MARINA'S PLANS CHELDAR'S PLANS

Element Description Eleme nt Description

Event Rats become a noticeable problem in the streets, Event The grand festival of Pholtus fills the streets
with swarms sighted in rundown neighborhoods. with somber worshipers, who maintain a day-
Folk demand that action be taken. long torchlit vigil. They offer food, drink, and
Action Caravan raids by goblinoids become more com- shelter to all in the temple of Pholtus.
mon, and folk talk of gathering a militia. Marina Action Cheldar, along with a small group of followers,
contributes generously to the effort. appears in a tavern frequented by adventurers
Action Warehouses are overrun with rats, ruining thou- and seeks converts. A few NPC adventurers join
sands of gold pieces worth of goods. Marina his cause.
blames the city for a lax effort in pest control. Action In a public address in the town square, Cheldar
Action If the characters interfere, Marina sends her as- rails against the forces of chaos, laying blame
sassins against them. for recent troubles on adventurers who are med-
Event A sudden storm creates minor flooding, washing dling in things best left alone.
dozens of dead, bloated, diseased rats from the Event The characters find that all adventurers in town
sewers. Terror over the plague rips through town. receive an icy reception at best.
Action Marina fans the flames of panic, spreading ru- Action Cheldar demands that the city levy enormous
mors that the characters or other riva ls in town taxes on adventurers, claiming that they must
are responsible for the disease. pay their fair share to keep the city safe.

EXAMPLE RIVAL: HIGH PRIEST CHELDAR DOWNTIME ACTIVITIES

The temple of Pholtus, god of the s un, seeks to bring
Downtime activities are tasks that usually take a work-
as many folk as possible under its sway. Though it has week (5 days) or longer to perform. T hese tasks can in-
been in town for only two years, the temple is a lready a n
clude buying or c reating magic items, pulli ng off crimes,
influe ntia l force because of the determ ination and the
and working at a job. A cha racter selects a downtime
brilliant oration of Cheldar, its high priest.
activity from a mong t hose available and pays the cost
Goals. Chelda r wants to ma ke the te mple of Pholtus of that activity in time and money. You, as DM, then fol-
the most popular rel ig ion in town by bringing about low the rules for the activity to resolve it, informing the
peace a nd security for a ll. He believes keeping adventur-
player of the results a nd any complications that ensue.
e rs in check or driving the m out of town is an important Consider handling downtime away from the game
step in that plan.
table. For example, you could have the players pick their
Assets. The charismatic high priest has his oratory downtime activities at the end of a session, and then
skill, divine spellcasting ability, and a few hundred com-
communicate about them by email or text, until you next
mon folk recently converted to the temple's cause.
see them in person.
Plans. Cheldar is stern but fundamenta lly a good per-
son. He tries to win s upport by providing charity, pro- RESOLVING ACTIVITIES
moting peace, and working to enforce law and order. He The description of each activity tells you how to resolve
is skeptical of the characters, however, convinced that it. Many activities require an ability check, so be sure to
they are troublemakers who will unde rmine the peace. note the character's relevant abi li ty modifie rs. Follow
He wants only officials of the town or the temple to be the steps in the activity, and determine the results.
involved in handling a ny crises that arise. He strongly Most downtime activities require a workweek (5 days)
believes in his goals, yet he might still be made into a n to complete. Some activities requi re days, weeks (7
a lly by good-hearted characters. days), or months (30 days). A cha racter must spend at
leas t 8 hours of each day engaged in the downtime activ-
ity for that d ay to count towa rd the activity's completion.
The days of a n activity don't need to be consecutive;
you can spread them over a longer period of time than is
-i"'iO"'l 'OW'< {row- required for the activity. But that period of time should
be no more than twice as long as the required time;
<; -issio"', 10-•ti..... u l l<"'J. otherwise you should introduce extra complications (see
below) and possibly double the activity's costs to repre-
sent the inefficiency of the character's p rogress.
ii COMPLICATIONS
""'"'io"'i c;wc;i st'-'{4 to The description of each activity includes a discussion
f'ofl•, c;"'). f•ost· of complications you can throw at the characters. The
conseque nces of a complication might spawn entire
J.i{4 <mJ it...f-l. adventures, introduce NPCs to vex the party, or give the
characte r s headaches or advantages in any number of
o ther ways.

