The ice floes and frozen tundra hide many mysteries and strange occurrences waiting to be discovered by your D&D players. Instead of rolling another random encounter, try adding one of these discoveries to your next arctic adventure.
| d10 | Discovery |
| 1 | A glowing green aurora flows across the sky, then settles to the ground as thousands of fireflies. |
| 2 | The frozen remains of a long extinct animal or monster are exposed on a broken glacier. |
| 3 | A massive sinkhole that is 300 feet wide and at least 500 feet deep. |
| 4 | A crumbling abandoned castle made entirely of ice. |
| 5 | Distant screams can be heard, carried by the wind. The source of the screams can not be found. |
| 6 | A group of white-furred monkeys bathe in a hot spring. They beckon the characters to join them. |
| 7 | Large pillars of ice that contain swirling dark smoke. If broken, they release Efreeti (Basic Rules, pg. 310). |
| 8 | A 30 foot radius transparent, impregnable dome containing a tropical jungle. |
| 9 | Dozens of falling stars streak across the sky. One stops overhead, then continues in another direction. |
| 10 | A team of sled dogs pull an empty, blood-spattered sled. |
Random encounters are commonly used in Dungeons & Dragons to keep the players on their toes. These encounters make travel more unpredictable and exciting.
But not every encounter has to be a monster to fight, or even another NPC with some kind of mini side quest. “Goblins have stolen my prize chicken!”
Next time the player characters are traveling in the arctic, choose or roll one of the strange discoveries listed above.
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