HEXPLORATION

Mystic Arts DM

HEXPLORATION
A simple ruleset for hexcrawls.
The basis of any system of overland travel is Regional Map
a map, with a hex grid overlay for quickly On a Regional Map, one hex is three miles
calculating distances. The system splits across. Consider picking a term to use for
these into two categories of scale; World this unit of distance, such as a “league”, as
Maps and Regional Maps. it will come up quite a lot! This more
granular approach allows you to break down
In ideal conditions, a character or party of
travel and exploration into finer chunks. All
characters can move up to 3 miles in an
movement on this scale track is measured
hour, or 24 miles over an 8-hour day. This
in hexes, not miles or hours. There’s no such
simple fact, coupled with our two map
thing as traveling half a hex.
scales, forms the basis of this system.
For ideal results, a majority of hexes on your
World Map wilderness map should contain a feature of
On the World Map, one hex is twenty-four
some kind. It doesn't have to be a dungeon,
miles across. This measurement is useful
but consider adding landmarks, or other
for tracking distances while moving between
points of interest. This can be a useful tool
settlements.
for navigation and orientation when a party
• A character can move one hex in a inevitably gets lost, or perhaps a clue to the
day's march along a road. location of a dungeon.
• A character on horseback moves
When the party enters a hex, consult the
twice as fast when entering a road,
chart below. A hex's type determines how
plains or hills hex.
much time it takes to travel into that hex.
• When entering a trackless wilderness
hex, travel time is doubled. A character on horseback moves twice as
• When entering a mountain or forest fast when entering a road, plains or hills hex.
hex, travel time is doubled.

The World Map scale is typically used to

offhandedly solve the math of travel time
over longer distances, quickly and easily. If
you want something more granular, take a
look at the Regional Map.
 HEXPLORATION
Mystic Arts DM

Entering a Hex Exploring a Hex

When entering a forest, swamp, or mountain A party can spend some time to thoroughly
hex, the player leading the exploration must explore the hex they’re in. Doing so takes
make a navigation check to determine if the same amount of time as entering that
they get lost. You should set the DC hex would have, though being on horseback
depending on the difficulty of the navigation confers no benefits here, and reveals any
by a number between 10 and 20. If there are hidden locations that might be in a hex.
landmarks, or other obvious clues, the DC
should be on the lower end. If the party is Hex Type Time
travelling from identical hex to another, it
should be higher. Road 1 hour
This is most commonly a survival (Wisdom)
check, but feel free to allow other skills if Plains or Hills 2 hours
you feel they are appropriate. Getting lost
means the party instead travels to a Forests or Swamps 4 hours
different adjacent hex that’s reasonable for
them to end up in. Mountains 8 hours

If the party is travelling along a river,

Wilderness Day
coastline or treeline. They should succeed
At the start of every day, every character
navigation checks automatically.
must consume one ration or an equivalent
Once inside a hex, the DM might describe amount of food. After that, the DM rolls for
some notable feature the characters see. weather to determine any applicable
They might ask for a check to discover some modifiers to the day’s navigation checks.
hidden secrets that might not be
A full day of exploration is 8 hours long, and
immediately obvious to arriving characters,
any time spent exploring beyond that risks
or simply ask which hex they are entering
driving one or more members of the party to
next.
exhaustion. Whenever a party finishes
Similarly, navigation checks to follow tracks entering or exploring a hex, if they have
into an adjacent hex have advantage. spent more than 8 hours exploring that day,
tally up the additional hours spent and ask
Trailblaze. Once a character has entered a
each character to make a Constitution
hex by making a successful navigation
saving throw. The DC is 10 + 1 for each hour
check, they automatically succeed
past 8. Each character that fails suffers one
navigation checks made to enter that hex in
level of exhaustion.
the future.
 HEXPLORATION
Mystic Arts DM

Downtime Hours Excursion Resting

Each day is split into 8 hours of exploration, A short rest can be taken once every 24
and 8 hours of rest. That means there are 8 hours over the course of 8 hours, 6 of which
hours unaccounted for. For the purposes of must be spent sleeping and 2 of which may
this system, we assume 2 of those hours are be light activity. Any rest is interrupted by
consumed in the morning having breakfast, the following:
getting dressed and preparing for the day’s
• Rolling initiative.
exploring, and an additional 2 in the evening
• Casting a spell with a spell slot.
on making camp, eating dinner and
• Taking damage.
generally winding down after a long day.
A long rest can only be gained by taking
That leaves 4 hours that a character can use
three consecutive short rests in the same
as they wish, provided they didn’t march
location without interruption, or by resting
beyond 8 hours. Here are some examples of
for a single night in a safe haven.
downtime activities they could spend their
time on: Knocking Out A Creature. When you would
reduce a creature to 0 Hit Points with a
You can Forage for Food by rolling a
melee attack, you can instead reduce the
survival check. A result of 10 provides you
creature to 1 Hit Point and give it the
with enough food to forgo the use of one
Unconscious condition. The creature loses
ration, and each increment of 5 above that
the condition in 1d4 hours.
allows you to replace an additional ration.
Sunday is the Holy Day. Magic items that
You can Craft Mundane Items reducing
say they gain charges at dawn instead gain
the time remaining to craft an item you’re
charges only at dawn on a Sunday.
working on by half a day.

