Traveling is often a big part of TRPGs; the players are in one place and the adventure is in another, so it's time to set off on the road and get to the next bit of story. But simply walking or riding from point A to point B is not the stuff of exciting games. It should take more than time to get somewhere--it should also take effort. I have developed a table of random events for traveling that spices up the process of moving around, so read on to add some excitement to your travels.
To implement this table, roll a d100 every time your players move five miles. The corresponding event will mix up the monotony of travel, and it may allow you to further develop your story and your world.
1-5: Inspiration - One party member has a helpful idea about how to deal with the situation they're currently facing. You can use this to get a wayward group back on track or develop your story.
6-10: The party recognizes the glint of metal in the plant life on the side of the road. Closer inspection reveals it to be a cache of coins. Roll for the amount they discover - 1d4 platinum, 1d6 gold, 1d8 silver, and 1d10 copper.
11-15: Nothing happens.
16-20: A traveling caravan passes by in the opposite direction. The caravan guards are wary of the party and are tense enough that they will attack the party given provocation. If the party passes without engaging in combat, a trader lags behind to offer the party food and drinks for the rest of their journey.
21-25: The road is blocked by a fallen tree. When the party moves to remove it, an ambush of goblins erupts from nearby cover.
26-28: The beaten road wears away and the party must succeed on a DC 15 Survival check to find the road again 100 feet later.
29-31: Mistaken Identity - A lone traveler comes down the road in the opposite direction. They mistake a party member for an old friend/business associate. It takes a few minutes' assurance that the party member is a different person, and even then the traveler suspects they are being lied to.
32-34: Bandits! As the party comes to a bend in the road, they can notice hidden bandits with DC 15 Perception checks. If noticed, the bandits will pursue the party for up to a mile. If unnoticed, the bandits launch an attack on the players, focusing on ranged attackers and spellcasters.
35-37: The plants surrounding the road grow taller and more unmanageable for about a mile. When the party gets within 5 feet of the plants, the tendrils of the plants lash out and bind the party. Treat the bound players as affected by the spell "Entangle" and allow them to escape with a DC 16 Strength saving throw.
38-40: A colorful bird flies down and lands on a branch near the road. It speaks in a creaky voice, repeating the phrase, "All's well that ends well." If the players move toward the bird, it flies 50 feet to another branch, and so on and so forth until it has led the party half a mile into the depth of the area (deep woods, sand dunes, a marsh). There, it transforms into a witch and attacks the party.
41-45: Shrine of Fharlanghn - A small, simple shrine to the god of travel lies along the west edge of the road. There is a pedestal with an empty bowl on the shrine. If any of the players pray at the shrine, the whole party feels rested (including regaining spell slots) and the bowl is magically filled with a hearty meal.
46-50: Nothing happens.
51-55: An altar lies on the side of the road, all details worn away. There are faint letters in a dwarven alphabet, which if read will create a chaos effect. Roll another d100 for the chaos table.
56-60: A troupe of travelling musicians and performers have parked their caravan on the side of the road. They are having a leisurely meal and invite the party to join them. After small talk, the troupe mentions that the last town they tried to perform in, which is only a few miles down the road, refused to let them perform or spend the night in town. To make up for it, the troupe performs a short show for just the party.
61-63: Alongside the road appears a lake. The lake is murky and green, and twisted trees grow around its perimeter. A DC 18 Perception check will reveal a sword rising slowly from the lake, point first. It remains floating, pointed up, until the players move on or swim out for the sword. If they take it, it acts as a +1 Longsword with one daily use of the spell "Chain Lightning." After being used in one encounter, the sword disappears.
64-66: A pillar of smoke rises from the horizon down the road. The smell of burning hair permeates the woods. When the party draws near, they can see a wildfire burning off the road which has trapped several woodland creatures. If the players save any of the creatures, Ehlonna (goddess of the woodlands) thanks the party for their help and blesses them with +20 feet traveling speed until the end of the day.
67-69: The party finds in the middle of the road a tattered old book. Inside the book are notes in a wild scrawl which are just barely legible, and they describe the investigation of the beginning pages of the book, which are torn out. Any player who reads all of the scrawled writing must succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw or be driven insane (DM controls the character) for the next ten minutes.
70-72: A strange stone formation rests on the side of the road, leaning precariously but remaining standing. A young halfling named Jaskin lies on the ground beneath the stone, and they explain that only the pure of heart can survive under the stone, for those with evil in their hearts are crushed by the stone. As Jaskin explains, a raven lands on the stone, and it begins to fall. Players can pull Jaskin to safety with a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw. Jaskin is disappointed and takes it as a sign that he is not pure of heart.
73-75: The party sights an abandoned building in a clearing off the road. Investigating it reveals that it has been uninhabited for some time. A careful player can find a wand of Mage Armor hidden in a box in an old desk.
76-80: A lone dog wanders down the road, sniffing idly as it approaches the party. It takes note of the players and begins to bark and run back in the direction it came. If the party follows the dog, it will take them to a thicket in the woods, where its owner (an orcish trapped named Barut) is trapped in a bear trap. If the party frees Barut, she will feed the party and promise them safe lodging for the night.
81-85: A crackling sound erupts from a thicket to the side of the road. Suddenly, in the middle of the path is a displacer beast, its tentacles flicking through the air. If the party runs, the beast will pursue them for half a mile and then relent. If the party defeats the displacer beast, they notice a nearby nest with a litter of infant displacer beasts.
86-90: Nothing happens.
91-93: Ruts in the road veer off the path and into the brush. By following the ruts, the party can track a wagon for nearly a quarter of a mile into the beginnings of a swamp. Inside the wagon are supplies, a rusty battleaxe, and a frightened half-elf child named Gera. Gera says that the swamp ate her family's horses and maybe her parents as well. She asks for safe passage to the next town, where she has extended family who can care for her.
94-96: A DC 17 Perception check reveals that a piece of paper is stuck to a treebranch. Inspecting the paper, the party learns it is a map which indicates a shortcut to the party's destination, saving them as much as five miles from their journey.
97-99: A traveling fortune teller comes down the road and stops a few feet short of the party. She bows her head, draws a card from her robes, and cackles. "The morning crow!" she cries. "A good morrow to you, then." She departs, refusing to speak another word. The following morning, each of the players awakens to discover a gold piece resting inside each of their shoes.
100: Divine Intervention - One of the players' gods appears and offers help to the party with one major action. This is best implemented in the form of a piece of useful information or instantaneous travel to the party's destination.
With these random events, you can turn traveling into an opportunity for more story and roleplaying. I included an overall 15% of nothing happening so that traveling doesn't have to mean something is going to happen. If you roll the same field of results multiple times in a row, just fudge the numbers so that your players aren't being visited by the same occurrence repeatedly. Beyond that, you're ready to keep your traveling players driven for a while. Best of luck on those roads out there.
That's all for now. Coming soon: how to deal with party splits, how to use music in your campaign, and how to use a mirror of your party to spice up the game. Until next time, happy gaming!
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