C H APTER 2 I DUNGEON MAST.ER'S TOOLS

 BUYING MAGIC ITEMS
Check
Total Items Acqu ired
1-5 Roll ld6 times on Magic Item Table A.
Each of these sections has a table that offers possible 6- 10 Roll l d4 times on Magic Item Table B.
complications. You can roll to determine a complication 11-15 Roll ld4 times on Magic Item Table C.
random ly, pick one from the table, or devise one of your 16-20 Roll ld4 times on Magic Item Table D.
own, and then share it with the player.
21-25 Roll ld4 times on Magic Item Table E.
EXAMPLE DOWNTIME ACTIVITIES 26-30 Roll ld4 times on Magic Item Table F.
---- 31-35 Roll ld4 times on Magic Item Table G.
The following activities are s uitable fo r any character
36-40 Roll ld4 times on Magic Item Table H .
who can afford to pursue them. As OM, you have the
fina l say on which activities are available to the char- 41+ Roll ld4 times on Magic Item Table I.
acters. The activities you allow might depend on the
nature of the area where the characters are located. For MAGIC ITEM PRICE
example, you might disallow the creation of magic items Rarity Asking Price*
or decide that the cha racters are in a town that is too
Common (l d6 + 1) x 10 gp
isolated from major markets for them to buy s uch items.
Uncommon ldG x 100 gp
BUYING A MAGIC ITEM Rare 2dl0 x 1,000 gp
Purchasing a magic item requires time and money to Very rare (ld4 + 1) x 10,000 gp
seek out and contact people willing to sell items. Even Legendary 2d6 x 25,000 gp
then, there is no guarantee a seller will have the items a
for a consumable item like a potion or scrol l
character desires.
Resources. Finding magic items to purchase requires
Complications. The magic item trade is fraught with
at least one workweek of effort and 100 gp in expenses.
peril. The large sums of money involved and the power
Spending more time and money increases your chance
offered by magic items attract thieves, con a rtists, and
of finding a high-quality item.
other villains. If you want to make things more interest-
Resolution. A character seeking to buy a magic item
ing fo r the characters, roll on the Magic Item Purchase
makes a Cha risma (Persuasion) check to determine
Complications table or invent your own complication.
the quality of the seller found. The character gains a
+l bonus on the check for every workweek beyond the
MAGIC ITEM PURCHASE COMPLICATIONS
first that is spent seeking a seller and a +1 bonus for
every additional 100 gp spent on the search, up to a dl2 Complication
maximum bonus of +10. The monetary cost includes The item is a fake, planted by an enemy.*
a wealthy lifestyle, for a buyer must impress potential 2 The item is stolen by the party's enemies.*
business partners. 3 The item is cursed by a god.
As shown on the Buying Magic Items table, the tota l of 4 The item 's origina l owner will kill to reclaim it; the
the check dictates wh ich table in the Dungeon Master's
party's enemies spread news of its sale.*
Guide to roll on to determine which items are on the
5 The item is at the center of a dark prophecy.
market. Or you can roll for items from any table associ-
ated with a lower total on the Buying Magic Items table. 6 The seller is murdered before the sale.*
As a further option to reflect the availability of items 7 The seller is a devil looking to make a bargain.
in you r campaign, you can apply a -10 penalty for low 8 The item is the key to freeing an evil entity.
magic ca mpa igns or a +10 bonus for h igh magic cam- 9 A third party bids o n the item, doubling its price.*
paigns. Furthermore, you can double magic item costs 10 The item is an enslaved, intelligent entity.
in low magic campaigns.
11 The item is tied to a cult.
Using the Magic Item Price table, you then assign
12 The party's enemies spread rumors that the item is
prices to the avai lable items, based on their rarity.
Halve the price of a ny consumable item, such as a po- an artifact of evil.*
tion or a scroll, w hen using the table to determine a n *Might involve a rival
asking price.
You have final say in deter mining w hich items are for CAROUSING
sale and their final price, no matter what the tables say. Carousing is a default downtime activity for many char-
If the characters seek a specific magic item, first acters. Between adventu res, who doesn't want to relax
decide if it's an item you want to allow in your game. If w ith a few drin ks and a g roup of friends at a tavern?
so, include the desired item among the items for sale Resources. Carousing covers a workweek of fine
on a check total of 10 or higher if the item is common, food, strong drink, and socializing. A character can at-
15 or higher if it is uncommon, 20 or higher if it is rare, tempt to carouse among lower-, middle-, or upper-class
25 or higher if it is very rare, and 30 or higher if it is folk. A character can carouse with the lower class for
legendary. 10 gp to cover expenses, or 50 gp for the middle class.

