Swamp Terrain

Guide to the Swamp Worldbuilding Swamps are not just stagnant water and rotting trees. They are a thriving ecosystem with its own plant and animal life and challenges to character survival.
  It is the goal of this post to add some more visual and literary terms to your DM vocabulary, as well as presenting some thoughts on survival and a list of potential monsters.
  Post Soundtrack Geographical Traits A swamp is a wetland that is forested. Many swamps occur along large rivers where they are critically dependent upon natural water level fluctuations. Other swamps occur on the shores of large lakes.Some swamps have hummocks, or dry-land protrusions, covered by aquatic vegetation, or vegetation that tolerates periodic inundation. The two main types of swamp are "true" or swamp forests and "transitional" or shrub swamps. The water of a swamp may be fresh water, brackish water or seawater.
  Historically, humans have drained swamps to provide additional land for agriculture and to reduce the threat of diseases borne by swamp insects and similar animals. Many swamps have also undergone intensive logging, requiring the construction of drainage ditches and canals. These ditches and canals contributed to drainage and, along the coast, allowed salt water to intrude, converting swamps to marsh or even to open water.
  They have a reputation for being unproductive land that cannot easily be utilized for human activities, other than perhaps hunting and trapping. Farmers, for example, typically drained swamps next to their fields so as to gain more land usable for planting crops.
  The most important factor producing wetlands is flooding. The duration of flooding determines whether the resulting wetland has aquatic, marsh or swamp vegetation. Other important factors include fertility, natural disturbance, competition, herbivory, burial and salinity. When peat accumulates, bogs and fens arise.
  Many societies realize that swamps are critically important to providing fresh water and oxygen to all life, and that they are often breeding grounds for a wide variety of life. Indeed, floodplain swamps are extremely important in fish production.
  Resources
  Fuelwood
  Salt (produced by evaporating seawater)
  Animal fodder (fish, shrimp, clams, etc...)
  Traditional medicines (e.g. from mangrove bark)
  Fibers for textiles
  Dyes and tannins
  Honey and resins
  Wetland systems naturally produce an array of vegetation and other ecological products that can harvested for personal and commercial use. The most significant of these is fish food converted to sweeteners and carbohydrates include the sago palm of Asia and Africa (cooking oil), the nipa palm of Asia (sugar, vinegar, alcohol, and fodder) and honey collection from mangroves (Cuba relocates more than 30,000 hives each year to track the seasonal flowering of the mangrove)
  Terrain A bog is a wetland that accumulates peat, a deposit of dead plant material—often mosses, and in a majority of cases, sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, quagmire, and muskeg; alkaline mires are called fens. They are frequently covered in ericaceous shrubs rooted in the sphagnum moss and peat. The gradual accumulation of decayed plant material in a bog functions as a carbon sink.
  A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species. Marshes can often be found at the edges of lakes and streams, where they form a transition between the aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. They are often dominated by grasses, rushes or reeds. If woody plants are present they tend to be low-growing shrubs. This form of vegetation is what differentiates marshes from other types of wetland such as swamps, which are dominated by trees, and mires, which are wetlands that have accumulated deposits of acidic peat. Salt marshes are most commonly found in lagoons, estuaries, and on the sheltered side of shingle or sandspit.
