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Encounters for Imbolc and Spring 

In many RPG campaigns, GMs use random tables based on the local terrain. Ireland is beautiful, but the land is not varied to the extent we see in more fantastical settings. I've had success altering my encounter tables with the season. Aside from varying the encounters, it provides players a concrete feeling of time's progression. This helps reinforce that the world is dynamic.

Today is Imbolc! This Celtic holiday marks the cultural start of spring. It is associated with the Celtic goddess Brigid. Here are some themes surrounding the holiday and Irish late winter/early spring.
### Lambs, Birth, and New Life
Sheep, cattle, and all manner of animals give birth at this time. All manner of festivals across Europe celebrate this time of year for that reason. Imbolc is one of these. It only makes sense that such life will be encountered in the broader world over the coming months. If you've ever wanted to run an encounter of cute baby animals, this is it.
### Coming of Age for Women
Imbolc festivities can very from place to place but there are some commonalities. Within the home, gifts and totems are left for Brigid to watch over the home and family. Around the broader community, adolescent women come together to make crafts and parade them around town. The young women would receive gifts from each household. There is a strong feminine aspect to this holiday. It is worthwhile to consider encounters that reinforce or investigate gendered roles in the setting.

As an aside, the parade brings to mind more recent (unofficial) traditions around the Catholic Rite of Confirmation. It is no secret that many Christian rituals grew out of older local traditions. The fact that the holiday itself transitioned from Imbolc to St. Brigid's Day makes this season an especially good one to explore that concept.
### The Cailleach
The Cailleach is a divine hag, possibly known to the Morrigan, who is known to come out around Imbolc. Legend holds she spends the first sunny day collecting firewood to outlast the remaining cold days. In some tellings, the Cailleach ages through winter, but returns to youth when her river thaws. Observe that this part of her story can be seen as an extension on the themes mentioned with Imbolc so far: a celebration of women's lives. Not only birth and coming to adulthood, but coming into old age, too.

Early spring is also when many of us traditionally do our spring cleaning. It seems the Cailleach is not an exception. Indeed, the home and hearth falls under Brigid's purview. Perhaps all manner of other creatures may be concerned with maintaining their home while they wait for nicer weather. 
### Darkness, Still
The Irish calendar divided the year into a light half, and a dark half. The light half begins at Beltane (May 1), and the dark at Samhain (November 1). Imbolc marks the half-way point of the darkness. If we extend this division between light and dark to the seelie and unseelie, we are in a season rife with the unseelie.

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Below you'll find the random encounter table I made from these considerations. When I make my encounter tables, I break them down by the following:
- **Physical runes**: Natural encounters. Or at least, encounters that could plausibly be natural in origin. In practice, I usually leave the possibility of the supernatural open.
- **Mental runes**: Human encounters. All manner of everyday people can and will be encountered.
- **Spiritual runes**. Supernatural encounters. These could be sidhe, monstrous creatures, or simply inexplicable events.
This gives a good breadth of encounter types. It keeps the world relatable, and still unknown.
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