CHAPTER 2 I DUNC EON MASTER'S TOOLS

Carous ing with the upper class requires 250 gp for the Lowe r-class contacts include criminals, la borers,
workweek a nd access to the local nobility. mercenaries, t he town guard , and a ny other folk who
A ch aracter w ith the noble background ca n m ingle normally freque nt the cheapest taverns in town.
w ith the upper class, but other characters can do so only Middle-class contacts include guild members, spell-
if you judge tha t the c ha racte r h as made s ufficient con- casters, town officials , and other folk who frequent well-
tacts. Alternatively, a c haracter might use a disguise kit ke pt establishments.
a nd the Deception s kill to pass as a noble vis iting from a Upper-class contacts are nobles and their personal
distant city. servants. Carousing with s uc h folk covers for mal ban-
Resolution. After a workweek of carousing, a charac- que ts, state dinne rs, and the like.
te r stands to ma ke contacts within the selected social Once a contact has helped or hinde red a cha racter,
class. The character makes a Charis ma (Pers uasion) the c ha racter needs to carouse again to get back into the
c heck us ing the Carousing table. NPC's good graces. A contact provides h elp once, not
help for life. The contact remains frie nd ly, which can in-
CA ROU S I N G fluence roleplaying and how t he characters interact w ith
Check the m , but doesn't come w ith a guara ntee of help.
Total Resu lt You ca n assign specific NPCs as contacts. You might
made a hostile contact.
decide that the barkeep a t the Wretched Gorgon and
1- 5 Character has
a gu a rd s tationed at the western gate are the charac-
6- 10 Character has made no new contacts.
te r's a llied contacts. Assigning specific NPCs gives the
11 - 15 Character has made an allied contact. players concre te options. It brings the ca mpaign to life
16- 20 Cha racter has made two all ied contacts. a nd seeds the area w it h N P Cs that the characters care
21+ Character has made three allied contacts. a bout. On the other ha nd, it can prove difficult to track
and might re nde r a contact useless if that character
Contacts are NPCs w ho now share a bond with the doesn't come into play.
c haracter. Each one either owes the ch aracte r a favor Alternatively, you can a llow the player to ma ke an
or has some reason to bear a grudge. A hostile contact NPC into a contact on the spot, after carous ing. Whe n
works against the c haracter, placing obstacles but s top- the cha racters are in t he a rea in which they caroused ,
ping s hort of com mitting a crime or a viole nt act. Allied a player can expe nd an a llied contact and designate
contacts a re friends w ho w ill re nde r aid to t he c haracte r, a n NPC they meet as a contact, assuming the NPC is
b ut not a t the r is k of the ir lives. of the correct social class based on how the ch a racter

CHAPTER 2 I DUNGEON Ml\STER'S TOOLS

caroused. The player should provide a reasonable expla- UPPER - CLASS CAROUSING COMPLICATI ONS
nation for this relationship and work it into the game. d8 Complication
Using a mix of the two approaches is a good idea,
A pus hy noble family wants to marry off o ne of
since it gives you the added depth of s pecific contacts
their scions to you.*
wh ile giving players the freedom to ens ure that the con-
tacts they accumulate are useful. 2 You tripped and fell during a dance, and peo ple
The same process can apply to hostile contacts. You can't stop talking about it.
can give the characters a specific NPC they s hould 3 You have agreed to take on a noble's debts.
avoid, or you m ight introduce one at an inopportune or 4 You have been challenged to a joust by a knight.*
dramatic moment. 5 You have made a foe ou t of a local noble.*
At a ny time, a character can have a maximum number 6 A boring noble insists you visit each day and listen
of uns pecified allied contacts equal to 1 +the character 's to long, tedious theories of magic.
Charis ma modifie r (minimum of 1). Specific, na med
7 You have become the target of a variety of embar-
contacts don't count toward this limit- only ones that
can be used at any time to declare an NPC as a contact. rassing rumors.*
Complications. Characters who carouse ris k bar 8 You spent an additiona l 500 gp trying to impress
brawls, accumulating a cloud of nasty rumors, and people.
building a bad re putation around town. As a rule of invo lve a rival
thumb, a character has a 10 percent chance of triggering
a complication for each workweek of carousing. CRAFTING AN ITEM
A cha racter who has the time, the money, a nd the
LOWER - CLASS CAROUSING COMPLICATIONS needed tools can use downtime to craft armor, weapons,
d8 Complication cloth ing, or other kinds of nonmagical gear.
A pickpocket lifts ldlO x 5 gp from you.* Resources and Resolution. In addition to the appro-
priate tools for the item to be crafted, a character needs
2 A ba r brawl leaves you with a scar.*
raw mater ials wor th half of the item's selling cost. To
3 You have fuzzy memories of doing something very,
determine how many workweeks it takes to create an
very illegal, but can't remember exactly what. item, divide its gold piece cost by SO. A cha racter can
4 You are banned from a tavern after some obnox- complete multiple items in a workweek if the items' com-
ious behavior.* bined cost is SO gp or lower. Items that cost more than
5 After a few drinks , you swore in the town square to SO gp can be completed over longer periods of time, as
pursue a dangerous quest. long as the work in progress is stored in a safe location.
6 Surprise! You're married. Multiple characters can combine their e fforts. Divide
the time needed to create an item by the number of char-
7 Streaking naked through the streets seemed like a
acters working on it. Use your judgment w hen determin-
great idea at t he time.
ing how many characters can collaborate on an item . A
8 Everyo ne is cal ling you by some weird , embarrass- particularly tiny item, like a rin g, might allow only one
ing nickname, like Puddle Drinker o r Bench Slayer, or two workers, w hereas a large, complex item m ight
and no one will say why.1' a llow four or more wo rkers.
* Might invo lve a rival A character needs to be proficient with the tools
needed to craft an item a nd have access to the appro-
MIDDLE-CLASS CAROUSING COMPLICATIONS priate equipment. Everyone who collaborates needs to
have the appropriate tool proficiency. You need to make
d8 Complication
a ny judgment calls regarding whether a character has
You accidenta lly insulted a guild master, and only the correct equipment. The following table provides
a public apology will let you do business with the some examples.
guild again .*
2 You swore to complete some quest on behalf of a Proficiency Items
temple or a guild. Herbalism kit Antitoxin, potion ofhealing
3 A social gaffe has made you the talk of the town.* Leatherworker's tools Leather armor, boots
4 A particularly obnoxious person has taken an in - Sm ith 's tools Armor, weapons
tense romantic interest in you.* Weaver's tools Cloaks, robes
5 You have made a foe out of a local spellcaster.*
6 You have been recruited to help run a local fest iva l, If all the above requirements are met, the result of th e
play, or similar event. process is an item of the desired sort. A character can
sell a n item crafted in this way at its listed price.
7 You made a drunken toast that scandalized the
Crafting Magic Items. Creating a magic item requi res
locals.
more than just time, effort, and materials. It is a long-
8 You spent an additional 100 g p trying to impress term process that involves one or more adventures to
people. track down rare materials and the lore needed to cre-
* Might involve a rival ate the item.

