Page 194 - Tomb of Annihilation

APPENDIX B: RANDOM ENCOUNTERS

Random encounters can occur in Port Nyanzaru, in PORT NYANZARU ENCOUNTERS
the wilds of Ch ult, and in Omu. Such encounters add
d20 Encounter
mystery and atmosphere to the adventu re, even as they
l A parrot poops on a random character's head.
increase tension by winnowing away at the party's re-
sources. Random encounters are best used whenever 2 Near the harbor, an ankylosaurus that tows boats
there's a lull in the game session or when your players through the warehouse canals goes on a rampage
seem restless. No more than one or two per session is and must be calmed, restrained, or killed.
recommended, since overusing random encounters can 3 A merchant shouts, "Stop! Thief!" as a furtive
bog down the adventure and cause the players to lose youngster (commoner) rushes past the characters.
track of the story.
lfthe thief is caught, the grateful merchant can in-
troduce characters to a merchant prince or provide
PORT NYANZARU ENCOUNTERS
them one other favor.
Port Nyanzaru has a lot going on even without random
4 A drunk foreign sailor (unarmored veteran) is
encounters, but if the characters spend time exploring
loudly trying to pick a fight with three local com-
the city, a few random incidents can help bring that ex-
moners, who are clearly no match for the lout. If
perience to life. Roll a d20 three times per day of game
the characters intervene, the grateful locals be-
time, checking for encounters each morning, afternoon,
and evening or night. An encounter occurs on a roll of come a reliable source of information about Port
16 or higher. Roll a d20 and check the Port Nyanzaru Nyanzaru, but the sailor and his shipmates ambush
Encounters table to determine what the characters en- the characters elsewhere in the city later on.
counter, or simply choose an encounter you like. 5 A beggar (commoner) grabs a character by the arm
and shouts, "The ancient one beneath the For-
WILDERNESS ENCOUNTERS bidden City gives birth to a terrible new god! The
While the characters are exploring or camping in the snake-men know! They know!" Then he stumbles
wilderness, roll a d20 three times per day of game time, away Into the crowd. Passersby tell the adventurers
checking for encounters each morning, afternoon, and to ignore the beggar, and that his predictions are
evening or night. An encounter occurs on a roll of 16 or wrong most of the time.
higher. Roll percentile dice and check the Wilderness
6 Alarm horns declare that undead are attacking
Encounters table for the terrain appropriate to where
Malar's Throat. Mercenaries keep the monsters
the characters are. After determining what the charac-
out of the city proper, but people are trapped in
ters encounter, you can use the information presented
the temple ofTymora and besieged by 2d6 zombies
later in this appendix to bring the encounter to life.
The maps of Chult have regions marked as undead and 2d6 skeletons led by a ghoul. If the characters
territory (lesser or greater). The Wilderness Encounters defeat the undead, the temple rewards them with 5
table has separate columns you should use when deter- gallons oftej and a potion of healing.
mining encounters in these undead-infested regions, or 7 Shouts of "Look out!" give a character a brief warn-
in regions with no undead. ing as a water barrel, building stone, or other heavy
If your players tire of random encounters, make such weight crashes down. The character must succeed
encounters less common by having them occur on a roll
on a DC 12 Dexterity saving throw or be struck,
of 18 or higher, or only 20. You can also let the players
taking 14 (4d6) bludgeoning damage. Any charac-
narrate their way through avoiding easy encounters,
ter who succeeds on a DC 15 Wisdom (Perception)
or you can increase the difficulty of easy encounters
check spots a disguised yuan-ti pureblood slinking
to keep them exciting. One way to make an encounter
more challenging is to have it trigger a second random away from the scene.
encounter. For example, a fight with goblins might at- 8 A tabaxi minstrel (see appendix D) asks one of
tract a nearby pack of ghouls or dinosaurs. You can also the characters for a gold piece to stake her for
shorten encounters by having monsters flee when they gambling, promising to pay it back. If the character
lose the tactical advantage or most of their hit points. agrees, the tabaxi makes good on her promise the
Random encounters aren't tailored to characters of next day, returning a pouch containing 10 gp.
a particular level. If the characters encounter hostile 9 A thief {spy) tries to pick the pocket ofone of the
creatures beyond their ability to defeat, give them op- characters.
portunities to run, hide, negotiate, or otherwise avoid
10 The characters run into Volothamp Geddarm (see
certain death. You can also have other creatures arrive
appendix D), who is delivering a copy of his new
and provide a distraction that the characters can use to
book to one of the city's merchant princes. There is
make their escape. For example, if a character needs to
a 50 percent chance that Volo is drunk.
make a crucial ability check or saving throw, you can
have a chwinga (see appendix D) appear, cast guidance 11-20 The characters meet an NPC with a side quest (see
or resistance on the character, and then disappear on its "Side Quests," page 16).
next turn.
APPENDIX BI RANDOM ENCOUNTERS
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