Thieves’ Guild

This is yet another installation in my Downtime Activities series. Previously, I wrote about a Mage Guild and a Warrior Arena. I wasn’t clear before, but with the exception of the tables for the activity of the guild, these Rank or Renown tables, the Complications table, and the Rivals and Allies all come from D&D’s 5e Dungeon Master Guide Chapters 1 and 6, and the Xanther’s Guide to Everything chapter on Downtime Activities. The idea is that these tables provide some structure and inspiration to guide both DM’s and players during any downtime between adventures.

So, for instance, for the Thieves Guild, a PC might say they are going to hang out at the Guild for a couple of months, and attempt two jobs. They might gain a renown point for just hanging out at the Guild (suggested renown awards for hanging out at a guild is Current Renown X 10 = 1 Renown), but they would also roll on the Jobs Table to see if they successfully pulled off a thieving job. The DM would also roll for a 10% chance for each job, plus however many times s/he thinks is necessary for the PC’s time spent hanging out at the guild. If a Complication occurs, then the DM would roll on the complication table. The DM might also simply mention things the PC sees while at the Guild, such as mentioning something the PC sees a rival or ally doing.

And without further ado, here are the tables and rivals/allies:

Renown/Rank Table

Rank	Renown + Prereq	Privileges  (each level includes all privileges of the lower ranks)
Cut Purse	1 + reference	Know thieves’ guild password, access to guild’s fence
Sticky (Fingers)	3 + A Successful Job	Trusted accomplices for small heists, small cut of profit, access to safe houses
Handy (Man/Gal)	10 + Successful heist involving traps	Trusted accomplices for large heists, good cut of profit
Shadow	25 + Successful heist involving infiltration	Trusted with all jobs, large cut of profit,
King/Queen	50 + Opportunity	Leadership of Guild

Jobs Table

Job Type (player’s choice)→ Outcome (d100) ↓	Mild Risk	Moderate Risk	High Risk
You fail (1-5)	You make no money	You get sent to jail for d6 days, property confiscated*, lose 1 renown	You are sentenced to death, property confiscated*, lose 3 renown
You barely pull it off (6-15)	You make 1 gold	You retrieve 10% of the loot	You retrieve only 10% of the loot + useful item
You do okay (16-35)	You make 4 gold	You retrieve 25% of the loot	You retrieve 25% of the loot + useful information
You do an average job (36-65)	You make 10 gold	You retrieve 50% of the loot	You retrieve 50% of the loot + common magical item
You did great  (66-85)	You make 20 gold	You retrieve 75% of the loot	You retrieve 75% of the loot + valuable information
Total success! (86 – 95)	You make 25 gold	You retrieve 100% of the loot	You retrieve 100% of the loot + uncommon magical item
Jackpot! (96-100)	You make 35 gold	You gain 1 renown  and 125% of the loot	You gain 3 renown, 150% of the loot, and learn a closely guarded secret

* If your property is confiscated, any contraband is destroyed and you have a 20% chance that something else is missing upon receiving it back.

Complications Table

(roll for 10% chance anytime DM believes appropriate, such as anytime player attempts a heist or for every 10 days they hang out at the guild)

d6	Complication
1	You realize during a heist that the people you’re stealing from are good people
2	Some piece of loot (e.g. an oil lamp) is housing a monster (genie/ghost/elemental).
3*	You receive an ominous message (e.g. a black coin or a broken clock)
4*	You were crossed!
5	Some piece of loot has a mysterious stamp/map on it.
6	The guards raid the guild

