Sea Encounter Tables for D&D 5e
D&D Encounters Sea

Sea Encounter Tables for D&D 5e

Duncan Thomson
"As skies darken and the winds pick up, three riders on winged creatures with approach, trying to shout down to you"

Options for D&D sea adventures with tables for Sea Encounters (levels 1-4, 5-10 and 11+), Sea Beasts, Aerial Encounters, Sahuagin, Sea Monsters and Sea Spirits.

Sea Tables - creatures | ships | locations | non-combat | enchanements | generators

[Photo by Caitlyn Wilson Webb on Unsplash]

Sea Encounters Levels 1-4

1d8+1d12Sea Encounters Levels 1-4
2 1 air elemental or 1 kraken priest (VGtM)
3 Ship (roll on Ship Encounters lvl 1-4) or 1d2 manticores
4 1d2 merrow or 1 sea hag with 1d2 sea spawn (VGtM)
5 Ship (roll on Ship Encounters lvl 1-4) or 1 banshee (sea elf spirit)
6 1d3 griffons or roll on Aerial Encounters lvl 1-4
7 Ship (roll on Ship Encounters lvl 1-4) or 1d4 giant eagles
8 1d3 giant octopi or 3d6 dolphins (VGtM)
9 Ship (roll on Ship Encounters lvl 1-4) or 1d2+1 plesiosauruses
10 2d4 steam mephits or roll on Aerial Encounters lvl 1-4
11 2d6 merfolk or 1d4 sea spawn (VGtM)
12 2d6 giant seahorses or roll on Beast Encounters
13 1 sea hag or roll on Sea Spirits lvl 1-4
14 1d3 killer whales or roll on Sea Monsters lvl 1-4
15 1d4+1 sahuagin and 1d4 reef sharks or roll on Sahuagin lvl 1-4
16 1d4+1 reef sharks or roll on Sea Beast Encounters
17 2d4 merfolk with 2d4 giant seahorses or 1 deep scion (VGtM)
18 1 helmed horror or roll on Sea Monsters lvl 1-4
19 1 sahuagin priestess with 1d3 hunter sharks or roll on Sahuagin lvl 1-4
20 1 water elemental or 1 merrenoloth (MToF) with a boat

Sea Encounters

The seas might be calm tropics, storm-churned waters or the edge of an island archipelago. Encounters might be the meeting of a seagoing vessel, something from the sky or from the ocean depths.

A place of sky, sea, wind and storm, it is home to tentacled monstrosities, hungry behemoths, elementals of wind and ships of buccaneers.

There is a 5e random encounter generator at ChaosGen. And also a pdf of these and more tables at the DM's Guild as Sea Encounters.

Sea Encounters Random Tables on DM's Guild Unusual Encounters Bundle on DM's Guild Sea Bundle on DM's Guild

Unusual terrains - feywild | shadowfell | lower planes | elemental | jungle  | roads | ruins | sea

Sea Encounters Levels 5-10

1d8+1d12Sea Encounters Levels 5-10
2 1 marid or 1 morkoth (VGtM)
3 Ship (roll on Ship Encounters lvl 5-10) or 1d2 chimeras
4 4d6 merfolk with 3d6 giant seahorses or 1 young dragon (black, bronze or blue)
5 Ship (roll on Ship Encounters lvl 5-10) or 1 kraken priest (VGtM) with 1d4+1 deep scions (VGtM)
6 1d3+1 giant sharks or 1d4+1 deep scions (VGtM)
7 Ship (roll on Ship Encounters lvl 5-10)
8 2d6+2 sahuagin led by 1 sahuagin baron or roll on Sahuagin lvl 5-10
9 Ship (roll on Ship Encounters lvl 5-10) or 2d6 merrow
10 2d6 sahuagin with 1 giant shark and 1d3 sahuagin priestesses or roll on Sahuagin lvl 5-10
11 Roll on Sea Encounters Levels 1-4 table or a ship (roll on Ship Encounters lvl 5-10)
12 1d4+2 killer whales or 1d3 water elementals
13 1d4 air elementals or roll on Sea Spirits lvl 5-10
14 2d4 hunter sharks or roll on Sea Monsters lvl 5-10
15 1d6+1 scouts on griffons or roll on Aerial Encounters lvl 5-10
16 1 sea hag and 1d6+1 merrow or roll on Sea Monsters lvl 5-10
17 2d6 plesiosauruses or roll on Aerial Encounters lvl 5-10
18 1d4+2 ghosts or 1 hydroloth (MToF)
19 A coven of 3 sea hags or roll on Sea Spirits lvl 5-10
20 1 djinni or 1 roc

