Open Sky Encounters

In Session 12 of my Dungeons and Dragons home-brew campaign Skyfell the player characters acquired an airship. I've already written up quite a few rules regarding airships and the nature of air travel in Skyfell (see my Airships post). That was good enough to explain a bit about ships for earlier sessions. I'm assuming, however, that the characters will be sailing the open skies more frequently now. That's the sort of freedom owning an airship grants. There is, of course, a potential for encountering new locales and new creatures as they travel. So, I put together this set of rules for random encounters in the Open Skies.

Like all the material regarding Skyfell on this blog, I've posted this for my players. These rules will likely change as we use them in the campaign. That said, feel free to use and adapt for your own campaign.

Also, if you’re interested, I have assembled a couple playlists of session music specifically for sailing the open skies. There is one suitable for adventuring and another for combat.

Random Encounter Table

The idea is simple. For each week of air travel in the Open Skies, someone in the party must roll for a random encounter check. This is akin to making checks for random encounters during long rests (if your group does indeed flirt with such shenanigans). The first table determines the kind of random encounter, with Clear Sailing indicating nothing untoward happens.

Clear Sailing
Source: Pixabay, with digital manipulation

 

If an actual encounter is rolled, then a second roll is called for on the appropriate Encounter Type table. Some of the Encounter Type tables require additional rolls depending on their nature. Note that I did not provide exact details regarding the nature of each encounter, such as monsters, maps, treasures, etc. These are simple guidelines with the expectation that I would have to do a little planning or improvisation based on the result.

1-45	Clear sailing
46-65	Inclement weather
66-75	Airship
76-85	Land mass
86-94	Creature
95-99	Ruins
100	Portal

Encounter Types

Inclement Weather

Electrical Storm
Source: Pixabay, with digital manipulation

 

The party encounters rough skies that makes sailing a challenge. This might result in ship damage and/or travel delays. Once the kind of inclement weather is determined, you must roll to determine its strength, intensity, or nature and then apply the effects. You must repeat this roll every hour, or portion of an hour, that the inclement weather remains.

1-27	Gale winds  Winds buffet the ship. They have a 40% chance to dissipate after an hour. Roll 1d12 for their intensity. 1-4. Moderate: DC 10, d10 bludgeoning damage 5-8. Strong: DC 15, d10 bludgeoning damage 9-10. Severe: DC 20, d12 bludgeoning damage 11-12. Tornado: DC 25, d12 bludgeoning damage
28-46	Clouds Clouds engulf the ship. They have a 60% chance to dissipate after an hour. Roll 1d12 for their density. 1-5. Light: heavily obscured at 60 ft. 6-8. Moderate: heavily obscured at 30 ft. 9-10. Heavy: heavily obscured at 15 ft. 11-12. Very Heavy: heavily obscured at 5 ft.
47-70	Storm Gale winds, clouds, and precipitation engulf the ship. It has a 50% chance to dissipate after an hour. Roll 1d12 for its intensity. 1-4. Moderate: DC 10, heavily obscured at 50 ft., d10 bludgeoning damage 5-8. Strong: DC 15, heavily obscured at 25 ft., d10 bludgeoning damage 9-10. Severe: DC 20, heavily obscured at 10 ft., d12 bludgeoning damage 11-12. Hurricane: DC 25, heavily obscured at 5 ft., d12 bludgeoning damage
71-89	Electrical tempest Flurry of static discharges engulf the ship. It has a 65% chance to dissipate after an hour. Roll 1d12 for its intensity.  1-4. Light: DC 10, d10 lightning damage 5-8. Moderate: DC 15, d10 lightning damage 9-10. Strong: DC 20, d12 lightning damage 11-12. Severe: DC 25, d12 lightning damage
90-95	Weave Fog Moderate magical clouds engulf the ship, heavily obscuring objects at 30 ft. A successful DC15 Intelligence (Arcana) check reveals the fog's true nature. It has a 75% chance to dissipate after an hour. Roll 1d12 to determine its type. 1-3. Feywild fog: Apply Feywild Magic from the DMG. All non-fey creatures in the fog are vulnerable to psychic damage. 4-6. Ghost fog: Roll for undead creatures on the Creatures table below. All non-undead creatures in the fog are vulnerable to necrotic damage. 7-9. Shadowfell Fog: Apply Shadowfell Despair from the DMG. All non-construct creatures in the fog are vulnerable to radiant damage. 10-12. Wild Magic: Apply Wild Magic Surge from the PG. All
96-100	Weave storm Flurry of magic engulfs the ship. It has a 90% chance to dissipate after an hour. Roll 1d8 to determine its type and apply an effect related to that type. 1. Abjuration:  2. Conjuration: 3. Divination: 4. Enchantment: 5. Evocation: 6. Illusion: 7. Necromancy: 8. Transmutation:

 

Airship

Airship
Source: John Carter, the Movie

 

The party encounters one or more airships of a particular type, sailing under a specific purpose, and in a particular state. You might also be interested in reading my homebrew rules for airships. The table includes some rolls for the airships' general reaction to the party. These are very broad guidelines that can be affected by very many criteria, including the party's own actions and any current events. They are also crafted for my Skyfell setting. You do not have to roll for reaction at all if you don't want to. You can also craft your own scales.

