INTERLUDE: A TRIP TO THE TAVERN

Over the history of the D&D game, no cliché has been so enduring as the tavern. Here, a thousand adventurers meet and a thousand campaigns begin. PCs go to taverns to relax between adventures, to look for new allies (which can be a way for the DM to introduce new PCs), and to set up meetings with NPCs. Sometimes, players just want to roleplay their characters for a while without the ever-present danger of the dungeon.

A tavern interlude should last only as long as everyone at the table is having fun. If some of the players exhibit signs of restlessness, it’s time to put away the drinking games, pickpocketing, and bar brawls and get on with the adventure.

NAMING THE TAVERN

DMs are always having to come up with names of taverns on the fly. The accompanying table provides some suggestions using four different naming conventions; you can roll d% or choose from the table below as you like.

THINGS TO DO

Depending on the tavern, not every activity discussed below will be available (or welcome to the patrons). In upper-class “social clubs,” for example, walking from table to table seeking arm-wrestling matches will get you nothing more than snorts of derision.

Getting Drunk: In D&D, social drinking has no adverse consequences. Inebriation matters only when PCs are actively trying to achieve that state, perhaps as part of a drinking game. Thus, these rules are intentionally simple (and far kinder than real life).

A PC can safely consume a number of drinks per hour (a “drink” counts as a tankard of ale, a glass of wine, or a shot of the hard stuff) equal to one-half his Constitution score. One drink’s effects wear off in an hour. Whenever a character imbibes more than that limit, he must attempt a Constitution check. The DC starts at 15 and increases by 1 per additional drink. PCs with saving throw bonuses against poison (such as dwarves) can apply them to this Constitution check.

Each failed Constitution check imposes a cumulative –1 penalty to Dexterity and Wisdom (but does not actually reduce those ability scores) and a cumulative –1 penalty on Constitution checks to avoid further inebriation. A character’s effective Dexterity and Wisdom can’t fall below 1 due to inebriation. The character’s actual Constitution score (and hit points) remains unchanged. A character passes out when the penalty on Constitution checks equals his Constitution score. He remains unconscious for 2d4 hours and is fatigued when he awakens, but the temporary penalties end.

Games: As many bar games exist as bars. Regardless of the game, using magic to influence the outcome is seen as cheating. Games of Skill: In some taverns, a card game known as Three Dragon Ante is popular. Others use chesslike boardgames to test players’ prowess.

To determine the winner of a game of skill, choose the most relevant skill for the main check. For many card games, it’s Bluff. For a boardgame such as chess, Knowledge (history) might be more relevant. Then choose two other skills that matter, but are clearly secondary. Sense Motive, Bluff, and a Knowledge skill are good choices. A character with at least 5 ranks in either of the secondary skills gains a +2 bonus on the main skill check (or +4 if she has 5 ranks in both). Then all participants attempt opposed skill checks.

As an exception to the usual rules, a character can use a Knowledge skill untrained if it’s the relevant skill for a game, as long as someone takes the time beforehand to explain the rules to her.

Feats of Accuracy: Throwing darts is the archetypical tavern game of accuracy. Participants make ranged touch attacks to hit the target; tavern darts are similar enough to weapons that Weapon Focus (dart) and other relevant feats apply. Because a dartboard is designed to reward fine differences in accuracy, have all participants make opposed ranged touch attacks, and award the round to the character who achieved the highest result. Whoever wins five such rounds wins the match.

Feats of Strength: An arm-wrestling match is the usual contest of strength in a tavern. Contestants make opposed Strength checks until one wins twice in a row. A contestant who is one size category larger than his opponent earns a +4 bonus on the Strength check.

Games of Chance: Some dice and card games are strictly a matter of chance, as are some casino-style games such as roulette. You’ve got a pile of dice behind your DM screen, so games of chance should be easy to adjudicate.