Sea Encounters Levels 11+

1d8+1d12Sea Encounters Levels 11+
2 1 solar or 1 elder tempest (MToF)
3 1 empyrean or 1 leviathan (MToF)
4 4d6 merrow or a coven of 3 night hags mounted on nightmares
5 1 adult dragon (black, bronze or blue) or roll on Aerial High-level Encounters
6 1d3 storm giants or 1 nagpa (MToF)
7 2 young dragons (black, bronze or blue) or roll on Aerial High-level Encounters
8 3d6 hunter sharks or 1 storm giant quintessent (VGtM)
9 1 djinni and 1d4 air elementals or roll on Aerial High-level Encounters
10 2d4 giant sharks or 2d4 air elementals
11 Roll on Sea Encounters Levels 5-10 table or roll on Sea Monster High-level Encounters
12 1 storm giant with 1d6 giant eagles or 1 morkoth (VGtM)
13 2d4 water elementals or roll on Sea Monster High-level Encounters
14 4d6 sahuagin and 1d4+2 sahuagin priestesses led by a sahuagin baron or 1 Airship with 2d6+3 archers (VGtM) and 1 Mage
15 1d3 marids or 1 archduid (VGtM) and 1d4 killer whales
16 1 dragon turtle or 1 wastrilith (MToF)
17 1 marid and or 1 archduid (VGtM) with... (roll on Beast Encounters)
18 1 sahuagin baron and 1d4+2 giant sharks or 1 blue Abishai (MToF)
19 1 storm giant and 1d2 water elementals or 1 empyrean
20 1 kraken or 1 nightwalker (MToF)

Beast Encounters (Level 1-4)

A mix of aquatic and aerial beasts

1d8+1d12Sea Beasts (Level 1-4)
2 1 giant shark
3 1d4 giant eagles
4 1d3 plesiosauruses
5 1d4 giant seabirds (giant vulture stats)
6 1d2 hunter sharks and 1d4 reef sharks
7 1d4 pteranodons or 2d6 giant crabs
8 1d4+1 reef sharks
9 2d4 blood hawks
10 1d3 hunter sharks
11 2d6 giant seahorses or 3d6 dolphins (VGtM)
12 1d2 killer whales
13 1d3 giant octopi
14 1d4 seabird swarms (swarm of ravens stats)
15 1 patch of awakened seaweed (awakened bush stats) or 1d2 quetzalcoatluses (VGtM)
16 1d2 manticores
17 1d4 swarms of quippers or 1d4 pegasi
18 1d2 griffons
19 1d2 giant constrictor snakes
20 1 aquatic shambling mound

Aerial Encounters (Levels 1-4)

1d4+1d6Aerial Encounters (Levels 1-4)
2 1d2 dragon wyrmlings (black, blue or bronze)
3 1d4 pteranodons
4 1d3 griffons
5 1d4 steam mephits
6 1d3 pegasi or 1d2 quetzalcoatluses (VGtM)
7 1d4+1 ice mephit or 1d4+1 dust mephits
8 1d4 giant eagles
9 1 manticore or 1 archer (VGtM) mounted on a quetzalcoatlus (VGtM)
10 1 air elemental or 1 couatl

Aerial Encounters (Levels 5-10)

1d4+1d6Aerial Encounters (Levels 5-10)
2 1 roc or 1d2 vrocks
3 1 young dragon (black, blue or bronze) or 1d2 black abishai (MToF)
4 1 night hag mounted on a nightmare or 2d4 vampiric mists (MToF)
5 1d2 invisible stalkers
6 2d4 griffons
7 1d3 air elementals
8 1d2 wyverns or 1 deva
9 2d4+2 pegasi or 1d2 air elemental myrmidons (MToF)
10 1 djinni

Aerial Encounters (Levels 11+)

1d4+1d6Aerial Encounters (Levels 11+)
2 1 adult blue dracolich or 1 elder tempest (MToF)
3 1 adult dragon (Black, Blue or Bronze) or 1 planetar
4 1d4+2 invisible stalkers or 1d2 githyanki knights mounted on young red dragons
5 2d4 air elementals or 1 ki-rin (VGtM)
6 1 roc or 1 storm giant quintessent (VGtM)
7 1d2 djinni or 1d2 gynosphinxes
8 2d4+2 manticores or 1d2 devas
9 1 djinni and 1d3 air elementals or 1d2 erinyes
10 2 young dragons (Black, Blue or Bronze) or 1 blue abishai (MToF)

Sahuagin (Levels 1-4)

1d4+1d6Sahuagin Encounters (Levels 1-4)
2 1 sahuagin priestess with 1d3 sahuagin
3 1d4 sahuagin with 1d2 swarms of quippers
4 1d3 sahuagin priestesses
5 1d4+1 sahuagin
6 1 sahuagin priestess with 1d3 reef sharks
7 1d3 sahuagin with 1d3 reef sharks
8 1d4 sahuagin with 1 hunter shark
9 1 malenti (a sahuagin with appearance of an aquatic elf)
10 1 sahuagin with 1 giant shark