C H APTE R 2 I DUNGEON MASTER 'S TOO LS

 Potions ofhealing and spell scr oJ/s a re exceptions to
the following rules. For more information, see "Brewing
Potions of Healing" later in this section and the "Scrib-
ing a Spell S croll" section, below.
To start with, a c haracte r needs a formula for a magic
item in order to create it. The formu la is like a recipe.
It lis ts the materia ls needed a nd steps required to
make the item.
An item invariably requires an exotic material to com-
plete it. This materia l ca n ra nge from the s kin of a yeti to
a vial of wate r taken from a whirlpool on the Elemental
P la ne of Water. Finding that materia l should take place
as part of an adventure.
The Magic Item Ingredients tabl e suggests the c hal-
lenge rating of a creature that the cha racters need to
face to acquire the materials for an item. Note that fac-
ing a creature does not necessa rily mean that t he c har-
acters must collect items from its corpse. Rather, the
c reature might gua rd a location or a resource t hat the
cha racte rs need access to.

MAGIC I TEM INGREDIENTS

Item Rarity CR Rang e
Common 1-3
Uncommon 4- 8
Rare 9-12
Very rare 13- 18
Lege ndary 19+

If appropriate, pick a monster or a locatio n that is a

thematic fit for the item to be crafted. For example, cre-
ating mariner's armor might require the essence of a
water weird. Crafting a staff of charming mig ht require Comp lications. Most of the complications involved in
the cooperation of a specific a rca naloth, who w ill help creating something, especially a magic item, a re linked
only if the c haracters complete a task for it. Making a to the difficulty in finding rare ingredients or compo-
staff of power might hinge on acquiring a piece of a n ne nts needed to comple te the work. The complications
an cie nt stone that was once touched by the god of mag- a cha racte r mi ght face as byproducts o f the creation
ic- a s tone now gu arded by a s uspicious androsphinx. process are most interesting when the cha racters are
l n addition to facing a specific creature, c reating a n working on a magic item: there's a 10 percent chance for
item comes with a gold piece cost covering other mate- every five workweeks spent on crafting an item that a
rials, tools, a nd so on, based on the item's rarity. Those complication occurs. The Crafting Complications table
va lues, as well as the time a character needs to work in provides examples of what might happen.
order to complete the item, are s hown on the Magic Item
Crafting Time a nd Cost table. H a lve the .listed price and CRA FT ING COMPLICATIONS
creation time for any cons umable ite ms.
d6 Com plicat ion
MAGIC ITEM CRAFTING TIME A N D COS T Rumo rs swirl that what you're working on is unsta-
ble and a threat to the community.*
Item Rarity
2 Your tools are stolen, forcing you to buy new
Common l so gp
ones.*
Uncommon 2 200 gp
3 A local wizard shows keen interest in your work
Rare 10 2,000 gp
and insists on observing you.
Very ra re 2S 20,000 gp
4 A powerfu l noble offers a hefty price for yo ur work
Legendary so 100,000 gp
and is not interested in hearing no for an answer.*
* Halved for a consumable item li ke a potion or scroll s A dwarf clan accuses you of stealing its secret lore
to fuel your work.*
To complete a magic item, a ch aracter also needs
wh atever tool proficiency is appropriate, as for crafting a 6 A competitor spreads rumors that your work is
nonmagical object, or proficie ncy in th e Arcana s kill. shoddy and prone to failure.*
If all the above requirements are met, the result of the * Might involve a riva l
process is a magic item of the desired sort.

