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D20 Table Non-Magical Fungi Table For Your D&D Game

Not all underground or in deep forests is magical. Sometimes you just want to add a little flavour.

That’s what this table does: 20 different fungi that won’t overpower your game and will interest the naturalists in your party.

The table below offers 20 different fungi the characters might stumble upon in forests, caves, or other natural settings.

They are designed to be flavourful and potentially interactive, without possessing overtly powerful magical properties.

There is even a 2-page PDF you can download and print out for use at your table at the end of this post.

Fungi Table

D20 Roll	Fungi Description	Usage
1	Glimmercap Toadstool: Small, shimmering caps like dew-kissed pearls; emits a soft, faint green glow in darkness (not bright enough to be useful light, more like a weak bioluminescence). Tastes vaguely of cucumber.	Can be used as a subtle, temporary marker in darkness, or a very mild, refreshing (if slightly odd) trail snack.
2	Stonefoot Fungus: Grows on rocky outcrops, resembling grey, calcified hooves. Very tough and solid, making for a difficult path if overgrown. Non-edible.	Can be a natural obstacle, or if carefully harvested, its hardened shell might be ground down for a coarse, gritty abrasive.
3	Whisperbloom Puffball: A large, pale puffball that, when ruptured, releases a cloud of spores that carry faint, almost imperceptible whispers (mere echoes of sounds, not coherent speech). Edible when young.	When ruptured, the faint whispers can be disorienting or unnerving (-1 to morale for 1 turn), offering a natural sound effect for eerie environments. Edible when young.
4	Ironbark Shelf: A dark, leathery shelf fungus found on old, decaying trees. Its surface is incredibly hard, almost metallic to the touch.	Can be used as a durable, if heavy, surface for crafting small items, or as a natural, robust shield equal to a buckler.
5	Sunpetal Spore: Delicate, orange-yellow discs that unfurl like petals in sunlight and close at dusk. They release tiny, invisible spores that cause a mild, pleasant warmth for those who inhale them.	The spores provide a fleeting, comforting warmth, useful for warding off a minor chill or for a quick, morale-boosting comfort (+1 to morale checks for 1 hour).
6	Driftwood Veil: A translucent, web-like fungus that grows over submerged logs or river stones. It sways gently with currents, resembling ghostly underwater drapery. No known effects.	Can be harvested and used as netting to capture small fish, or as a decorative element with an ethereal quality.
7	Gloomcap Morel: A dark, crinkly fungi found in shaded, damp earth. Its scent is intensely earthy and slightly mournful. Edible, but has a surprisingly bitter aftertaste.	Edible, but its bitterness might be used by a skilled cook to cut through rich flavors, or as a component in a very strong, bitter tea (can replace a missed meal).
8	Cobbletop Cluster: Small, round, grey-brown fungi growing in tight clusters on well-trodden paths. They are firm underfoot, feeling like loose pebbles. Harmless.	A sign of a well-worn path. The clusters provide surprisingly good grip on slippery surfaces if crushed and spread – negates slippery surfaces up to 10-ft x 10-ft.
9	Nettlefang Sprout: Thin, needle-like stalks of fungi that emerge from mossy ground. Touching them causes a mild, tingling itch, similar to a weak nettle sting. Not poisonous.	The mild irritant can be used to wake someone up gently, or as a minor, temporary distraction – if blown in someone’s face they cause that person to lose an action.
10	Hollow Drum: A large, squat, woody fungus with a hollow interior. If tapped, it produces a deep, resonant thrumming sound that can carry a short distance. Used by some small creatures as shelter.	Can serve as a primitive signalling device, a small, natural shelter, or a unique, resonant container.
11	Starfall Lichen: A slow-growing, multi-coloured lichen that forms intricate, star-like patterns on exposed rock faces. Each “star” shimmers subtly under moonlight. Non-interactive.	Prized by artisans for its natural, shimmering beauty, it can be carefully scraped off and used as a decorative inlay or pigment (worth 10GP per “star”).
