druids. The mages want the magical
mushrooms the druids are protecting.
87-88 The party comes upon a camp in a
picturesque location. Camping here is an
artist with easels set up. The artist is a
horned devil in disguise and offers to paint
the PCs into a landscape painting for a few
gold. If they agree, it uses a special paint
brush to brush the PCs’ souls into the
painting.
89-90 The party sees a chest on a hill made of
rocks. It turns out there are 1d4+1 galeb
duhrs guarding the chest. Inside the chest is
a nice prize.
91-92 The PCs come across a river with a
destroyed bridge. Hidden nearby and
invisible is an archmage. When the party
begins to wade across the river, it attacks
them.
93-94 The party sees a giant boulder blocking
the road. It is actually a stone golem that
attacks if disturbed.
95-96 An unarmed ogre runs past the party,
chased by 1d2+1 ogres armed with clubs.
(The unarmed ogre was accused of stealing
food from the others.) The players can help
either side or just ignore them. They get
10d6 gold from helping either side.
97-98 The party sees an adult red dragon fly away
from a blasted battlefield. On the battlefield,
they can find a dying adventurer (he took an
arrow to the knee) who begs them to avenge
the deaths of his friends. He can tell them
where the lair of the dragon is, but then
dies.
99-100 A group of bacchanalian revelers welcomes
the party in for drinking (clothes optional).
Level 11-16 Random Encounters
d100 Encounter
1-2 The party is ambushed by 1d6+2
weretigers.
3-4 The group encounters a traveling
apothecary that has potions that have
strange, random effects. Roll on the Wild
Magic table when a player drinks one.
5-6 A group of 2d6+2 elven bandits who only
talk in questions. They will allow the
characters through if they can stump them.
7-8 There is an abandoned house. Inside a coat
rack lurk 1d3 cloakers.
9-10 They come across what appears to be a
wizard on a farm casting spells at a pig.
The wizard is actually a lich, and it’s having
trouble targeting the pig with its spells. The
lich is only hostile if attacked.
11-12 The party encounters a group of 3d6
veterans escorting a notorious killer to be
executed. The killer is actually an innocent
man and pleads for the PC’s help.
13-14 A dwarven tax collector approaches the
party and demands 15% of the takings from
their last adventure as taxes to be paid to
the local ruler. There are 1d6 bodyguards
(gladiators) with the dwarf who attack if the
PCs refuse.
15-16 The party encounters an adult copper
dragon that just want to tell some jokes and
listen to a story or two from the heroes.
17-18 An ancient dragon (pick a color appropriate
to local area) running a protection racket
offers to sell the party “dragon insurance”
for 500 gold. If the PCs refuse, it attacks.
19-20 The party comes across an abandoned
inn by the side of the road that, despite its
dilapidated looks, it is a hideout for 1d4+1
assassins.
21-22 A group of 2d6 teenagers (bandits) who
style themselves “demon hunters” and call
themselves The Order of the Holy Sword,
approach the heroes and ask if there are any
demons nearby. One of the members insists
that the PCs may be demons and demands
proof that they are not.
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23-24 A recently exploded house of a wizard, who
failed to transport to another plane. There
are two vampires in the ruins, fighting over
the territory.
25-26 There are two people on a farm arguing
over who owns a cow. One person
abandoned the calf and the other person
took it in. The first person wants it back
now. The players must decide who the
owner is, and whomever receives it gives
them a 20 gp reward as thanks.
27-28 The party hears wailing somewhere off the
road. If they investigate, they find a young
gold dragon weeping for her fallen sister. A
poisoned arrow pierces the sister’s heart.
29-30 The group encounters a drunken archmage
with the hiccups who accidentally casts a
spell each time he hiccups or burps. Some
of the spells are very harmful and target the
party.
31-32 A djinni appears, granting one wish. If the
wish is a selfish wish, it shall be twisted like
a monkey’s paw.
33-34 There’s a group of 4d6 tribal warriors
celebrating around a massive bonfire. If
party joins in the celebrations, they warriors
give them some nice gifts.
35-36 The party finds a fortune tellers wagon with
a broken wheel. If they help the fortune
teller, he reads their fortune. The fortune
teller is an alhoon with two mages as
thralls.
37-38 1d4+2 duergar warlords approach the
party and accuse them of having stolen
their gems. The duergar attack if the party
doesn’t give them at least 500 gp worth of
gems.
39-40 1d4+2 invisible stalkers decided to steal
from the party at night. The next day, feeling
much braver, they assault the party.