CHAPTER 2 I DUNGEON MASTER'S TOOLS

 Brewing Potions o f Healing. P otions of healing fall CR IM E COMPLICATIONS
into a s pecia l category for ite m crafting, sepa rate from d8 Complication
o ther m agic items . A character who h as proficiency with
A bounty equ al to your earnings is offere d for info r-
the herbalism kit can create these potions. The ti mes
and costs for doing so a re s umma rized on the Potio n of mation abou t your crime.*
Hea ling Creation ta ble. 2 An un known person contacts you, threatening to
reveal yo ur crime if you do n't rende r a service.*
POT IO N O F HE ALI N G CREATION 3 Your victim is fi nanc ially ruined by you r crime .
Type Time Cost 4 Someone who knows of you r crime has been ar-
Healing 1 day 25 gp rested on a n unrelated matter.>'•
Greater healing 1 wo rkweek 100 gp S Yo ur loot is a single , easily identified item that you
Superior hea ling 3 workweeks 1,000 gp ca n't fen ce in this region.
Su pre me he aling 4 workwee ks 10,000 gp 6 You rob be d someone who was unde r a loca l crime
lo rd 's protection, and wh o now wants revenge.
C RIME 7 You r victim calls in a favor from a guard, doubling
S om etimes it pays to be bad. T his activity gives a cha r- the efforts t o so lve the case.
acter the cha nce to ma ke some extra cash, at the risk 8 Your victim asks o ne of your a dvent uring co mpan-
of arrest. ions to solve the cri me .
Resources. A character must s pend one week a nd at
* Might involve a rival
least 25 gp gathe ring in fo rma tio n on potentia l ta rgets
before committing the intended crime. GAMB LI NG
Resolution. The cha racte r mus t ma ke a series of Ga mes of cha nce a re a way to ma ke a fortune- a nd per-
checks, with the DC for a ll the checks chosen by the haps a better way to Jose o ne.
cha racter accord ing to the a mount of profit s ought fro m Resources. T his activity requires o ne workweek of ef-
the crime. fo rt plus a stake of at least 10 gp, to a max imum of 1,000
T he chosen DC can be 10, 15, 20, or 25. Successful gp o r more, as you see fit.
completion of the crime yields a number of gold pieces, R esolution. The cha racter mus t ma ke a ser ies of
as s hown on the Loot Value table. checks, with a DC dete rmined at ra ndom based on th e
To a ttem pt a cr ime , the character makes three checks: quality of the competitio n that the character runs into.
Dex terity (Stealth), Dexterity us ing thieves' tools, a nd P ar t of th e r is k of gambling is that one never knows w ho
the playe r's choice of Intelligence (Investigatio n), Wis- mi ght e nd up sitting across the table.
dom (P e rception), or Cha ris ma (Deception). T he cha racter ma kes three checks : Wis dom (Ins ight),
If none of the checks a re s uccessful, the cha racter is Cha ris ma (Deceptio n), a nd Cha ris ma (Intimidation).
caught a nd ja iled. T he cha racter mus t pay a fine equa l to If the cha racter has proficie ncy with a n a ppropriate
the profit the crime would have earned a nd mus t s pend gaming set, that tool proficiency can re place the rele-
o ne week in jail for each 25 g p of the fine. va nt s ki ll in any of the checks. T he DC for each of the
If only one check is s uccessfu l, the he is t fa ils but the checks is 5 + 2d10; gene rate a separa te DC for each
cha racter escapes. one. Cons ult the Gambling Results table to see how the
If two checks a re s uccessful, the heist is a pa rtia l s uc- character did.
cess, netting the cha racter half the payout.
If all th ree checks a re s uccessful, the characte r earns GAMBLING RESULTS
the full va lue of the loot.
Result Value
L OOT V AL UE 0 successes Lose a ll the money you bet, and accrue a
debt e qua l to that amount.
DC Value
1 success Lose ha lf t he money yo u bet.
10 SO gp, robbery of a struggling mercha nt
2 successes Gain t he amo unt you bet plus ha lf again
1S 100 gp, robbery of a prosperou s me rchant
m ore.
20 200 gp, robbe ry of a noble
3 succe sses Gain dou ble t he am ount you bet.
25 1,000 gp, ro bbery of o ne of the ric hest fig ures in town

Complications. Ga mbling tends to attract unsavory

Complications. A life of crime is filled with complica-
individua ls. The potentia l complications involved come
tions. Ro ll on the Crim e Complications table (or create
from run-ins with the law and associa tio ns with vario us
a complication of your own) if the characte r s ucceeds
crimina ls tied to the activity. Every workweek spent
on o nly one check. If the character's riva l is involved in
ga mbling brings a 10 percent cha nce of a complicatio n,
cr ime or Jaw e nforcement, a complication ens ues if the
examples of which a re o n the Gambling Complica-
character s ucceeds on o nly two checks .
tio ns table .

