Through the process of adventuring, a party frequently needs to survive through many different environments where the dangers are not only monsters and hazardous terrain, but the acquisition of food, water, and shelter as well. While there are spells that aid in this, only the most powerful of magics can negate the need for these things entirely.
Surviving in the Wilds
At the end of each day, the adventurers must check to see how well they are surviving on the road. This is composed of three d100 tests: one for Food, one for Water, and one for Shelter. The difficulty of each test is based on the environment the adventurers find themselves in. Each test is determined individually from one another: a location can be lush in Food, Sparse in Water, and Hostile in Shelter.
- Food. This roll represents the adventurer’s ability to find, prepare, and ration food for their party. A Lush environment is one that has abundant flora and fauna that can be eaten, like a forest or ocean. A Sparse environment is one that has sporadic food, such as a savannah. A Barren environment is one with little to no food, such as a wasteland.
- Water. This roll represents the adventurer’s ability to find, prepare, and ration water for their party. A Lush environment is one that has abundant potable water that can be drunk, like a clean river. A Sparse environment is one that has sporadic sources of water, such as a field with rare, small streams. A Barren environment is one with little to no potable water, such as a desert or the ocean.
- Shelter. This roll represents the adventurer’s ability to find and prepare shelter, and to keep alert to danger throughout the night. A Safe environment is one that has abundant natural shelter materials and few dangers, like a tranquil forest. An Unsafe environment is one that has either natural shelter or few hazards, such as a mountain pass. A Hostile environment is one with no shelter and many dangers, such as a lion’s hunting ground.
Table: Food
| Environment | Critical Failure | Failure | Success |
|---|
| Lush (DC 10) | 01-10 | 11-50 | 51-100 |
|---|
| Sparse (DC 15) | 01-25 | 26-75 | 76-100 |
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| Barren (DC 20) | 01-50 | 51-90 | 91-100 |
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Table: Water
| Environment | Critical Failure | Failure | Success |
|---|
| Lush (DC 10) | 01-10 | 11-50 | 51-100 |
|---|
| Sparse (DC 15) | 01-25 | 26-75 | 76-100 |
|---|
| Barren (DC 20) | 01-50 | 51-90 | 91-100 |
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Table: Shelter
| Environment | Critical Failure | Failure | Success |
|---|
| Lush (DC 10) | 01-10 | 11-50 | 51-100 |
|---|
| Sparse (DC 15) | 01-25 | 26-75 | 76-100 |
|---|
| Barren (DC 20) | 01-50 | 51-90 | 91-100 |
|---|
Bonuses and Penalties
Other factors may provide additional bonuses or penalties to these d100 tests, or circumvent them completely:
- Group Size. Larger groups may be able to help each other, but they are also harder to take care of. For every five creatures above five (rounding up), all d100 tests get a -5 penalty. A party of 6 has a -5 penalty, while a party of 11 has a -10 penalty. Larger creatures contribute more to the size of the group, while Tiny creatures count for fewer.
- Supplies. While the adventurers have Supplies, they can gain a bonus to all applicable tests if the group spends 1 gp for each creature. Larger creatures require more supplies, while Tiny creatures count as less. Most Supplies grant a +10 bonus, but some may provide larger benefits. Depleted Supplies grant no benefits until they are replaced.
- Inclement Weather. Severe weather may provide Advantage or Disadvantage on the d100 test. For example, a severe rainstorm may grant Disadvantage on the Shelter roll, but Advantage on the Water roll.
- Notoriety. Certain activities may draw attention to the party, making it harder to camp safely. Making a bunch of noise, lighting large campfires, or creating shelters that are especially conspicuous may create penalties.
- Settlement. Being in a town or city likely provides access to abundant food, water, and shelter, provided it is paid for or given by a patron. This will usually cause all d100 tests to automatically succeed.