Drinking Games: Most drinking games are simply tests to see who remains conscious the longest, with all participants drinking at the same (frequent) intervals. Resolve such contests with the Getting Drunk rules above. Sometimes other games have a drinking game added, such as a version of darts in which everyone but the winner drinks after each round.

d%	“Blank and Blank”	Creatures	Characters	People/Place Names
01-10	Thistle and Owl	Dragon Rampant	Brazen Strumpet	Sarlitti’s
11-20	Barrel and River	Black Horse	Grimacing Ghost	Bulwark Corner
21-30	Dragon and Flea	Quick Brown Fox	Sailor’s Rest	Caffeter and Sons
31-40	Smile and Wink	Angry Owlbear	Black Lord’s	Twist Street Tavern
41-50	Axe and Brace	Wyvern’s Watch	Old Cobbler	Eli and Ann’s
51-60	Pony and Saddle	Argent Lion	Last Dwarf Standing	Docksider
61-70	Whistle and Drum	Big Fat Toad	Tattered Teamster	Broken Bridge
71-80	Flotsam and Jetsam	Drunken Devil	Sly Minstrel	Gurrok’s Alehouse
81-90	Chaff and Whey	Meek Unicorn	Sad Seamstress	Sangertaal’s
91-100	Fence and Stile	Blue Lammasu	Blind Judge	Chain Alley Pub

Performing: An evening’s work is needed to earn money by singing or playing at a tavern (PH 79)—if you can get the gig. If someone else is already performing at the tavern, then the PC must convince the bandleader or solo performer (initial attitude indifferent) to let a “guest performer” sit in for a song or two. If the bandleader agrees, the character makes a Perform check. The PC makes no money for this performance but thereafter earns a +2 circumstance bonus on Charisma-based checks during that tavern visit if the performance was great (Perform DC 20; PH 79) or better.

Picking Pockets: A successful DC 20 Sleight of Hand check is sufficient to separate a tavern patron from a coin purse, and a successful DC 25 check can garner a thief some jewelry. The typical taverngoer has a Spot bonus of +1 to notice the theft (assuming he is not inebriated). Choose either the coins or goods column for a 1st-level treasure on Table 3–5 (DMG 52 divide the coin result by 2 to reflect the fact that few people bring significant wealth into bars. A PC who gets caught triggers a hue and cry for the city watch—and maybe a bar fight as well. The victim of a pickpocket notices the missing coins or jewelry 1d4×10 minutes after the theft.

Picking a Fight: The tavern brawl is a staple of many D&D adventures—a chance for PCs to fight in a less deadly way.

Intimidation: Most bar fights start not with a thrown punch but a thrown insult. To taunt a bar patron, make an Intimidate check opposed by the target’s modified level check (1d20 + character level or Hit Dice + target’s Wis bonus [if any] + target’s modifiers on saves against fear). If you succeed, the target glowers but doesn’t counter your insult. If you fail, the target responds with an insult directed at you. If you fail by 5 or more, the target throws a punch at you.

Bar Brawl: Most bar brawls are simple fistfights, with participants making unarmed strikes that deal nonlethal damage. Most taverngoers don’t bother with grappling, but if you want to use the grappling rules, you can certainly have them do so. Many bar brawlers resort to weapons of convenience. To keep matters simple, treat a barstool or similar furniture as equivalent to a greatclub. A bottle is equivalent to a club until it hits something and breaks; then it’s equivalent to a dagger. A hurled mug (or anything of similar heft) is equivalent to a thrown Small light club (1d4 points of damage). All who use such improvised weapons take a –4 penalty on attack rolls.

Escalation: Even bartenders who are sanguine about fisticuffs take matters seriously once swords are drawn. Using a weapon (other than improvised weapons) or damaging magic of any sort produces a call for the city watch, and any NPC not at the heart of the battle flees rather than risk death. The watch arrives at least 1d4 rounds later, although response time varies widely depending on the neighborhood.

In general, you can minimize the lethality of a bar brawl by having NPCs fall and stay prone when reduced to 5 hit points or fewer, as well as forgoing attacks on helpless foes and those who clearly don’t want to fight anymore.

Making Friends: Little harm should result from friendly encounters at the tavern, for PCs that want them. Most tavern patrons have an initial indifferent attitude, although those in the worst dives and the most exclusive social clubs start as unfriendly. PCs can use the Diplomacy skill or enchantment magic to improve NPC attitudes as described on PH 72. Romantic companionship requires a friendly attitude (for dancing and casual conversation) or a helpful attitude (for a liaison that extends beyond the visit to the tavern).

All sorts of circumstance modifiers can apply to these social interactions—including perceived wealth and social class of the PC, number and quality of drinks purchased, and ability to dance.