D&D 5E Rewarding Overland Travel

[Yora]

The point of randomly encountered creatures is to put pressure on the players to avoid spending unnecessary time in the dungeon and be discovered by creatures that can cause them harm but offer no rewards. It makes them have to consider leaving some less valuable treasure behind to move faster, or to abandon supplies and tools that are cheap to repair, but might be urgently missed later on.
None of that applies in 5th edition, of course.

 

[Sorcerers Apprentice]

A fun combat encounter with random monsters is a reward in itself.

 

[BookTenTiger]

The point of randomly encountered creatures is to put pressure on the players to avoid spending unnecessary time in the dungeon and be discovered by creatures that can cause them harm but offer no rewards. It makes them have to consider leaving some less valuable treasure behind to move faster, or to abandon supplies and tools that are cheap to repair, but might be urgently missed later on.
None of that applies in 5th edition, of course.

That is not the point of these Random Tables, though. As I said in the OP, this is not for Dungeons, this is for Overland Travel. The goal of this system would be to create memorable, fun travel narratives that reward characters for exploring the environment.

 

[mrpopstar]

This, and other powers like Goodberry or the Goliath's carrying capacity, make it difficult to create a fun system using consequences like reducing rations or relying on endurance.

Let's say I have an Overland Travel system in which I keep track of rations and water. One character with an Outlander in the group would provide for everyone, making it so that there is no consequence for travel.

The goliath's carrying capacity does not allow the goliath to become a pack mule that carries the party's equipment. They're still limited by the capacity of their backpack and carried pouches.

The outlander is only able to locate food and water if the land provides such things, and if they're focused on foraging then they're not able to focus on noticing threats (unless they're also a ranger). The less eyes you have focused on looking for danger, the higher the chances that you're surprised in an encounter.

But in this thread I'm saying... that's a good thing! The Outlander should be able to provide food and water, because that's the background they chose!

So I think Overland Travel should focus on rewards of travel instead of consequences. You can still implement the Food and Water cost, but now introduce new cool things in the landscape, like shelters, lost travelers, statues, etc. And I guarantee you, if you have the characters follow deer tracks to find a clearing where giant deer graze, the Outlander in the group is going to bring that into the narrative to explain their background feature!

I support this! I think what I'm saying is that there doesn't need to be an additional system for this.

The Dungeon Master's Guide states that "random encounter tables present obstacles and events that advance the plot, foreshadow important elements or themes of the adventure, and provide fun distractions." The example random encounter table includes "an ivy-covered statue of an elven deity or hero" and "an elven tune carried on a gentle breeze" as possible encounters.

 

[BookTenTiger]

The Dungeon Master's Guide states that "random encounter tables present obstacles and events that advance the plot, foreshadow important elements or themes of the adventure, and provide fun distractions." The example random encounter table includes "an ivy-covered statue of an elven deity or hero" and "an elven tune carried on a gentle breeze" as possible encounters.

So the shift I'm proposing is rather than just rolling a Random Encounter first, roll a Random Reward. There still might be an ivy covered statue or an elven tune carried on a gentle breeze, but in my system if the characters follow those signs they may find a boon. They may also find a monster, or an interesting NPC, or whatever.

 

[mrpopstar]

So the shift I'm proposing is rather than just rolling a Random Encounter first, roll a Random Reward. There still might be an ivy covered statue or an elven tune carried on a gentle breeze, but in my system if the characters follow those signs they may find a boon. They may also find a monster, or an interesting NPC, or whatever.

I understand. Like everyone who hears the tune gets inspiration, etc.

 

[BookTenTiger]

I understand. Like everyone who hears the tune gets inspiration, etc.

Exactly. So as a DM you start with "there's a tune that gives people Inspiration." Then: what's preventing the characters from hearing that tune? And finally: what are the signs they find that let them know there's a tune?

This is different than how I traditionally have done Overland Travel / Random Encounters, which is: here's a challenge, maybe there's a reward.

 

[Tales and Chronicles]

One neat thing would be to add "natural wonder" to the list of rewards. When the characters come upon a really big waterfall, or a massive mudpot of prismatic colors or something, they get Inspiration!

There was an UA about XP for other pillars that you may want to look at. They did not have encounters table per se, but they had a table for how much XP for discovering wonderous horizons.

In AiME, finding nice vistas or place the work of ancestors can give you Inspiration, remove 1 level of Exhaustion or even allow to recover stuff as if you completed a rest.

 

[mrpopstar]

There was an UA about XP for other pillars that you may want to look at. They did not have encounters table per se, but they had a table for how much XP for discovering wonderous horizons.

In AiME, finding nice vistas or place the work of ancestors can give you Inspiration, remove 1 level of Exhaustion or even allow to recover stuff as if you completed a rest.

AiME?

 

[Tales and Chronicles]

AiME?

Sorry, Adventure in Middle-Earth, the 5e version of The One Ring.

It has the most complete Journey system for 5e I've seen.