41-42 The group fights a paladin (champion) being
mind-controlled by a sentient sword who is
trying to find a worthy master. The sword
chooses one of the players it wants to be its
master and telepathically begs the player to
defeat the paladin in one-on-one combat in
order to claim it as their own.
43-44 The party encounters a traveling merchant
selling items dirt cheap. The items are
actually stolen, and that could come back to
bite the party later.
45-46 A mummy lord confronts the party, claiming
they raided its tomb, and demands they
hand over the stolen items. The party can
avoid a combat by giving it at least one
magical item and 1000 gp worth of treasure
or coin.
47-48 The PCs stumble across a group of 4
harried newbie adventures (veteran) who
are gravely wounded and running for their
lives out of a troll cave with 1d4+1 venom
trolls in it.
49-50 An extremely stressed woman (a siren in
disguise) approaches the party and begs for
them to help her dying sister. If they follow
her, she leads them to an ambush of 1d6+2
other sirens!
51-52 A very young storm giant and its pet behir
request the party’s assistance in hunting
a local ancient (area appropriate color)
dragon. The giant boasted his way into this
deadly hunt, and now needs assistance.
53-54 There’s a rickety bridge above rushing
water. Some of the bridge is missing, and
the party needs to jump over the gaps to get
across. If they all go on the bridge at once, it
collapses.
55-56 The party encounters a man wearing no
clothes and drunk out of his mind running
along the road. The man challenges them to
a dance off.
57-58 They find a very wise, talking duck by the
side of the road with a chess board. One of
them may challenge the duck to a game. If
they win, the duck shows himself as a druid,
granting a request.
59-60 The party finds a bed of colorful flowers of
exceptional beauty and heavenly aroma.
The flowers do nothing, but are valuable.
61-62 A mysterious figure appears from nowhere
and offers the players a chance to draw a
card from the Deck of Many Things.
63-64 A group of 2d4+4 fire elementals are
fighting a group of 2d4+4 water elementals.
If the group helps the fire elements, they are
rewarded with a magical sword. If they help
the water elementals, they are rewarded
with an Alchemy Jug.
65-66 There is a drunk guy making moves on the
PCs.
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67-68 The PC’s crest a hill to see the unthinkable,
a mighty kraken on dry land. A split second
later, it turns into a cow, then an ancient
red dragon, then a mouse. The local friendly
wizard’s polymorph spell has gone amok.
69-70 A travelling con man (secretly a vampire)
attempts to con the party into joining him
on a quest to save a loved one from a group
of goblins. He leads them into an ambush
and two vampire spawn join the vampire in
attacking the PCs.
71-72 A kobold philosopher, surrounded by other
kobold intellectuals, asks the party what
came first: the egg or the first dragon?
73-74 The group encounters a local champion
(gladiator, STR 18) who challenges the
strongest member of the party to a boulder
rolling contest (a series of Athletics checks
contested by the gladiator’s).
75-76 The party comes across a travelling dragon
turtle with a city on it back. (Contributed by
Daniel Treanor.)
77-78 The group finds a large, dismembered horse
leg. It does not rot, and no animals have
eaten off it. The leg belongs to Sleipnir,
Odin’s horse, and was lost when Thor took
the horse without asking.
79-80 At a farm along the path, a farmer
complains about a weed infesting his farm.
The party can cut the weed back for a small
reward or find a natural parasite to the
weed for a larger reward.
81-82 The party meets a deva with a broken
wing. He was stabbed by dagger which
cursed him, and now he can’t receive any
magical healing. The deva will reward them
handsomely if they aid him.
83-84 A chosen of the god of dragons (any area
appropriate adult dragon CR13-17 )
approaches the party, demanding a fight
to the death to appease its god. The party
might be able to talk the dragon down.
85-86 The group finds a dead delivery man with
a bag full of mail. The mail contains intel
on a certain city, and there is a note on
the man describing where the mail should
be delivered. If the party delivers the mail
without opening it, they receive a reward.
87-88 A well-known paladin who’s wounded and
dying asks the party to carry word back
to his family of his fate and heroic deeds.
(He doesn’t admit to the fact that many of
his deeds were actually done by his lowly
squire.)
89-90 The party encounters a Bard entertaining
an adult red dragon who is in love with the
Bard. If the group approaches, the bard will
start mocking them and making fun of them.
The Dragon will defend the Elven Bard
from the party by any means necessary.
91-92 10d10 spooked cows stampede through the
road.
93-94 A pair of a succubi and an incubus, along
with 1d4+2 cambions, attempt to relieve the
party of their gold for some schemes they
have planned.
95-96 The PCs find a hungry and wounded cat
that, if healed and fed, will transform into a
treessym and follow the party
97-98 The party comes across a single sad
monodrone that asks them the meaning of
life and then walks off dejected.
