D&D 5E How To Run A Pie Eating Contest

[Syntallah]

My players will be in the town of Silverymoon for the Midsummer and Shieldmeet holidays this year, and I wanted to do something different, so I will be running a sort of Fair/Carnival/Tournament extravaganza kind of thing.

I have a bunch of ideas and the game mechanics for just about everything I need, except one: how would you run a pie eating contest?!?

 

[lowkey13]

*Deleted by user*

 

[Trickster Spirit]

Mechanically, I'd say make it more about how much pie they can shovel down at a fast pace than an actual race. Basically, repeated opposed Constitution contests, lowest roll is eliminated each round - maybe give them the sickened condition afterwards until they've digested pie. Last one standing is pie-eating champion!

(If as the DM you're running all the NPCs, you may wish to generate a list of their rolls ahead of time via something like random.org rather than holding up the action with a zillion rolls each round.)

You could also give out specific modifiers based on pre-contest prep (not eating breakfast or lunch that day, vomiting before the competition begins, etc.). I'm debating whether halflings would have disadvantage on a pie contest, given their small size, or advantage, given, you know, halfling.

 

[Michael Long]

First thought- athletics!

But then I thought- that's definitely constitution.

How about a Constitution(athletics) check?

 

[jayoungr]

I ran a drinking contest borrowing the rules from here. Just substitute pie for beer, and maybe say each round lasts a few minutes:

Drinking Contest:
No puking!
First person to finish all 10 beers wins. If no one finishes 10 beers, then the person who drank the most before puking wins.

1 Beer/round Con DC 10, +2 every subsequent round
2 Beers/Round Con DC 12, +3 Every Subsequent round
3 Beers/Round Con DC 15, +4 Every Subsequent Round

If you switch # of beers you drink each round, keep the modifiers stacking, but add on from the base DC, Example Below.

If you drink 3 beers the first round, then 1 the next, you'll make a DC of 14 (+4 from your previous round, then 10 from the base difficulty). Then the third round will be DC of 16, because of the +2 from drinking one beer/round. Then you drink 2 beers for the 4th round, making a DC of 20 (12 for the base, 4th round so +4 (1st Round), +2 (2nd Rd), +2 (3rd RD)).

 

[Morrus]

Tournaments, Fairs, & Taverns. The 3.x contest structures work perfectly in 5E. I've used them repeatedly.

 

[Syntallah]

Tournaments, Fairs, & Taverns. The 3.x contest structures work perfectly in 5E. I've used them repeatedly.

Outstanding!! It even references pie eating contests and halflings...

Thanks all. Gonna mish mash a couple of these ideas together.

 

[Kobold Stew]

I'd make them role-play it out: first you buy four pies...

 

[Scorpio616]

Con checks, lot of Con checks.

youtube.com/watch?v=zK0JaEde4VI

 

[Azurewraith]

It can only be lots of Con checks maybe provide them with some form of liquid they can use once to boost their con check by +2 or something. Could even give their mouths Acs and have them roll attacks to try and cram pie in(have the ac be 10+1 for every 2-3 pies in there)