Downtime Activities

These are currently available downtime activities for your character to complete. If you have something you'd like to do with your downtime that isn't listed here, you will likely still be able to do it, these are just the "official" suggestions. Why is everything in days divisible by 8? You all are mostly going to be getting downtime in numbers divisible by 8 (7 day long rest, +1 missed adventure = 8 days), so I made sure that the downtimes reflect the change.

Click here for downtime activities that could be unlocked with a future bounty.

Click here to see how much downtime you've currently accrued.

Any days of downtime not spent on activity will cost your character 6gp in food expenses per day.

DMG = Dungeon Master's Guide

XGtE = Xanathar's Guide to Everything

HB = Homebrew

AL = Adventurer's League

Building a Stronghold (DMG 128)
A character can spend time between adventures building a stronghold. Before work can begin, the character must acquire a plot of land. If the estate lies within a kingdom or similar domain, the character will need a royal charter (a legal document granting permission to oversee the estate in the name of the crown), a land grant (a legal document bequeathing custody of the land to the character for as long as he or she remains loyal to the crown), or a deed (a legal document that serves as proof of ownership). Land can also be acquired by inheritance or other means.

Royal charters and land grants are usually given by the crown as a reward for faithful service, although they can also be bought. Deeds can be bought or inherited. A small estate might sell for as little as 100 gp or as much as 1,000 gp. A large estate might cost 5,000 gp or more, if it can be bought at all.

Once the estate is secured, a character needs access to building materials and laborers. The Building a Stronghold table shows the cost of building the stronghold (including materials and labor) and the amount of time it takes, provided that the character is using downtime to oversee construction. Work can continue while the character is away, but each day the character is away adds 3 days to the construction time. Under revision while I figure out what I want this to be.

Carousing (DMG 128 + XGtE 126 + HB)
Characters can spend their downtime engaged in a variety of hedonistic activities such as attending parties, binge drinking, gambling, or anything else that helps them cope with the perils they face on their adventures.

Carousing covers a week of fine food, strong drink, and socializing. A character can attempt to carouse among lower-, middle-, or upper-class folk. A character can carouse with the lower class for 10 gp to cover expenses, or 50 gp for the middle class. Carousing with the upper class requires 250 gp for the week and access to the local nobility. A character with the noble background can mingle with the upper class, but other characters can do so only if you judge that the character has made sufficient contacts. Alternatively, a character might use a disguise kit and the Deception skill to pass as a noble visiting from a distant city.

Lower Class - the Gem Saloon

Middle Class - the Royale

Upper Class - Companion House

After a week of carousing, a character stands to make contacts within the selected social class. The character makes a Charisma (Persuasion) check using the Carousing (Persuasion) table. Contacts are NPCs who now share a bond with the character. Each one either owes the character a favor or has some reason to bear a grudge. A hostile contact works against the character, placing obstacles but stopping short of committing a crime or a violent act. Allied contacts are friends who will render aid to the character, but not at the risk of their lives. Lower-class contacts include criminals, laborers, mercenaries, the town guard, and any other folk who normally frequent the cheapest taverns in town. Middle-class contacts include guild members, spellcasters, town officials, and other folk who frequent well-kept establishments. Upper-class contacts are nobles and their personal servants. Carousing with such folk covers formal banquets, state dinners, and the like. See XGtE 127-128 for more about these contacts.

One character can have a maximum of favors or grudges in one city of 3. If they have already accumulated 3, skip this process and move to the next table.

At the end of the period spent carousing, the player rolls percentile dice and adds the character’s level, then compares the total to the Carousing table to determine what happens to the character, or you choose.

Crafting (XGtE 128 + HB)
Located at Star Hardware.

A character who has the time, the money, and the needed tools can use downtime to craft armor, weapons, clothing, or other kinds of nonmagical gear.

Resources and Resolution. In addition to the appropriate tools for the item to be crafted, a character needs raw materials worth half of the item’s selling cost. To determine how many workweeks it takes to create an item, divide its gold piece cost by 50. A character can complete multiple items in a workweek if the items’ combined cost is 50 gp or lower. Items that cost more than 50 gp can be completed over longer periods of time, as long as the work in progress is stored in a safe location.

