WHAT – A Day Carousing

Taverns and Inns are deeply embedded in Role Playing Games and fantasy literature. Whether it is the Prancing Pony in Lord of the Rings or Inn of the Last Home in DragonLance, the tavern inn is an important meeting place for characters and often serves as home, or base of operations, for traveling characters. The Carousing Encounter was originally designed to take place in a tavern, but Warrior Heroes Adventures in Talomir (WHAT) goes a step further in not limiting the encounter’s activities to a single building. Now your Carousing Encounter can take place in several locations in a village, town, or city. Bhoma Yasmu, my character, and her party are in the city of Kadesh. the provincial capital of Kultepe in the kingdom of Entoich.

At the end of the Dungeon Encounter (see WHAT 1st Encounter – Part 4, the Game), The party had accumulated a good bit of loot. After selling the non-magical items to Ibrul Cloudbrand, the merchant who had guided them to the abandoned temple, Shashah, Neshi, Emini, Denja and Svona each received 5 Increasing Rep d6 and Bhoma received 7.

The Increasing Rep d6 can be used as a form of currency in WHAT. This simplifies bookkeeping, but you have to make the mental shift to determine how much Rep d6 items and services cost, luckily, WHAT has a few guidelines to help.

My band needs to find a place to call home, sell the magical items taken from the dungeon and find a job in order to earn enough for the next leg of their journey. And the best way to do all of that is with a Carousing Encounter.

The Naughty Tart Inn

Since the party doesn’t have a healer, I decided Shashah, Emini, and Neshi should pay 1 Increasing Rep d6 each for healing services.. You don’t have to do this in the rules, but I thought healing should have some kind of cost.

Next task for the party is to find a home. Bhoma spent 2 Increasing Rep d6 for two rooms at the Naughty Tart Inn. This is a one time cost and covers food, drink, and unlimited use of the bath house for as long as the party is in Kadesh. Fiaffa Kovull, the Inn Keeper, took one whiff of the party and gladly threw in use of the bath house as an amenity.

The Apothecary

After much needed baths, Bhoma asked Fiaffa Kovull for a recommendation as to where to sell magic items – an Interaction. Bhoma passes more d6 on the Interaction Table, they exchange pleasantries and information., Fiaffa told Bhoma that Cloze Frostcut, the apothecary, was the most reliable dealer in arcane items. Bhoma decided that she and Svona would go and that the rest of the party should stay at the Inn and rest.

Bhoma and Svona found Cloze Frostcut’s potion booth two streets over from the main market in front of a modest house. Bhoma decides Svona Dawngleam, the Storm Caller, should do the bartering since she understands magic items.

First, I have to determine if Cloze Frostcut is willing to do business with Svona, so we do an Interaction. They passed the same number of d6 on the Interaction Table, so they will barter.

To make bartering a little more interesting and still keep it simple, I roll 1d6 with the possible results being Cloze pays 1 Increasing d6 less than the value of the magic items (1-2), or she pays the value of the magic items (3-5), or she pays 1 increasing d6 more than the value of the magic items (6). Svona is lucky, Cloze pays the market value and the party gains 4 Increasing Rep d6 to be divided later.

Skonnus Livery Stable

Bhoma and Svona stop at the Skonnus Livery Stable to price pack animals. Bhoma has decided once the group has enough Increasing Rep d6 to purchase suitable equipment and pack animals, they will continue their journey.

Dingri Silentbrew is the owner of the Skonnus Livery Stable. Bhoma succeeds on the Interaction Table and after they exchange pleasantries and information, Bhoma does a second interaction to discover a Job Offer.

Dingri’s brother, Boord Silentbrew, and his friend, Ot Cragbreath, are two days overdue from a trip to the village of Saltmere to buy some horses. She has heard of Bhoma’s success in the dungeons under the temple of Nergal and would like to hire you to find her brother, a Quest Job Offer.

Bhoma accepts and promises the party will begin the quest the next day.

Wrapping Up the Encounter

After departing each location, you roll for the chance of a robbery. I passed each time, so my cultist thieves have to wait for another opportunity.

So why play a Carousing Encounter? The main use I have for a Carousing Encounter is to smoothly bridge from one encounter to another. I tie up the loose ends and bookkeeping from the previous encounter, introduce new characters and NPCs, and, most importantly, set up the rationale for the next encounter The Carousing Encounter can be as detailed or abstract as you want, it could take a couple of hours to play, or, as in the case of this encounter, about half an hour (not counting time taken for photographing minis).