30 Horrors of the Jungle

A-Mundane Jungle Dangers

1-Mosquitos

One of the most unpleasent of the mundane insects to be found in the jungle, these inflict nasty bites that itch like crazy and if scratched tend to get infected quickly because of the heat and humidity, at best resulting in scars. They also often carry diseases that range from unpleasent to outright fatal.

2-Heat and Humidity

Even if you manage to avoid being bitten or otherwise injured by anyone or anything, for those who are not used to living in the jungle, the heat and humidity of the place is a major bane that gets worse the longer one stays in the region. The heat causes sweat and thirst and makes sleeping hard to do. The humidity is much worse and over time, makes things rot. Wounds and scratched open bug bites get infected easily, fungus grows on people and in extreme cases, even equipment, and backpack and water bottle straps can break. On the plus side, zombie undead don't last long in the jungle before they fall apart.

3-Other insects and spiders

There are plenty of other biting or stinging insects to be found in the jungle, including wasps, army ants, large spiders and other such insectoid nasties. Whilst they are not quite as aggressive as mosquitos in most cases, unless their nests or webs are damaged, their bites and stings are painful and prone to getting infected.

4-Fungus, 

The heat and humidity can cause fungus to grow on human flesh, itching like crazy and spreading when scratched, often needing medical treatment to remove and/or causing infected wounds. Whilst it rarely directly kills people, it is another major bane of the jungle.

5-Big cats

Jaguars and other such big cats live in the jungles, and they can inflict deadly wounds with their teeth and claws. Whilst they rarely prey on humans directly, they will attack in defence of their lairs and cubs or if they feel trapped or harassed.

6-Phrania fish

These small fish live in shoals and have big teeth, although they are not often as deadly as they are thought to be. When hungry and in small pools, they are at their most dangerous to humans and most likely to bite them down to the bone. In an open river they are more likely to swim away from humans.

7-Quicksand

Although it's not normally deadly by itself, unless combined with strong tides, quicksand can trap an unwary person and may them prey for the other horrors of the jungle, or at least bog them down and make it hard to get anywhere quickly.

8-Punji stick trap

These pit traps have nasty spikes waiting at the bottom, waiting to maim or kill whoever or whatever is unlucky or careless enough to fall into it. Sometimes these are dug for hunting purposes, and at other times they are dug to maim and kill humans. Some of them have poison or excrement on the spikes so that even light wounds will be fatal.

9-Tribal warriors

Often jungles are inhabited by tribes of their own, who are normally far from friendly to outsiders, often because of fights that they have had with outsiders in the past, and/or large numbers of disease deaths caused by said outsiders bringing diseases that their bodies have no antibodies against. Either way they are unlikely to welcome unknown intruders. Their weapons may seem primitive but they are more then capable of killing or maiming their foes, be they poison darts or arrows, spears, war clubs and macahuitls.

10-Caymans

The rivers and lakes are often infested with these sharp-toothed reptiles. Due to the heat they are very active and they have plenty of fish to feed upon in normal times, along with wildlife who does not take enough care whilst drinking.

11-Poison Fruits and Mushrooms

There are edible fruits and mushrooms to be found in the jungles, but there are also deadly ones, and ones that won't kill you but will make you so sick that you feel that you are dying. Don't eat anything that you can't identify (which is a good rule anywhere, not just in the jungle.)

12-Fire

Although rare unless they are set by humans, in the dry season fires can be a danger and move very quickly indeed, catching and burning whoever or whatever does not get out in time to escape the flames and smoke.

13-Guerrilla Armies

Many of the countries in which jungles exist are unstable and have corrupt and/or very cruel rulers, to the point where people have taken up arms against their government and moved to the jungle to make it harder to catch and kill or imprison them-and they are not likely to be friendly to outsiders, either kidnapping them for a ransom or a prisoner exchange or outright killing them to ensure their silence. Although mostly suited for a modern or sci-fi game, it could happen in a fantasy world too.

14-Drug Dealers

Many of the countries in which jungles exist are perfect for growing highly addictive and illegal drugs, and the drug dealers and their armed security are not likely to welcome outsiders, mistaking them for informers, police or rival drug dealers. Most likely, they will simply kill intruders on the spot. Although mostly suited for a modern or sci-fi game, it could happen in a fantasy world too.

15-Monkeys

These can be territorial, very noisy (attracting negative attention from other nasties, human or animal) and a menace with their bites, and they sometimes carry diseases as well, and they like to steal belongings as well to eat or for fun.

16-River Perils

If one is canoeing down the river, giant whirlpools, human-made weirs, waterfalls, rapids and other water dangers can cause drowning or at least make rivers impassable for long sections.Unlike most of the dangers on this list, at least they don't seek travellers out.