Possible Rivals or Allies

• Okuz (thug/m/half-orc/27 years old/Sticky) has been with the Guild for ten years, but has never advanced to Handy since he always manages to set off traps. However, he’s well-liked for his fun-loving nature and serves as an imposing figure when the Guild goes to collect on its debts. Okuz, therefore, has a lot of influence in the Guild, and can be ally to anyone he takes a shine to. However, he hates anyone who doesn’t like fun or disapproves of his debt-collecting methods.
  • Goal: To finally pull off a real heist.
  • Assets: Always seems to “know a guy.” He lives in a single-bedroom apartment in the seedy part of town with his long-term girlfriend, Obecay.
  • Actions: Okuz always challenges new Guild members to a drinking contest. He doesn’t care so much if he wins or loses as long as he has a good time with the new person. Anyone he deems a party-pooper he will start to bully and turn other guild members against. Anyone who he has a good time with, he’ll mostly leave alone. If he has a really good time, he’ll take them under his wing.
• Sunny Icelake (assassin/f/half-elf/60/Shadow) is one of the Guild’s elite thieves, well-known for her excellent assassin skills. Her reputation is so well-known that she makes a significant income from wealthy nobles who pay her to ignore any job offers she gets to assassinate them. Rumors say that she made a pact with dark forces which allow her to turn into a wind at will, but she dismisses such rumors as envy.
  • Goal:  To make enough money that she can disappear.
  • Assets: Sunny lives in a beautiful townhouse in the city’s trendiest district. She also may or may not have connections with dark forces which she may or may not be willing to share with the right person (or turn against someone who makes her an enemy)
  • Actions: Sunny is always on the look out for new weapons and poisons to use in her assassinations, and will pay handsomely for such. However, she will not look kindly of someone who tries to compete with her.
•  Jay Cap (assassin/m/human/40/Shadow) is a skilled thief with a soft heart. He is a beautiful man, with almond eyes and long, dark hair he wears in a bun. His archery skills know no match. His charismatic personality wins him many friends, even among those he steals from. He gives most of his loot to charity.
  • Goal: To become the guild’s King and turn the guild from merely a bunch of thieves to thieves with a noble purpose – to take from the rich and give to the poor.
  • Assets: Jay lives out of town in a caravan with about a dozen of his loyal supporters. He is also good friends with the high priests of the local temple and has the king’s unofficial approval (the king figures he’d rather someone like Jay Cap running the thieves’ guild than someone more brutal). The head of the guard, though, hates Jay.
  • Actions: Jay asks any new members if they would voluntarily give some of their profits to the poor, and although he won’t begrudge those who chose not to, he will look more favorably on those who do. He could be willing to be a co-ruler with a person who he deems generous and good-hearted, but will oppose the rise of someone he sees as cruel or petty, or someone unwilling to share the crown with him.
• Night Rose (thief/f/human/22/handygal) is a fast-talking, master-of-disguise. She can infiltrate any event from exclusive balls to illegal backroom betting rooms. She steals not for money, but for fun. Sometimes she gives her loot to Jay for charity, but more often, she spends it on frivolous things like a dress made out of butterfly wings. Once, she even took all the money from a heist and burned it. When asked why she was doing so, she replied that thieving wasn’t any fun if she was rich.
  • Goal: To pull off the ultimate heist, one that will go down in the history books.
  • Assets: Night Rose owns a modest townhouse where she displays some of the more notable items she has stolen or purchased with stolen money. However, she cannot usually be found there since she is more often than not undercover. She also owns a farmhouse outside of town which she bought for her parents and siblings, and sends them money. Most people do not know about her family as she works to keep them secret for fear both that other theives’ would see her as soft and to protect them danger, but they are the only people she truly cares about.
  • Actions: If Night Rose thinks the player character could help her with an undercover mission, she will approach them. She may also ask them along after a successful heist to help spend her cut of the shares. She can help the PC make good contacts and learn how to do good disguises. However, if the PC tries to lecture her on her frivolous ways or is a downer, they will have made an enemy.

Warrior Arena: Rank Table

This is another post in my downtime activities series. Previously, I had done a series of post on a mages’ guild (here, here, and here). This time, I offer Warrior Arena. Post one here is the Rank Table.

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Warrior Arena Rank Table

Rank	Renown	Privileges
Fresh Meat	1 Renown, 14 Strength or Dexterity, and 12 Constitution	Fight in the pre-shows
Green Horn	3	Fight in the main arena
Warrior	10	X2 multiplier on winnings, and you will start to be recognized outside the ring, occasionally strangers will offer to pay your tab, or give you nominal gifts
Veteran	25 + 1,000 gold bond (for resurrection)	X3 multiplier on winnings, you have a special arena name and audience cheer, and you have a fan base who will send you regular gifts or offers.
Champion	50	X4 multiplier on winnings, and you are always the main event, you can barely walk down the street without fans asking for autographs, inns might give you free lodging or food just so they can say you were there, don’t be surprised if weapon makers approach you to be the poster-child for their newest weapons.

 

Downtime Activities: Mage Guild Allies

This is the second in my series of Downtime Activities. Today I feature allies for a Mage Guild. Check out suggested Mage Guild rivals here

• The janitor Jon Greenlake (commoner/m/human/55 years old/unranked). Jon has been the mage guild’s janitor for 10 years, a position given to him by the head mage after Jon lost his left arm and right-hand fingers in an accident that may have been the result of poorly packed shipment of alchemy fire headed to the guild. Jon may take a an interest in a character who is kind to him.

Assets: Keys to every single room, including any sort of ‘forbidden’ areas.  Not only can he offer access to any part of the guild to a friend, he can also retrieve items. In addition, he has overheard a fair share of gossip and ‘secret’ meetings during his cleaning duties.

