Hundreds of D&D Plot Hooks!

We love lists at Nerds on Earth, and we’re busy compiling lists all the time. Normally we stick to lists of 7, but sometimes we stretch ourselves outside the box and write up massive lists of 100. Speaking of, we have hundreds of D&D Plot Hooks just ripe for the picking at your tables!

All you need to run a successful plot hook is the hook itself! Just reading a simple one-sentence plot hook can send your mind spiraling in all sorts of creative directions. These lists of 100 D&D Plot Hooks are meant to be abstract, vague, and sometimes just plain wacky. Let your imagination run wild!

Keep in mind that plot hooks and encounters aren’t always about combat. In fact, a lot of plot hooks don’t involve any sword swinging or spell slinging at all! Keep that in mind as you pick and choose which plot hooks are going to work best at your D&D, Pathfinder, or other tabletop roleplaying game tables.

And with that, here are all of the D&D Plot Hooks that we’ve come up with so far! Each entry has 100 plot hooks, separated out loosely by geographic biome. We’ll do our best to keep these D&D Plot Hooks updated with new lists whenever we come out with them.

100 D&D Forest Encounter Ideas

Whether the party is passing through a forest or just checking out the scenery, there are plenty of D&D plot hooks that await you in the trees. From forest spirits, to wild animals, to magical phenomenon, you’ll never look at a copse of trees the same again.

Check out the 100 D&D Forest Encounter Ideas plot hooks here!

100 D&D Roadside Encounter Ideas

Every party has to do some kind of traveling, and usually that’s going to take place on a road, path, trail, or other medium that lends itself well to following. Because roads can span great distances, there is nearly endless opportunity for fun and creative plot hooks while getting from point A to point B. Of course you have your bandit ambushes and your forks in the road, but what other plot hooks can we come up with?

Check out the 100 D&D Roadside Encounter Ideas plot hooks here!

100 D&D City Encounter Ideas

Urban adventures can be a lot of fun! After all, the Dungeon Master spent all that time populating every tavern, shop, split-level, and mansion with interesting characters…why let that go to waste! You can spend an entire campaign in a single city if you play your cards right, especially if you leverage some of our City Encounter plot hooks! City adventures lend themselves well to intrigue, politics, and magic academy shenanigans in a way that an overland campaign might not do as well.

Check out the 100 D&D City Encounter Ideas plot hooks here!

100 D&D Sci-Fi Encounter Ideas

How many of your D&D games take to the stars and have the party exploring other planets and galaxies? It’s probably not that many, but now’s a great a time as any to get on that rocketship and propel yourself into space. Of course, there can be plenty of sci-fi, extra-terrestrial plot hooks taking place on the home world, so these are still usable by any campaigns that want to get a little bit ‘out there.’

Check out the 100 D&D Sci-Fi Encounter Ideas plot hooks here!

100 D&D Water Encounter Ideas

If you give your party a ship, they’re going to take it out to sea. And if your party goes out to see, they’re going to want a Kraken to go along with it. Water encounters and plot hooks can be a little trickier to navigate, especially after the first 10. However, think of everything that could go wrong on a ship! Or how about the sea creatures that you could encounter on the open water? These plot hooks include waterside plot hooks as well, so not everything takes place on a boat.

Check out the 100 D&D Water Encounter Ideas plot hooks here!

Thanks for checking out our lists of 100s of D&D Plot Hooks and Encounters! Hopefully that gives you a little something to chew on and bring to your tables on game night! Stay tuned to the site for more awesome D&D content, and be sure to check us out on Twitter!