17-Diseases

The hot humid jungles are a very good place for diseases, which might do only moderate damage to those whose immune systems are used to them, but are extremely dangerous and often fatal to outsiders. Or the outsiders become symptomless carriers and spread it all over the place when they go back to civilisation. From malaria to your world's equivalent of Covid-19, the jungles are not a healthy place.

18-Unexploded bombs

Be they landmines planted on purpose by drug dealers or guerrilla armies recently, or unexploded cluster bombs from wars waged decades ago, these are just waiting to kill or blow the leg or the foot of anyone who is unlucky enough to stand on them. This is mostly for a modern or sci-fi game.

19-Colonel Kurtz

A military officer and his men have gone rogue and started menacing the only nearby trade route, and the PCs are sent in to deal with the menace. This can work in a fantasy world too.

B-Fantasy Dangers

20-Giant Ants

Ants are dangerous enough when they are an inch long or smaller, but giant ants the size of Great Dane dogs are a different level of dangerous. Their exoskeletons can be hard to pierce with weapons, their jaws can sever limbs with one well-aimed bite, but their true danger comes in the fact that there are dozens or even hundreds  of them, ceaselessly crisscrossing the jungle looking for food for themselves and/or their grubs, eating anything and anyone that they come across. If their scouts show up, RUN before the rest do.

21-Giant Spiders

With webs stronger than steel of the same thickness and very sticky, (although normally flammable) and long poison fangs, these hungry menaces are another danger of the fantasy jungle. Some go out hunting and others spin webs and wait-both are a peril to the jungle traveller.

22--Giant Dragonflies

The size of hawks, these winged horrors fly down to bite, then fly up again out of weapon range. They mostly eat other insects, but will attack humans if hungry or territorial enough.

23-Giant Carnivore plants

Be they huge pitcher plants with attached tentacles or oversized Venus Fly traps, these plants are another danger to face within fantasy jungles. The unwary traveller can end up fighting to avoid becoming plant food.

24-Undead

Because of the number of violent deaths in the jungle, Undead are a possibility. Zombies and Ghouls might only last for days in the humidity and heat, but they are still dangerous before they fall apart, and there may be other kinds of aggressive and violent undead too.

25-Giant Toads

These sharp-toothed oversized amphibians have long sticky tonuges that can pull you right into your mouth if you get too close, and they are stronger and look more dangerous then they look.

26-Dinosaurs

Raptors and other dinosaur meat-eaters roam fantasy jungles, looking for anything or anyone that they consider edible. With their mighty jaws and very active in the heat, these pose a major threat to whoever they come across.

27-Old Man Kapok

Jungles may have Ents within them, and this old Ent is very powerful and magical and has a great dislike of humans who have cut down so many trees with their axes and saws, thinking that they will bring destruction to his forest. His bark skin can take a lot of damage before he is even wounded,let alone killed, and his larger branches are able to hit, throttle and grab intruders.

28-Jungle Dragon

With skin even thicker then average dragons to protect against insect bites, and found one or two to a jungle as there is not enough food for more of them, a full grown jungle dragon is smaller then it's mountain-dwelling relatives, being around the size of a T-rex, with a long neck for reaching into the jungle canopy and able to live on both meat and fruit. It's scales are camouflaged to blend in with it's environment. If the jungle has an abandoned city with a treasure hoard in it, this is where this dragon makes it's home.

29-Jungle MLP style changelings

Shape changers and love feeders, these particular changelings have adapted to living in the jungle. Their exoskeletons are thicker to deter the many biting insects and spiders, they live in smaller groups of a Queen and up to thirty changeling drones, instead of the hundreds or thousands of drones in the temperate regions, and they have stolen and adopted baby wild animals such as newborn jaguars, which they have domesticated and taught to love them. They will still happily supplement their diet by cocooning jungle tribesmen and tribeswomen who are unlucky enough to fall into their clutches, along with any explores that they can sink their fangs into. Cocooned, the cocoon keeps the trapped person alive, in reasonable health, and dreaming happy dreams so the changelings can feed on their love.

30-Tribbles

Unlike the other jungle dangers, Tribbles won't kill you, infect you with disease, poison you, drown you, or cocoon you to feed on your love, but they are at best a pain in the neck if they ever escape to the outside world. Only one out of a hundred will grow to reproduce, the rest being eaten very quickly by other forest dwellers. Unable to defend themselves, they have become very fertile as a result. Should even one be brought out of the jungle as a pet or by accident, without all the jungle predators around to keep their numbers in check, these little furry fuzzballs multiply rapidly, eat all the food, lay eggs in hidden places and become a menace to the food supplies of whole regions if not kept in check.