• Erwel Fenwick (cult leader, but with any good alliance (change the spells as you see fit)/f/half-elf/70 years old/Owl). Erwel mainly hangs out in the Owl Restaurant scarfing down oysters while flipping through library books. However, she also loves tea and cookies and can be found in the coffee shop in the morning and mid-afternoons. She doesn’t enjoy traveling herself, but loves to hear adventuring stories.

Assets: As an Owl, Erwel can help her friends move up the rungs quickly. She often will ask younger guild members to help with her research by verifying information she reads in her books, or provide her with the ingredients for spells. She is on good terms with Gweneth Fireiron, and can use her influence to soften any animosity Gweneth may hold against a fellow guild member.

Downtime Activities: Mage Guild Rivals

This is the start of a new series of posts I plan to do which focus on downtime activities. First up is suggested rivals for a Mage Guild:

• The head librarian Gweneth Fireiron (archmage/f/dwarf/300 years old/eagle) has been head librarian for the past 150 years, and part of the Mage’s Guild for the past 250 years, and doesn’t like new mages who think they can rise through the ranks quickly. It took her 75 years to reach eagle status, so she doesn’t see why anyone else has to be in such a rush.
  • Goal: To keep things the way they have always been.
  • Assets: As a voting Eagle and head librarian, Fireiron has great influence on who gets promoted to higher levels and who has access to the library (yes, a member’s rank entitles them to access, but sometimes certain areas might need cleaning or Gweneth might be out to lunch).
  • Actions: Fireiron doesn’t have any kind of master plan, but she will oppose any PC who tries to rise too quickly and will need persuading to vote for them. If the PC annoys her, she may limit their access to the library or get other mages to vote against them.

• Gavin Frostfields (acolyte/m/human/17 years old/member) joined the Guild a few months ago as its youngest ever member. He’s always been good at everything he’s done, so he doesn’t know what it’s like to fail. He instantly resents anyone who criticizes him or gets in his way. If it weren’t for the fact he’s so good at magic, he would probably be kicked out. He’s determined to make it to Eagle in record time, and resents anyone who ‘shows him up.’
  • Goal: To be the darling of the Guild
  • Assets: Although only a Member, his grandfather, Harold Frostfields, owns a very profitable liquor wholesaler and is sponsoring him. His grandfather has also bought a small Inn in town, The Lonely Pelican, which he lets Gavin ‘run’ (in reality, Harold’s employee runs it). The Inn is very popular and well-run, making Gavin very popular.
  • Actions: If Gavin thinks someone is getting more attention than him, he will try to sabotage them. Perhaps by buying off people who would otherwise help that person or sending bandits to make things difficult for the rival.

Review: Tales from the Yawning Portal

It’s out! Tales from the Yawning Portal, D&D’s newest adventure supplement was released on March 24 in game shops and will be released on April 4th in other locations. As promised, the book consists of seven classic dungeons updated for 5e ranging from Against the Giants released in 1978 to Dead in Thay released in 2014. The dungeons can be run separately or strung together to form one long campaign. I’ve had a chance to thumb through it this weekend.

The supplement starts off with a nice overview and history of the seven dungeons. Here, we also learn where the book gets its title: The Yawning Portal is the name of an inn suggested as the headquarters for the players to rest between adventures and get their next dungeon quest. The inn itself sits on top of, and serves as an entrance to, a massive dungeon which, sadly, is not featured in the book.

The dungeons follow and each chapter has more or less the same structure: an overview of the adventure, suggested plot hooks and settings, and then room-by-room descriptions. Information is not repeated. Usually, I find this format cumbersome for open-world games, but it works well for dungeon crawls.  The maps are highly detailed and nicely drawn. However, many of them are quite small and there are no poster inserts included. Given their level of detail, DMs will want to pre-draw them. As a bonus, each chapter includes a nice blurb on the history of the publication.

The Sunless Citadel is the first dungeon and advances characters from first to third level. It’s billed as a great introduction to D&D for new players and DMs alike. The adventure has players exploring a subterranean fortress looking for a mysterious and magical fruit. There is a lot of variety and fun encounters, but like all the dungeons in this book, it is very much a kick-down-the-door and take the loot, with the overall plot being very loose.

The Forge of Fury brings characters third to fifth level. Sticking again to classic tropes, this adventure explores a multi-level ancient Dwarven dungeon reminiscent of Tolkien’s work. Don’t ask too many questions about why the monsters on each level don’t interact.

