d66 Ways to Explain This Player Character’s Brief Absence
Aw beans, one of your players couldn’t show up to tonight’s game. Here’s 36 ways to explain why their character is missing just for this session! Roll a d66 (rolling one d6 for the tens-digit and another d6 for the ones-digit) or choose an option that makes sense for your situation.
For brevity, “PC” will be used in place of the missing player character’s name.
11: PC had previously sworn an oath to a wizard they were indebted to, granting the wizard one-time power and authority to temporarily summon PC to them whenever they require their aid. The wizard is cashing in right now.
12: PC found a cursed scroll which temporarily turns them into an incorporeal spirit, forced to haunt the other player characters undetected until they learn some moral lesson the scroll wants them to learn.
13: A faerie spirit on a quest for revenge mistook PC for someone else and stole them away in the night. They’ll return PC once they realize their mistake.
14: The battle of two quarreling chronomancers blew through your location, and PC fell into a time-rift left in the wake of one of the wizard’s attacks, sending them into the (near) future.
15: Aliens abducted PC but will return them when they prove too difficult to contain/experiment on.
16: PC finds themself trapped in a time-loop, and eventually discovers that they only way to escape is to avoid contact with the other player characters for the duration of the loop.
21: PC overheard something the other player characters said about them out of context and misinterpreted it in a way that greatly upset them. They sneak away to abandon the group when no one is looking but return upon realizing it was all a misunderstanding.
22: PC has an important family (or other personal) matter to attend to that requires their swift response, as it involves legal recourse surrounding the disappearance of someone close to them. They will return once it is settled.
23: A scatter-brained wizard’s apprentice studying teleportation magic accidentally switches places with PC, teleporting them to their mentor’s tower an impossible distance away. The apprentice thinks they can figure out a way to swap back with PC if given some time on their own. They hope PC hides in their study until they do – their master tends to fireball intruders on-sight and ask questions later.
24: PC has been possessed by a ghost, who will return control of their body to them once they complete some task the ghost wasn’t able to finish before they died.
25: PC stepped away to refill their water, and got turned around on their way back. They wandered around lost a while, but will find their way to the other player characters eventually.
26: A faerie spirit decided they fancied PC and whisked them away to the faerie realm in an attempt to seduce them. They’ll return PC once they realize they aren’t their type.
31: An enterprising minor demon wants to strike a bargain with PC and teleports the two of them to the top of a tower in an attempt to show off. However, the demon’s pitch is not going well, especially when it’s revealed they lack the power to get them both back down again without resting a while first.
32: PC is called in for jury duty, and either has to serve their time or go to the local magistrate to appeal for a waiver.
33: PC ran into an old friend and went to catch up with them over some drinks. However, the two of them got held up by some of the friend’s newest adversaries.
34: PC is avoiding the other player characters while they prepare a surprise for one or all of them – a gift, or a party to commemorate a certain event like an anniversary or holiday.
35: PC is troubled by recent events – related to the group’s adventures, or external to them – and wants some time alone to clear their head.
36: PC has been haunted by dreams of a symbol in a dark room. They spot this symbol on a stray cat and can’t help but investigate. It seems to be leading them somewhere, but only if they follow it alone.
41: PC is visited by the restless spirit of a friend long gone. Their ghost wants to tell PC a secret – a secret that they must take to their own grave – and leads them away from the rest of the player characters.
42: PC has been struck by sudden inspiration for a work of art, and they simply must bring it into the world before the inspiration fades.
43: PC received an ominous warning from a fortune teller to stay away from [events of today’s session] and is keeping a safe distance just in case.
44: PC is having a crisis of faith in themselves after recent events and takes off on their own for a while until they reassure themselves of their skill. Training montage optional.
45: PC is sent a threatening message by one of their adversaries telling them that if they don’t leave the group, their allies will be made to suffer for it. They leave, believing it to be some heroic self-sacrifice. They return once they realize they are all stronger together, and only with each other’s help can they defeat the adversary’s threat.
46: PC tried to follow an “astral projecting for dummies” guide as a joke, but ended up separated from their body until they figured out how to stop.
51: PC ran afoul of a witch years ago, who tried to curse PC with eternal sleep. However, the witch got their arcane verb-tenses mixed up. So instead, PC was cursed to sleep through a specific date and time. That date is today.
52: PC is shown something that causes them to doubt if their cause is the right one, and leaves until they can find out the truth. They return when what they were shown is proven to be a fabrication by their adversary to mislead them.
53: PC leaves the group because they feel their contributions aren’t appreciated enough. They return after some self-reflection reveals they weren’t feeling unappreciated, they were feeling jealous.