- Magic. Some spells, like Goodberry, Create Food and Water, and Tiny Hut can grant benefits to these d100 tests as outlined in their description. Powerful spells like Magnificent Mansion or Mighty Fortress provide food, water, and shelter in abundance. Casting these spells causes the Food and Water tests to automatically succeed, though the DM may ask for a Shelter roll still in particularly hostile environments.
| Factor | Penalty / Bonus |
|---|
| Group Size | -5 for every five creatures |
| Supplies | +10 to applicable tests |
| Inclement Weather | Advantage / Disadvantage on d100 test |
| Notoriety | Shelter penalty if the party draws attention to themselves |
| Settlement | May bypass tests |
| Magic | Varies |
| Creature Size | Group Contribution |
|---|
| Tiny | 1/2 |
| Small/Medium | 1 |
| Large | 2 |
| Huge | 4 |
| Gargantuan | 8 |
Survival Actions
Before rolling the Tests, each creature may take one Survival Action, which may provide further benefits to the roll. If the action requires an ability check, use the Environment DCs on the table above. On a failure, most checks have no drawback, though some do – and all carry risks in the event of critical failure:
Food
- Forage. You attempt to gather edible herbs and fruit. Make an Intelligence or Wisdom (Nature or Herbalism) check equal to the Food Environment DC. Success grants a bonus on the Food d100 test equal to the difference between the result and the DC (minimum 1).
- Harvest. You harvest game and slain creatures for food. Make a Dexterity (Harvesting) check equal to the Food Environment DC or the Harvest DC of the slain creature. Success grants a bonus on the Food d100 test equal to 5 plus the difference between the result and the DC. This action can only be taken if someone succeeded on the Hunt action, or if the corpses of edible creatures were preserved from combat earlier that day.
- Hunt. You attempt to hunt edible creatures in the area. Make a Dexterity (Stealth) against the Shelter Environment DC and a Wisdom (Nature) check against the Food Environment DC. Success on the Wisdom (Nature) roll enables a creature to take the Harvest action, while success on both grants advantage on their rolls. Failure on the Dexterity (Stealth) roll causes the hunter to lose hit dice equal to the amount they failed by at the end of the long rest. If they cannot, they gain a level of Fatigue, plus 1 more Fatigue for every 5 hit dice they cannot spend.
- Prepare. You attempt to cook your rations. Make an Intelligence or Wisdom (Cook Utensils) check with a DC equal to the Shelter Environment DC. On a success, roll the Food d100 test with Advantage.
Water
- Forage. You attempt to hunt for potable water. Make a Wisdom (Nature) check. Success grants a bonus on the Water d100 test equal to 5 plus the difference between the result and the DC.
- Purify. You attempt to remove any impurities from your supply of water. Make an Intelligence or Wisdom (Nature or Brewing) check with a DC equal to the Shelter DC. On a success, roll the Water d100 test with Advantage.
Shelter
- Scout. You search for safe lodgings, and keep an eye out for dangers. Make a Wisdom (Perception) check equal to the Shelter DC. Success grants a bonus on the Shelter d100 test equal to the difference between the result and the DC (minimum 1).
- Camp. You attempt to set up camp for your party. Make a Wisdom (Nature) check equal to the Shelter DC. Success grants a bonus on the Shelter d100 test equal to the difference between the result and the DC (minimum 1).
- Keep Watch. You volunteer more of your night towards keeping vigil against dangers. Make a Wisdom (Resilience) check equal to the Shelter DC. Success grants a bonus on the Shelter d100 test equal to 5 plus the difference between the result and the DC. Failure causes the watcher to lose hit dice equal to the amount they failed by at the end of the long rest. If they cannot, they gain a level of Fatigue, plus 1 more Fatigue for every 5 hit dice they cannot spend.
Miscellaneous
- Tend Animals. You tend to the wild creatures of your group. Make a Wisdom (Animal Handling) check and reduce your result by 10. Reduce your party’s Size by the result, to a maximum of the Size contributed by animals, familiars, and other beasts in your party.
- Repair Gear. USE TOOL KITS TO PROVIDE SOME KIND OF AID?
- Recover. SPEND TIME RESTING?
- First Aid. SPEND TIME HEALING PEOPLE?
