Friends, Foes & Monsters

Table of contents

Friends, Foes & Monsters

Encounter Tables

The encounter table method by Nick LS Whelan, originally posted under the title of “Structuring Encounter Tables, Amended & Restated” on his Papers and Pencils blog (https://www.paperspencils.com/structuring-encounter-tables-amended-restated/), is usable for settlements, wilderness, and dungeons, and looks like this:

2d6	Result
2	A dragon, or something equally intimidating.
3-6	Various wildlife, or various members of Faction A of this location. Lower results are more dangerous encounters.
7	Recurring character. Create a location-bound (or universal!) table of weird, strange, and fun NPCs, and roll there.
8-11	Whatever monsters roam here, or various members of Faction B of this location. Higher results are more dangerous encounters.
12	A wizard, or something equally enigmatic, mysterious and magical.

NPC Stat Blocks

Use the following guidelines to create interesting NPCs, creatures, and monsters for Block, Dodge, Parry. Don’t forget that context, fiction, terrain, and reaction rolls also give a lot of flavor to an encounter. Foes do not always need to be “fancy” to be dangerous or interesting. A group of 1d6 bandits (4 HP, no Armor, STR 10 DEX 10 WIL 10 armed with shortswords of d6 damage) with their own agenda, motivation, and quirks can provide just as much mileage as a meticulously planned encounter.

Ability Scores

As a baseline for humans (or humanoids), having a STR, DEX, and WIL of 10 tends to work perfectly fine. A value of 6 can be considered “remarkably bad” and a value of 15 “remarkably good.” This means that NPCs with an Ability in the 7-14 range can be considered “average” or “unremarkable.”

Ability	6 or lower	7-14	15 or higher
STR	Frail	Average	Tough
DEX	Clumsy	Average	Deft
WIL	Undisciplined	Average	Resolute

Hit Protection

Normal, untrained civilians have an HP of 3 (or roll 1d6). Any human with an HP in the range of 1-6 can be described as “normal” or “untrained.”

Veterans, trained soldiers, or dangerous monsters have an HP in the range of 7-12 (or 2d6).

Champions, legendary fighters, heroes or vicious monsters have an HP in the range of 13-18 (or 3d6).

Defensive Abilities

Determine whether the NPC has access to Fighting Back, Blocking, Dodging, and Parrying:

Fight Back works well with vicious creatures (such as tigers) and nimble combatants (such as an assassin with 2 daggers).
Dodging and Blocking should be reserved for trained combatants, such as bandit leaders or guard captains.
- For interesting choices, grant some NPCs only one of the two; a shield-wielding brute only knows how to block, and a deft elven archer only knows how to dodge.
Parrying requires quite a bit of skill and works best with explicitly well-trained duelists and swordsmen.

Features

The following features can be used to describe or enhance NPCs. Note that the bolded words are based on natural language; by using these terms consistently, they inform the players about what kind of foes they are facing.

A lone figure enters the tavern. His eyes dart around the room; his scars are a testimony to many battles fought and probably won. He seems trained (7-12 max HP), and probably quite adept (always deals at least 2 damage) with the longsword (d8 slashing damage) on his belt.

Blast. Attacks with the Blast quality affect all targets in the noted area, rolling separately for each affected character. Blast refers to anything from explosions to huge cleaving onslaughts to the impact of a meteorite. If unsure how many targets can be affected, roll the related damage die for a result.

Breath attacks. An attack such as breathing fire, ice, or poison targets all characters in a certain direction. Characters must pass a Save to avoid or resist. On a failure, they take damage directly to STR and must pass a Critical Damage Save. The damage depends on the power of the creature and can range from 1d6 to 1d12. These attacks should be heavily foreshadowed, such as a dragon spending a round inhaling.

Charge. When this creature closes the distance to its target and attacks on the same turn, its attack becomes Enhanced.

Claws/fangs like daggers/swords/spears. An easy way to assign damage to a creature’s natural weapons is by comparing them to existing weapons: Daggers deal d6 damage, swords deal d8 damage, and spears deal d10 damage.

Constrict. This creature can constrict or choke a target. The target makes a STR Save to try and avoid the grapple. When caught, the target starts each round with a STR Save to escape, taking 1d6 damage on failure.

Flying. The creature can perform fly-by attacks, forcing melee combatants to make a DEX Save to be able to deal their damage. When taking damage, the creature can choose to either take the damage or lose their flying ability.

Horde. An individual member of this species, group, or clan is notably weak; their attacks are Impaired, and attacks against them are Enhanced and can target multiple at a time (Blast).

Impenetrable skin/scaled/hide. Some beings, such as crystal golems or earth elementals, might be so well-armored that any regular attack is Impaired or simply does no damage to begin with. This should prompt players to find a weak spot or acquire a means to penetrate these defenses.

Infectious. When this creature deals Critical Damage, the Hit Location is infected with a disease. This disease can spread and in extreme cases might require amputation to contain. Some diseases (like a zombie virus) are fatal.

Invisible. Unless opponents figure out a way to track the creature, it can only be attacked by guessing where it might be. Such attacks, if they hit, are Impaired.

Mindless. The creature never makes Morale Saves. This is used for undead and constructs.

Mounted. The creature can charge past opponents, forcing melee combatants to make a DEX Save to be able to deal their damage. When taking damage, the creature can choose to either take the damage or be knocked off their mount.

Pack/squad tactics. When multiple creatures with this property attack the same target, add 1d12 to the damage rolls. For instance, 2 palace guards attacking with spears (d8) attack the same target; roll 2d8 and 1d12 for damage, and take the highest value.