  Freshwater tidal marshes are often considered a freshwater marshes, but this form of marsh is affected by the ocean tides. Intertidal marshes include saltmarshes, salt meadows, saltings, raised salt marshes, and tidal brackish marshes. Intertidal forested wetlands include mangrove swamps, nipa swamps, tidal freshwater swamp forests.
  Mangrove swamp or marshes will be found in tropical coastal areas. It is a swamp that usually has soft mud, found around river mouths, deltas, inlets, and along shallow bays of small islands. The mangroves grow very closely together and there is usually still water surrounding them. Their roots are extremely slippery, steep, and arching, and many of the mangroves create impenetrable masses of roots. Generally you will find these difficult places to walk in and the risk of slipping is high if walking on the root formations. If the water is also deep, you cannot simply wade through this type of swamp either. Use a small vessel if you need to travel through this type of swamp, noting that you may still have trouble getting around.
  Jungle swamp or marshes will often have very lush growth of tough and thick reeds that grow up to 15 feet (4.6 m) in height where there is plenty of water. Walking in a jungle marsh involves restricted observation at ground level to a few feet and the footing will be much less secure than any other jungle surface.
  Freshwater marshes are wet meadows that occur in areas such as shallow lake basins, low-lying depressions, and the land between shallow marshes and upland areas. They also occur on the edges of large lakes and rivers. Wet meadows often have very high plant diversity and high densities of buried seeds. They are regularly flooded but are often dry in the summer.
  Brackish to saline lagoons and marshes are with one or more relatively narrow connections with the sea.
  Vernal pools are a type of marsh found only seasonally in shallow depressions in the land. They can be covered in shallow water, but in the summer and fall, they can be completely dry. In western North America, vernal pools tend to form in open grasslands, whereas in the east they often occur in forested landscapes. Further south, vernal pools form in pine savannas and flatwoods.
  Salt swamps occur in arid areas and can turn into lakes during a rainy season. Due to their saltiness, few plants grow in them. They can be crossed easily when dry and crusty but when they're wet, they can have deep and sticky mud that is impassable.
  Saltwater marshes form as a result of tidal activity and are highly saline. These are located by the sea, in river deltas and intertidal zones. They are often covered with grass-like plants rather than bushes or trees. The main issue with crossing this kind of marsh is getting through the grass-like covering. Some marshes can be walked on top if they are thick enough. It is like walking on a trampoline because water is below the vegetative cover. Others you have to pull apart or crawl on your belly.
  Wildlife Here's a short list of common "normal" fauna. Of course, these can all have mutated, giant, or weirdly magical versions. This is D&D after all!
  Alligators
  Bears
  Beavers
  Beetles
  Birds
  Crabs
  Crocodiles
  Crocs
  Dragonflies
  Ducks
  Eagles
  Fish
  Flies
  Frogs
  Herons
  Leeches
  Lizards
  Midges
  Mosquitoes
  Panthers
  Snakes
  Turtles
  Plant Life Shrubs, trees, grasses, fungus and mosses abound in swamps. I will not list them all, but here's a list to get you started:
  Bald cypress tree
  Black spruce tree
  Blackgum tree
  Bladderwort
  Bog Birch
  Bog Rosemary
  Buttonbush
  Cattails
  Cranberry
  Duckweed
  Ferns
  Hemlock tree
  Horsetails
  Peat
  Pond Cypress tree
  Pondweed
  Red maple tree
  Reeds
  Rushes
  Sphagnum Moss
