With or without a map...

EXPLORER (#3/31, #277/365) [POT]

SKILL: 10

STAMINA : 17

ATTACKS: 1

WEAPON: Sword and see below

ARMOUR: Leather Cuirass

DAMAGE MODIFIER: None

HABITAT: Jungles, Deserts, Marshes, Wilderness, Mountains, Hills, Sea, River/Lake, Ice

NUMBER ENCOUNTERED: 1 (and see below)

TYPE: Humanoid

REACTION: Friendly-Neutral

INTELLIGENCE: High

The EXPLORER of Titan is a famed archetype, a noted figure who ventures into the wild places of the world in search of riches and knowledge, whether that be ruins of ancient civilizations, fabulous near-mythical beasts, rare and expensive plants, or simply to find new routes through the wilderness and discover unknown lands. Explorers will have a Sword and wear Leather Cuirass armour, and will also have clothes relevant to the terrain they are exploring, as well as a full waterskin and 2-7 meals worth of Provisions. In addition, they will have one missile weapon, complete with ammunition, that can be determined by rolling on the table below:

Roll Missile Weapon type

1 Shortbow

2 Longbow

3 Crossbow

4 Hand Crossbow

5 Flintlock Blunderbuss

6 Matchlock Blunderbuss 

In addition, an Explorer will have 2-7 items of extra gear that can be rolled for on the table below (an especially competent Explorer may well have all the items):

First Roll Second Roll Extra Gear

1-3 1 Treasure Map

1-3 2 Brass Telescope

1-3 3 Compass, Sextant or Astrolabe

1-3 4 Book (roll: 1-2 Bestiary, 3-4 Herbal. 5-6 Legends and Lore)

1-3 5 Machete

1-3 6 Vial of Anti-Poison

4-6 1 A nice Hat

4-6 2 Bottle of Rum/Grog/Akvavit     

4-6 3 Pipe and Pouch of Smoking Weed     

4-6 4 Lantern and Oil     

4-6 5 Rope and Grappling Hook     

4-6 6 Dowsing Rod               

To determine the entourage size of the encountered Explorer's expedition, roll on the following table (assume enough supplies and travel gear for all members of the Expedition to last for 1-3 months):

Roll Expedition Size 

1 Solo: The Explorer is alone (this may not be by choice; they may be the last survivor of their expedition). If at Sea, they may be a Castaway.

2 Solo with transport: The Explorer is alone except for a steed (Camel in desert, 2-4 Sled Dogs in Ice or Mountains, Water Buffalo in Marshes, boat (Knarr) at Sea or on a River or Lake, Mule for all other cases.)

3-4  Small Expedition: The Explorer is accompanied by 1-6 Porters (Explorer will have a steed as above; boat will be a Caravel with average crew)

5 Medium Expedition: The Explorer is accompanied by 2-12 Porters and 1-6 Men-at-Arms (Explorer will have a steed as above; boat will be a Cog with average crew)

6 Large Expedition: The Explorer is accompanied by 3-18 Porters, 1-6 Men-at-Arms, and a specialist (Roll: 1 Spell-for-Hire, 2 Freelance Knight, 3 Guide, 4 Sorcerer, 5 Scholar, 6 Adventurer) (Explorer and specialist will have steeds as above; boat will be a Galleon with average crew)

The history of Titan is replete with tales of famous explorers, from Urdulph Pathfinder of Irritarian times, who crossed the Siltbed River in 402 OT on the 27th of Freeze, or Bjorngrim Giant-slayer, who braved the perils of the Witch's Sea, to many much more recent examples. A rogues' gallery of the latter would have to include the following explorers from Allansia alone: the legendary Varag Hawkflight of Arantis; Harlak Erlisson, former slave of Shareela the Snow Witch (see Citadel of Chaos, p. 122); Waxley Speed, treasure-hunter extraordinaire who seeks the Pendulum of Fate; Sartosa 'Vatos' Lux, who stole the Heartfire Ruby from the Temple of the Monkey God; and father-and-son duo Tadeus and Julius  Lecarte, the latter still searching for the former, who disappeared in the wilderlands of southern Allansia almost a decade ago. 

Elsewhere, there is of course Neklag Wavecutter who made several voyages of discovery from Khul to the Shining Islands aboard the good ship Sojourner, and the renowned Captain Marlin of Port Blacksand, who has visited all three continents of Titan and many islands in between aboard his various ships (such as the Far Trader and the Prancing Porpoise). Indeed, any adventurer worth their salt who treks through the wilds of Titan or sails across its bounding mains in search of glory and fortune will no doubt be acclaimed in time as a famous Explorer!