DnD downtime that’s more than just a shopping trip
In DnD, we all need some kind of relief. Be it because we finished a story arc, the party lost a member or just because the players (or the DM!) are tense because of RL stuff. Too often, I’ve heard and seen the typical “shopping“ thing. Purchasing items, paying for a spa-type experience, etc.
One thing that I like to do is using that downtime to still give an opportunity for RP moments that are not just “haggle this three vendors so you can make one Charisma throw for the entire group and save some imaginary gold“. That has its place and I understand that it sticks around for a reason. It’s light, it’s low stakes, it’s easy to relax. But, as you could see on how I phrased the example, I think it often falls into the trap of focusing on the charismatic character/s of the group. You know, those that already mainly have a spotlight in social situations.
Instead, I like to learn two or so obscure card and/or dice games. Especially with dice, bonus points if they are stylized so it’s different to the dice people roll every session anyways. With that prepared, I let the players know (often while they are still in the midst of their “normal“ operations) that there is a “Play House”. This is essentially an establishment that offers both casual play (where you only pay the entrance fee of the house to participate) and for-cash play (essentially a casino type situation, but against other people instead of against the house).
With that, not only can players choose if they want to keep raising the stakes or just have a chill evening, it’s also an RP opportunity for those in the group, that don’t have peak social skills since it’s just them actually playing the games instead of going through the abstraction of the DnD system.
The important thing is mainly to keep giving the players options. They can (and will) still have their shopping and similar downtime activities, but with this, you are opening more RP moments for them.