  Spicebush
  Spiked grass
  Sundew
  Swamp rose
  Tamarack tree
  Water Lillies
  White cedar tree
  White pine tree
  Willow
  Survival Here's a short list of things to consider:
  Clean drinking water.
  Warmth – Everything is wet and soggy. There’s no dry wood to make a fire.
  Shelter – Alcoves, ruins, or other safe places to make camp. Everything is sunken or overgrown.
  Visibility – The land is low, there’s not a lot of high ground to get a look. Fog and mist is common. Any sort trail or road in a swamp environment would probably be broken and sunken into the muck and mire.
  Clouds of flies, mosquitoes, or other blood-sucking insects can make life very unpleasant. Leeches can also take their toll.
  Salt/Brackish water marshes are favorite places for alligators and snakes. If you get into serious trouble here (from venom or wounds), it will be next to impossible in some cases to rescue you in time due to slow travel. Be careful when crossing open water, you might get caught by an incoming tide and being prepared to swim back if that happens, taking care to avoid riptides, strong currents, or undertows.
  Sphagnum moss bogs are the source of peat bogs. While these bogs appear shallow from the surface, the decay underneath creates layers of muck that a walker does not want to fall into. When sphagnum moss covers and entire pond, it can become what is known as a "quaking bog". This bog trembles or quakes under the walker's feet and if you get stuck in a quaking bog, and sink into the muck below, escape is nearly impossible (If the water below the bog is very deep, and there is nothing but sphagnum moss growing on top, there is nothing to grasp onto to pull oneself out.) Peat bogs often have the remains of animals and even people who have fallen into them, kept immaculately for centuries owing to the bog's preserving acids. Know how to spot one and keep away!
  Be aware that you can drown in a swamp, marsh, or bog as easily as in any other body of water, even if it's shallow. This is because of the soft nature of the bio-silt beneath these water formations, which can add many more feet to the depth if you sink into it. In addition, bogs can seem secure but hide very deep water underneath the peat layer.
  Marsh gas (methane) is dangerous to spellcasters who love their fire-based spells, and in areas where these vents occur, they might get more than they bargained for!
  Monsters I've wracked my brain across all the official editions and settings for monsters that dwell in swamp, marsh, and bog environments. I've taken the liberty of putting them into alphabetical order, and their stats are easily found online.
  Aboleth
  Assassin Vine
  Basilisk
  Beholder
  Black Dragon
  Bullywug
  Catoblepas
  Corporeal Undead (Wights, Ghouls, Ghasts, Crawling Claws, etc...)
  Darktentacles
  Dire Animals (Beaver, Bird, Turtle, Bear, Crocodile, Panther, etc...)
  Dire Insects (Mosquito, Beetle, Dragonfly, Fly, etc...)
  Drowned (Zombies)
  Druid (and other classed) NPCs
  Fey (Pixies, Nixies, Kelpie, Dryads, Treant, Thorns, etc...)
  Froghemoth
  Giant (Swamp, Fog)
  Giant Leech
  Giant Sundew
  Grell
  Grick
  Hag (Green, mostly)
  Hangman Tree
  Harpies
  Hydra (any flavor you desire)
  Iblis
  Insect Swarms
  Jackalwere
  Kobolds
  Lich
  Lizardfolk
  Manticore
  Medusa (and Maedar)
  Mephits (Mud, Water)
  Mongrelfolk
  Moon Rats
  Myconid
  Naga
  Neogi
  Obliviax
  Oozes, Slimes, Puddings and Jellies
  Quicklings
  Shambling Mounds
  Shreikers
  Spectral Undead (Shadows, Revenants, Ghosts, Apparations, Haunts and Shades)
  Stirge
  Trolls
  Vampiric Mist
  Vapor Rats
  Violet Fungus
  Water Weird
  Will-o-Wisps
  Yellow Musk Creeper
  Yuan-Ti
  Dicing for Swamps - A post I did on random swamp generation made easy!
  https://www.reddit.com/r/DnDBehindTheScreen/comments/66hcbr/guide_to_the_swamp/