99-100 A planetar stops the party and demands that
they repent for the sins of their past. If each
PC doesn’t confess to at least one major sin
and then repent, it attacks.
Level 17-20 Random Encounters
d100 Encounter
1-2 The PCs are surrounded by two adult black
dragons who demand the PCs service in
retrieving a magic item for them. If they
refuse, the dragons attack.
3-4 The group encounters a dragon turtle.
5-6 The PCs encounter a unicorn grazing near a
pond. While they are there, a flock of 1d6+2
wyverns swoop down to attack the creature,
seeking revenge for a previous slight.
7-8 An adult gold dragon got his head stuck
inside a wall when he was chasing some
gnolls.
9-10 The characters encounter a demigod,
Valerifalar, who asks them to burn a nest of
1d4+1 green dragon wyrmlings. If the PCs
do it, sometime later in the campaign, the
ancient green dragon mother, tracks them
down for revenge.
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RPG Random Encounter Collection
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11-12 A group of 1d6+2 kenku mimes
(commoners) want to play a game of
charades with the PCs. If they refuse, the
mimes open doors in the air and walk away
with sad faces.
13-14 The group encounters an ancient red
dragon, named Slathbog the Bearded,
sitting on its treasure hoard contemplating
what to do with its life other than killing and
hording treasure. She asks the party their
advice.
15-16 The PCs encounter two ice devils chasing
after a low-level group of 1d4+1 adventurers
(thugs, scouts, and apprentices) who are
wounded and shouting for help. If the PCs
help, the adventurers give them 2d10x100
gold.
17-18 1d4 hungry remorhazes ambush the party,
burrowing out of their hidden positions
under the ground. When a remorhaz
swallows a PC, it turns and leaves the
encounter, burrowing underground where it
can consume its meal in peace.
19-20 A group of 1d4+1 elves approach the party,
accusing them of poaching in their forest.
They demand reparations, or they become
hostile.
21-22 An adult brass dragon asks for the party to
retrieve an egg stolen by the minions of a
rival white dragon. The egg has been moved
to the white dragon’s lair where the brass
dragon doesn’t dare to travel. In return,
the party will receive a nice piece of the
brass dragon’s treasure as a token of her
gratitude.
23-24 The party encounters a death knight named
Luke Lightbane at the side of the road
selling hoodies. The death knight becomes
upset if they don’t buy some.
25-26 The PCs come across three green dragon
eggs on a fire being cooked by a group of
4d6 gold-scaled kobolds. If the players save
the eggs, there will be an ancient green
dragon looking for them who will reward
them handsomely for their return (or blame
them for stealing the eggs).
27-28 A giant ape has been pushed out of its
habitat due to a growing city spreading
more and more. It has started attacking
and even killing those who attempt to push
further into the wild, putting a halt to the
growth of the booming city. The party will
be rewarded a handsome amount of gold if
they kill the beast.
29-30 A PC gets shot with an arrow in knee.
(That’s it.) The assailant cannot be found.
31-32 The PCs come across an old beggar man
who asks for 250 gp for medicine for his
dying daughter. If they refuse, he reveals
himself as an ancient brass dragon who
punishes them for their heartlessness.
33-34 The party stumbles across a massacred
village. In the center, they find demons
and devils drawing up an alliance (1d4+1
glabrezu and 1d4+1 chain devils.) If they
see them, they invite the PCs to join them.
Otherwise, they attack.
35-36 The party encounters a pile of dead
bodies with a large pot on top of it. (The
pot contains 500 gp.) Anyone who comes
too close has to succeed on a DC 17
Constitution saving throw or become
infected by a horrible disease.
37-38 When the party enters a random building
they come across, they spot a glowing
sword on the floor. If touched, it releases
a surge of power, animating everything
not nailed down to the floor. The animated
objects converge into 1d4+2 trash golems
(use crystal golem stats) that attack.
39-40 The party finds a pair of kids being beaten
by 6 goblins. If they kill the goblins, the kids
thank them. When the party isn’t on guard,
the kids turn back into vampire form and try
to rob the PCs.
41-42 A hibernating purple worm is found curled
up, unaware of the party’s presence. The
worm does nothing but slumber unless it
takes more than 20 points of damage from
a magical source. Non-magical damage has
no effect on the worm while in hibernation.
If woken, the purple worm immediately
attacks the party.
43-44 The players witness a wounded planetar fall
from the sky near the party.
45-46 The characters find a magical +3 sword.
However, when the sword makes contact
with a monster for the first time, it spawns
1d4 young blue dragons and crumbles to
dust.
