#downtime activities

[all-the-nerdthings]

The inspector is harsh but fair. She also demands to snuggle on my lap while I work on it, which can sometimes be rather awkward.

[vulkarihub]

Card Games

The following games are played using a Playing Card Set, so if a player has proficiency with playing cards, they may add their proficiency bonus.

The result of these games are still determined with dice rolls so no actual playing cards needed.

King’s Bluff

First popularized by the ruling class and then simplified by the common folk, this game has become one of the best well known, and immensely popular, which has led to it being enjoyed throughout the land.

Players - Minimum of 2                                                                            Betting - Players throw coins into the pot before drawing any cards. Every round after they have the choice to raise, call/match, or fold, after drawing cards, betting continues until all bets are equal. Winner takes the pot.

This game has three rounds, in the first round the characters draw three cards - roll 3d6s, which they keep hidden. In the first or second round, a player may reroll one of their hidden dice, they can only do this once per game and they must take the new roll. In the second round they draw a card - roll a d6, the result of this roll is shown. the third round is the same as the second, a 5th d6 is rolled, i.e. drawing a card, and its result is shown along with the the result of the second round.

At the end of the three rounds everyone shows their hands, they player with the highest hand wins.

Winning Hands (lowest to highest): A pair, two pair, three of a kind, low straight (1-5), high straight (2-6), full house (a pair and three of a kind), four of a kind, five of a kind.

Traveler’s Triad

A game common amongst caravans, and with it’s popularity amongst merchants and mercenaries alike, has led to a group of players to be found in almost every bar and inn.

Players - Minimum of 2                                                                                    Betting -  Players throw coins into the pot before drawing any cards. Every round after they have the choice to raise, call/match, or fold, after drawing cards, betting continues until all bets are equal. Winner takes the pot.

This game is played in three rounds, in the first round each player draws a card - rolls a d12, the result is hidden. Then in the second they draw again, this time rolling a d8, and again hiding the result. Finally in the third round, they draw their final card, each rolling a d6, and keeping their hand hidden until all betting is finished.

Once finished all players show their hand with the highest total winning, the highest score one can get is a 26, but the best hand one can get is the Traveler’s Triad, which is a one on each dice (1, 1, and 1).

12 Riders

Its origins have been long lost to time but yet this popular game has stood through it all, still hosting popularity by players in bars throughout the land.

Players - Minimum of 1 (against a dealer)                                                        Betting - This game is played against the house, with each establishment/dealer, setting the buy-in bet.

The overall objective of the game is to get a score of 12. Each player starts with two cards - 2d6s, which are ruled when all bets have been placed, the result of which they keep hidden. 

1s can be worth either one or ten points, otherwise points are equal to the number rolled on the dice. After the results are rolled, a player can hit - draw another card (roll a 3rd d6), or stay. The player may also chose to fold which result in them getting half their bet back. 

The total score is against the dealer, who shows their final hand, if the player has less then 12, but higher then the dealer, the get their bet back. If the player has 12, the player gets double their bet, and if the player has less then the dealer, or if the bust, get over 12, they lose their bet.

[vulkarihub]

Dueling

~How to safely duke it out~

Two characters need to let off steam but you don’t want them killing each other, need a fun downtime activity to raise the spirits, or just don’t see the problem of some friendly swordplay between friends, here’s just the thing for you.

Rules of Engagement -

-The arena encompasses melee range of 10 feet in each direction, a 5 foot square for each competitor, weapons with the ranged property can not be used.

-Each competitor rolls initiative, the higher one goes first, similar to the combat rules.

-On their turn the competitor rolls to hit their opponent, if they beat their opponents AC or meets it, and they get a hit, after three hits they win. On a natural 20 its treated the same as a normal hit.

Alternate Rules -

Nat 20s: There are two alternates which are related to Nat 20s, if you choose to implement either that's up to you. 

Nat 20 = A double hit, this option works better if you up the amount of hits it takes to win.

Nat 20 = A crippling hit, the receiver of the hit ends up crippled and gains disadvantage on all future attacks, this can be a fun misfortune to mess around with, resting for any amount of time can alleviate this effect.

Hits: Feel free to play with several different variations, and determine what works best for you, I found that it often depends on the competitors, and the situation. 

[vulkarihub]

Dice Games

The following games are played using a Dice Set, so if a character has proficiency with a dice set hey may be able to use their proficiency bonus.

Pauper’s Dice

The first recorded mention of Pauper’s Dice was in a fair directory, the game was formed when the event coordinators took several popular festival dice games, many of which were already similar to each other, and simplified them into a standardized rule set. Giving rise to Pauper’s Dice. A game of Pauper’s Dice can take a while to finish, and is a common past-time among tavern goers or merchants waiting for their carts to be inspected by the city watch, along with still being a staple of festivals and fairs alike. 