The Hidden Shrine of Tomoachan is designed for 5th level characters. Although originally published in 1980, its setting is still unique for D&D and has players exploring a ruined temple influenced by Aztec/Mayan/Toltec mythology and society. Each room is packed with information and some descriptions go on for multiple pages.

White Plume Mountain is one of the most famous D&D adventures and has been modified here for 8th level players. Players make their way through a volcano dungeon to find three magical weapons. Filled with lots of challenges that basically amount to “roll above X number or take massive damage” and nonsensical monsters (you might even find the pitiful vampire that inspired the creation of the sinister Strahd), this adventure is more about nostalgia and kicking-in doors than anything else.

Dead in Thay is the newest dungeon in the book and takes players from 9th to 11th level. Players explore the Doomvault, a massive menagerie and laboratory run by evil wizards. The map for this one is gigantic and all squeezed onto one page. There are some bigger views of each sector, but you will probably still need a magnifying glass to see the detail.

Against the Giants is actually three mini-adventures which advance players from 11th to 14th level. There is kind of a three little pigs influence as any undefeated giants from one section will run to the next and DMs will have to do more legwork to change the dungeons to fit the players’ actions.

Tomb of Horrors caps the supplement. No suggested level is given except that parties should be large and well-prepared. The dangers here aren’t so much high-level monsters as tricky puzzles that will force players to use their own brains more than their characters’. Although this is one of the oldest adventures in D&D, this style of play will not suit everyone as there is little room for role-playing or even combat.

After all the dungeons, the book has two extensive appendixes of magic items and monsters. Thankfully, unlike other D&D adventure supplements, these are mainly stat blocks instead of descriptions, so DMs won’t find they’ve missed a crucial piece of lore when they flip to the appendix.

Conclusion

Overall, this is a fun supplement, especially if you are looking to replay, or play for the first time, classic dungeon crawls in 5e without having to do the conversion yourself. As is common with D&D adventure publications, there is a ton of information packed into prose-style paragraphs that can be hard to navigate as a DM. Information is not repeated and if you want to really absorb everything, you will need to read it closely. However, since each dungeon is self-contained, DMs can run these adventures with minimum prep. Tales of the Yawning Portal works well as either a supplement for a larger campaign, as mini-campaigns, or to run for a more casual group where players cannot make every session. Just don’t expect anything revolutionary.

 

Random Encounter Table for the Underworld

Inspired by Ancient Egyptian mythology of the Underworld, today’s inspiration is a random encounter table:

Roll	Encounter
1	A group of hostile undead mindlessly attacks the PCs.
2	A dirty river filled with hippos or crocodiles who might be hostile.
3	Shadows unpeel themselves from their hiding spots.
4	A pack of roving Hell hounds attack.
5	A group of souls living in rotten structures. They are determined to stay here instead of moving on to the next phase.
6	A lost pet soul wanders across the PCs path looking for its master.
7	A friendly traveler hails the PCs. She’s here on a mission to recover some rare Underworld plants for her research.
8	A group of fading souls meander aimlessly. They will soon vanish if nothing is done.
9	An angel, its wings chained and broken, pleads the PCs for help.
10	A solitary door covered in ancient runes.
11	A temple with a group of strange creatures performing some kind of sacrifice.
12	A small woods in which the trees seem to fade in and out of existence.
13	A broken machine in scattered pieces, its gnome owner sits nearby trying to fit two back together.
14	A crashed boat, its captain dead at the wheel.
15	A Glabrezu offers the PCs a deal.
16	New souls arriving. Most begin to silently make their way across the Underworld. Some don’t seem to realize they are dead and rush about confused.
17	Giant boils rupture out of the ground. Some of them pop, releasing a noxious slime.
18	Gold, honey, and fruits suddenly appear, reflecting sacrifices made on the material plane.
19	The ground becomes soft and gives way into a cavern.
20	A group of manes eating souls.

Squirrel Hog

Today a combination animal for use with Dungeon World

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Squirrel Hogs combine the mass and aggression of hogs, the agility and speed of squirrels, and the intelligence of both to create a terrifying beast housed in an adorable body. Not only is it pleasantly plump, but it sports a bushy, corked tail.

A mad wizard designed the Squirrel Hog to serve as a more agile and intelligent attack dog.  However, the animals turned out too strong-willed. They constantly escaped from their cages, and did not respond to conditioning. So, in a fit of frustration from the waste of hundreds of hours, the good doctor released them into the wild. The Squirrel Hogs proceeded to wreak havoc on the land: tearing up fields, stripping orchards bare, and eating up entire storerooms of food.

