Town Fair: Great adventure setting, but what should be there?
- Thread starter Arravis
- Start date
I have run an adventure at a faire, in the past... Here is what I used:
1) Aid the Alchemist - He calls for something, like "Acetic Acid" (randomly determined from a list), and you have to bring him the bottle of vinegar. You can pick, or grab something randomly. Everyone pays a small fee to enter, and the winner (highest score out of 20 at the end of the day) gets half. PCs can use Craft (Alchemy), if they have it.
2) Archery Contest - A must, in Elven lands. Hit the bullseye... Winners of previous meets compete in the next, until only one is left standing.
3) Word-Scramble Puzzles - One minute to descramble as many words as you can. High score wins the pot (as in change, not cannabis).
4) Poetry Contest - Only originals count. GM-judged.
5) Coin-Toss - Predict the heads or tails on ten tosses to win the pot. (I had a PC with presience get all ten, and win this one).
6) The Price Is Right! - Pay a large sum to enter, Appraise the prizes presented. Whoever gets closest without going over wins a point, AND the item! Highest number of wins at the end of the day wins the pot!
7) Greased Pig Catching - Roll for initiative. You move, the pig moves, you try to grapple it (at a negative, due to the grease). You have to catch and hold it to win the prize. No weapons allowed!
8) Trivia Contest - Questions about anything provable allowed. Use those Knowledge Skills! Most right answers out of 20, at the end of the day, wins the pot.
9) Rapid Assembly Contest - Putting together ten items, with multiple parts. Most in one minute, at day's end, wins the pot. (This game had a mechanics skill.)
10) Name That Tune! - Play a song, which the PCs must name. Either have records, CDs, etc., nearby, or allow the PCs to roll Knowledge (Local)/Perform/Bardic Knowledge.
11) Name That TuneR! - Bells of various metals are rung. Your task is to identify them, by their sound! Most rights at day's end wins.
12) Ring-Joust - (In my game, combat at the Faire had been outlawed; thus, no sword-fighting, wrestling, etc.) In this game, Knights must provide their own mounts and lances, and spear several rings at full gallop. Two tries/pass, with the successful going on to the next round. The final winner of each round of passes advances to the final contest at the end of the day, for the big cash prize.
13) Fire-Making - First to make a fire wins. Fastest time at the end of the day wins the prize.
14) Strongman Contest - Start at 100#. Lift ten more, each time, until you can't get it up, anymore. Winner is the day's heavy lifter.
15) Wargaming - Control a paper army, with their specific skills and advantages, against all opponents.
16) Hacking - Make a throne, with only an axe. The winner's is used to crown the King of the Faire, at day's end. The Runner-Up's is used to crown the Queen!
17) What's Wrong With This? - Pre-painted pictures (or illusions) are shown to the participants, and they are asked to list everything that's wrong with them... Wrong answers subtract a point. Winner is the one with the most right, at day's end.
18) Sneaking Past - A blindfolded judge attempts to hear you before you cross the finish line. If she points to you, you're out. At the end of the day, the fastest time across the line wins.
19) Pole-Climbing - Climb up a pole, with the provided gear, stand atop it, then climb down. Fastest time all day wins the pot.
20) "The Fairest of the Fair" - Beauty contest, with each previous win of another event adding a point to the score. Ugly winners can still beat beautiful loer-Bards.
Each event has an entry fee. The Faire keeps 1/2. The rest goes into the kitty (a bag, not a cat) and is awarded to the winner of that event, at day's end.
Non-PCs abound in unskilled events. Bards dominate "Name That Tune!", Lnights Ring-Joust, Rogues "Sneaking Past"...
The trick is, as much as possible, to allow ways for unskilleed PCs to win events. For instance, by playing songs on CD, a musical PLAYER with a Fighter PC could win "Name That Tune!", beating out the Bard!
PCs are creative, too! I had a dirty little Kobold with Invisibility trying to hang off the wieghts in the Strongman Contest, as well as using Presience to win the Coin-Toss! <Grrr!>
1) Aid the Alchemist - He calls for something, like "Acetic Acid" (randomly determined from a list), and you have to bring him the bottle of vinegar. You can pick, or grab something randomly. Everyone pays a small fee to enter, and the winner (highest score out of 20 at the end of the day) gets half. PCs can use Craft (Alchemy), if they have it.
2) Archery Contest - A must, in Elven lands. Hit the bullseye... Winners of previous meets compete in the next, until only one is left standing.
