Travel and Weather in DCC

Expanding my gazetteer to include random encounter tables for the environment the PCs are in, I wanted to include non-monster encounters.  Something that causes a bit of stress on the PCs but isn't inherently dangerous -- so I wanted to create a random encounter for 'travel incident' or 'weather'.

Now, there isn't a lot out there for DCC on these subjects.  I looked at cold-environment adventure modules, the Goodman Games DCC forums,. the DCC Adventuring & Exploration Guide written by Brent Ault, and my AD&D Wilderness Exploration Guide -- nothing was really great there for what I wanted.  I didn't want rule bloat or complex rule systems, I didn't want something overly specific requiring a separate table for each environment, I just wanted something flavourful to make travel interesting.  I then read my B/X Companion and found inspiration to have some simpler ways to handle travel and weather and used it as my guideline.

Below are two 'encounters' that I have seeded on my encounter tables.  I hope you find them of use.  If you have any suggestions on how to improve these, drop me a line at archadethered@gmail.com. 

Travel Incident: Things happen when travelling, whether it’s on a well-paved road or trekking through a dense forest – roll 1d6 for the type of travel incident: (1) Boon; (2) Inconvenience; (3) Lost?; (4) Obstacle; (5) Minor Injury; (6) Tracks/Spoor, and consult the results below.

     Boon: Find a pond swarming with fish, an apple tree laden with fruit, a crude signpost, a cache of food, prey trapped in a hunter’s trap, a vantage point showing a better path, a friendly traveller who crosses their path, and so on.  Either make a PC make an appropriate DC 10 check to gain 1d6 days food, or gain an additional 1d3 hours travel, or gain some important information or clue about the region.

     Inconvenience: Someone loses something out of their pack, someone finds a berry bush that’s actually poisonous, bramble bushes get caught up in a traveller’s cloak, a wagon slides into the ditch, a pack of boars needs circling around, a stream needs fording – no actual harm comes to the PCs, but either lose 1d3 hours of travel time or make the unluckiest PC make a Luck check or lose something they carry.

     Lost?: There’s a chance the party gets turned around, follows a path that’s not traversable requiring doubling back, or they lose time just arguing over a map or the alignment of the stars -- make the lowest Luck PC make a Luck check or the party gets slightly lost, losing 1d3 hours travel time.

     Obstacle: A ravine, cliff, river, steep slope, etc.  Make the PC leading the party make a DC 12 Strength or Agility check (you choose) or the party loses 1d3 hours of travel time.

     Minor Injury: A horse becomes lame, a wagon wheel breaks, someone rests in a patch of poison ivy, a swarm of wasps attacks someone, someone got food poisoning, the swamp they are travelling through is giving off noxious gases, a PC gets hit by a falling branch, or something similar.  Randomly choose a party member or mount, have them suffer 1d3 hp damage and lose an hour of travel time.

     Tracks/Spoor: Tracks, a dead animal that was prey, or the far off sound of a creature.  Roll again for a random encounter to determine the source, and if the party wishes to pursue the encounter, make them make an appropriate DC 14 ability check (for tracking the trail, sighting the creature, etc) and they can choose to encounter it if successful, but lose 1d3 hours of travel time on their side-trek.

 

Weather: While normally weather does not impede the party or cause significant harm or danger, when extreme weather strikes there is a chance it will be a setback or hazard for the adventuring party, roll 1d4: (1) Extreme heat/cold; (2) Rain/Snow, (3) Storm; (4) Other

     Extreme heat or cold: Unusually hot or cold weather for the season requires the travelling party to have each member make a DC 10 Fortitude save (+4 if wearing appropriate clothing) or suffer 1d3 subdual damage.  The extreme heat or cold lasts for 3d6 hours.

     Rain/Snow/Fog: Precipitation appropriate to the season and terrain doesn’t cause any significant harm, but impedes travel by 1d3 hours and lasts for 3d6 hours.  While the inclement weather is occurring, it is a DC 15 chance to notice any encounters or overcome any hazards during that time.

     Storm: Extreme precipitation strikes, such as a blizzard, sandstorm, lightning storm, hail storm, or worse.  The lowest Luck PC in the party should make a Luck check or everyone in the party suffers 1d4 subdual damage and travel is impeded by 1d6 hours.  The storm lasts for 1d6 hours, and it is a DC 18 chance to notice any encounters or overcome any hazards during that time.

     Other: Some strange and extreme weather-related occurrence happens – it could be flooding, an avalanche, a mudslide, an earthquake, or the like. Have an encounter that requires a DC 15 Reflex or Fortitude save from everyone or they each suffer 1d6 damage and lose 1d6 hours of travel time.