54: PC is feeling extremely ill today. If your group has access to magical disease relief, specify that such relief will still take time to affect whatever sickness has befallen PC – it will just relieve some of the pain in the meantime. Until then, they require rest.
55: PC must take a day off for an important religious observance of their faith.
56: PC received a message from a character they flirted with in town, inviting PC to come visit them for some fun. They sure are taking their time coming back.
61: A minor celebrity from one of PC’s niche interests is going to be in town sort-of-but-not-really nearby, and PC just can’t miss this opportunity to meet them!
62: PC accidentally stumbled into the secret hidden lair of a C-list villain. It will take them a little bit of time to escape on their own.
63: PC saw a rare, elusive mystical beast, prized by many, such as a unicorn. They chased after this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and will return very disappointed.
64: PC is in a sour mood after accidentally breaking a sentimental keepsake, and just wants to be alone for a while.
65: PC insulted a wizard, who responded by turning PC into a pile of rats. Rats, plural. We’ll have to collect all of them up before they can be changed back.
Not everyone likes or is confident "doing voices" when role playing. (Which is totally okay! It’s acceptable to just describe what your character says and does if that is more comfortable for you than acting it out.) Even without "doing the voice," you can still make characters sound unique through use of speech quirks.
It could be a phrase they say a lot, a particular word they say a bit differently, or a particular pattern in the way they speak. I recommend two quirks, to give a character a really recognizable voice. Feel free to re-roll if one of your quirks seems incompatible with the other. (For those who don’t know, a d66 is rolling two six-sided die: one for the ten’s digit, and one for the one’s digit.)
No accents or voice changes required!
Many of these can even be described to the other players if you’re not comfortable vocalizing/acting them out.
11: Consistently uses “one thousand” as an arbitrary number, no matter how (in)appropriate the scale. “That’s one thousand miles away!” “One thousand apologies, my good sir.” “Just give me like, one thousand more seconds.”
12: Frequently clicks their tongue when they are about to start talking or to change topics.
13: Tends to compare things to vegetables. “She’s as bitter as a brussel sprout.” “The beds here are warm and soft like mashed potatoes.”
14: Often says “it’s basically a sure thing”, especially as a display of confidence.
15: Mumbles the first couple words of a string of thought before trying again more clearly.
16: Gets quieter when they are angry.
21: Says “one” in place of the article “a.” “It’s a trap” becomes “It’s one trap!”
22: Makes a gurgling sound when they are frustrated.
23: Gets quieter towards the end of each sentence, especially when they are unsure of themselves. “I thought I saw him head for the pier, but it was dark outside.”
24: Says proper nouns slightly slower. “We found B i l l’ s boots.” “I left it behind in B l u e s t o n e H a l l.”
25: Squeaks when they are startled or surprised.
26: Pronounces “the” with a short ă sound. “Tha.”
31: Gets louder when they are confused.
32: Frequently calls people “Biff,” especially when they don’t know their name.
33: Whenever they list multiple things, they pause briefly between each thing.
34: Tends to say the last word in their string of thought a bit louder, as if denoting they are done speaking.
35: Says “ooooh” a lot, especially before pointing out something that catches their interest. “Oooh, are those new gloves?” “Oooh, I heard the circus is in town!”
36: Always pauses after saying a proper noun. “That’s Gilbert’s… helmet.” “Queen Vellas… would not approve.” “We’re on our way to Greenburg… to buy supplies.”
41: Has only one volume: booming.
42: Often begins a new line of thought or change in topic by saying “Wait, wait,” first.
43: Tends to over-apologize, even for minor things, by saying “really” multiple times before a “sorry.”
44: Says “grr” instead of “um” or “uh” when stammering.
45: Pronounces “that” as “atta.” “They went atta way.” “Atta’s my beer!”
46: Frequently ends statements of facts or details with “and them’s the beans.”
51: Repeats the “s” sound one too many times to indicate posession. “That is Nina’s’s ring.”
52: Speaks much too quickly when they get excited.
53: Tends to start a conversation a bit quieter before building up to a normal volume.
54: Always says adjectives in pairs. “It’s by the small, green box.” “I found an old, rusty sword.” "It's a huge, orange dragon!"
55: Always ends requests with the phrase “if you would, please.”
56: Often says “your” when they mean to say “you.”
61: Tends to draw out the long ū/ew/oo sound in words. “Was he wearing a bluuue cape?” “The mooon was full that night.”
62: Has a habit of appending “yeah?” at the end of their statements, as if making sure you’re following along.
63: Frequently describes quantities as “just a bit,” no matter the scale.
64: Often has to count numbers or days of the week aloud to remember them confidently.
65: Frequently describes things as “cool as ice.”
66: Avoids contractions, preferring to say complete words. Can’t Can not. That’s That is.