47-48 The party is approached by a group of
dwarves asking for their help clearing a
mine they were working. It now has 1d6+2
medusas in it, running about and turning
people to stone.
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49-50 A tabaxi pirate captain tries to enlist the
PCs help in retrieving treasure that they lost
because they don’t like water. If they agree,
they get a cut. If they disagree, the pirates
trail them.
51-52 The party finds an ancient gold dragon
who is convinced that the party are demons
in disguise. He wants to enact justice for
slaughtering a village.
53-54 A group of 4d6 minotaur plane travelers are
stuck in the material plane and need the
PC’s help to get back to the Astral Plane.
55-56 A woman approaches the party frantic
that her daughter has gone missing. Upon
investigation, they discover she wandered
into the cemetery and is now hiding from a
mummy lord.
57-58 A young boy has become bonded to a grey
render. The party meets a group of 1d6
knights led by a warlord that wants to
kill the beast, even if it means killing the
innocent child. The boy is pleading with the
knights to let him and his friend go.
59-60 The PCS find a friendly necromancer who
raised 3d6 skeletons and 2d8 zombies,
which follow him. He robs peoples’ graves
and is genuinely convinced he’s giving them
a second chance at life.
61-62 Two ancient red dragons are discovered
arguing about the exact shade of red of their
scales. Each of them demands the party
help settle the argument, but it’s impossible
to please both.
63-64 An aboleth who was turned into a frog tells
the party he needs to be kissed by royalty to
lift the curse.
65-66 The characters find a kraken and a
leviathan fighting while traveling across the
sea. Their combat is making the ocean very
turbulent, threatening to sink their ship if
the PCs do nothing.
67-68 A sinkhole forms under the party, and they
fall into a cave with two adult rust monsters
and a group of 2d10 juvenile rust monsters
(1/2 hp of a rust monster).
69-70 The players witness a group of 2d6 cultists
throw an innocent into a portal to the
negative plane, releasing a night walker that
begins a rampage.
71-72 The party encounters a merchant selling
a wolf cub, only the cub is actually the
merchant’s werewolf child that they are
trying to get rid of. If one of the party
members buys the cub, it bites them.
73-74 Due to a misspelled word in a contract
signed in the Halls of Concordance, a marut
shows up to punish one of the PC’s for
breaking a contract that they didn’t sign.
75-76 The party is ambushed by a group of 1d6+1
assassins. Apparently, somebody they
killed in the past put his entire net worth
as a bounty on their heads in his will. The
assassins can be paid off.
77-78 The party stumbles upon a marilith and her
young daughter. Protective of her daughter,
the mother threatens the party by whipping
her tail at them. If they back away, she only
watches until they are gone then returns to
whatever she and her daughter were doing.
If the party draws their weapons or attempts
to attack either her or her daughter, both
mariliths attack.
79-80 Party encounters what they believe is a
starving kobold offering to cast the mend
spell in exchange for food. If the party
interacts with them, an entire horde of
kobolds ambush them.
81-82 An ancient blue dragon has a +2 magical
sword piercing it to the ground by the tail,
making it impossible to move. The dragon
cannot remove the sword due to a curse
and it is immune to all damage and spells as
long as it’s pinned in place. The players can
remove the sword quite easily, but there’d
be a loose ancient blue dragon.
83-84 A talking goat explains that it is a warlock
polymorphed by its patron after angering
him. The goat wants someone to cast dispel
magic on it. Dispel magic only works if the
caster succeeds on a DC 20 spellcasting
ability check.
85-86 The PCs run across a sentient sword (use
mage stat block) with arms and legs walking
along the road. The sword communicates
telepathically and engages them in small
talk.
87-88 The party encounters a very depressed
and misled aspiring undead cleric (war
priest) who is in constant danger of “healing
himself to life.”
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89-90 The party comes across some old ruins
that have many valuable items in organized
piles. If the party tries to take any of the
items, 1d4 stone juggernauts animate from
among the ruins and attack them.
91-92 A king asks the characters to rid the
countryside of a bothersome troll. The
players find out the troll is really the King
polymorphed by an evil wizard, who took his
place.
93-94 1d10+5 adult elephants charge across
the path. The party needs to make DC 15
Dexterity saving throws to avoid trampling
damage. They can attack the elephants if
they wish, gaining 5d10x100 gp worth of
ivory from each kill.
95-96 The party finds a beaten up, tired little
goblin who tells them that his cave got
invaded by an ancient red dragon that killed
everyone else inside. The goblin begs the
PCs to get revenge.
97-98 A portal from the astral plane releases an
astral dreadnought that attacks.
99-100 The group encounters a waking tarrasque.
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