[DF] Show Us Your Random Encounter Tables

[Evil Roy Slade]

Originally Posted by Kuroshima

I think that DFM is still too new, and too short, for decent random encounter tables. I would love for a set of tables that game you random encounters as a function of terrain and some other variables, and it would fit perfectly into the old school vive of DF. Now, I feel that we need a couple more DFM books before that's possible.

I dunno: I think this is a manifestation of the evergreen GURPS Has No Monsters meme. By my count, the listings in the DF series in the back pages of Dungeon Fantasy Monsters 1 run to about 120 critters, and the subsequent release of DF14: Psi, brought that up by almost ten more. Add in the Animals in the relevant chapter of the basic set -- surely your wandering adventurers must fight wolves now and again --and we must be closing in on 150. I suspect a fair number of DF players have access to Fantasy and Banestorm as well, and these must swell the total to, what, 175 or thereabouts?

My recollection of the old school gaming that DF is supposed to evoke was light on monster stats as well. My 1970s Basic D&D set listed maybe a third that number, and it certainly had random encounter tables. The 1st Edition AD&D Monster Manual claims "Over 350 Monsters" on the back cover blurb but I count just barely over 200 headwords. Admittedly, the richer headwords get any number of subheadings (demons, devils, dinosaurs, and dragons stretch out the D section to 20 pages), but to count the three variants of Boar -- 'Wild Boar,' 'Giant Boar,' and 'Warthog' -- as three distinct monsters takes some fine slicing. In any event, the DMG provided twenty pages of encounter tables.

For that matter, the original Little Black Books of Traveller had encounter tables without monsters: a table or two that would generate if the encounter was an herbivore, omnivore, etc, then a series of subsequent tables to generate their size, natural attacks, armour, reactions, speed, etc.

[Greg 1]

Originally Posted by Evil Roy Slade

I dunno: I think this is a manifestation of the evergreen GURPS Has No Monsters meme. By my count, the listings in the DF series in the back pages of Dungeon Fantasy Monsters 1 run to about 120 critters, and the subsequent release of DF14: Psi, brought that up by almost ten more. Add in the Animals in the relevant chapter of the basic set -- surely your wandering adventurers must fight wolves now and again --and we must be closing in on 150. I suspect a fair number of DF players have access to Fantasy and Banestorm as well, and these must swell the total to, what, 175 or thereabouts?

The listing of monsters in DF Monsters 1 has to be one of the most useful additions to the DF line.

GURPS has monsters, but they are scattered.

Listings by type and terrain would also be useful.

I would like to see a random-encounter system with dials on it, one that can be customized and can easily have new monsters added to it.

As long as we aren't looking for a final product that requires no GM input, such a random-encounter system should not be too hard to put together (I say, without having tried to do it).

For that matter, the original Little Black Books of Traveller had encounter tables without monsters: a table or two that would generate if the encounter was an herbivore, omnivore, etc, then a series of subsequent tables to generate their size, natural attacks, armour, reactions, speed, etc.

Tables that give you types of monsters and then appropriate sub-tables of that type could be very useful.

I love Treasure Tables, but a greater use of sub-tables would make it easier to customize.

[Turhan's Bey Company]

It helps no one right now, but Mirror of the Fire Demon will have a wandering monster table. It's keyed to the context of the adventure, though, so I'm not sure how generally useful it will be.

[Bruno]

It's tailored to a distinct environment, but it's one of the classical adventuring environments, so it makes a good example and general purpose thingy for that terrain type. The additional... political complication dovetails fairly nicely with Standard Fantasyland RPG tropes IMO. :)

Are the tables still split up like they were in the first revision, or have they been merged? If they're still split up, then GMs can just toss the third "political" table or not (according to tastes and specifics of their game setting) and play around with the other two. Or create a new "uber table" - "roll 3d6, on a 3-10 roll on table 1, on an 11-15, roll on table 2, on a 16+, roll on table 3" sort of thing, adjusting weights to taste.

She says, attempting to avoid using any specific references while discussing the concept in public.

[Turhan's Bey Company]

Originally Posted by Bruno

Are the tables still split up like they were in the first revision, or have they been merged?

Still separate tables. However, the process of selecting encounters has been significantly streamlined. Rather than "roll for this, roll for that, then roll for the other," it's "roll on the table which will give you some combination of this, that, and/or the other."

[Athanbeli]

Originally Posted by Greg 1

GURPS has monsters, but they are scattered.

Not only that.
Creatures from different books follow markedly different approaches.
Remember that the stat-block format that is currently in use was introduced with DF2: Banestorm monsters lack Damage, attack skill level, DR and all those neat little things!
Moreover, a starting DF knight could easily thrash the Chimera (which is considered to be the unique, almost invincible mythical god-spawn) from gurps Fantasy (yes, I DO have a grudge with that book).