I Cast...Brainstorm issue 12!

This week — Wilderness Descriptions, 10 Wilderness Encounters, and a new Monster

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In this issue...

• Into the Wilds!

• 10 Wilderness Encounters

• A New Wilderness Monster

  • Gaelathir (Lunar Serpent)

• Brainstorming Links

• What I’m DM-ing

• Ye Olde Shoppe

Into the Wilds!

Exploring untamed wilderness is one of my favorite experiences in D&D, especially when the characters can take their time. With the right group of players, and the right type of adventure, (a sandbox without a strong “ticking clock” sense of urgency, for instance), its so much fun to just lay out a huge map and let the players roam, explore and discover — simply driven by the knowledge that amazing things are just over the next hill.

If you like to inject some random chance into your adventures, wilderness exploring is also a great opportunity for randomly generating landscape details, weather, and events with dice rolls. Consider things like terrain (forest, mountains, swamp, etc.), time of day, and how remote the location is, etc., then roll for whatever you’d like — random monster encounters, landmarks, events, weather. These rolls can be triggered each each morning/afternoon/evening, or when the characters enter a new hex or area of the map.

A lot of creators have shared random tables online, (one of my favorites is https://donjon.bin.sh/5e/random/), and a quick search should turn up something you can add to your game. Or, you could create a series of custom tables for your world to make sure any weather, landscape, encounter or event falls safely within the parameters and feel of your world and table. (Bonus — to keep the game moving, every possibility on the tables needs to be prepped in case the PCs encounter it, so creating your own tables means you can just feature the maps and stat blocks you have at your fingertips.)

Whether or not you randomly determine the landscape and events in your game, when describing the area, try to be specific and incorporate all five senses:

• Describe what the players see, both up close and far away. Whats the terrain? If its a forest, what do the trees look like? Does anything stand out as unusual for the area, like a flower they’ve never seen, or a pile of snow in a desert area? Can they see mountains or the top of a ruined tower off in the distance?

• Whats the temperature? Are the characters comfortable, or does an icy wind blow through the area?

• Is the sky clear or cloudy? Is it snowing or raining, and if so, how hard?

• Describe how the area smells. Are there natural smells like loam, pine or swamp? Or unnatural smells like campfire smoke, or the acrid scent of decay reminiscent of the undead?

• Do the PCs hear anything nearby — dripping water, wind, bird calls? What about off in the distance — do they hear the faint crash of waves along the coast, the rumbling of carts along a road, or the roar of some huge carnivorous predator? Or do they hear more unusual sounds for the location — the clash of weapons, music, or ghostly laughter?

• Are there any creatures nearby, either aware or unaware of the PCs? If so, do they leave any evidence of their passing?

You can map out the entire area, and dot the landscape with sights, sounds and events just where you want them, or you could randomly generate everything as you go — either way, try to add as much specific detail to your descriptions as you can, (without bogging down the pace of the game), so the wilderness will feel as interesting, evocative, mysterious and amazing as the dungeons your PCs explore.

10 Wilderness Encounters

If you’d like to add some interesting locations to your game-world, or you need an event as your players explore the wilderness, choose or randomly determine one of these encounters.

1. Cracktooth Tower
   Locals avoid the jagged remains of this ancient tower on a hill, and warn any visitors to do the same. As the PCs near the ruin, they can hear haunting music coming from inside tower’s remaining wall, emanating from a dark stairway that descends into the ground.
   

2. Stragliatto’s Strange Wares
   The PCs see the smoke of a campfire in the distance, and when they investigate, they find a brightly painted cart adorned with “Stragliatto’s Strange Wares” along the sides in fancy script. Stragliatto, a diminutive wandering merchant, is relaxing by the fire, leaning against a large polar bear named Snowmuffin, who acts as both draft horse and bodyguard.
   

3. Lunar Snake
   During a night-time long rest, a hungry lunar snake (see stat block below) finds the PCs’ campsite. It won’t risk emerging into an open area, especially if the moon is out. Instead, it hides nearby, and waits for an opportunity to strike at an isolated creature from darkness.
   

4. Yellow Musk Quicksand
   A yellow musk creeper waits until the PCs wander closer than 30’ away, then uses its yellow musk power to draw charmed creatures into a large pool of quicksand in front of it’s vines.
   

5. The Forest Sheriff
   Loud booms get louder and louder until nearby trees shake and rattle with every sound. A huge tree suddenly walks into view carrying a limp unicorn in one gnarled hand-branch. It stops when it sees the PCs, holds up the unicorn and angrily shouts “I am Sheriff Mosstache, and you are under arrest for the murder of Amyritius the unicorn!”
   