Sahuagin (Levels 5-10)

1d4+1d6Sahuagin Encounters (Levels 5-10)
2 2d4 sahuagin with 2d4 hunter sharks led by 1 sahuagin priestess
3 2d4 sahuagin with 2d4 reef sharks and 1d2 giant sharks
4 2d4+4 sahuagin with 1d3+1 sahuagin priestesses
5 2d6+6 sahuagin
6 2d6 sahuagin led by 1 sahuagin baron
7 3d6 sahuagin with 1d3+1 hunter sharks
8 1 sahuagin baron with 1d4 giant sharks
9 1d3 sahuagin priestesses with 1d3 hunter sharks led by 1 sahuagin baron
10 2d6 with 1d2 sahuagin priestesses led by 1 sahuagin baron

Sea Monster (Levels 1-4)

A lone monster that can come from the depths. Fiends, undead, aquatic and tentacled horrors. Add one or two more if a lone monster is not enough.

If required give it a swim speed equal to its land speed and give it the amphibious trait:

Amphibious. This creature can breathe air and water

1d4+1d6Sea Monster
2 1 beholder zombie or 1 otyugh
3 1 helmed horror or 1 black pudding
4 1 flameskull or 1 sword wraith warrior (MToF)
5 1 giant constrictor snake or 1 slithering tracker (VGtM)
6 1 giant octopus or 1 deep scion (VGtM)
7 1 killer whale or 1 merrow
8 1 grell or 1 wraith
9 1 banshee or 1 flail snail (VGtM)
10 1 giant shark or 1 troll

Sea Monster (Levels 5-10)

1d4+1d6Sea Monster Encounters (Levels 5-10)
2 1 remorhaz or 1 morkoth (VGtM)
3 1 spirit naga or 1 corpse flower (MToF)
4 1 hydra or 1 hydroloth (MToF)
5 1 chuul or 1 giant crocodile
6 1 giant shark or 1 roper
7 1 cyclops or 1 medusa
8 1 Seaweed monster (treant stats with swim speed of 30 ft.)
9 1 aboleth or 1 frost salamander (MToF)
10 1 horned devil

Sea Monster (Levels 11+)

1d4+1d6Sea Monster (Levels 11+)
2 1 empyrean or 1 nightwalker (MToF)
3 1 death tyrant or 1 leviathan (MToF)
4 1 purple worm or 1 retriever (MToF)
5 1 storm giant or 1 wastrilith (MToF)
6 1 marid or 1 horned devil
7 1 behir or 1 remorhaz
8 1 dragon turtle or 1 marilith
9 1 kraken or 1 iron golem
10 1 ice devil or 1 leviathan (MToF)

Sea Spirits (Levels 1-4)

1d4+1d6Sea Spirits (Levels 1-4)
2 1 water elemental or 1 air elemental
3 1d3 drowned spirits (specter stats with swim 50 ft.)
4 1d4+1 steam mephits or 1d2 vampiric mists (MToF)
5 1 sea hag
6 1d4+1 ice mephits or 1 water weird
7 1d2 poltergeists or 2d4 mud mephits
8 1 shipwrecked ghost or 2d4 animated sea objects (flying sword stats)
9 1d3 pegasi or 1d2 sword wraith warriors (MToF)
10 1 helmed horror or 1 sea elf spirit (banshee stats, swim 30 ft.)

Sea Spirits (Levels 5-10)

1d4+1d6Sea Spirits (Levels 5-10)
2 1 djinni or 1 deva
3 Coven of 3 sea hags or 1 frost salamander (MToF)
4 1 air elemental and 1d6 pegasi or 2d4 vampiric mists (MToF)
5 2d6+3 mephits (any mix of steam, mud, ice and dust)
6 1d4 elementals (mix of water elementals and air elementals)
7 1d3 wind spirits (invisible stalker stats)
8 1 water elemental and 2d6 mud mephits
9 1d2 seaweed blights (vine Blight stats, swim 30 ft) led by 1 shambling seaweed (shambling mound stats)
10 1 marid or 1 spirit troll (MToF)

More Encounters

There is a 5e random encounter generator at ChaosGen. And also a pdf of these and more tables at the DM's Guild as Sea Encounters.

Sea Encounters Random Tables on DM's Guild Unusual Encounters Bundle on DM's Guild Sea Bundle on DM's Guild

If you liked these there are D&D Generators at Chaos Gen, a monthly random tools Newsletter and an instagram of Random Tables.