Fauna & Flora

...  
Flora:
Native Plants are ... Common Plants include ...   Some other Plants found in this climate includes:
  • Athelas (Legendary)
  • Devil’s Bloodflower (Legendary)
  • Chromus Slime (Very Rare)
  • Spirit Moss (Very Rare)
  • Sweet Arcane (Very Rare)
  • Tekkil (Very Rare)
  • Thelmallow Flower (Very Rare)
  • Vaundyr Vine (Very Rare)
  • Aadarna (Rare)
  • Bull-Rush (Rare)
  • Dripping Tree (Rare)
  • Pygmy King Flower (Rare)
  • Shaggy Ink Mushrooms (Rare)
  • Violet Slime (Rare)
  • Bloodpurge (Uncommon)
  • Boomshroom (Uncommon)
  • Choke Mold (Uncommon)
  • Choking Cinder Fungus (Uncommon)
  • Corpsebomb (Uncommon)
  • Darkshine (Uncommon)
  • Fjor’da (Uncommon)
  • Guklulla (Uncommon)
  • Hathlil (Uncommon)
  • Marsh Maw (Uncommon)
  • Ordul (Uncommon)
  • Pondstone Tree (Uncommon)
  • Rattlestalks (Uncommon)
  • Redflower (Uncommon)
  • Scarlet Heart Mushrooms (Uncommon)
  • Swampwalker (Uncommon)
  • Blackcorn (Common)
  • Goblin-Trap (Common)
  • Krakaem Pods (Common)
  • Torment Toadstool (Common)
  • Vipervine (Common)
  • Creeping Mangrove (Very Common)
  • Kinuka Tree (Very Common)
  • Marshmallow (Very Common)
  • Musk Muddle (Very Common)
  • Pallast (Very Common)
  • Stirge Traps (Very Common)
  • Willow-Herb (Very Common)
  •  
 
Fauna:
This climate is home to iconic animals like ...  

