Other

"Other"

Here is a list of (mostly) non monster encounter/scenes that you can add into any wilderness setting. Use these as interesting diversions, plot hooks, or red herrings, they are listed in no particular order

A sand storm, hurricane, thunderstorm,rainbow without any rain.
Totem sticks stuck in the ground to mark out ancient hunting territories
A permanent illusion left by some wizard,long forgotten.
A fairy ring, a ring made of toadstool which supposedly moves anyone standing in it to fairy land. could be an out plane conduit....
for the truly wild: maybe fishes that swim in air...
a fountain in the middle of nowhere, possibly the key to a dungeon (in the middle of an other adventure), but you could change it to whatever. It's also fun if it does absolutely nothing.
A pool of water, when the PC's look into it to find the reflection one of their inner self.For instance, a thief who is forced to be an outlaw might see an honest man staring back at him.
At an abandoned campsite, the PC's can find evidence of a struggle. For instance, blood marks, items broken, a bloody dagger etc.
At a stonehenge type- place, there could be ancient runes which gives a riddle. A quest can be made from discovering the answer to the riddle.
A deep gorge with a stream at the bottom, just too wide to jump across.
The site of a previous battle; Who was fighting? Who won? Is it important?
A ring of trees growing in a perfect circle.
A huge, spherical rock.
Interesting and unlikely geological and natural structures can make for a few minutes interesting role-play as the characters try to figure out if the ring of trees is a clue, a lair, a portal, or just some trees....
Graveyard, perhaps of some non-human race.
Unusual grove of plants, some dangerous (black lotus) some not (berries).
A lonely, but talkative Ent. (I have one in my world called the "tree of high wizardry" ; guess why).
An old house with a still usable well.
Herds of various animals; bison, emu, even horses.
A gallows with a hanging skeleton.
A wise man (Sage) on a hill top.
A witch coven of benign witches (i.e., three old crones in a hut)
An occupied farm with some interesting problem to solve.
A burned out patch of forest
A live volcano.
A druid or group of them.
One or more rangers.
Friendly band of adventurers
Friendly band of demi-humans.
Merchants, a caravan
Wandering bard or minstrel
Natural, real-world animals
Woodsmen
Gypsies or the equivalent
Friendly faerie - leprechauns, brownies, etc.
Animals you hear and not see. (wolves howling is a good one, makes PC's nervous)
Spears stuck in the ground with skulls in the end. A candle in the skulls make the eyes glow.
The sound of wardrums in the distance (goes good with the previously mentioned spears)
A small pool that is actually a magic potion.
bizarre yet harmless animals that nature (as we know it) never intended.
Ants, hundreds and hundreds of ants crawling away from the PC's creating an open path. (if the PC's move into or in front of the swarm this becomes a monster encounter) only to disappear underground further up the trail.
Mushrooms the size of trees.
A forest of treants
Have every plant be edible or have a useful purpose.
A deer with a birds nest on its antlers
A turtle with an alchemy bush growing off its back, etc.
Puns, treant truant officers, an am-bush (a shrub that jumps out in front of you) etc.
A giant grasshopper (possibly with riders)
An elephant the size of a cat.
A group of adventurers who are the exact doubles of your PC's.
Goblins racing using chair with three wheels, the front wheel is hollow and rats run inside of it to power it, he steers the chariot with his feet. The PC's may even bet on the races.
Weird animal variations, (green rabbits, scaled mammals, feathered reptiles, furry birds, horned squirrels, winged fish, etc.)
Having a thing a PC accidentally ask for/wish for happen.
Have an NPC say, yeah right when pigs fly. Then use a space swine for an encounter.
A chalk figure, cut into a hillside
A riverboat - perhaps crewed, perhaps abandoned and grounded on a shoal
An abandoned habitation.
The PCs are in a rocky area, a day or two after torrential rains cut large gashes in the thin soil. If one is observant enough, one may notice that something is buried under a thin layer of mud--something with suspiciously straight lines and sharp corners.
If the party decides to excavate, they will find a flat stone slab some 10' on a side, inscribed with strange glyphs, some magic, others mundane yet exotic; whatever its nature, its extreme age is obvious. If the PCs put their minds and spells to it, they will realize that it's some sort of AD&D "transporter pad" (for those Trek fans out there).
Can they figure out how to operate the device? Does it still work normally, or is it damaged? Where will it take them?
The PCs' camp is raided during the night; only food is missing, no one is harmed, and a single pair of ogre footprints are found. The PCs decide to track the ogre (to investigate, not to kill, at least for the moment). If the PCs stay their weapons long enough, they will discover the ogre's lair--filled with cages holding sick animals, both natural and fantastic. If the PCs play their cards right, they can gain the ogre's trust, help him with his charges--and gain a wealth of information and perhaps some treasure from the good-hearted but simple-minded ogre.
A clearing in which stands an empty cottage. It looks as though the owner has just stepped out. Needless to say, said owner will not return . . .
An encounter with an animal who looks at the party members with a notably intelligent look, waits for and lets the party (or an individual to) follow for a One-line while, and then disappears.
Will o' the Wisps whom the party never manages to encounter
"The forest here is dark. A silence so heavy that you can feel it seems to drape over you. Nothing is moving, singing, chirping . . . nothing."
A woodsman walking through the woods with a bag of heads.
A lost dwarf, down to his last wineskin
A philosopher, out pondering the wilderness.
A madman, who tries to convince the party that he is the King/Duke/whatever.
A large gathering of small children, with no adults in the vicinity.
A virgin tied to a tree for a dragon sacrifice.
A dragon, muzzled and chained to the ground.
The vanguard of an army
A group of bandits.
101 Dalmatians
An animal who "adopts" a party member.
A sound of crashing through the trees, going away from the party.
A dinosaur.
A very old blind woman with a raven on her shoulder. She walks without bumping into anything.
A rainstorm of frogs.
A hailstorm.
An earthquake
A young goblin girl, eating a raw squirrel haunch. She's good-intentioned.
An incredibly peaceful nature scene... a waterfall, the pool of which is surrounded by trees. The only thing marring the area's beauty are the various bones scattered around the pool. Cause? An old hill giant, living in a cave behind the waterfall. He's peaceful and somewhat articulate.

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