This is my take on Daniel Sell’s Six Dimensional Weather for my jungle island setting of Janakota. I’ve made a few tweaks of my own, but the idea is the same: you pick a spot and begin rolling to generate weather. Travel across Janakota is supposed to be difficult, not least because of the chaotic weather. This generator reflects that.
Weather Generation
I break down each day into six 4-hour Watches. This generator is intended to generate distinct weather for every Watch, not each day.
The default die is a d8. A result of 1 moves the weather a single hex upwards and subsequent results continue on clockwise. Results of 7 or greater keep you in the same hex. Some hexes specify a different die – larger dice make the hex stickier, the weather more persistent. Smaller dice make the weather more fleeting.
Some hexes are split. The top-left result applies during the day and the bottom-right result applies at night.
Some hexes have walls. If a result leads you into a wall, “slide” to the nearest hex. Some walls are marked by an X. Treat these the same as a roll of 7+. Some walls are marked by arrows – these can be traversed only in the direction indicated by the arrow.
All these rules contribute to the chaos – but some patterns do emerge. Sporestorms and Spiderblooms are rare but when they happen they’re likely to stick around for a while. Superblooms are rare and fleeting. Typhoons are uncommon and always in the midst of a deluge of rain.
Weather Types
Here’s a closer look at the types of weather on Janakota. A little context: you must roll equal to or less than a target number but above your Fatigue to succeed any given check. Resilience is essentially HP.
| Weather | Description | Effects |
|---|---|---|
| Rain | A light rain pelts down. It’s a bit tiring to deal with. | +1 Fatigue |
| Downpour | Rain pours down. Rivers swell and most creatures seek shelter. | +2 Fatigue, rivers impassable, resting impossible |
| Typhoon | Wind and rain assault the island. All but the most desperate shelter until it passes. | +2 Fatigue, rivers impassable, resting impossible, tents useless |
| Wind | Heavy wind scours the landscape. | +1 Fatigue |
| Fog | A thick fog hangs to the ground. Navigation is difficult. | +1 Fatigue per 5 km traveled |
| Ash | A cloud of choking volcanic ash descends on the area. | +1 Fatigue and -1 Resilience per 5 km traveled |
| Clear | Clear skies – a beautiful sight! | None |
| Burning Sun | The sun scorches your skin. | +1 Fatigue |
| Dead Air | The air is hot, still, and muggy. Bugs swarm everywhere. | +1 Fatigue, -1 Resilience |
| Superbloom | Everything in the area sprouts blooms. Plants, tree stumps, creatures. | ??? |
| Sporestorm | A storm of fungal spores overtakes the area. | ??? |
| Spiderbloom | A mass of floating spiders rides the wind. | ??? |
Superblooms, Sporestorms and Spiderblooms require a bit more thought. I want them to have a much more significant impact on the world than the other types of weather.
Example
And here’s a week’s worth of random generation. The weather soon turns to torrential rain and gets dangerously close to a typhoon before settling into an extended Sporestorm.
| Day | 0-4 | 4-8 | 8-12 | 12-16 | 16-20 | 20-0 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | Fog | Rain | Clear | Clear Skies | Dead Air | Dead Air |
| Tuesday | Dead Air | Rain | Downpour | Downpour | Rain | Rain |
| Wednesday | Rain | Fog | Rain | Rain | Downpour | Downpour |
| Thursday | Rain | Rain | Rain | Rain | Downpour | Downpour |
| Friday | Downpour | Rain | Rain | Rain | Rain | Rain |
| Saturday | Fog | Rain | Downpour | Wind | Wind | Sporestorm |
| Sunday | Sporestorm | Sporestorm | Wind | Sporestorm | Sporestorm | Sporestorm |
Equipment
The last critical piece of this system is gear. Gear to protect yourself from all this nasty weather. Here are a few examples.
| Item | Description | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Cloak | A simple waterproofed cloak. | Prevents 1 Fatigue from rain unless resting. |
| Feather-Coat | A coat of giant feathers. Very waterproof. | Prevents 2 Fatigue from rain unless resting. |
| Tent | A small, burly shelter. | Prevents all Fatigue from rain while resting. |
| Sunjelly | A pouch of sweet-smelling jelly to be smeared on the skin. | Prevents all Fatigue from sunburn. |
| Bugjelly | A pouch of sharp-smelling jelly to be smeared on the skin. | Prevents all Fatigue and Resilience loss from bug bites. |
| Ashmask | A face covering of finely woven fibers. | Prevents all Resilience loss from ash. |