Fauna

 
  • Adult Black Dragon ( Dragon ; Swamp )
  • Adult Oblex ( Ooze ; Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Allip ( Undead ; Swamp, Urban )
  • Ancient Black Dragon ( Dragon ; Swamp )
  • Archdruid ( Humanoid (Druid) ; Forest, Mountain, Swamp, Underwater )
  • Bagiennik ( Aberration ; Forest, Hill, Swamp )
  • Bodak ( Undead ; Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Boloti ( Fey ; Swamp )
  • Bullywug ( Humanoid (Bullywug) ; Swamp )
  • Catoblepas ( Monstrosity ; Swamp )
  • Constrictor Snake ( Beast ; Desert, Forest, Swamp, Underwater )
  • Corpse Flower ( Plant ; Forest, Swamp, Urban )
  • Corrupting Ooze ( Ooze ; Forest, Swamp, Urban )
  • Crocodile ( Beast ; Swamp, Urban )
  • Darkling ( Fey ; Forest, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Darkling Elder ( Fey ; Forest, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Dimetrodon ( Beast (Dinosaur) ; Coastal, Swamp )
  • Druid ( Humanoid (Any Race) ; Arctic, Coastal, Desert, Forest, Grassland, Hill, Mountain, Swamp, Underdark )
  • Elder Oblex ( Ooze ; Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Flail Snail ( Elemental ; Forest, Swamp, Underdark )
  • Froghemoth ( Monstrosity ; Swamp, Underdark )
  • Ghast ( Undead ; Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Ghoul ( Undead ; Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Giant Constrictor Snake ( Beast ; Desert, Forest, Swamp, Underdark, Underwater )
  • Giant Crocodile ( Beast ; Swamp )
  • Giant Frog ( Beast ; Forest, Swamp )
  • Giant Lizard ( Beast ; Coastal, Desert, Forest, Swamp, Underdark )
  • Giant Poisonous Snake ( Beast ; Desert, Forest, Grassland, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Giant Rat ( Beast ; Forest, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Giant Spider ( Beast ; Desert, Forest, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Giant Toad ( Beast ; Coastal, Desert, Forest, Swamp, Underdark )
  • Greater Winged Wretch ( Monstrosity ; Forest, Hearth, Swamp )
  • Green Hag ( Fey ; Forest, Hill, Swamp )
  • Guard Drake ( Dragon ; Arctic, Desert, Forest, Mountain, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Hadrosaurus ( Beast (Dinosaur) ; Grassland, Swamp )
  • Hydra ( Monstrosity ; Swamp )
  • Invisiboar ( Beast ; Hearth, Swamp, Urban )
  • Kobold ( Humanoid (Kobold) ; Arctic, Coastal, Desert, Forest, Hill, Mountain, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Lizard King ( Humanoid (Lizardfolk) ; Forest, Swamp )
  • Lizard Queen ( Humanoid (Lizardfolk) ; Forest, Swamp )
  • Lizardfolk ( Humanoid (Lizardfolk) ; Forest, Swamp )
  • Lizardfolk Shaman ( Humanoid (Lizardfolk) ; Forest, Swamp )
  • Lost Sorrowsworn ( Monstrosity ; Arctic, Desert, Forest, Mountain, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Maurezhi ( Fiend (Demon) ; Swamp, Urban )
  • Meazel ( Monstrosity ; Desert, Forest, Grassland, Hill, Mountain, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Meenlock ( Fey ; Forest, Swamp, Urban )
  • Miremal ( Fey ; Swamp )
  • Mud Mephit ( Elemental ; Swamp )
  • Nabassu ( Fiend (Demon) ; Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Nagpa ( Monstrosity (Wizard) ; Coastal, Desert, Forest, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Nightwalker ( Undead ; Arctic, Desert, Swamp, Underdark )
  • Oblex Spawn ( Ooze ; Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Ogre ( Giant ; Arctic, Coastal, Desert, Forest, Grassland, Hill, Mountain, Swamp, Underdark )
  • Orc ( Humanoid (Orc) ; Arctic, Forest, Grassland, Hill, Mountain, Swamp, Underdark )
  • Orc Eye of Gruumsh ( Humanoid (Orc) ; Arctic, Forest, Grassland, Hill, Mountain, Swamp, Underdark )
  • Orc War Chief ( Humanoid (Orc) ; Arctic, Forest, Grassland, Hill, Mountain, Swamp, Underdark )
  • Poisonous Snake ( Beast ; Coastal, Desert, Forest, Grassland, Hill, Swamp )
  • Putrid Haunt ( Undead ; Swamp )
  • Rat ( Beast ; Swamp, Urban )
  • Raven ( Beast ; Hill, Swamp, Urban )
  • Redcap ( Fey ; Forest, Hill, Swamp )
  • Revenant ( Undead ; Arctic, Desert, Forest, Hill, Swamp, Urban )
  • Rot Troll ( Giant ; Desert, Forest, Swamp, Underdark )
  • Scout ( Humanoid (Any Race) ; Arctic, Coastal, Desert, Forest, Grassland, Hill, Mountain, Swamp, Underdark )
