101 Moments of Mundane Fun

[SnowleopardVK]

19. The Hunt for Dinner: Occasionally instead of just rolling a survival check and saying "you found food", we've had a player decide they're actually going to go out and hunt. It still involves rolling the skill check, but gets roleplayed, and can actually by quite amusing.

...And then there was the Four Commoners game, where the hunt for dinner WAS often an encounter (Wild boars can be tough when your only weapon proficiency is a sling).

 

[Evilhalfling]

20. The Feast of Fools: everyone wears masks, and the town chooses a local idiot to be the king for the day. Pick the player who loves randomness, or have a NPC demand random activities. drinking, chaos, perhaps even a murder ensue.

 

[TarionzCousin]

21. The Big Celebration.

An NPC throws a big feast/party for the PC's to celebrate the success of their latest (well-known) adventure. The NPC wants everything to be just right, so he asks each PC what they want at the party: food, decorations, guests, etc.

I've done this and it accomplishes a few things: good NPC development; reward PC's with fame and acclaim; plant seeds for future adventures.

 

[Traveon Wyvernspur]

22. Gambling

I've used gambling to "pass the time" and allow PCs to use skill checks to gain some coin...or lose some coin. Things that include their way to bluff and perception for playing cards to athletics for something like throwing knives and arm wrestling. There are other types of skill challenges that can be used in conjunction with gambling that make things fun and get some good role playing going.

 

[Traveon Wyvernspur]

23. Setting Camp

This can be interesting as well, having the PCs set up their camp to be defensible and decide on who does what watch. Having danger lurking in the shadows of a well known area of beastly creatures and the PCs on watch looking about nervously. Random NPC encounters are great at night around the campfire. They don't all have to be evil either, a good NPC could be attracted by their fire and come seeking help. This sets the stage for other side quests and interesting interactions for role-playing.

 

[SnowleopardVK]

24. The fan. The party meets someone who's been following their adventures and accomplishments and has become a huge fan of one, or all of them.

My bard danced with a fan of hers at a masquerade/assassination once. He nearly blew her cover.

 

[BriarMonkey]

25. The unexpected inheritance.

If the PCs have befriended, say an old innskeeper or barkeep, then when the old NPC passes, having no other family, they leave their business to the PCs. This then puts the PCs in a position to maybe: settle outstanding taxes; find a here-to-fore unknown secret section of the cellar; run a business; or a number of other possibilities.

 

[Reynard]

26. The Herd: In a small village near a larger settlement, the herd -- cattle, goats, llamas or something more exotic -- comes through. Hundreds of head clog the streets, making conducting normal business (or even keeping one's boots clean) an adventure in itself.

 

[RoryN]

27-Magic Show: A newly arrived wizard holds weekly magic shows in the city square for the children and their parents. Is this on the up-and-up, or is the wizard preparing for something bigger than just a magic show?

 

[Reynard]

28: Becoming NPCs: The PCs end up being the NPCs for someone else's adventure. Perhaps they have something another group needs and is willing to bargain for, or have been somewhere that party needs to go. It is important that this isn't presented as a hook for the PCs -- it should be pretty obvious that there's little to interest them on these NPCs' adventure (maybe they are significantly lower level than the PCs). If your group knows other groups, maybe the NPCs can even be PCs from another group.