1-7	Adventurer Airship is crewed by adventurers returning from or going to an adventure. Roll 1d10 to determine reaction to the party: 1-4. Friendly, 5-8. Neutral, 9-10. Unfriendly Roll 1d2 to determine the number of airships. Then roll 1d10 for each ship to determine its size: 1-5. Small, 6-8. Medium, 9. Large, 10. Huge
8-30	Cargo Airship is crewed by civilian personnel transporting supplies or trade goods. Roll 1d10 to determine reaction to the party: 1-2. Friendly, 3-8. Neutral, 9-10. Unfriendly Roll 1d3 to determine the number of airships. Then roll 1d10 for each ship to determine its size: 1-3. Medium, 4-7. Large, 8-10. Huge
31-47	Criminal Airship is crewed by pirates, marauders, smugglers, or slavers. Roll 1d10 to determine reaction to the party: 1. Friendly, 2-4. Neutral, 6-10. Unfriendly Roll 1d4 to determine the number of airships. Then roll 1d10 for each ship to determine its size: 1-5. Small, 6-8. Medium, 9. Large, 10. Huge
48-58	Hunter Airship is hunting or gathering wild resources. Roll 1d10 to determine reaction to the party: 1-3. Friendly, 4-9. Neutral, 10. Unfriendly Roll 1d6 to determine the number of airships. Then roll 1d10 for each ship to determine its size: 1-6. Small, 7-10. Medium
59-64	Ghost Ship Airship is crewed by the undead. Roll 1d10 to determine reaction to the party: 1. Friendly, 2-3. Neutral, 4-10. Unfriendly Roll 1d3 to determine the number of airships. Then roll 1d10 for each ship to determine its size: 1-4. Small, 5-8. Medium, 9. Large, 10. Huge
65-81	Military Airship is crewed by military personnel. Roll 1d10 to determine reaction to the party: 1-3. Friendly, 4-8. Neutral, 9-10. Unfriendly Roll 1d8 to determine the number of airships. Then roll 1d10 for each ship to determine its size: 1-2. Small, 3-5. Medium, 6-8. Large, 9-10. Huge
82-91	Passenger Airship is crewed by civilian personnel legally transporting people. Roll 1d10 to determine reaction to the party: 1-4. Friendly, 5-9. Neutral, 10. Unfriendly Roll 1d2 to determine the number of airships. Then roll 1d10 for each ship to determine its size: 1-2. Small, 3-6. Medium, 7-8. Large, 9-10. Huge
92-100	Wreck Airship is abandoned. There is a 30% chance the the wreck is occupied by creatures other than its crew. If there are creatures, roll on the Creature table below. Roll 1d3 to determine the number of airships. Then roll 1d10 for each ship to determine its size: 1-2. Small, 3-4. Medium, 5-7. Large, 8-10. Huge

 

Land Mass

Land Mass
Source: "The Foundation," Rodney Matthews

 

The party encounters one or more land masses. Roll on the Creatures and Ruins tables for this encounter. Also make a check for the presence of a beacon. The larger the mass, the more likely there will be a beacon. The presence of a beacon does not mean the party finds a beacon. It just means that there is one somewhere on/in the mass.

Island: Single mass

Cluster: Limited collection, comprised mostly of small islands, with just a few medium and large islands mixed in depending on the size of the cluster

Field: Sprawling collection, comprised mostly of small islands, with just a few medium and large islands mixed in depending on the size of the cluster

For comparison, the Piruna Fields is a Super Gargantuan field. There is nothing else like it in the known skies. None of these masses should amount to continent size UNLESS the roll is made for outside of the Known Skies. If a mass were that large, it would be mapped already.

