D&D General Players Bored

[Corvexus]

I've been running my first campaign as a DM and I've recently had players state, "there's nothing to do in this town", several times. I've created unique shops, a carnival with games and prizes, libraries with lore they never ran across and unique encounters at each area...

What can I do to make my players feel like there's more to engage in, other then speaking to new npcs and buying new gear at every town??

 

[LordEntrails]

Have things happen around them. Let them interact with those things as they will.

A merchant shows up with a cart of goods. The merchant happens to be a kobold selling shrunken heads, or live mice with their tails tied to a stick, or herbal charms to ward off spirits. if the party doesn't react, the locals do. Maybe someone harasses the merchant, maybe someone assault them and chases them out of town. Doesn't matter if the party interacts because maybe later when they are on the road the find the merchant dead and his cart plundered.

Then have a fight break out, maybe someone in the party is misidentified as an adulterer, or a bandit. The party can plead their innocence, fight or flee.

It doesn't matter what the party does per se. It matter that the world is alive around them, and that they can chose to interact with it or not. BUT, if/when they don't, things still happen. They don't help the adolescent who said their grandmother was possessed, then a demon or a hag shows up. Or something bad happens. The world is happening around them, and if the party doesn't get involved, then bad happens more often than good. Evil grows.

 

[Bitbrain]

In my experience, unless there is a specific campaign reason for the PCs to enter a location in town... 9 times out of 10, they won’t.

To give one possible example:

Maybe have the librarian hire them to watch over the library for the night, because he/she has been hearing funny noises at night and some of the books have gone missing (and NOT because people are bringing the books back late). Then have an adventure inside the library as they discover a clan of Derro or something living underneath the building or something.

They do the mission, defeat the monsters and get paid, and then later on, on a mission further down the line, they encounter a monster they’ve never heard of or seen before. Remind them of the library and tell them the answer might be found back there.

They return to the library, consult the NPC, and gain the information they need for that future adventure...

 

[Flamestrike]

More combat.

They're probably not playing the game to visit carnivals and talk to NPCs. They likely want to kill things and take their stuff.

 

[akr71]

Players: There's nothing to do in this town.
DM: There is plenty to do, you just have to go find it.

Alternately, Orcs Attack!

 

[Reynard]

More combat.

They're probably not playing the game to visit carnivals and talk to NPCs. They likely want to kill things and take their stuff.

This. Maybe. Ask them.

 

[Greenstone.Walker]

Working on the "show, don't tell" tactic:

Players: There's nothing to do in this town.
GM: You meet an adventuring party in the street. They appear very proud of a glowing magical sword.
Players: Hey, where did you get the sword?
Adventurer: We looted it last night from the ghost that was haunting the library.

 

[Umbran]

What can I do to make my players feel like there's more to engage in, other then speaking to new npcs and buying new gear at every town??

First, ask them, "what were you expecting to see, or what kinds of other things do you want to do?"

If the town is basically peaceful, then, yeah, it isn't going to be interesting adventuring, in and of itself. You probably want it that way, as it gives you a largely safe place to go back to after adventuring. So, you wind up glossing over most of the town, to get to the busy bits.

If they are looking for evil wizards, corrupt clerics, and guilds of thieves to thwart... then give them those things, but they will be busy, and not get to out-of-town adventures.

And when they realize they have to keep watch in the night because someone might slit their throats, maybe they will reconsider what they want in a town

 

[iserith]

If they're not interested in spending time in town, I would consider this a blessing and keep my prep focused on adventures taking place in the bleeding edge of civilization, where towns are merely safe havens to recover after confronting deadly perils and maybe engage in useful downtime activities.

 

[Ashrym]

Have the PC's hear rumors, witness events, or get drawn in by NPC's.