6. The Fey Court
   As the PCs enter a clearing, a group of strange fey creatures appears, silently and solemnly standing around the space. A tall elf then calls out from across the clearing. “The jury has arrived, and this sequestered court is now in session…”
   

7. Roc’s Nest
   The PCs discover a roc’s nest, filled with the remains of two hatched eggs, a dozen humanoid bones, and an overstuffed backpack. As the PCs investigate, the roc returns!
   

8. The Standoff
   Shouting draws the PCs to a group of five bandits standing in a circle, each with with a crossbow trained on the other four. When they become aware of the PCs, the bandits warn them to stay away — up until recently they were part of a larger group, but one by one the others disappeared. The last five are convinced one of the others is actually a doppelganger.
   

9. Whispering Pines
   As they pass through this grove of pine trees, the PC with the highest passive perception hears a faint whisper — “Three questions you may ask. Answers three is laid our task.”

10. The Haunted Cairn
    The PCs find a cairn of stones that appears like it was recently constructed. Floating above the cairn is the spectral form of a scarred, grim-looking barbarian.
    
    

A New Wilderness Monster

Unlucky adventurers might encounter a stealthy gaelathir in their travels through the uncivilized places of the world. Lucky adventurers will have access to natural or magical moonlight.

Gaelathir (Lunar Serpent)

Large Beast, Unaligned
Armor Class 14 (natural armor)
Hit Points 60 (8d12 + 8)
Speed 50’, climb 30’, swim 30’

STR 19 (+4) DEX 16 (+3) CON 12 (+1) INT 3 (-4) WIS 10 (+0) CHA 3 (-4)

Skills Stealth +7, Perception +2
Senses Darkvision 60 ft., Passive Perception 10
Languages --
Initiative +3
Proficiency Bonus +2
Challenge 3 (700 XP)

Features
Night Camouflage — A gaelathir’s scales allow it to blend in to it’s surroundings at night — it makes Stealth checks at Advantage, and any checks made to find it using sight are at Disadvantage. This feature does not work if any part of the gaelathir is in direct moonlight.

Moonlight Reflection — Direct moonlight reflects off the snake’s scales, making it immediately visible to creatures with line of sight to the beast, and granting attackers Advantage on all melee and ranged attacks that target the gaelathir.

Actions
Snakebite
Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 10 ft., one creature. Hit: 11 (2d6 + 4) piercing damage, and 14 (3d8) poison damage.

Bonus Actions
Slithering Escape
Galathir can take the Disengage or Hide Action.

Description
A gaelathir is large, fast, nocturnal snake found in the darkest places of warm forest environments. It’s scales are embedded with chromatophores, making it extremely difficult to see unless its in direct moonlight. Light from the moon reflects off the scales, making the gaelathir immediately visible to creatures with line of sight to the beast.

Brainstorming Links

If you love D&D and other RPGs as much as I do, you probably already know about the folks below, who are real inspirations to me. If you haven’t already, please check ‘em out!

The Arcane Library — masterpiece adventures, and Shadowdark, too!
https://www.thearcanelibrary.com

The Angry DM — so angry….so many great ideas….
https://www.thearcanelibrary.com

DMDave — on point analysis of D&D rules, and a ton of fun ideas
https://bsky.app/profile/dmdave.bsky.social

RPGBot — whip smart critique and explanations of 5e rules
https://rpgbot.net/

Sly Flourish — a DM’s best friend who is also a better DM
https://www.slyflourish.com/

Treantmonk — years of helpful advice and clever ideas
https://www.youtube.com/@TreantmonksTemple

What I’m DM-ing

• A weekly Curse of Strahd campaign via Roll20 using 2014 5th edition rules

• A weekly Rime of the Frostmaiden campaign, in-person, with 2024 5th edition rules

• A series of one-shots in a bi-weekly game at a bar in LA

• Two different campaigns with my kids, (Rime and Storm Kings Thunder) when schedules align

What I’m Playing

• A 5th ed. Dragonlance campaign as a 9th level Tinker Gnome Gadgeteer Rogue, named Professor Flondersnoot

• About to start playing Vecna: Eve of Ruin as Clybb Thistlebridge, a 9th level Halfling great-weapon Fighter

• And in all my free time, I play a LOT of Hearthstone!
  
  
  

Ye Olde Shoppe

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 www.totalpartykits.etsy.com

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