"In a meadow of seagrass lurks a giant squid grasping a large bone. It is covered in glowing shifting symbols..."
Simple encounter tables for underwater terrain in any fantasy setting. Tables for Combined Underwater Encounters, Underwater Encounter Details and Underwater Encounter Locations.
Fantasy Sea - trinkets | coastal encs | port encs | underwater encs | all
[Photo by Francesco Ungaro on Unsplash]
Fantasy Underwater Encounters
Underwater encounters are mostly creatures of the such as dolphins, tritons, jellyfish and sea serpents. But there may also be ancient horrors, undead sailors or intruders from the surface.
They might be investigating a glowing trident, cultivating seaweed or surrounded by a swarm of eels.
The encounter could be in a trench of algae, an area of chromatic sand or a kelp forest.
There is a fantasy sea encounter generator at ChaosGen. There is also a pdf of these and more tables at the DriveThruRPG as Underwater Encounters.
10 Underwater Encounter Prompts
| 1d10 | 10 Underwater Encounter Prompts |
|---|---|
| 1 | a merfolk seer who warns of nearby evil or roll on Underwater NPCs |
| 2 | a solitary (or giant)... d10 (1-2. shark 3. crab 4. swordfish 5. manta ray 6. plesiosaurus 7. lobster 8. sea snake 9. octopus 10. killer whale ) |
| 3 | a hydrothermal vent issuing a black plume or roll on Hazards |
| 4 | several (or a pair of)... d10 (1-2. merfolk 3. sea nymphs 4. tritons 5. crabfolk 6. sea ogres 7. drowned spirits 8. adventurers 9. sea devils 10. genie kin) |
| 5 | a runed skeletal whale, guarding area or roll on Unique Encounters |
| 6 | a few (or many) ... d10 (1-2. giant crabs 3. sea snails 4. jellyfish 5. turtles 6. dolphins 7. seals 8. giant seahorses 9. carnivorous fish 10. undead fish ) |
| 7 | a shapeshifting artist with fish in a net or roll on Underwater NPCs |
| 8 | a reclusive or inquisitive ... d10 (1-2. kelp dryad 3. murk fiend 4. drake 5. reef golem 6. elemental 7. aquatic ooze 8. water genie 9. seaweed spirit 10. hippocampi) |
| 9 | a underwater phantom ship, circling a cave mouth or roll on Hazards |
| 10 | a hungry (or sleeping) sea monster, a ... d10 (1-2. sea serpent 3. reef giant 4. giant squid 5. hydra 6. kraken 7. sea dragon 8. water titan 9. gigantic fish 10. dragon turtle ) |
Underwater Encounter Details
Use 1d6 for beasts or non-sentient creatures.
| 1d10 | They are... (or one is...) |
|---|---|
| 1 | fleeing from something or investigating a cavemouth |
| 2 | surrounded by a swarm of... d10 (1-2. colourful fish 3. seahorses 4. sea turtles 5. jellyfish 6. shrimps 7. comb jellies 8. eels 9. porpoises 10. crayfish ) |
| 3 | hiding from a light source (or sea monster); or injured |
| 4 | covered in glowing symbols (or marine fungi); or a shapechanger |
| 5 | investigating (or carrying) a... d10 (1-2. shield made from a shell 3. sealed ceramic pot 4. weird skull 5. pearl amulet 6. conch horn 7. magical net 8. shell necklace 9. glowing trident 10. holy symbol of a sea god) |
| 6 | associated with a local tribe (or ruins); or telepathic |
| 7 | searching for a cave (or ruin); or preparing to go to the surface |
| 8 | playing with (or scolding) a pet ... d10 (1-2. lobster 3. clam 4. seahorse 5. sea urchin 6. jellyfish 7. sea anemone 8. blowfish 9. crab 10. eel) |
| 9 | making music (or art); or cultivating seaweed |
| 10 | gathering unusual shells (or seaweed); or performing a ritual |
Underwater Encounter Locations
| 1d10 | Area | Feature |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | a kelp forest or a crater | a garden of spiky seaweed (or trinkets) |
| 2 | a reef or a titanic skeleton | a patch of sea squirts or a brine pool |
| 3 | a trench (or cliff) of algae | a shrine (or garden) of surface objects |
| 4 | a reef riddled with tunnels | a glowing cave or a chain and anchor |
| 5 | a seagrass meadow | a mosaic of shells or a magical beacon |
| 6 | a seamount or giant golem | a patch of chromatic seaweed or a cage |
| 7 | an area of chromatic sand | a circle of large clams or a diving bell |
| 8 | a canyon or coral temple | a coral citadel or a kelp-coverd statue |
| 9 | a line of pillars (or statues) | a column of stone or a dead whale |
| 10 | a sunken ship (or island) | luminous fungi or a tentacled statue |
More Encounters
There is a fantasy sea encounter generator at ChaosGen. There is also a pdf of these and more tables at the DriveThruRPG as Underwater Encounters.
If you liked these there are Fantasy Generators at Chaos Gen, a monthly random tools Newsletter and an instagram of Random Tables.