Multiple characters can combine their efforts. Divide the time needed to create an item by the number of characters working on it. Use your judgment when determining how many characters can collaborate on an item. A particularly tiny item, like a ring, might allow only one or two workers, whereas a large, complex item might allow four or more workers.

A character needs to be proficient with the tools needed to craft an item and have access to the appropriate equipment. Everyone who collaborates needs to have the appropriate tool proficiency. You need to make any judgment calls regarding whether a character has the correct equipment. The following table provides some examples. If all the above requirements are met, the result of the process is an item of the desired sort. A character can sell an item crafted in this way at its listed price.

Brewing Potions of Healing. Potions of healing fall into a special category for item crafting, separate from other items. A character who has proficiency with alchemist's' supplies or the herbalism kit can create these potions. The times and costs for doing so are summarized on the Potion of Healing Creation table.

Crime (XGtE 130)
Can be done solo or with Keeting (in conjunction with Gaining Renown)

Sometimes it pays to be bad. This activity gives a character the chance to make some extra cash, at the risk of arrest.

Resources. A character must spend one week and at least 25 gp gathering information on potential targets before committing the intended crime.

Resolution. The character must make a series of checks, with the DC for all the checks chosen by the character according to the amount of profit sought from the crime. The chosen DC can be 10, 15, 20, or 25. Successful completion of the crime yields a number of gold pieces, as shown on the Loot Value table.

To attempt a crime, the character makes three checks: Dexterity (Stealth), Dexterity using thieves' tools, and the player's choice of Intelligence (Investigation), Wisdom (Perception), or Charisma (Deception).

If none of the checks are successful, the character is caught and jailed. The character must pay a fine equal to the profit the crime would have earned and must spend one week in jail for each 25 gp of the fine.

If only one check is successful, the heist fails but the character escapes.

If two checks are successful, the heist is a partial success, netting the character half the payout.

If all three checks are successful, the character earns the full value of the loot. Complications. A life of crime is filled with complications. Roll on the Crime Complications table (or create a complication of your own) if the character succeeds on only one check. If the character's rival is involved in crime or law enforcement, a complication ensues if the character succeeds on only two checks.

Gaining Renown (DMG 129)
Can gain renown with Keeting or Magistrate Collins.

A character can spend downtime improving his or her renown within a particular organization. Between adventures, a character undertakes minor tasks for the organization and socializes with its members. After pursuing these activities for a combined number of days equal to his or her current renown multiplied by 10, the character’s renown increases by 1.

Gambling (XGtE 130)
Located at The Gem Saloon or the Royale.

Games of chance are a way to make a fortune and perhaps a better way to lose one.

Resources. This activity requires one week of effort plus a stake of at least 10 gp, to a maximum of 1,000gp or more, as you see fit.

Resolution. The character must make a series of checks, with a DC determined at random based on the quality of the competition that the character runs into. Part of the risk of gambling is that one never knows who might end up sitting across the table.

The character makes three checks: Wisdom (Insight), Charisma (Deception), and Charisma (Intimidation). If the character has proficiency with an appropriate gaming set, that tool proficiency can replace the relevant skill in any of the checks. The DC for each of the checks is 5 + 2d10; generate a separate DC for each one. Consult the Gambling Results table to see how the character did. Complications. Gambling tends to attract unsavory individuals. The potential complications involved come from run-ins with the law and associations with various criminals tied to the activity. Every week spent gambling brings a 10 percent chance of a complication, examples of which are on the Gambling Complications table.

Performing Sacred Rites (DMG 129)
Located at the Church of Rhea.

A pious character can spend time between adventures performing sacred rites in a temple affiliated with a god he or she reveres. Between rites, the character spends time in meditation and prayer.

A character who is a priest in the temple can lead these rites, which might include weddings, funerals, and ordinations. A layperson can offer sacrifices in a temple or assist a priest with a rite.

A character who spends at least 10 days performing sacred rites gains inspiration (described in chapter 4 of the Player’s Handbook) at the start of each day for the next 2d6 days.

Researching (XGtE 132 + HB)
Located at the Administration building.

Forewarned is forearmed. The research downtime activity allows a character to delve into lore concerning a monster, a location, a magic item, or some other particular topic.