1-30	Small island 25% Creature, 30% Ruins, 5% Beacon
31-46	Medium island 50% Creature, 45% Ruins, 10% Beacon
47-54	Large island 75% Creature, 60% Ruin, 25% Beacon
55-70	Small cluster 1d4+1 small islands 20% Creature, 10% Ruins, 10% Beacon
71-78	Medium cluste 1d4+5 small islands, with few medium 40% Creature, 20% Ruins, 20% Beacon
79-83	Large cluster 1d4+9 small islands, with some medium, and few large 60% Creature, 30% Ruins, 40% Beacon
84-93	Small field 1d6+13 small islands 30% Creature, 25% Ruins, 20% Beacon
93-97	Medium field 1d6+19 small islands, with few medium 60% Creature, 35% Ruins, 40% Beacon
98-100	Large field 1d6+25 small islands, with some medium, and few large 90% Creature, 45% Ruins, 80% Beacon

 

Creatures

Creatures
Source: Princes of the Apocalypse, 5e 

 

The party encounters one or more creatures. Whether the creature(s) are friendly depends on their nature, their circumstance, and their interactions with the characters. The results are by general challenge rating (as described in the Dungeon Master's Guide) so that they scale with the character's level. The results are weighted against medium encounters. The open skies are dangerous after all.

Single: One creature.

Group: 1+3d4 creatures.

Swarm: 14+3d6 creatures.

1-7	Single, easy
8-16	Single, medium
17-22	Single, hard
23-27	Single, deadly
28-55	Group, easy
51-71	Group, medium
72-82	Group, hard
83-90	Group, deadly
91-94	Swarm, easy
95-97	Swarm, medium
98-99	Swarm, hard
100	Swarm, deadly

 

Ruins

Ruins
Source: Castle in the Sky, the Movie

 

The party encounters the remains of civilization. Roll on the Creatures table and make a check for the presence of a beacon. The larger the ruin, the more likely there will be a beacon. The presence of a beacon does not mean the party finds a beacon. It just means that there is one somewhere in the ruins. I’ve hijacked the monster sizes here, where Tiny would be a hut, cabin, or other single dwelling while Gargantuan would be a sprawling city. The other sizes are somewhere in between.

1-10	Tiny 10% Creature, 5% Beacon
11-49	Small 20% Creature,10% Beacon
50-79	Medium 30% Creature,15% Beacon
80-90	Large 40% Creature,20% Beacon
91-97	Huge 50% Creature,25% Beacon
98-100	Gargantuan 60% Creature,30% Beacon

 

Portal

Portal
Source: Pixabay, with digital manipulation

 

Near, middle, and far indicate the relative distance from the entry point to the exit point. In other words, how far away the exit to the portal is. The percentile roll for collapse indicates the chance of the portal disappearing after it is used. Upon using the portal, make another encounter roll on the Encounter table.

Near: 1d20+10 miles away

Middle: 5d20+26 miles away

Far: 10d20+117 miles away

1-41	Unstable, near 80% collapse
42-62	Unstable, middle 85% collapse
63-78	Unstable, far 90% collapse
79-84	Unstable, planar 95% collapse
85-91	Stable, near
92-96	Stable, middle
97-99	Stable, far
100	Stable, planar

 

Header Graphic

The header graphic for this post is "The Foundation" by Rodney Matthews. While it's not exactly a portrait of the Open Skies themselves, I think it conveys the wonder and uniqueness of traveling in an airship. Anyway, he's one of my favorite artists, so I had to use something of his. After selecting this image, I feel that I want to augment the general ambiance and style of Skyfell to be reflective of his style.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Follow me on one of these fine social media platforms:
Instagram: @hokumsean
Spotify: @hokumsean
Twitch: @hokumsean
Twitter: @hokumsean
Tumblr @hokumsean

Stop by my YouTube channel "Ovens and Dragons" and partake in the exciting world of cooking for gamers.

Also, check out my DMsGuild offerings:

• Epic Gnomish Inventing
  Rules supplement for creating gadgets.
• Gnome Concept Packages 1
  Collection of gnome-related backgrounds, feats, magic items, and more.
• Great House Servants
  Collection of backgrounds centered on the servants of a great house.
• Mildew's Revenge
  A first-level adventure. Check out this review from The Quest Hub.
• Random Plot Generator
  A tool for creating adventure prompts for one-shots and story arcs.
• The WhatNot Shop
  A fantastical locale for your Dungeons and Dragon's campaign.
• The WhatNot Shop’s Absurd Accoutrements
  A collection of unusual magical items.
• The WhatNot Shop's Bracing Beverages
  A collection of strange potions.
• The WhatNot Shop's Common Curiosities and Trivial Trinkets
  A collection of common magic items and trinkets.
• The WhatNot Shop's Dastardly Doodads and Orc Oddities
  A collection of orc-themed common magic items and trinkets.