wilderness-hexplore-revamped/Wilderness-Hexplore-Revamped.md

title	author	editors	cheerleader	licence
Wilderness Hexplore revamped	Jed McClure	MamaDM Whidou Wanderer Bill	presgas ;-)	OGL 1.0a

Wilderness Exploration

These tables describe how to run an improvised wilderness hex crawl. The idea is that the even the GM does not know what the players will encounter, since the map, features, and encounters are all rolled randomly at the table. Every time the players explore a new hex, there are three primary rolls that need to be made. It works well to assign particular players to be responsible for some of these rolls to speed play- and also keep the players a part of the world creation. However the GM should always be the one to make the encounter roll. The party should have a blank Hex Region map (Make copies of the one at the end of the document) and a ‘starting point’ hex. If rolling for the starting hex, roll a d8 for the row and then the column. Next roll or select a hex terrain type for their starting point- this will be important for when they begin exploring the hexes around the starting hex. (You may want to roll up a village for their starting hex using the village and town rules. This can be their safe place for buying rations and selling treasure.)

Basic procedure

Every time the PCs explore a new adjacent hex, these three roll are made first:

• Determine the Hex Terrain type - using the table on the next page, roll a D20 and cross reference it with the hex type they just exited. This tells the type of the new hex. (There is a 50% chance that it is the same type as before)
• Roll for presence of a Feature - A d8 roll to see if the party finds something of interest in that hex. Most of this document are the tables for determining the exact nature of a feature that is found.
• Roll for Encounter - A d12 roll that answers if they encountered anyone or anything while they were exploring the hex. The encounter can happen before, after or during the discovery of a feature, (GM’s choice)

Frequently a new hex’s terrain will be of the same terrain type as the previous, and the party will not have any encounters or find any features. This is normal. For each hex (whether or not something is found) the party should decide if they want to move on in the same direction, or pick a new direction.

The GM should note the passage of time spent in each hex, before rolling the next hex.The GM (or better yet a designated player) should record the terrain type, and whatever feature they may have found in the region map annotations. Encounters should be rolled every time a hex is entered, even if it has been previously explored. If they party wants to spend more time exploring a hex, the GM can allow they to make another feature roll to see if they found something they missed the first time, but additional encounter rolls should also be made.

Note: be sure to track the passage of time, and the exhaustion of rations and resources. Wilderness hexcrawls are like a megadungeon, in that they are a type of challenge that requires the party to see how far they can push the odds before returning to town. If there is no penalty for exploring non-stop, then the hexcrawl will soon stop being fun for the players.

Travel time

Crossing/exploring a hex takes a certain amount time, based on its Difficulty, usually either 3 or 4 hours. There are about 15-18 hours in the day that a party can explore before they need to camp for the night. A party that explores for MORE then 18 hours will suffer a -1 to hit rolls the following day, unless they spend extra time the following day resting. Thus a party can generally explore 5 Moderate or 4 Difficult hexes in a single day, without penalty,

Food

Each PC and hireling eats one days rations each day. For each day a party member does not get a full ration, their ‘to hit’ roll gets a -1 modifier. This is cumulative for each day they are not able to be properly fed.Thus mark off 1 days rations for each character and hireling for after 4 or 5 hexes explored.

If the party runs out of stores, they have the following options:

• Foraging: The party as a whole may roll 1d6 once per day of exploration, and on the result of a ‘1’ they found enough food to feed 1d6 party members for the day. (Note: they must state they are foraging at the start of the day.)
• Hunting: If the party chooses they may spend a day hunting- this is the only activity the party can make that day, and they cannot explore any new hexes. Each party member who chooses to hunt, can roll 1d6, and on the result of 1 or 2 they caught enough game for 1d6 party members.
• Ranger and Druid characters may deserve a bonus to these rolls, depending on the environment.
• Hunting or foraging in particularly bleak environments may require a negative modifier to the roll, at the GM’s discretion.

