Further into the cavern you see large bat wings. On closer look these bats bear a simple harness and small reptilian riders. Currently one of them is trying to attach a rope to a stalactite. Do they live here? Are there more of them deeper into the caves?
Simple cave encounters from an upcoming Collected Encounters pdf.
Tables for Cave Encounters (levels 1-4 & levels 5-10), Encounter Details and Cave Beasts.
[Art by Henrik Karpinnen]
Tables for... all terrains | caves | dungeon | farmland | market | river| sewers | sky
From Collected Encounters on DM's Guild
Cave Encounters (Levels 1-4)
| 1d20 | Cave Encounter Table lvl 1-4 |
|---|---|
| 1 | 1 druid with 1d3 giant wolf spiders or 1d3 ogres |
| 2 | 2d4 troglodytes or 1d4 chokers (MToF) |
| 3 | 2d4 giant frogs or roll on Cave Beasts |
| 4 | 1d4+1 goblins led by 1 goblin boss or roll on roll on Goblinoids lvl 1-4 |
| 5 | 1d3 carrion crawlers or 1d2 guard drakes (VGtM) |
| 6 | 1d6 darkmantles or an area of thick webs (DMG) |
| 7 | 2d4 myconid sprouts and 1d4 myconid adults or 1d2 poltergeists |
| 8 | 2d6 giant centipedes or roll on Cave Beasts |
| 9 | 1 wererat with 2d4 giant rats or 1d2 basilisks |
| 10 | 1d4 shriekers and 1d6 violet fungi or roll on Fungi and Oozes lvl 1-4 |
| 11 | A patch of brown mold (DMG) or 1 ochre jelly |
| 12 | 1d4 kobolds on giant bats or roll on Kobolds lvl 1-4 |
| 13 | 1d2 cave bears or roll on Cave Beasts |
| 14 | 1d4 dire wolves or 1d2 dragon wyrmlings (any chromatic or metallic) |
| 15 | 1d4 will-o'-wisps or 2d6 stirges |
| 16 | 1d3 gray oozes or 2d4 grimlocks |
| 17 | 1d3 nothics or 1 vegepygmy chief (VGtM) & 1d4 vegepygmies (VGtM) |
| 18 | 2d4 swarms of bats or roll on Cave Beasts |
| 19 | 1d3 gricks or 1d2 adult kruthiks (MToF) and 1d4 young kruthiks (VGtM) |
| 20 | 1 umber hulk or 1 earth elemental |
Cave Encounters (Levels 5-10)
| 1d20 | Cave Encounter Table lvl 5-10 |
|---|---|
| 1-2 | 1d6 dwarf veterans with 1d4 scouts or 1 drider with 1d4 phase spiders |
| 3-4 | 1d3 galeb duhr or roll on Earth Creatures lvl 5-10 |
| 5-6 | 1 guardian naga or an area of sharp stones (treat as spike stones spell) |
| 7-8 | 1 cyclops with 2d4 giant bats or 1 balhannoth (MToF) |
| 9-10 | 1 myconid sovereign with 2d4 myconid adults and 1d6 quaggoth spore servants or roll on Fungi and Oozes lvl 5-10 |
| 11 | Risk of a collapsing roof (DMG) or 1 hydra |
| 12 | 1d3 werebears mounted on cave bears (polar bear variant) or 1 kruthik hive lord (MToF) and 2d4 adult kruthiks (MToF) |
| 13 | 1d3 stone giants or roll on Giants lvl 5-10 |
| 14 | 1d4 gricks led by 1 grick alpha or 1d4 umber hulks |
| 15 | 1d2 cloakers or 1 behir |
| 16 | 1 fomorian or 1d4+2 quaggoths led by 1 quaggoth thonot |
| 17 | 1 wraith and 2d4 specters or 1 abominable yeti |
| 18 | 1 young dragon (any metallic or chromatic) or 1d4 trolls |
| 19 | 1 medusa and 1d2 earth elementals |
| 20 | 1 storm giant or 1 beholder |
Encounter Details (Levels 1-4)
Use 1d10 for beasts and non-sentient creatures.
They are... (or one is...)
| 1d20 | Cave Encounter Details |
|---|---|
| 1 | pets (or allies) of a nearby creature |
| 2 | drinking from (or immersed in) a murky pool |
| 3 | sleeping (or infected with disease) |
| 4 | watching water dripping from the ceiling |
| 5 | near an area of glowing fungi (or a large stalagmite) |
| 6 | exploring or investigating corpses with a swarms of rot grubs (VGtM) |
| 7 | being very quiet |
| 8 | attracted to (or afraid of) any source of light |
| 9 | trapped in webs (or a rockfall) |
| 10 | investigating a cairn with a simple carving (or an underground stream) |
| 11 | making (or following) a map |
| 12 | admiring a glowing lizard |
| 13 | playing amid a pile of bones or creating wall carvings |
| 14 | guarding (or patrolling) the area |
| 15 | eating spiders or an ear-like fungi |
| 16 | carrying mining tools (or lots of rope) |
| 17 | studying an brightly colored rock |
| 18 | tying a rope to a stalagmite (or stalactite) |
| 19 | lost or on high alert |
| 20 | carrying slippers of spider climbing (or 1d4 potions of climbing) |
Cave Beasts (Levels 1-4)
| 1d20 | Cave Beasts lvl 1-4 |
|---|---|
| 1-2 | 1d2 cave bears (polar bear variant) or 2d4 giant lizards |
| 3-4 | 1d6 giant bats or 1d2 cave leopards (panther stats) |
| 5-6 | 2d6 giant fire beetles or 2d4 giant wasps |
| 7-8 | 2d6 cave hyenas or 1d2 cave fishers (VGtM) |
| 9-10 | 3d6 giant rats or 1d6 darkmantles |
| 11-12 | 2d4 swarms of bats or 1d4 cave lions |
| 13-14 | 2d6 giant centipedes 1d4 swarms of quippers |
| 15-16 | 2d4 giant frogs or 1d6 swarms of insects |
| 17-18 | 1d4 giant spiders or 2d4 giant badgers |
| 19-20 | 2d6 giant crayfish (giant crab stats) or 1d6 swarms of rats |
From Collected Encounters on DM's Guild
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