There are two types of dangers that players will encounter on the road: natural hazards and enemy encounters. A natural hazard is an obstacle caused by the natural features of the environment, such as a tangle of brambles, a field of poppies that put characters to sleep, a swamp filled with leeches, or something similar. To overcome a natural hazard, players must approach it like a puzzle challenge, using Supplies, lateral thinking, and/or Anima to overcome it. To overcome an enemy encounter, players will have to win in combat or flee.
When the result of the encounter roll is that the players will come across a natural hazard, the GM should present them with a challenging obstacle appropriate to the climate of the path they are crossing. The Weather and Climate section contains examples of natural hazards that are appropriate for different climactic conditions. The players may tackle this problem any way they want to, and they may come up with a solution that does not require the expenditure of any items or Anima. If so, allow them to pass over the hazard as normal. However, the standard solution to a natural hazard consists of spending Supplies and/or explaining what equipment from the players’ pack they are using to overcome the challenge, and then succeeding in a relevant skill challenge. Less dangerous natural hazards might only require the expenditure of Supplies, while more dangerous ones might count as puzzles with multiple stages. If the players cannot come up with a solution to the problem at hand, they may also backtrack and attempt to circle around the hazard. If they do so, they must spend an extra travel round navigating their way through an alternative route. If the players are able to pass the natural hazard without needing to backtrack, they also all earn 1 XP. Certain kinds of natural hazards can also be passed by the use of Lore.
The consequences of failing to deal with a natural hazard depend on the hazard. Here are some possible outcomes:
The other possible type of hostile encounter the party could come across is an enemy encounter. This is a group of 3-5 enemies, ideally the same tier as the players, that the players have to defeat in combat in order to continue on. When creating the overworld, the GM should decide which enemies are present along each path. This will give the players a chance to learn about their enemies’ abilities and their various creature and elemental types in order to be better prepared. If the players defeat this group of enemies, they continue on to the camping phase of the travel round as normal. If the players flee the encounter, they must spend an extra travel round along their journey in order to regroup and roll on the encounter table again the following day. Finally, if at least one of the players performed a successful Scout action during the prior travel round and decided to go ahead with having an enemy encounter, they will gain First Strike during combat. Once the battle is over, distribute items and XP as normal. If the players are all downed during an enemy encounter, what happens next depends on the motivations of the enemies. See the Enemies section for more details.
It is mechanically possible to roll both a natural hazard and an enemy encounter on the encounter table. When this happens, the GM should decide which one the players encounter, but they shouldn’t encounter both in a single travel round.