Terrain

First Roll: Determine the terrain Roll a d20 to determine how the new hex changes. Tables for climates other then temperate are given page Wilderness Exploration-6

TEMPERATE Mid latitudes similar to western Europe:

1d20	PLAINS	FOREST	MARSH	HILLS	MOUNTAINS	WATER
1-10	Plains	Forest	Marsh	Hills	Mountains	Water
11-16	Forest	Plains	Water	Mountains	Hills	Marsh
17-18	Marsh	Hills	Forest	Water	Plains	Mountain
19	Mountains	Mountains	Plains	Forest	Forest	Plains
20	Water	Marsh	Hills	Marsh	Water	Hills

Feature

Second Roll: Roll to see if there is a feature in the hex

Feature Type Roll

Encounters

THIRD ROLL: RANDOM ENCOUNTERS

The following 2d8 random encounter tables are adapted from the Basic Fantasy RPG by Chris Gonnermann and are open game content.

2d8	Desert or Barren	Grassland	Inhabited Territories
2	Dragon, Blue	Dragon, Green	Dragon, Gold
3	Hellhound	Troll	Ghoul
4	Giant, Fire	Fly, Giant	Bugbear
5	Purple Worm	Scorpion, Giant	Goblin
6	Fly, Giant	NPC Party: Bandit	Centaur
7	Scorpion, Giant	Lion	NPC Party: Bandit
8	Camel	Boar, Wild	NPC Party: Merchant
9	Spider, Giant Tarantula	NPC Party: Merchant	NPC Party: Pilgrim
10	NPC Party: Merchant	Wolf	NPC Party: Noble
11	Hawk	Bee, Giant	Dog
12	NPC Party: Bandit	Gnoll	Gargoyle*
13	Ogre	Goblin	Gnoll
14	Griffon	Blink Dog	Ogre
15	Gnoll	Wolf, Dire	Minotaur
16	Dragon, Red	Giant, Hill	Vampire*

2d8	Jungle	Mountains or Hills	Ocean
2	Dragon, Green	Dragon, White	Dragon, Sea
3	NPC Party: Bandit	Roc (1d6: 1-3 Large, 4-5 Huge, 6 Giant)	Hydra
4	Goblin	Displacer	Whale, Sperm
5	Hobgoblin	Lycanthrope, Werewolf*	Crocodile, Giant
6	Centipede, Giant	Mountain Lion	Crab, Giant
7	Snake, Giant Python	Wolf	Whale, Killer
8	Elephant	Spider, Giant Crab	Octopus, Giant
9	Antelope	Hawk	Shark, Mako
10	Jaguar	Orc	NPC Party: Merchant
11	Stirge	Bat, Giant	NPC Party: Buccaneer (Pirate)
12	Beetle, Giant Tiger	Hawk, Giant	Shark, Bull
13	Caecilia, Giant	Giant, Hill	Roc (1d8: 1-5 Huge, 6-8 Giant)
14	Shadow*	Chimera	Shark, Great White
15	NPC Party: Merchant	Wolf, Dire	Mermaid
16	Lycanthrope, Weretiger*	Dragon, Red	Sea Serpent

2d8	River or Riverside	Swamp/Marsh	Woods or Forest
2	Dragon, Black	Dragon, Black	Dragon, Green
3	Fish, Giant Piranha	Shadow*	Unicorn
4	Stirge	Troll	Treant
5	Fish, Giant Bass	Lizard, Giant Draco	Orc
6	NPC Party: Merchant	Centipede, Giant	Boar, Wild
7	Lizardman	Leech, Giant	Bear, Black
8	Crocodile	Lizardman	Hawk, Giant
9	Frog, Giant	Crocodile	Antelope
10	Fish, Giant Catfish	Stirge	Wolf
11	NPC Party: Buccaneer	Orc	Ogre
12	Troll	Toad, Giant	Bear, Grizzly
13	Jaguar	Troglodyte	Wolf, Dire
14	Nixie	Blood Rose	Giant, Hill
15	Water Termite, Giant	Hangman Tree	Owlbear
16	Dragon, Green	Basilisk	Unicorn