CHAPTER 2 I DUNGEON MASTER"S TOOLS

GA M BLING CO MPLI CAT IO N S P IT FIGHTI N G COM P LIC AT I O N S

d6 Co mplication d6 Complication
You are accused of cheating. You decide whether 1 An opponent swears to take revenge on
you actually did cheat or were 2 A crime boss approaches you and offers to pay you
2 The town guards raid the gambling hall and throw to intentionally lose a few
you in jail/' 3 You defeat a popular local champion, drawing the
3 A noble in town loses badly to you and loudly vows crowd's ire.
to get revenge.* 4 You defeat a noble's servant, drawing the wrath of
4 You won a sum from a low-ranking member of a the noble's house.*
thieves' guild, and the guild wants its money back. 5 You are accused of cheating. Whether the allega·
5 A local crime boss insists you start frequenting the tion is true or not, your reputation is tarnished.*
boss's gambling parlor and no others. 6 You accidentally deliver a near-fatal wound to a foe.
6 A high-stakes gambler comes to town and insists '°'Might involve a rival
that you take part in a game.
RELAXATION
*Might involve a rival
Sometimes the best thing to do between adventu res is
PIT FIGHTING relax. Whether a cha racter wants a bard-earned vaca-
Pit fighting includes boxing, wrestling, and other nonle- tion or needs to recover from injuries, relaxation is t he
thal forms of combat in an organized setting with prede- ideal option for adventurer s who need a brea k. This op·
ter mined matches. If you want to introduce competi tive tion is a lso idea l for pl ayers who don't want to make use
fighting in a battle-to-the-death situation, the standard of the downtime system.
combat ru les apply to that sort of activity. Resources. Relaxation requires one week. A charac-
Resources. Engaging in this activity requires one ter needs to maintain at least a modest lifestyle while
workweek of effort from a character. relaxing to gain the benefit of the activity.
Resolution. The character must make a series of Resolution. C ha racters who maintain at least a mod-
checks, with a D C determined at random based on the est l ifestyle while relaxing gain several benefits. While
quality of the opposition that the character runs i nto. relaxing, a character gains advantage on saving throws
A big part of the challenge in pit fighting lies in the un- to recover from long-acting diseases and poisons. In
known nature of a cha racter 's opponents. addition, at the end of the week, a character can end one
The character makes three checks: Strength (Athlet- effect that keeps the character from regaining hit points,
ics), Dexterity (Acrobatics), and a special Constitution or ca n restore one ability score that has been reduced to
check that has a bonus equal to a rol l of the character's less than its normal value. T his benefit ca nnot be used
largest Hit Die (this roll doesn't spend that die). ff de- if the harmful effect was caused by a spell or some other
sired, the character can replace one of these skill check s magica l effect with a n ongoing duration.
w ith an attack roll using one o f the cha racter's weapons. Complications. Relaxation rarely comes with com-
The DC for each o f the checks is 5 + 2d10; generate a plicat ions. I f you want to make life complicated for the
separate DC for each one. ConsuJt the Pit F ighti ng Re- characters, introduce an action or an event connected
sults table to see how the character did. to a r ival.

RELIGIOUS SERVICE
PIT FIGHTING RESULT S
C haracters with a religious bent might want to spend
Result Value downtime in ser vice to a temple, either by attending
0 successes Lose your bouts, earning nothing. rites or by prosely tizing in the community. Someone
1 success Win 50 gp. w ho undertakes this activity has a chance of winning
2 successes Win 100 gp. the favor of the temple's leaders.
3 successes Win 200 gp. R esources. Performing religious service requires ac-
cess to, and often attendance at, a temple whose beliefs
and align with the character's. If such a place is
Complications. Characters involved in pit fighting
available, the activity takes one workweek of t ime but
must deal with thei r opponents, the people who bet on
involves no gold piece expend iture.
matches, and the m atches' promoters. Every workweek
R esolution. At t he end of t he required time, the char-
spent pit fighting bri ngs a 10 percent chance of a compli·
acter chooses to make either an Intelligence (Religion)
cation, examples of w hich are on the P it Fighting Com-
check or a Charisma (Persuasion) check. The total of
pl ications table.
the check determines the benefits of service, as shown
on the Religious Service table.
 workweek spent in religious service brings a 10 percent
chance of a complication, examples of which are on the
Religious Service Complicatio ns table.

R E LIG I OUS S E RV IC E CO M P LIC AT IONS

d6 Complication
You have offended a priest through your words or
actions.*
2 Blasphemy is sti ll blasphemy, even if you did it by
accident.
3 A secret sect in the temple offers you membership.
4 Another temple tries to recruit you as a
5 The temple elders implore you to take up a holy
quest.
6 You accidentally discover that an important person
in the temple is a fiend worshiper.
*Might involve a rival