12	Witch’s Hair Moss: A stringy, almost hair-like fungus that drapes from damp branches and cave ceilings. It has a slightly greasy texture and a faint, musty smell. Can be quite slippery.	Can be used as a slippery trap (treat as a Grease spell for one use), or if thoroughly dried and cleaned, might serve as a very coarse insulation.
13	Bog Lantern: A peculiar, mushroom-like growth found in marshy areas. Its cap is slightly inflated and semi-transparent, collecting and faintly amplifying ambient light, making it glow softly from within. Not a strong light source.	Provides a very faint, natural light source in dark, damp environments, ideal for subtle illumination or a natural nightlight.
14	Grimstone Sprout: A dark, almost black fungus that pushes through hard clay or compacted soil, resembling miniature, gnarled fingers. It feels cold to the touch. Non-edible, no effects.	Its cold touch can be used for a brief, localized cooling, or its stark appearance might be used as a natural, unsettling marker.
15	Dewdrop Cap: Tiny, delicate fungi with caps that perpetually seem to hold a single, glistening droplet of dew, even in dry conditions. The droplet is just water.	The pure water droplet can be collected for a very small, fresh sip of water in dire circumstances (spend one hour collecting water for 1/2 pint), or used for delicate mixing of tinctures.
16	Rootwhisperer Tendril: Thin, pale tendrils of fungus that intertwine with tree roots. They vibrate almost imperceptibly, and if pressed to the ear, can transmit very faint, distorted sounds from the earth (e.g., distant footsteps, rustling leaves).	Can be used as a crude, natural listening device to detect nearby movement or faint sounds through the ground (adds +1 to anyone’s listen chance).
17	Velvet Patch: A low-growing, vibrant red or purple fungi that forms soft, plush patches on fallen logs. It feels like fine velvet, but is surprisingly resilient. Harmless.	Its soft texture makes it ideal for padding small items, cushioning delicate objects, or as a comfortable (though small) natural seat.
18	Ashbloom Bloom: A dusty, grey-white fungus that grows in charred areas or on petrified wood. When disturbed, it releases a fine cloud of inert, ash-like spores.	The fine, inert spores can be used to test air currents, leave a faint, dusty trail, or for a harmless, temporary blinding effect (lasts but 1 round).
19	Whisker Spore: Small, bulbous fungi covered in fine, bristly “whiskers” that are surprisingly sensitive to vibrations, causing the whiskers to twitch subtly and cause a whistling noise if something moves nearby.	Can act as a rudimentary natural alarm system, indicating when something is moving very close to it – anyone who moves within 10-ft triggers the whiskers.
20	Stone Scale Fungus: Flat, overlapping layers of tough, grey-green fungus that adhere tightly to boulders, resembling reptilian scales. Provides excellent grip.	Its excellent grip makes it useful for enhancing traction on slippery surfaces, or as a natural, rugged abrasive.

Searching for Fungi

A character must have either a Herbalism secondary skill or be a Druid or Ranger (at the GM’s option).

This is done in one of two ways: searching for any herbs in a location, or searching a location for a specific herb.

Searching an Area for Any Fungi: A WIS check is made, and if successful the character will find 1D4* amount of the fungi.

Searching a Location for a Specific Fungi: Make a WIS check and if successful they find the fungi they seek. This takes 1D6 turns (the GM can add time for rarer fungi). They find 1D4* uses of the fungi.

* This is an exploding D4, so if a 4 is rolled, keep rolling and add up all results until a 4 is not rolled.

Harvesting & Keeping

Once the character has the herbs, they need to be able to pick it, store it, and preserve it so that the herb can still be effective hours, days, or even weeks or months later.

Drying some herbs is good, placing them in oils or other preserving fluid or salting some can work. Sometimes pickling is needed. Whatever the case, the character must make another check to successfully pick and store the herbs in the short term (getting it back to their homebase) and in the long term (using in the weeks to come).

Just one check WIS is needed for both. If it succeeds, the character successfully picks and stores the herbs and they have the full effect. If they fail the check, either they didn’t pick or handle it correctly, or didn’t store it (short or long term) well enough. The herbs found are no good and wasted.