- Help. As long as you have proficiency with the associated skills or tools, you grant advantage to Survival Action of another creature.
- Chores. You perform small-but-vital chores around the camp, from fetching supplies to doing laundry. A single d100 test of your choice gets a +2 bonus, or all three gain a +1 bonus.
- Free Time. You leave camp upkeep to your companions. You provide no benefits to these rolls, but gain two hours of downtime that can be used for personal projects.
Determine the Result
Once the final modifiers have been established, roll a d100 and add or subtract the modifiers to get the final result, then compare it to the environment tables to determine if it is a Success, Failure, Critical Failure, or Critical Success.
- Success. On a success, your party is able to find appropriate food, water, or shelter for your group, and suffers no complications.
- Failure. On a failure, your party is able to find some food, water, or shelter, but encounters some sort of difficulty. Roll on the Complications table for that type of test and suffer the associated complication.
- Critical Failure. On a critical failure, your party encounters significant setbacks while finding food, water, or shelter. Roll twice on the Complications table and suffer the complication of the lower result.
- Critical Success. On a result of over 100, your party finds great success on the road. You may choose to take a normal success, or you may roll on the Survival Windfall chart and reap the rewards – but be aware that there is a small chance for Complications to roll up as well!
Table: Food Complications
| D20 Result | Complication |
|---|
| 1 | Multiple Complications. Roll two more times on this table and suffer both complications. |
| 2 | Hunting Accident. While hunting for wild game, your companion received an injury. The creature who rolled the lowest result on the Hunt Survival Action receives a Lingering Injury. If no one took the Hunt Survival Action, gain the complication above instead. |
| 3 | Starvation. There is not enough food to go around. Every creature in your party must make a DC 20 + 2 for every consecutive day with a Food complication before this Constitution (Resilience) ability check or gain 1 level of Fatigue, plus an additional level for every increment of 5 they failed by. |
| 4 | Lost Supplies. Your food stores are depleted. Reduce the efficiency of Food Supplies to 0. If your Food Supplies were less than 15, also gain the complication above. |
| 5 | Food Poisoning. Most of your food was not safe to eat. Creatures in your party make a DC 20 Constitution saving throw. On a failure, the creature gains the Poisoned condition for a number of hours equal to how much they failed by, starting the next day when the DM decides. |
| 6 | Foraging Accident. While foraging for food, your companion touched something they shouldn’t have. The creature who rolled the lowest result on the Food Forage Survival Action receives a Long-Term Madness. If no one took the Forage (Food) Survival Action, suffer the complication above instead. |
| 7-8 | Starvation. Food is more scarce than you would like. Every creature in your party must make a DC 15 + 2 for every consecutive day with a Food complication before this Constitution (Resilience) ability check or gain 1 level of Fatigue, plus an additional level for every increment of 5 they failed by. |
| 9-10 | Deplete Supplies. Your food stores are heavily depleted. Reduce the efficiency of Food Supplies by 10. If your Food Supplies were less than 10, also gain the complication above. |
| 11-12 | Food Poisoning. Some of your food went bad. Creatures in your party make a DC 15 Constitution saving throw. On a failure, the creature gains the Poisoned condition for a number of hours equal to how much they failed by, starting the next day when the DM decides. |
| 13-14 | Starvation. Food is more scarce than you would like. Every creature in your party must make a DC 10 + 2 for every consecutive day with a Food complication before this Constitution (Resilience) ability check or gain 1 level of Fatigue, plus an additional level for every increment of 5 they failed by. |
| 15-16 | Deplete Supplies. Your food stores are partially depleted. Reduce the efficiency of Food Supplies by 5. If your Food Supplies were less than 5, also gain the complication above. |
| 17-18 | Food Poisoning. Some of your food was a little raw. Creatures in your party make a DC 10 Constitution saving throw. On a failure, the creature gains the Poisoned condition for a number of hours equal to how much they failed by, starting the next day when the DM decides. |
| 19-20 | Half-Rations. You had enough food to get by, but only just barely. If you roll on the Food Complication chart on your next Survival roll, you roll with Disadvantage |