RESEARCH
Forewarned is forearmed. The research downtime ac-
tivity a llows a cha racter to de lve into lo re concerning a
monster, a location, a magic item, or some other partic-
ular topic.
Resources. Typically, a character needs access to a
library or a sage to conduct research. Assuming such
access is available, conducting research requires one
workweek of effort and at least 50 gp spent on materia ls,
bribes, gifts, and other ex penses.
Resolution. The character decla res the foc us of the
research-a specific person, place, or thing. After one
workweek, the cha racter makes a n Intell igence check
with a +1 bonus per 100 gp s pent beyond the initial
100 gp, to a maximum of +6. In addition, a character
R EL IGIOUS S ERV I C E who has access to a particula rly well-stocked library
Check or knowledgeable sages gains adva ntage on this check.
Total Result Determine how much lore a cha racter learns using the
1-10 No effect. Your efforts fail to make a lasting Research Outcomes table.
impression.
RESEARCH OUTCOMES
11-20 You earn one favor.
Check
21+ You earn two favors.
Total Outcome
1- 5 No effect.
A favo r, in broad terms, is a promise of future assis-
tance from a representative of the te mple . It can be 6- 10 You lea rn one piece of lore.
expended to ask the temple for he lp in deali ng with a 11 - 20 You learn two pieces of lore.
s pecific problem, for general political or s ocia l support, 21+ You learn three pieces of lore.
or to red uce the cost of cleric spellcasting by 50 percent.
A favor could also take the form of a de ity's intervention, Each piece of lore is the equivalent of one true s tate-
s uch as an omen, a vision, or a minor miracle provided ment about a person, place, or thing. Examples include
at a key moment. This la tte r sort of favor is expended by knowl edge of a creature's resis ta nces, the password
the DM, who a lso determines its nature. needed to ente r a sealed dungeon level, the spells com-
Favors earned need not be expended immediately, but monly prepa red by an order of wizards, a nd so on.
only a certain numbe r can be stored up. A character can As DM, you are the fina l a rbiter concerning exactly
have a maximum number of unused favors equal to 1 + what a cha racter learns. For a monster or an NPC, you
the character 's Charisma modifier (minimum of one un- can reveal eleme nts of statistics or personality. For a lo-
used favor). cation, you can reveal secrets a bout it, such as a hidden
Complication s . Temples can be labyrinths of political entrance, the a nswer to a riddle, or the nature of a crea-
and social scheming. Even the bes t-intentioned sect can ture that guards the place.
fall prone to riva lries. A character who serves a temple Complications. The greatest ris k in research is un-
risks becoming embroiled in such struggles. Every covering fa lse information. Not a ll lore is accurate or

CHAPTER 2 I DUNGEON MASTER'S TOOLS

truthful, and a rival with a scholarly bent might try to brings a 10 percent c ha nce of a complication, examples
lead the character astray, especially if the obj ect of the of which are on the Scribe a Scroll Complications table.
research is known to the rival. The rival might plant
false inform a tion, bribe sages to give bad advice, or steal SCRIBE A SCROLL COMPLICATIONS
key tomes needed to find the truth. d6 Complication
In addition, a character might run into oth e r com-
You bought up the last of the rare ink used to craft
plications during research. Every workweek spent in
scrolls, angering a wizard in town.
resea rch brings a 10 percent chance of a complication,
examples of which are on the Research Complica- 2 The priest of a temple of good accuses you of traf-
tions table. ficking in dark magic.*
3 A wiz ard eager to collect one of your spells in a
RESEARCH COMPLICATIONS book presses you to sell the scroll.
d6 Complication 4 Due to a strange error in creating the scroll, it is
You accidentally damage a rare book. instead a random spell of the same level.
2 You offend a sage, who demands an extravagant 5 The ra re parchment you bought for your scroll has
gift.* a barely visible map on it.
3 If you had known that book was cursed, you never 6 A thief attempts to break into your workroom.*
would have opened it. involve a rival
4 A sage becomes obsessed with convincing you of a
SELLING A MAGIC ITEM
number of strange t heories about reality."'
Selling a magic item is by no means an easy task. Con
5 Your actions cause you to be banned from a library
artists and thieves are a lways looking out for an easy
until you make reparations.*
score, and there's no guarantee that a character w ill re-
6 You uncovered useful lore, but only by promising ceive a good offer even if a legitimate buyer is found.
to complete a dangerous task in return. R esources. A c haracter can find a buyer for one
involve a rival magic ite m by spending one workweek and 25 gp, which
is used to spread word of the desired sale. A c haracter
SCRIBING A SPELL SCROLL mus t pick one item at a time to sell.
With time and patience, a spellcaster can transfer a Resolution. A character w ho wants to sell an item
spell to a scroll, creating a spell scroll. must make a Charisma (Persuasion) check to determine
Resources. Scribing a spell scroll takes an amount of what kind of offer comes in. The character can always
time and money related to the level of the spell the char- opt not to sell, instead forfeiting the workweek of effor t
acter wants to scribe, as shown in the Spell Scroll Costs and trying again later. Use the Magic Item Base Prices
table. In addition, the character must have proficiency and Magic Item Offer tables to determi ne the sale price.
in the Arcana skill and must provide any materia l com-
ponents required fo r the casti ng of the spell. Moreover, MAGIC ITEM BASE PRICES
the c haracter must have t he spell prepared, or it must be Rarity Base Price"'
among the character's known spells, in order to scribe a Common 100 gp
scroll of that spell.
Uncommon 400 gp
If the scribed spell is a can trip, the version on the
scroll works as if the caster were 1st level. Rare 4,000 gp
Very rare 40,000 gp
SPELL SCROLL COSTS Legendary 200,000 gp
Spell Level Time Cost "'Halved for a consumable item like a potion or scroll
Cantrip l day 15 gp
lst l day 25 gp MAGIC ITEM OFFER

