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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Lanefan" data-source="post: 8671452" data-attributes="member: 29398">One useful thing I've found with initiating occasional "not-relevant" interactions e.g. chatting with the gate guards is that it gives me-as-DM a general idea of how much or little info the PCs will tend to give out about who they are, what they're doing, etc.  This matters because information is or often can be valuable, and while some parties/PCs play things close to the vest there's others who couldn't keep a secret in a locked safe.A party that goes about town boasting of how rich they got in their last adventure, for example, is far more likely to have someone try to rob them than a party that keeps its wealth more low-key.  A party that makes a big deal about leaving tomorrow to rescue the prince because the queen has put up a massive reward is far more likely to have another adventuring group steal a march on them tonight and try to beat them to it than is a party who just quietly goes about getting on with the mission.  Etc.Non-relevant town encounters (e.g. gate guards, shopkeepers, fellow pub patrons) provide a good weathervane for assessing the party's willingness to be discreet and-or capability thereof.  Don't need to do this often, but running one or two such encounters with any new group or group that's just undergone significant turnover is usually worth it.</blockquote>