Worsening the Whippoorwill Wood: Expanded Travel Procedures and Setting Tables

I recently put up a new version of my Cairn adventure Wands of the Whippoorwill Wood on itch.io. The update is 90% quality of life edits, alongside some slight flavor and prose shellacking added for a new print run earlier this year (you can find the full changelog here).

Here are some things that didn’t make the cut—namely, additional travel procedures to replace the standard ones detailed on the Travel in the Wood page of the adventure. These tables capture themes and flavors habitual to the Whippoorwill Wood I have in my head and run at the table, but don’t make much imprint in the text itself. I play the module heavy on daze, misdirection, psychedelia... aiming for the Wood to feel like a brambly finger trap that contracts the further in you trek (one gimmick away from the Count’s Men scratching “War is Hell” on their kettle helms... hopefully).

These procedures were ultimately too cumbersome to sit in the 30 page booklet itself. They help works towards that confined feel though, and I have good fun using them. So I'll put 'em here!

In summary, the expanded procedures include:

• Travel Event table 
• Now loaded with entries for 6 event types (no more "nothing happens" results)
• Exposure 
• GM-facing stat tracking how long characters have been vulnerable to the Wood's psychoactive pollen and shifting landscape. Used to generate depthcrawl results.
• Terrain table 
• Adds character to the empty spaces in the map. If paired with Exposure, will cause the Wood to grow increasingly hostile, obstructed, & trackless the longer players travel.
• Hallucination table 
• More varied and interesting ways for characters to feel the effects of ingesting the toxic pollen clouding the Wood.  Ditto to pairing with Exposure. 
• Traps table 
• The Wood is now peppered with magic traps. Like tiptoeing thru an overgrown minefield. Some traps are fresh, laid by various rebel groups looking for captives. Some are ages old, long forgotten from some ancient conflict. 

(as an added bonus for anyone moving to Cairn 2e, these procedures somewhat align with the updated "Wilderness Exploration" section there as well)

Travel in the Wood

• Each day consists of 4 Watches (~6 hrs each):
• Morning, Midday, Eventide, & Dark
• Travel by path between locales takes 1 Watch. Off-path takes longer.
• For ever Watch, roll for a Travel Event & consult the relevant table. Then, add a tally for Exposure

1d6	Travel Event
1	ENCOUNTER (see book)
2	Signs of ENCOUNTER (see book)
3	Signs of nearby LANDMARK (see book)
4	Shift in TERRAIN
5	HALLUCINATION
6	TRAP

Exposure              

The longer a traveler treks through the Wood, the more vulnerable they become to its shifting landscapes and psychoactive pollens.

• Keep a tally of each Watch spent outdoors (i.e. anywhere PCs might be affected by pollen). Add an extra tally when the party travels off-path. These tallies are the party’s Exposure.
• For each Watch spent indoors (or in sufficient shelter), erase 1 Exposure tally. If the entire party succeeds on a WILL save, half the total Exposure tallies.
• When using any of the following tables, roll 1d6 and add the current Exposure for a slow-burning, procedurally worsening trek thru the Wood.

Note: The tables are set up so you can choose to just roll a flat d20 instead. The results will be more swingy and extreme, but you’ll save a bit of bookkeeping headache. 

Terrain

The Wood is in constant motion, ever baring its teeth and tightening its grip against unwary intruders.

• Roll 2x on the table below, 1x for descriptor and 1x for terrain. Combine the results and any corresponding effects.
• Some results offer multiple options between effects. These usually represent junctures where players can choose to sacrifice time (i.e. an additional Watch) to move safely, or some other valuable resource (health, supply, etc.) to trek straight thru.
• Once rolled, terrain details typically stay the same until “shift in terrain” is rolled again. However, noted effects only go in effect once per roll (unless specified otherwise).

	Descriptor	Terrain
1	Scattered ignore any negative terrain effect	Bridleway -1 Watch
2	Craggy +1 Watch or +1 Fatigue	Hogback +1 Watch to reach vantage point (optional)
3	Floral 2-in-6 chance of gloamgold (see p. 30)	Glade -1 Watch
4	Shrinking	Stones
5	Gnarled +1 Watch	Nettles +1 Watch or risk injury
6	Mossy	Dells 3-in-6 chance of rivulet leading to the Babbling Brook
7	Swelling / Colossal Risk injury to reach vantage point (optional)	Roots
8	Wheezing	Hollows +1 Watch or risk injury
9	Swinging +1 Watch or risk injury	Boughs
10	Tangled +1 Watch or +1 Fatigue	Bracken 2-in-6 chance of diamond dew
11	Flooded +1 Watch or risk inventory	Fens +1 Watch or risk inventory
12	Claggy	Grottoes 1-in-6 chance of silver pool
13	Writhing +1 Watch or risk injury	Vines
14	Smothering +1 Fatigue or risk injury	Shadows
15	Scorching +1 Watch or risk injury	Tar pits +1 Watch or risk injury
16	Frozen +1 Watch or +1 Fatigue	Mere +1 Watch or +1 Fatigue
17	Chanting	Gales Exposed characters become deprived
18	Sliding +1 Watch and +1 Fatigue	Snowdrift Exposed characters become deprived
19	Sunless (treat as night until terrain changes again)	Smog +2 Watches
20	Bleary also roll for encounter	Oblivion (Characters lose 1 memory)
21	Technicolor also roll for hallucination
22	Paisley also roll for hallucination
23	Mirrored also roll for trap
24	Pearlescent 2-in-6 chance of meeting Fairy King & Queene
25	Sable +1 Fatigue

Note: Results 21-25 only come into effect if using the Exposure depthcrawl rules (and if players are really far gone at that). However, you can still work them into the d20 model if you roll an additional d6 for each “20 - Bleary” result.

