[A to Z April] N is for Noises in the Dark (table)

Have you ever been in a dark building and heard a door click shut somewhere? What about in the woods and hear a twig snap in the distance? The common response of “What was that?!?!” and the sudden loosening of the bowels is akin to what your players think and feel when they hear noises in the dungeon.

OK, maybe the bowel-loosening is just me.

Please don’t judge me. Please?

I had a DM once who used noises as hooks to draw us deeper and deeper into the dungeon. And closer to our doom. So now I present a table of possible noises to use in this manner. And yes, you see correctly. It's not only a d30 table, but a 2d30-1 table. Pull out all your d30s and go crazy.

And make your players go crazy.

2d30-1 -Noises in the Dark-

1. Water rushing through pipes.
   
2. A sudden, single scream in the distance that cuts off abruptly.
   
3. An animal’s roar.
   
4. A child giggling.
   
5. The skittering of insects. Large insects.
   
6. The sound of a stone skipping across the floor.
   
7. Eerie and strangely familiar music.
   
8. The sound of wings flapping.
   
9. A voice counting, a number each second.
   
10. Electricity crackling.
    
11. A loud explosion.
    
12. The sound of a baby crying.
    
13. A twig snapping.
    
14. A door slamming shut.
    
15. Rats squeaking. Lots of squeaking.
    
16. The sound of vomiting.
    
17. A whip cracking.
    
18. A ticking clock.
    
19. A rumbling, like a cave-in or stone-fall.
    
20. Glass breaking.
    
21. Rustling cloth.
    
22. Moaning.
    
23. The tapping of a small hammer against stone.
    
24. Whistling.
    
25. A large bell pealing.
    
26. A voice reciting what seems to be a nursery rhyme in an unknown arcane language.
    
27. A wolf howling.
    
28. A metal gate clanging shut.
    
29. A haunting voice singing.
    
30. The sound of shovels digging.
    
31. Ripping paper.
    
32. An almost-audible hum.
    
33. Maniacal laughter interspersed with sobbing.
    
34. The sound of clanking machinery.
    
35. A creaking door that clicks shut.
    
36. Bubbling liquid.
    
37. An axe chopping wood.
    
38. Wind.
    
39. A braying mule.
    
40. Fire crackling.
    
41. An argument in Orcish.
    
42. Claws scraping a piece of slate.
    
43. Footsteps.
    
44. Coughing.
    
45. Musical scales played on a harp.
    
46. The sound of children playing.
    
47. Croaking frogs. Large ones.
    
48. Heavy breathing.
    
49. A low, steady, constant drumbeat.
    
50. The sound of large stone machinery.
    
51. A small dog barking...non-stop.
    
52. A beer-drinking song in Gnomish.
    
53. Wood being struck against wood.
    
54. The sound of dragging chains.
    
55. A squealing pig.
    
56. Bones crunching.
    
57. Numerous voices chanting in an unknown language.
    
58. A cat yowling.
    
59. A whetsone rubbing against a metal tool.

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Last year's "N": N is for Nano-dice
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