Today, villages take extreme measures to prevent the roving Squirrel Hog packs from destroying their livelihood. They build high fences, moats and spiked pits around fields. They cover trees in netting laced with metal. They employ round-the-clock patrols and everyone carries a boar spear with them in case of an attack. Travelers to the forests must be especially wary as mother Squirrel Hogs and their offspring live in tree nests and attack anyone who gets too close. Several mother hogs will often make nests in a close group of trees and come to each others’ aid, dropping onto perceived threats in one giant mass of clawing, tusked, biting bodies.

Instinct: To eat

Tags: Organized, Group, Intelligent

10 HP, 1 armor

D6 +2 (Teeth and claws, close)

Special Moves

• Leap farther than you thought it could
• Climb something very fast
• Clever girls

 

 

 

Wisdom Tree City

Wisdom Tree City has always existed, nestled on an island where two mighty rivers pour into the ocean. Every hundred years or so the Goddess Weeps, as the natives say. The two rivers swell, merge into one, and overrun the city. After they retreat, they leave behind a thick sand burying everything except the peak of the great magical library, The Wisdom Tree. The citizens return and rebuild. The library grows taller. Probably no one would bother settling here if it weren’t for its position of a great port, a natural magic aura, the library, and the mines.

The Wisdom Tree stands in the middle of the city, its roof so high it seems to scrape the sky. Underground, floor upon floor descends so deep that no one knows where it ends. Side passageways split off from the main tower and meander through the city’s sand-filled ruins like the roots of a tree. The library’s ancient magic prevents any mud from leaking through and keeps the air circulating at the perfect temperature.

Mine tunnels built by prospectors also twist through the ruins. Every miner hopes to find valuable artifacts from forgotten times, but few do. Most arrive in the city poorly equipped and many perish digging through the ruins. In the upper mine tunnels, petty thieves, transients, and the desperate take up residence in the relatively safety. More sinister criminals live in the mid-tunnels, planning heists and waiting to prey on lost miners. Only the bravest dare venture to the deepest levels where unknown monsters lurk in the dark, and the most valuable artifacts wait.

But by far the most popular attraction for common folk is the Aquatic Arena, a giant stadium built in the middle of the bay where teams compete in impressive water battles. No expense is spared. Warriors clash on top of exotic sea monsters captured from the Far Seas. Gnomes command huge whirling machinery, slicing through the choppy waves  to tear apart their opponents. Wizards using the latest magical discoveries dart across the arena, easily passing from the sky to under the water, painting the battle with the bursts of spells.

Ghost Origins

A good ghost has a good background, but it can be hard to think up a background on a spot. Here is a list of backgrounds to help.

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The Lost Lover: A young woman who ran off away with a sailor, only to be sacrificed by the crew to appease the sea gods when a storm hit.

The Rising star and Fans: A famous singer and his audience who died in a theater fire.

The Time Traveler: A wizard who wanted revenge on his father, but accidentally went back too far and committed the murder before he had been conceived.

The Accidental Tourists: Sightseers who died when their touring carriage accidentally entered a desert pocket dimension with no way out.

The Informer: A barmaid who got caught buying illegal drugs. She became an undercover informer for the City Guard to avoid punishment, but the drug gang found out and had her executed.

The Tortured: Not even after they shoved needles up her toenails or held her over burning coals would she tell them where she had hidden the Book of the Moon.

The Lost: A party goer who got drunk, entered the catacombs on a dare, and never found her way back out.

The Falconer: A woman who trained and piloted giant falcons, but was eaten by her own Red Eye.

Dwarven Ruins

This week, three box-text descriptions of unique dwarven ruins.

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Dwarven Racing Ground Ruins

Giant racing wheels rust on the overgrown track. A breeze blows through the arena, stirring the wildflowers and rattling the empty stands. The place would be very quiet if it weren’t for a small building on the far end. Light and voices stream out of its windows.  A gruff shout for music and the sounds of fiddles and singing join the noise. Over the inn, a giant bell engraved with Dwarven lettering sways in the air. Each time the clapper strikes, the wheels in the yard seem to twitch as if disturbed from a deep sleep.

Dwarven Moonshine Operation Ruins

Copper tanks of all shapes and sizes spill across the mountainside. The smell of alcohol still wafts up from their broken hulls. On every one is painted a red circle pierced by an ‘X,’ letting all know that the King’s agents have found and destroyed this tax-dodging operation. 

Dwarven Shipyard Ruins

Black slabs of ships float next to docks. On board, rows of golems stand ever ready to load cargo and sail across the seas to wherever it’s needed. Their salt-pitted casings and the slime covering everything informs that no cargo has come for a long time.