Fantasy Encounters, Hazards and NPCs for Swamps
Swamp Fantasy Wilds Fantasy Encounter Tables

Fantasy Encounters, Hazards and NPCs for Swamps

Duncan Thomson
A stinking ghoul is dressed in rags and pretends to be a hermit. It is a stealthy scavenger, looking for a lone target to ambush and consume.

Simple encounter tables for swamps in any fantasy setting. Tables for Swamp Encounter Prompts, Swamp Hazards & Distractions and Swamp Quick NPCs.

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[Photo by Carlo Lisa on Unsplash]

Fantasy Swamp Encounters

Swamp encounters might be a plant with infection spores, a lizardfolk herbalist searching for a ruin or a group of hunters collecting frogs. There might be a thick shimmering mist or an area of tar pits.

A place of snakes, boats, mud, disease and dancing lights, home to witches, miserable outlaws and frog-people.

There is a fantasy swamp encounter generator at ChaosGen. There is also a pdf of these and more tables at the DriveThruRPG as Swamp Encounters.

Fantasy Swamp Encounters on DriveThru RPG Fantasy Wilds Tables Bundle on DriveThru RPG

10 Swamp Encounter Prompts

1d1010 Swamp Encounter Prompts
1 Several hooded figures are talking to excited frog-humanoids, exchanging heavy sacks for baskets of insects (or mushrooms).
2 A constrictor snake is having trouble digesting something large inside.
3 A trio of mismatched oracles are playing a complex game of cards. Will offer anyone interested to pick a card. Any card...
4 A group of frightened refugees are packed into two boats along with their animals. They fear that something dangerous is following them.
5 A polite, well-dressed ogre is a scholar researching history of the area.
6 A semi-sentient plant with yellow spores infects creatures that serve it in spreading more spores. One 'zombie' is known to a character.
7 the ghost of an ancient warlord is friendly and helpful, but bound here for another century. Giving all troops of a battle a burial
8 A stinking ghoul is dressed in rags and pretends to be a hermit. It is a stealthy scavenger, looking for a lone target to ambush and consume.
9 A group of hunters are well equipped for swamp terrain. They specialise in collecting frogs and know the local area quite well.
10 A distressed pony is caught in mud, slowly dragging it down. A predator is nearby, feasting on it's dead companion.

Swamp Hazards and Distractions

1d10There is (or are)...
1 a diseased boar (or ape) corpse or waters infested with leeches
2 there is a thick mist which is...
d10 (1-2. flammable 3. shimmering 4. sticking 5. whispering
6. poisonous 7. ghostly 8. enchanted 9. noxious 10. sentient)
3 a sign depicting quicksand and tentacles or a shimmering rainbow
4 an area of thick webs or a bush with poisonous bright berries
5 there is the strong smell of ...
d10 (1-2. something acrid 3. tar 4. fish 5. something rotten
6. burning 7. death 8. brine 9. sulphur 10. something sweet)
6 an old shrine which can cause a curse or a submerged body
7 an area of tar pits or a stone marker for an ancient city
8 sounds of ...
d10 (1-2. frogs and toads 3. shouts for help 4. howling 5. slurping
6. a loud hum 7. nothing at all 8. moaning 9. music 10. splashing)
9 a patch of quicksand (or brown mould); or continuous dismal rain
10 flickering lights float around the area or a snare trap

Quick Swamp NPCs

1d10DescriptorProfessionwho...
1 nervous or snake-kin hunter is fishing (or singing) from a boat
2 lizardfolk or feral shaman is growing mushrooms (or mould)
3 playful or goblin hermit hunts frogs (or snails);
4 orc or hallucinating warrior searches for a ruin (or spirit)
5 talkative or wererat vagabond is harvesting poisons (or reeds)
6 undead or miserable witch is in (or repairing) a canoe
7 optimistic or merfolk herbalist hates mud (or sunlight)
8 frog-kin or polite assassin is drinking mushroom ale
9 diseased or oozeling scout is digging (or playing) in the mud
10 faerie or learned outlaw has many charms (or containers)

More Encounters

There is a fantasy swamp encounter generator at ChaosGen. There is also a pdf of these and more tables at the DriveThruRPG as Swamp Encounters.

Fantasy Swamp Encounters on DriveThru RPG Fantasy Wilds Tables Bundle on DriveThru RPG

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