Resources. Typically, a character needs access to a library or a sage to conduct research. Assuming such access is available, conducting research requires 8 days of effort and at least 50 gp spent on materials, bribes, gifts, and other expenses. A character who has the Cloistered Scholar background only pays 25gp.

Resolution. The character declares the focus of the research — a specific person, place, or thing. After 8 days, the character makes an Intelligence check with a +1 bonus per 50 gp spent beyond the initial 50 gp, to a maximum of +6. In addition, a character who has the Sage background gains a +5 bonus on this check. Determine how much lore a character learns using the Research Outcomes table. Each piece of lore is the equivalent of one true statement about a person, place, or thing. Examples include knowledge of a creature’s resistances, the password needed to enter a sealed dungeon level, the spells commonly prepared by an order of wizards, and so on.

As DM, you are the final arbiter concerning exactly what a character learns. For a monster or an NPC, you can reveal elements of statistics or personality. For a location, you can reveal secrets about it, such as a hidden entrance, the answer to a riddle, or the nature of a creature that guards the place.

Complications. The greatest risk in research is uncovering false information. Not all lore is accurate or truthful, and a rival with a scholarly bent might try to lead the character astray, especially if the object of the research is known to the rival. The rival might plant false information, bribe sages to give bad advice, or steal key tomes needed to find the truth.

In addition, a character might run into other complications during research. Every 4 days spent in research brings a 10 percent chance of a complication, examples of which are on the Research Complications table. Research Topics Available through the Administration building intranet (these are examples to give you an idea of what could be researched here) :


 * History of the worlds (Earth, New Earth, Elwyth, Svartal, etc, basically the Setting page but with more detail depending on the inquiry)
 * Ecologies of the worlds (see above list)
 * Known facts about various individuals (Magistrate Collins, Keeting, Queen Ulanorin, etc)
 * Initial Rhean geographical, meteorological, and geological studies and their results.
 * History of the town.

Sowing Rumors (DMG 131 + HB)
Located at The Gem Saloon, the Companion House, or the Royale.

Swaying public opinion can be an effective way to bring down a villain or elevate a friend. Spreading rumors is an efficient, if underhanded, way to accomplish that goal. Well-placed rumors can increase the subject’s standing in a community or embroil someone in scandal. A rumor needs to be simple, concrete, and hard to disprove. An effective rumor also has to be believable, playing off what people want to believe about the person in question.

Sowing a rumor about an individual or organization requires 2d6 days, the time spent must be continuous. If the character spreads a rumor for ten days, disappears on an adventure for another few days and then returns, the rumor fades away without the benefit of constant repetition.

The character must spend 10 gp per day to cover the cost of drinks, social appearances, and the like. At the end of the time spent sowing the rumor, the character must make a DC 15 Charisma (Deception or Persuasion) check. If the check succeeds, the community’s prevailing attitude toward the subject shifts one step toward friendly or hostile, as the character wishes. If the check fails, the rumor gains no traction, and further attempts to propagate it fail.

Shifting a community’s general attitude toward a person or organization doesn’t affect everyone in the community. Individuals might hold to their own opinions, particularly if they have personal experience in dealing with the subject of the rumors.

Training (PHB 187 + HB)
Located at the Administration Building.

You can spend time between adventures learning a new language or training with a set of tools. Your DM might allow additional training options.

First, you must find an instructor willing to teach you. The DM determines how long it takes, and whether one or more ability checks are required.

The training lasts for 60 days and costs 6 gp per day. You can reduce this time by a number of days equal to your intelligence modifier multiplied by 10. After you spend the requisite amount of time and money, you learn the new language or gain proficiency with the new tool.

Training to Gain Levels (HB + DMG 131)
Location depends on training.

As a variant rule, you can require characters to spend downtime training or studying before they gain the benefits of a new level. If you choose this option, once a character has earned enough experience points to attain a new level, he or she must train for a number of consecutive days before gaining any class features associated with the new level.

The training time required depends on the level to be gained, as shown on the Training to Gain Levels table. The training cost is for the training time per day.

Training a Pet (HB)
Located the Grand Central Hotel.

Occasionally your heart strings are tugged on by a cute little animal, alien or robot. But they aren't the best listeners. You can make your pet a useful part of the party instead of just a fancy set piece. To determine if you were successful in training your pet, you will make an Animal Handling check after each day of downtime to see if that day was a success.