You can Craft Magic Items, reducing the Roll for Weather
The following tables are used to determine
time remaining to craft an item you’re
the weather based on the month. Each
working on by half a day.
weather has an effect next to it, imposing
You can Scout Ahead by exploring the advantage or disadvantage on navigation
surrounding area in the hopes of stumbling and marching rolls.
onto something. The DM might ask for a
Feel free to adjust the calendar to fit yours.
survival or perception check to determine if
you find something. Marching refers to the constitution saving
throws made when spending more than 8
Or you can enage in some other downtime
hours exploring. Navigation refers to the
activity.
rolls made to avoid getting lost, or when
tracking something.
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Mystic Arts DM

Springsdawn
Roll (2d6) Weather Description Effect
2-3 Heavy rain, flooding fields Disadvantage on march and navigation
4-6 Light, refreshing showers Disadvantage on navigation
7-10 Mild temp. with some clouds No effect on rolls
11-12 Clear skies and warm afternoons Adv. on navigation and marching

Firstseed
Roll (2d6) Weather Description Effect
2-4 Frequent spring showers Disadvantage on navigation
5-7 Partly cloudy with cool breezes No effect on rolls
8-10 Mostly sunny and pleasantly warm No effect on rolls
11-12 Clear skies and warm temperatures Advantage on navigation and marching

Monsoon
Roll (2d6) Weather Description Effect
2-4 Torrential rain and thunderstorms Disadvantage on march and navigation
5-7 Steady, heavy rain Disadvantage on navigation
8-10 Overcast with intermittent showers Disadvantage on navigation
11-12 Cloudy with occasional sunshine No effect on rolls

Midnightsun
Roll (2d6) Weather Description Effect
2-4 Scorching heat Disadvantage on forced march
5-7 Very hot and humid Disadvantage on forced march
8-10 Warm with occasional cool breezes No effect on rolls
11-12 Hot but tolerable with clear skies No effect on rolls

Drywind
Roll (2d6) Weather Description Effect
2-3 Dust storms Disadvantage on navigation and march
4-7 Hot and dry Disadvantage on forced march
8-10 Warm with dry winds No effect on rolls
11-12 Blazing sun with no clouds in sight Disadvantage on forced march
HEXPLORATION
Mystic Arts DM
 HEXPLORATION
Mystic Arts DM
Midyear
Roll (2d6) Weather Description Effect
2-4 Hot with occasional thunderstorms Disadvantage on march and navigation
5-7 Warm and sunny No effect on rolls
8-10 Pleasantly warm with mild breezes No effect on rolls
11-12 Clear skies and nice temperatures Advantage on navigation and marching

Harvestfall
Roll (2d6) Weather Description Effect
2-4 Cool with autumn rain Disadvantage on navigation
5-7 Crisp and clear No effect on rolls
8-10 Warm days and cool nights No effect on rolls
11-12 Sunny with colorful falling leaves Advantage on navigation and marching

Lastseed
Roll (2d6) Weather Description Effect
2-3 Early frost and chilly winds Disadvantage on forced march
4-7 Cool and overcast No effect on rolls
8-10 Mild with cloudy skies No effect on rolls
11-12 Clear skies with a crisp chill Advantage on navigation and marching

Coldwinds
Roll (2d6) Weather Description Effect
2-3 Strong, cold winds Disadvantage on march and navigation
4-7 Overcast with light snow Disadvantage on navigation
8-10 Cool and clear No effect on rolls
11-12 Frosty mornings with clear skies Advantage on navigation and marching

Snowfall
Roll (2d6) Weather Description Effect
2-3 Heavy snowstorms Disadvantage on march and navigation
4-7 Light snow and overcast Disadvantage on navigation
8-10 Clear and icy Disadvantage on forced march
11-12 Sunny with snow on the ground No effect on rolls
 HEXPLORATION
Mystic Arts DM
Evernight
Roll (2d6) Weather Description Effect
2-3 Blizzards and harsh winds Disadvantage on march and navigation
4-8 Snow and overcast skies Disadvantage on navigation
9-12 Cold and clear nights Disadvantage on forced march

Wintersdusk
Roll (2d6) Weather Description Effect
2-5 Snow and frost Disadvantage on navigation
6-7 Cold and crisp No effect on rolls
8-10 Mild days with chilly nights No effect on rolls
11-12 Clear skies and warm Advantage on navigation and
temperatures. marching