Players - Minimum of 2 Betting - The players throw a set amount of coins into a pot before rolling any dice. The winner takes the pot. The objective of Pauper’s Dice is to be the first one to reach 10,000 points. One player begins by rolling their six dice and checks to see if they have rolled a scoring combination. Any dice that make up a scoring combination can be set aside and the player may then choose to roll all the remaining dice. Each time they roll, the player must set aside at least one scoring dice, but they don’t have to set aside all scoring dice. If all dice are set aside for scoring, the player can roll all six dice again and continue to add onto their accumulated score. A player’s turn continues until they fail to roll any scoring dice or they decide to bank their scored points, writing them down and adding them to any points granted by previous rounds. The dice are then forwarded to the next player. First one to reach 10,000 points wins. Scoring combinations only count if they are made on the same roll. So if you roll a 1 on one turn, and then roll two 1s on the next turn, you have 300 points, not 1000.

Scoring: • 1. 100 points. • 5. 50 points. • Three 1’s. 1000 points. • Three 2’s. 200 points. • Three 3’s. 300 points. • Three 4’s. 400 points. • Three 5’s. 500 points. • Three 6’s. 600 points. • Series (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 together). 3000 points. • Three Pairs. 1000 points. (4 of a kind and a pair is 1500 points).

Pig

Pig is a simple game that is very popular among the common people. Pig is especially popular among the poorer classes, as the need for materials is low as Pig only needs a single die to play.

Players - Minimum of 2 Betting - The players throw a set amount of coins into a pot before rolling any dice. The winner takes the pot.

Each turn, the player rolls 1d6 again and again, tallying up the numbers as they roll them as their score. The player must roll a total of 7 before they can write down their score and pass the die to the next player, but they do not have to stop at 7 and can keep going as long as they like. If the player rolls a 1, they score nothing on that turn and it becomes the next player’s turn. The first player to reach a set amount of points, usually between 50 and 100, wins.

Middle’s 7

A simple and quick game that is a common sight in many taverns and gambling dens.

Players - Minimum of 1 (against the dealer)                                              Betting - This game is most often played against the house/dealer. The dealer sets a minimum buy-in, which varies depending on the establishment.

Players place their bets and then declare either Higher, Lower, or Middle’s 7. The dealer then rolls 2d6 and adds the numbers together. Higher refers to numbers that are higher than 7, Lower refers to numbers lower than 7, and Middle’s 7 is a total of 7. If a bet of Higher or Lower is correct, the return is double the player initial bet, and if the bet of Middle’s 7 is correct, the return is triple.

[zerohitpoints]

Homebrew Downtime

Learning Optional Class Features During Downtime Purpose: This downtime activity allows a character to invest time and effort to learn new optional class features, such as those from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything or Xanathar’s Guide to Everything. This downtime activity is a reward from the DM based on specific conditions. Requirements DM Permission Character must have access to a teacher or…

Homebrew Downtime

[educationaldm]

Downtime Activities

The first time I came across phases of play in a Role Playing game was Mouseguard. It’s a game based on a comic book series about mice who a

Chris Sniezak (Gnome Stew) talks about Downtime Activities in TTRPGs and especially in D&D and suggests a system.

[meandering-mind]

FFXIV/Roleplay themed Cards Against Humanity set

You’ve no doubt heard about the online version of Cards against Humanity, called pretend you’re xyzzy.   With the help of Card Cast, I decided to put together a FFXIV/RP/Balmung themed set.   * The set is not suited for minors. It is NSFW and features crude jokes and generalizations.  * Any resemblance of any characters, in terms of traits & wording, is completely incidental.  *This set is not PG safe. Please use cardcastgame’s tools to download and edit the deck for yourself to remove (or add) any cards you find too offensive for use.  See instructions & link under the cut. 

* See the deck here. * Add the deck to your table by typing, into the tables chat: /addcardcast  68FUD * This set is big enough to be played on it’s own. You can however still choose to add the standard Card against Humanity decks to it. 

Over the years since the original creation of this deck, many friends and players have contributed cards - Special thanks to anyone who did! You know who you are. 

Feel free to further customize the set by remixing it with your own cardcast set if you want to. I greatly recommend adding the names of your friend’s characters, free companies and so on as “Response”-cards - with their permission first of course. 

Feel free to message me with suggestions, comments etc.  Remember, this is all in the name of fun! (This OP & the deck was last updated January, 2018. The deck was created in June, 2016.)