A group of tired sailors (bandits stats) is quietly offloading their cargo of coffins, faces pale with worry as they look out for something.
Noncombat Encounters in City Streets for Dungeons and Dragons 5e
Tables for Noncombat Encounters at the Docks and in the Guild Quarter.
City noncombat - city streets | rich & poor | docks | vendors & guards | taverns & parks | back streets | fences & intrigue | shady | sewers | ruins | all noncombat
[art by Henrik Karppinen]
Docks and Guild Quarter
At the docks ships and boats get loaded and unloaded. Sailors, labourers and merchants frequent warehouses and taverns
The guild quarter is a place bustling with activity with artisans, creatives, apprentices, artificers, small merchants and their stores.
From an City Noncombat Encounters on DM's Guild.
Docks Encounters - Noncombat
| 1d20 | Noncombat Encounters - Docks |
|---|---|
| 1 | A burly dwarf thug is barking orders at laborers building a huge cage. |
| 2 | An angry noble's ship just left without them. They shout at it to return. |
| 3 | A few merfolk swim by, ushering along a herd of giant sea horses. |
| 4 | A group of tired sailors (bandits stats) is quietly offloading their cargo of coffins, faces pale with worry as they look out for something. |
| 5 | A rebellious druid is giving a rousing speech to rowdy dockworkers. |
| 6 | A confident knight is about to swim in plate armor as part of a wager. |
| 7 | A scarred dockworker (gladiator stats) asks for participants for a strength competition getting started in a derelict warehouse. |
| 8 | Sailors argue with a cult fanatic who wants a crate loaded on their ship. |
| 9 | An unseen force is pulling one end of a coil of rope into the water. |
| 10 | A frustrated gnome artificer (spy stats, Arcana +5) is demonstrating a metal boat that shudders when a lever is pulled. It is belching smoke. |
| 11 | A killer whale emerges dockside, splashing all nearby with foul water. |
| 12 | A docker falls and curses, sending a cage of exotic lizards scattering. |
| 13 | A glowing mage meditates facing the sea as a huge wave approaches. |
| 14 | Several crabs scuttle past. One motions at a character to follow them. |
| 15 | A ship captain (bandit captain stats) yells from the gangplank, warning others away, as their crew is about to unload a dangerous cargo. |
| 16 | A spy in dark clothing disembarks from a ship and waves at the group. |
| 17 | A sea elf priest holds a vigil for a ship believed lost at sea a year ago. |
| 18 | Two merchants argue over the sale of a blue goat, watched by a guard. |
| 19 | A giant octopus is stealthily stealing crates and barrels with a tentacle. |
| 20 | A glowing marid is practicing trident fighting movements with great flourishes and shouts. Oddly no-one is paying them any attention. |
City Streets by Night - Noncombat
| 1d20 | Noncombat Encounters - Guild Quarter |
|---|---|
| 1 | Two writers are dueling in a public poetry contest and ask for the next theme. The winner will be confirmed as the author of a popular play. |
| 2 | A nervous artist asks the group's opinion on a costly engagement ring. |
| 3 | A group of tense guards is questioning people about recent gemstone thefts. Rumors say kobolds are involved; or roll on Guards and Gates. |
| 4 | Several artisans are hard at work carving an intricate ice sculpture. |
| 5 | A satyr piper is playing a merry tune. Nearby an artist is etching an image of the ruler on a red wooden plank, seemingly in a trance. |
| 6 | A striding mage carries a huge cracked glass globe, full of purple smoke. |
| 7 | A grain merchant pushes a wheelbarrow with sacks of wheat. A rat pops out, scaring them and causing the cart to spill. One sack is not wheat. |
| 8 | A charismatic druid (Persuasion +4) is leading a protest at a carpenter's. |
| 9 | A dwarf noble stands in front of a tattoo parlor. They offer to accompany anyone on a quest who will get a matching tattoo with them. |
| 10 | A shrieker alerts a shopkeeper every time someone enters the shop. |
| 11 | A florist is handing out glowing flowers to passersby from a shop door. |
| 12 | A baker and a liveried servant are arguing about an obvious lettering mistake on a massive birthday cake, baked in the shape of a griffon. |
| 13 | A grumbling apprentice brewer scrapes blue moss from the flagstones. |
| 14 | A sprite-owned potion shop has a sale of old inventory. Half the potions are unmarked, and a sign warns that some may be mislabeled poisons. |
| 15 | In a store of glasswork a noble is trying to restrain an excited mastiff. |
| 16 | In a burnt out workshop is a group of desperate folk with nowhere else to go. A pair of guards is trying to move them on, growing frustrated. |
| 17 | A laden wagon of statues (or barrels) begins to roll away. |
| 18 | A friendly rug of smothering (Int 10, speaks Common) asks a character to create a diversion so it can escape from the evil merchant it guards. |
| 19 | Apprentices crowd around a book-lending cart, staffed by a priest |
| 20 | A medusa stoneworker in a dark hood and lace mask is displaying their creations, realistic and life-sized statues of small woodland animals. |
From an City Noncombat Encounters on DM's Guild.
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