Hallucinations

The pollen of the Glumcure tree is a highly concentrated, arcane allergen that has serious psychoactive side effects if inhaled by mortal beings. When harvested and distilled from the tree sap, these same substances put the "cure" in the popular Glumcure drink. Few know that the invasive trees were first planted by fairy colonists to ward against outside interlopers. Much to the chagrin of Dojn Garnoc, spirit-protector of the native flora and fauna. 

• Roll 2x on the table below, 1x for target and 1x for effect. Combine.
• Describe results in great detail. These hallucinations feel debilitatingly real: e.g., characters who feel their “mouth sealing” won’t be able to eat. They might even pass out from holding their breath.
• Once PCs are aware of these hallucinations, they can save WILL to see through the illusion and avoid negative effects (though their navigation will still be impaired, as described in the book). 
• Magical beings and mortal characters who successfully block out pollen do not suffer hallucinations, and are able to navigate thru the Wood with greater success. 
• When drinking Glumcure, save WILL or suffer a random (1d20)  hallucination.  

	Target	Effect
1	Foot	Clenching
2	Ear	Buzzing
3	Eye	Twitching
4	Nose	Sealing
5	Hand	Moistening
6	Mouth	Drying
7	Skin	Itching
8	Stomach	Twisting
9	Heart	Throbbing
10	Teeth	Softening
11	Bones	Snapping
12	Mind	Leaving
13	Stranger	Watching
14	Enemy	Fleeing
15	Self	Burning
16	Lover	Taunting
17	Friend	Deceiving
18	Family	Scorning
19	Demon	Crying
20	God	Laughing

Note: Tripping breaks the game world. Consider skipping the random roll and using meta-knowledge to determine hallucinations instead. For example, a character who just ate a big meal might feel fixated on a feeling in their gut, while a player who hates camping might hear devils hooting in the branches.

Traps

The Wood continues to ache and grow over centuries of conflict, grafting its soily flesh and leafy veins to a skeleton of rust, bones, and battlements. Its earth is littered with traps—all armed, some forgotten. 

• Roll 1x on the table below for a trap. The result determines the trapper:
• Results 1-10: Traps laid by one of the rebel groups (flip a coin). There is a 1-in-6 chance a patrol will arrive within the Watch to check for captives. Increase odds by 1 for each Watch spent waiting in captivity.
• Results 11-20: Ancient traps, planted and lost ages ago. No one knows or cares to check them. 
• Treat traps as you would in a dungeon—it's more fun if players have some idea of the trap and have a chance to find a way out/around. That is, if they are moving carefully…
• While stuck in a trap, keep rolling for other Travel Events as normal. Treat additional trap results as blank. 

	Trap
1	A trap has already been sprung. Roll again on this table, and then for a random Encounter to see who got caught.
2
3	The path turns to syrupy mud. The driest looking spots are the deepest.
4	20' pit covered in leaves. Walls too sheer to climb without proper gear. Going around requires bushwhacking thru dense thickets, considered “off-path.”
5	A sign post points out all of the named landmarks in the Wood.Naming any out loud triggers a volley of darts tipped in Sleep potion.
6	Tangling roots. Always squirming. They increase in number and vigor the more you chop.
7	A mess of thin roots extends over the narrow ravine pass. Tripping over one root in particular triggers an avalanche of boulders that flatten you into a pancake. You must be magically re-inflated.
8	A sunshower. A juvenile songbird struggles to fly under the weight of soaked feathers. Its song triggers a golden net that yanks approaching travelers into the canopy. The net blunts all blades used against it. The songbird feels very guilty.
9	A temptingly plump leaf pile hides a pocket dimension. Impossible to find your way out once you jump in. Keep crawling to find the bones of past jumpers…
10	Dense layers of overlapping bracken and underbrush make it impossible to see the forest floor. A glass vial holding a Freeze potion is hidden beneath.
11	Two rock cairns by the road, one complete, one fallen. Touching either causes a 10' ball of woven briar to enclose around the path. It contracts 1' per min. Razor-sharp thorns.
12	A wizened old tree promises to answer any questions you have. Ah yes, yes, puts me in mind of a tale… if you listen, fall into an enchanted sleep until awoken by passersby.
13	Enchanted rain makes it impossible to see the trail ahead. A nearby hollow provides cover, but snaps shut once you enter.
14	Illusory bridge over a large gulley with a patch of sinking moss at the bottom (see book). Close inspection reveals the illusion.
15	2d6 dormant spriggans. Awakened by hearing the Common tongue.
16	The remains of (what appears to be) a battlefield, archaic and overgrown. Picking up any weapons or armor causes the earth around to rise. Eventually collapses, burying travelers 6' underground.
17	A bird's nest holding a golden egg. The nest closes on any hand that reaches in, chaining the thief to a nearby branch.
18	A deceptively deep creek—staring in reveals pitch black pockets. Will pull you into an underground chute leading to the Aquifer.
19	A small votive box is on fire. Gravity reverses if the fire is extinguished. Cling to the canopy above or be lost to the sky.
20	A dusty, tall mirror. Any who make eye contact with their reflection are trapped in the mirror until it is broken. The mirrored world seems perfectly normal to those trapped, until they realize they have no more effect than a ghost.