2nd 3 days 250 gp Check

3rd Tota l Offer
l workweek 500 gp
4th 2 workweeks 2,500 gp 1-10 50% of base price
5th 4 workweeks 5,000 gp 11-20 100% of base price
6th 8 workweeks 15,000 gp 21+ 150% of base price
7th 16 workweeks 25,000 gp
32 workweeks 50,000 gp
Complications. T he main risk in selling a magic item
8th
lies in attracting th ieves and anyone else who wants the
9th 48 workweeks 250,000 gp
item but doesn't want to pay for it. Other folk might try to
undermine a deal in o rder to bolster t heir own business
Complications. Crafting a spelf scroll is a solitary or seek to discredit the character as a legitimate seller.
task, unlikely to attract much attention. The complica- Every workweek spent trying to sell an item brings a 10
tions that arise are more likely to involve the preparation percent chance of a complication, examples of which are
needed for the activity. Every workweek spent scribing on the Magic Item Sale Complicatio ns table.

CHAPTER 2 J DUNGEON MASTER'S TOOLS

 TRAI N ING CO M PLICATI ONS
d6 Complication
Your instructor disappears, forcing you to spend
one workweek finding a new one.*
2 Your teacher instructs you in rare, archaic meth -
ods, which draw comments from others.
3 Your teacher is a spy sent to learn your plans.*
4 Your teacher is a wanted criminal.
5 Your teacher is a cruel taskmaster.
6 Yo ur teacher asks for help dea ling with a th reat.
involve a rival

WORK
When all else fails, a n adventurer can turn to an honest
trade to earn a living. This activity re prese nts a char-
acter's attempt to find temporary work, the qua lity and
wages of which are diffic u lt to predict.
Resources. Performing a job requ ires one workweek
of effort.
Resolution. To determine how much money a c har-
acter earns, the character makes an ability check:
Strength (Athletics), Dexterity (Acrobatics), Intelligen ce
using a set of tools , Charisma (Performance), or Cha-
risma using a musical instru ment. Consult the Wages
table to see how much money is generated according to
t he tota l of the check.

WAGES
Check
Tota l Ea rnings
MAGIC ITEM SALE COMPLICAT IONS 9 or lower Poor lifestyle for the week
d6 Complication 10-14 Modest lifestyle for the week
Your enemy secretly arranges to buy the item to 15-20 Comfortable lifestyle for the week
use it against you.* 21+ Comfortable lifestyle for the week+ 25 gp
2 A thieves' guild, alerted to the sale, attempts to
steal your item.1' Complications. Ordinary work is rarely fi lled with
3 A foe circulates rumors that your item is a fake.* significant complications. Still, the Work Complications
4 A sorcerer claims your item as a birthright and de- table can add some difficulties to a worke r's life. Each
mands you hand it over. workweek of activity brings a 10 percent chance that a
character e ncou nters a complication.
5 Your item 's previous owner, or surviving all ies of
t he owner, vow to retake the item by force.
WOR K COMPLICATIONS
6 The buyer is murdered before the sale is finalized.*
d6 Complication
* Might involve a rival
A difficu lt customer or a fight with a coworker re-
TRAINING duces t he wages you earn by one category.*
Giveo e nough free time and the services of an instruc- 2 Your emp loyer's financial difficu lties result in you r
tor, a cha racter can lea rn a language or pick up profi- not being
ciency with a tool. 3 A coworker with ties to an important family in town
Resources. Receiving training in a language or tool takes a dislike to you.*
typica lly ta kes at least ten workweeks, but this time is 4 Your employer is involved w ith a dark cu lt or a
reduced by a numbe r of workweeks equa l to th e c ha r- criminal enterprise.
acter 's Intellige nce modifier (an Intellige nce p e nalty
5 A crime ring targets you r business for extortion.*
doesn't increase the time needed). Training costs 25 gp
per workweek. 6 You gain a reputation for laziness (unjustified or
Complications. Complications that arise w hile train- not, as you choose), giving you disadvantage on
ing typically involve the teache r. Every ten workweeks checks made for this downtime activity for the next
spent in training brings a 10 percent chance of a compli- six workweeks you devote to it.*
cation, examples of which are on the Training Complica- * Might involve a rival
tions table.

CHAPTER 2 I DUNGEON MASTER·s TOOLS