Skin/scales/hide like leather/chain/plate. Leather counts as light armor (1 Armor), chain counts as medium armor (2 Armor), and plate counts as heavy armor (3 Armor).

Spellcaster. This foe can cast magic, either Arcane or Divine. Make note of their available MD or FD, and manage how much Fatigue they can take through spellcasting. Either simply note that they can fill 3 slots with Fatigue, roll 1d6 for the number of slots, or fully track their inventory (for important NPCs).

Superior. This individual acts as a detachment; only other detachments can deal normal damage to it, and individual sources of damage are Impaired. Their attacks are Enhanced and can affect multiple targets at a time (Blast). This superiority might also be bypassed by figuring out the target’s blind spot, weakness, or flaw.

Terrifying. The creature is so alien, grotesque, or monstrous that all who gaze upon it for the first time must pass a WIL Save or have all attacks Impaired until they regroup and recover.

Wounding. A good universal way to make a foe more threatening is to have their attacks inflict wounds (as per Wounds & How To Treat Them on page 9). Flavor this wound as appropriate in the fiction (lacerations, burns, broken bones, etc). When rolling for damage, if the result is within the upper half of the die’s range (i.e., 4 or higher on a d6, 5 or higher on a d8, etc.), the attack successfully inflicts a wound.

Strengths & Weaknesses

Consider making a creature vulnerable to certain sources of damage (Enhancing attacks of that type) and resistant to others (Impairing attacks of that type). For instance:

Skeletons are brittle, making bludgeoning attacks against them Enhanced but Impairing slashing or piercing attacks.
Dryads are flammable (Enhancing fire attacks) but sturdy (Impairing bludgeoning and piercing attacks).
Demons are resistant to any physical damage but are vulnerable to magic.

Examples

Let’s put all of this together. A red dragon…

…is most certainly tough (15 STR), resolute (15 WIL), and vicious (13-18 HP).
…has claws like daggers (d6) and fangs like sword (d8).
…can blast his fiery breath (d10 damage, blast).
…has skin like plate armor (3 Armor).
…is superior to any single human combatant (attacks/defends like a detachment, blast on claws).
…can fly and is terrifying.

… so gets a statblock of

Red Dragon. 15 HP, 3 Armor. STR 15 DEX 10 WIL 15. Detachment, flying, terrifying. Claws (2d6), Bite (d8), Fire Breath (d10, Blast)

An elite elven warrior…

…is nimble and deft (15 DEX), and strong of will (15 WIL), and highly trained (12 HP).
…has a bow (d8) and a scimitar (d8).
…is mounted on a noble steed and is a seasoned (see Combat Experience, page 37) mounted archer.
…has lightweight but surprisingly strong armor (2 Armor).
…is trained in coordinated swordplay (squad tactics with scimitar).
…can Dodge attacks up to 3 times per combat (to not have to track inventory).

…so gets a statblock of

Elven Royal Guard. 12 HP, 2 Armor. STR 10 DEX 15 WIL 15. Mounted. Bow (d8). Seasoned: cannot deal less than 3 damage while mounted. Scimitar (d8). Squad Tactics: When multiple Elven Royal Guard attack the same target with scimitars, add a d12 to the damage roll. Dodge. Can Impair incoming Balanced or Slow attacks up to 3 times per combat.

Other Adventurers

Use the following to quickly roll up a rival adventurer or potential hireling:

Abilities

3d6 down the line, just as with PCs.

Hit Points

1d8	Result
1-5	1d6 Max HP
6-7	2d6 Max HP
8	3d6 Max HP

Weapon

1d8	Weapon
1	Axe (D8 Slashing, Heavy 1)
2	2 Daggers (D6 Piercing)
3	Greatsword (D10 Slashing, Sweep 6)
4	Longbow (D6 Piercing) + Dagger (D6 Piercing)
5	Longsword (D8 Piercing, Sweep 7)
6	Mace (D8 Bludgeoning, Shock 8)
7	Spear (D8 Piercing, Reach, Push 6)
8	Warhammer (D10 Bludgeoning, Shock 7)

Armor

1d20	Armor
1-8	None
9-12	Crude Armor (1 Armor, Bulky)
13-16	Light Armor (1 Armor)
17-18	Medium Armor (2 Armor, Bulky)
19	Refined Medium Armor (2 Armor)
20	Heavy Armor (3 Armor, Bulky)

Motivation

1d10	Vice
1-3	Greed, wealth
4	Pride, reputation
5	Envy, better gear
6	Wrath, bloodshed
7	Sloth, drink, retirement
8	Hatred, extermination
9	Gluttony, new and delicious meals
10	Lust, a good time

Interpret the results how you wish (or roll 1d6 to see how aligned with the party’s interest they truly are): “Pride, reputation” can be a desire to beat the party to the prize, or to clear their name or reputation from a shameful past event.

Why Are They Here Now

Skip the following when making a potential hireling.

1d10	Reason
1	Found a map
2	Contracted by a mysterious patron
3	Hired to help the party
4	On a separate but related mission
5	Hired to thwart or capture the PCs
6	Seeking a rare item or treasure
7	Rob the PCs of most of their wealth
8	Rivalry with PCs due to a misunderstanding
9	Revenge on the PCs for a past wrong
10	Utterly lost

Existing Bestiaries

Cairn has an extensive bestiary, covering most basic monsters. Most of these are usable as-is for Block, Dodge, Parry. You can find the bestiary at https://cairnrpg.com/resources/monsters/
Runecairn by By Odin’s Beard has an amazing bestiary, usable with minor adjustments. It can be found here: https://byodinsbeardrpg.itch.io/runecairn-bestiary