101 Moments of Mundane Fun

[Frostmarrow]

9. The Master Tailor. A grateful tailor offers to make clothes for the characters. Every little detail will be crafted according to the characters' wishes.

 

[Halivar]

10. Killing Time. The party decides to stick around an area for a year or more, waiting for some event to occur so they can continue their adventure. What do they do during that time?

My fighter fast-forwarded through two years in an unfamiliar land, learning their language and attending college, where he got a degree in cartography (a skill that would later prove useful for two more campaigns).

 

[Traveon Wyvernspur]

11. Getting Married. One of the party members decides to marry or is forced into marriage by an NPC.

I had a half-elf paladin in my last campaign who completely charmed the captain of the guard who was a halfling female. She was so enamored by him that she went out of her way to speak to him and give him some none-too-subtle invitations that she was interested in him. It all culminated one night when she actually slipped something into his drink when he wasn't looking. The other members of the party saw it happen, but thought it would be funny to see the outcome and she proceeded to take advantage of his condition and brought him to the temple and married him. Nine months later they had "Helflings" (half-elf halflings) twins. Even though he married her and the reason was his being drugged his honor didn't allow him to divorce her and his friends pointed out that it would also make an enemy of the city guard captain who they had relied on in the past for information and other small quests. It was really quite a fun RP sequence in our game and everyone had a great time and many laughs. I also used his family against him at the end of the campaign...but that's a story for another time.

 

[Jacob Marley]

12. The Collection of Knickknacks - Invariably, someone at my table decides that their character will be keeping a collection of knickknacks. What these knicksknacks are varies from campaign to campaign, but it is often something extremely mundane (a copper from every town they visit, a tooth from every goblin they kill, etc.). These knickknacks serve no real purpose other than to exist, but the characters will do alarmingly stupid and amusing things in their attempts to acquire/hold on to their prized collections.

 

[Reynard]

13. Tax Collection: This one if often mentioned in earlier edition guides but seems relatively rare in practice. Having the tax collector show up, especially if the PCs are cash-poor but hauling other kinds of valuables, not only gives a sense of versimilitude, it rankles them!

 

[Reynard]

14: Expedition Planning: Most of the time, PCs just walk out the gate and march off into the unknown. In reality, long treks through unknown and uninhabited areas require *a lot* of planning and preparation. This is an element I want to emphasize more with my next campaign -- what it takes to really be prepared to explore an ancient ruin hundreds of miles away through untracked wilderness.

 

[Frostmarrow]

15. House Sitting: A rich noble-man has heard of the characters and employs them to watch his house while he goes away for the week-end. It turns out the noble-man's extended family comes to visit during these days seeking advice on who to marry, when to harvest and what to do about the village idiot.

 

[LurkAway]

16. Three Adventurers and a Baby: On their way from A to B, the party rescues and escorts a baby or young child to safety.

 

[Jon_Dahl]

17. Clerical duties. Instead of just being a heal-bot, the cleric occasionally does sacred rites of religion (marriage, baptism etc.)
This idea can be used if the player doesn't show up.

 

[Reynard]

18. The Funeral: Whether it is for a PC or NPC friend, or the funeral for a stranger of some import (from the local barkeep everyone loved or the Emperor himself), funerals are often "dull" and "boring" and "mundane". They also bring out certain aspects of us, both individually and collectively, that are telling.