  • Serpopard ( Monstrosity ; Coastal, Swamp )
  • Shadow Mastiff ( Monstrosity ; Forest, Hill, Swamp )
  • Shadow Mastiff Alpha ( Monstrosity ; Forest, Hill, Swamp )
  • Shambling Mound ( Plant ; Forest, Swamp )
  • Shellycoat ( Fey ; Forest, Swamp, Underwater )
  • Skulk ( Monstrosity ; Coastal, Forest, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Skull Lord ( Undead (Sorcerer) ; Desert, Swamp, Underdark )
  • Spirit Troll ( Giant ; Coastal, Forest, Swamp, Underdark )
  • Star Spawn Grue ( Aberration ; Mountain, Swamp )
  • Star Spawn Seer ( Aberration ; Mountain, Swamp, Urban )
  • Stirge ( Beast ; Coastal, Desert, Forest, Grassland, Hill, Mountain, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Swamp Adder ( Beast ; Swamp )
  • Swarm of Beetles ( swarm of Tiny Beasts ; Desert, Forest, Grassland, Hill, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Swarm of Centipedes ( swarm of Tiny Beasts ; Desert, Forest, Grassland, Hill, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Swarm of Insects ( swarm of Tiny Beasts ; Desert, Forest, Grassland, Hill, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Swarm of Poisonous Snakes ( swarm of Tiny Beasts ; Forest, Swamp )
  • Swarm of Rats ( swarm of Tiny Beasts ; Swamp, Urban )
  • Swarm of Ravens ( swarm of Tiny Beasts ; Forest, Hill, Swamp, Urban )
  • Swarm of Rot Grubs ( swarm of Tiny Beasts ; Swamp, Underdark )
  • Swarm of Spiders ( swarm of Tiny Beasts ; Desert, Forest, Grassland, Hill, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Swarm of Wasps ( swarm of Tiny Beasts ; Desert, Forest, Grassland, Hill, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Sword Wraith Commander ( Undead ; Grassland, Swamp )
  • Sword Wraith Warrior ( Undead ; Grassland, Swamp )
  • Thorny Vegepygmy ( Plant ; Forest, Swamp )
  • Tribal Warrior ( Humanoid (Any Race) ; Arctic, Coastal, Desert, Forest, Grassland, Hill, Mountain, Swamp, Underdark )
  • Troll ( Giant ; Arctic, Forest, Hill, Mountain, Swamp, Underdark )
  • Vampiric Mist ( Undead ; Arctic, Coastal, Forest, Grassland, Mountain, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Vapor Lynx ( Monstrosity ; Swamp )
  • Vargouille ( Fiend ; Desert, Swamp, Underdark )
  • Vegepygmy ( Plant ; Forest, Swamp )
  • Vegepygmy Chief ( Plant ; Forest, Swamp )
  • Venom Troll ( Giant ; Forest, Swamp, Underdark )
  • Vos'skyriss Serpentfolk ( Monstrosity ; Coastal, Desert, Forest, Swamp )
  • Vos'skyriss Serpentfolk Ghost ( Undead ; Coastal, Desert, Forest, Swamp )
  • Wampus Cat ( Monstrosity ; Forest, Swamp )
  • Warlock of the Archfey ( Humanoid ; Arctic, Forest, Mountain, Swamp, Urban )
  • Wastrilith ( Fiend (Demon) ; Coastal, Swamp, Underdark, Underwater )
  • Water Elemental ( Elemental ; Coastal, Swamp, Underwater )
  • Wight ( Undead ; Desert, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Will-o'-Wisp ( Undead ; Forest, Swamp, Urban )
  • Winged Kobold ( Humanoid (Kobold) ; Arctic, Coastal, Desert, Forest, Hill, Mountain, Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Winged Wretch ( Monstrosity ; Forest, Hearth, Swamp )
  • Wretched Sorrowsworn ( Monstrosity ; Swamp, Underdark, Urban )
  • Young Black Dragon ( Dragon ; Swamp )
  • Yuan-ti Abomination ( Monstrosity (Shapechanger, Yuan-Ti) ; Desert, Forest, Swamp )
  • Yuan-ti Malison (Type 1) ( Monstrosity (Shapechanger, Yuan-Ti) ; Desert, Forest, Swamp )
  • Yuan-ti Malison (Type 2) ( Monstrosity (Shapechanger, Yuan-Ti) ; Desert, Forest, Swamp )
  • Yuan-ti Malison (Type 3) ( Monstrosity (Shapechanger, Yuan-Ti) ; Desert, Forest, Swamp )
  • Yuan-ti Malison (Type 4) ( Monstrosity (Shapechanger, Yuan-Ti) ; Desert, Forest, Swamp )
  • Yuan-ti Malison (Type 5) ( Monstrosity (Shapechanger, Yuan-Ti) ; Desert, Forest, Swamp )
  • Yuan-ti Pureblood ( Humanoid (Yuan-Ti) ; Desert, Forest, Swamp, Urban )
  • Zmey ( Dragon ; Forest, Swamp )
  • Zmey Headling ( Dragon ; Forest, Swamp )
  •  
 

Swamp Terrain Fauna

 

Any Terrain Fauna

 
Type
Terrain Region

Any Terrain

 
 

Environments

Climate Zones

 
 

Natural Environments

 
 

Artificial Environments

 
 

Other Environments

 
 

Climate Zones

 
 

Natural Environments

 
 

Artificial Environments

 
 

Other Environments