Hex sizes

Water hexes

Ocean exploration

Other uses

Forgotten places

Ruins

Relics

Remains

Vestiges

Remnants

Refuse

Wrecks

Skeletons

Antiques

Artifacts

Magic statues

Lairs

Dungeons

Caves

Burrows

Camp

Dwelling

Shipwreck

Ledge

Crevasse

Paths & streams

Orientation

Rivers

Roads

Islands

Type

Element

Provisions

Volcano

Castles

Condition

Invader

Abandoned

Garrison

Leader

Followers

Name

Churches

Temple

Location

Leadership

Wealth

Shrines

Deity

Appearance

d12	DEITY APPEARANCE
1	Concept
2	Force
3	Element
4	Plant
5	Animal
6	Person
7	Monster
8	Place
9	Star
10	Object
11	Unknown
12	Multiple, re-roll 1d4 times

d20	CONCEPT DEITY
1	Love
2	Freedom
3	Piety
4	Hunger
5	Death
6	Strangeness
7	Consciousness
8	Mathematics
9	Life
10	Time
11	Luck
12	Art
13	Justice
14	Weather
15
16
17
18
19
20

d20	FORCE DEITY
1	Light
2	Magnetism
3	Electricity
4	Gravity
5	Radiation
6	Magic
7	Thought
8	Heat
9	Cold
10	Wind
11	Waves
12	Laser
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20

d20	ELEMENT DEITY
1	Rock
2	Goo
3	Water
4	Fire
5	Acid
6	Air
7	Crystal
8	Bone
9	Metal
10	Ice
11	Oil
12	Wood
13	Ash
14	Magma
15	Glass
16	Plastic
17	Fabric
18
19
20

d20	PLANT DEITY
1	Cactus
2	Forest
3	Grass patch
4	Giant turnip
5	Carnivorous plant
6	Purple mushroom
7	Palm tree
8	Orchid
9	Vine
10	Heap of seeds
11	Dead leaf
12	Hollow oak
13	Crooked fir
14	Bonsaï
15	Potted tulip
16	Datura
17	Lone branch
18	Silver apple
19	Alga
20	Bamboo shoot

d20	ANIMAL DEITY
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20

d20	PERSON DEITY
1	Mother
2	Pirate
3	Old man
4	Empress
5	Baby
6	Farmer
7	Scholar
8	Teacher
9	Embryo
10	Prostitute
11	Beggar
12	Blacksmith
13	Twins
14	Child
15	Artist
16	Baker
17	Maid
18	Druid
19	Fisherman
20	Oneself

d20	MONSTER DEITY
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20

d20	PLACE DEITY
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20

d20	STAR DEITY
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20

d20	OBJECT DEITY
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20

d20	UNKNOWN DEITY
1	No appearance
2	Ineffable
3	Unknowable
4	Death upon perception
5	Cannot be remembered
6	Polymorph
7	Different for each believer
8	Cannot be grasped
9	Nobody saw it yet
10	Testimonies have been lost
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20

Domain

Name

Powers

Relationships

Name

Defiling

Protection

Ceremonies

Hamlets

Leader

Streets

Shops

Population

Technological level

Government

Walls

Name

Notes

This is a document Jed McClures originally created in support of his gaming group. The philosophy of randomized tables like these, is that the GM is also playing a game, one that requires skill and creativity. Creating a narrative out of random results on the fly is what separates the good from the great. But as always, if the dice and tables result in something that is too boring or too brutal for your players, then use your power & creativity as the GM keep things fun.

In Jeds original document much of the material and artwork contained within was taken directly from Judges Guild publications.

For this Wilderness Hexplore Revamped edition the editors substituted those tables with useful stuff that's been published under OGL in the last years - within the OSR scene and elsewhere.