Random herb search table(s)
Greetings,
I've searched the Armory, and the 3.5E/Pathfinder forum, and the entire Forum for this, and... nothing.
So, here's the question: Has anyone put together a table (or, more likely, a collection of tables) that can be used by an herbalist for randomly finding interesting/useful herbs in his/her profession?
I thought that Ultimate Wilderness might have something along these lines, but, alas, no. It contains instructions for adjudicating the search for a specific herb, but not for simply grazing or browsing for any herbs that might be growing in the area.
Out on the web, there is a document on herbs that a gentleman named Shaun Hately put together (circa 1997??) called The Guide to Herbs for RPG's, 5th Edition [sic] and it contains adaptable stat blocks for over 200 herbs, but no randomizing method or principle.
Then there is a document by Frank Helle Hansen, et al., called Herb Encounter List, presented as a supplement to The Guide to Herbs for RPG's, 5th Edition, in which the author has used the original author's organization of the herbs into groups (based on climate, locale, etc.) to create a randomized strategy (which is a little labor-intensive) for giving an herbalist the ability to simply go out for a predetermined period of time searching for 'herbs', rather than only searching for 'a particular herb'.
So, the first document is an organized collection of herbs, while the second applies a randomizing formula to the act of an herbalist searching in a particular area for any herbs that might be available.
The second document might be adaptable to multiple tables in FG... but it's going to be some work.
Any guidance on this from anyone that has been down this road? I have a player in our current campaign whose herbalist character is very active in his profession, and takes it very seriously. I would like to reward him with a streamlined mechanism for herbal searches so that his character can always be on the lookout for ingredients for his specialty.
Thanks,
- s.west
p.s. If I end up creating something on my own, I'll be sure to 'module'ize it and submit it.