3) Word-Scramble Puzzles - One minute to descramble as many words as you can. High score wins the pot (as in change, not cannabis).
4) Poetry Contest - Only originals count. GM-judged.
5) Coin-Toss - Predict the heads or tails on ten tosses to win the pot. (I had a PC with presience get all ten, and win this one).
6) The Price Is Right! - Pay a large sum to enter, Appraise the prizes presented. Whoever gets closest without going over wins a point, AND the item! Highest number of wins at the end of the day wins the pot!
7) Greased Pig Catching - Roll for initiative. You move, the pig moves, you try to grapple it (at a negative, due to the grease). You have to catch and hold it to win the prize. No weapons allowed!
8) Trivia Contest - Questions about anything provable allowed. Use those Knowledge Skills! Most right answers out of 20, at the end of the day, wins the pot.
9) Rapid Assembly Contest - Putting together ten items, with multiple parts. Most in one minute, at day's end, wins the pot. (This game had a mechanics skill.)
10) Name That Tune! - Play a song, which the PCs must name. Either have records, CDs, etc., nearby, or allow the PCs to roll Knowledge (Local)/Perform/Bardic Knowledge.
11) Name That TuneR! - Bells of various metals are rung. Your task is to identify them, by their sound! Most rights at day's end wins.
12) Ring-Joust - (In my game, combat at the Faire had been outlawed; thus, no sword-fighting, wrestling, etc.) In this game, Knights must provide their own mounts and lances, and spear several rings at full gallop. Two tries/pass, with the successful going on to the next round. The final winner of each round of passes advances to the final contest at the end of the day, for the big cash prize.
13) Fire-Making - First to make a fire wins. Fastest time at the end of the day wins the prize.
14) Strongman Contest - Start at 100#. Lift ten more, each time, until you can't get it up, anymore. Winner is the day's heavy lifter.
15) Wargaming - Control a paper army, with their specific skills and advantages, against all opponents.
16) Hacking - Make a throne, with only an axe. The winner's is used to crown the King of the Faire, at day's end. The Runner-Up's is used to crown the Queen!
17) What's Wrong With This? - Pre-painted pictures (or illusions) are shown to the participants, and they are asked to list everything that's wrong with them... Wrong answers subtract a point. Winner is the one with the most right, at day's end.
18) Sneaking Past - A blindfolded judge attempts to hear you before you cross the finish line. If she points to you, you're out. At the end of the day, the fastest time across the line wins.
19) Pole-Climbing - Climb up a pole, with the provided gear, stand atop it, then climb down. Fastest time all day wins the pot.
20) "The Fairest of the Fair" - Beauty contest, with each previous win of another event adding a point to the score. Ugly winners can still beat beautiful loer-Bards.
Each event has an entry fee. The Faire keeps 1/2. The rest goes into the kitty (a bag, not a cat) and is awarded to the winner of that event, at day's end.
Non-PCs abound in unskilled events. Bards dominate "Name That Tune!", Lnights Ring-Joust, Rogues "Sneaking Past"...
The trick is, as much as possible, to allow ways for unskilleed PCs to win events. For instance, by playing songs on CD, a musical PLAYER with a Fighter PC could win "Name That Tune!", beating out the Bard!
PCs are creative, too! I had a dirty little Kobold with Invisibility trying to hang off the wieghts in the Strongman Contest, as well as using Presience to win the Coin-Toss! <Grrr!>
Bran Blackbyrd
Explorer
I thought the brazen strumpets had the big things?Joshua Dyal said:Brazen strumpets. Don't forget the little things.
I had a traveling carnival in my campaign. They had a gnoll (Actually a canine humanoid, use what you've got) in a cage posing as a werewolf. The gnoll was "going their way" so he tagged along, got three square meals a day and at night he'd sneak through the local town/village causing trouble and chomping on livestock to stir up the locals. It was great for business.
Ed Cha
Community Supporter
Isn't there a book that covers this topic? Tournaments, Fairs, and Taverns. It's on sale for $1 right now.
http://www.rpgnow.com/product_info....64&PHPSESSID=69dab9b45099e80d6db72ecddbbeec01
http://www.rpgnow.com/product_info....64&PHPSESSID=69dab9b45099e80d6db72ecddbbeec01
Shadowdancer
First Post
It says in the original post that he has that product.Ed Cha said:
You need a knife thrower and/or sword swallower.
With all of those musicians around, you need a booth selling/repairing musical instruments.
Trick riders (from Dambrath or the Horselands) exhibiting amazing feats of horsemanship.
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