TEXT:   
   
  Making Parties Matter v1.0 
   
   
   
   
  A set of new mechanics related to parties and 
  party games for the world’s most popular 
  roleplaying game system. 
  Design and development by Jacob Gobhar. 
  Artwork by Shazleen Khan. 
   
   
  d5Ed  
   
  
  1 
   
  Making Parties Matter v1.0 
  Credits:  
   
   
   
   
   
  Written by Jacob Gobhar 
  Cover Art by Shazleen Kahn 
  Follow Jacob on twitter @goatmealery 
  Follow Shazleen on twitter @neonlanterns or 
  visit her website: www.shazleenkhan.com 
  Acknowledgments: 
   
   
   
   
  The work presented here was influenced by 
  many, and I would like to take some time to 
  thank a few notable contributors. 
  My design in the world’s most popular 
  roleplaying game has been influenced by the 
  works of Creighton Broadhurst, Kent Kelly, and 
  Owen K.C. Stephenson. 
  My excitement for designing a roleplaying game 
  supplement has been enhanced by the actual 
  play work done by Adam Koebel, Matt Mercer, 
  Chris Perkins, and SatinePhoenix as well as the 
  many wonderful players that each of them have 
  worked with. 
  The new mechanics I am introducing here were 
  aided by the feedback of the Babble-On Discord 
  community hosted by David Collins. I am a 
  better designer and a better person for having 
  spent time with all of you, so thanks for that. 
  If you enjoy what you see in here and are not 
  familiar with any of the names above, please 
  look them up. They are all better at this stuff 
  than I am. 
  I would also like to thank everyone who has 
  been involved with and continues to be 
  involved with playtesting, without which this 
  module would not be possible. 
  And finally I would like to thank my family for 
  allowing me to carve out some time to do this 
  thing. 
  Game Feedback: 
   
   
   
   
  Thank you for buying this product, it means a 
  lot to me that people are interested in what I 
  am doing. This game is in open playtesting, 
  which means your feedback could influence 
  future iterations of this game. Don’t worry, you 
  aren’t going to be left with an “outdated 
  version,” as subsequent versions will become 
  available to early purchasers. Also be on the 
  lookout for a full adventure in the coming 
  months illustrating how to make use of these 
  new mechanics. If you are going to use these 
  new mechanics in your own gaming product, 
  please be so kind as to reference this 
  supplement as a resource. 
  Legal:  
   
   
   
   
   
  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be 
  reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted 
  without the prior written permission of Jacob Gobhar or as 
  expressly permitted by law. 
  Product Identity: All proper names (Dorkal, Dunt, and 
  Ormallo) are product identity as defined in the Open Game 
  License version 1.0a, Section 1(e) and are not Open 
  Content. 
  Open Content: Except material designated as Product 
  Identity, the contents of Making Parties Matter are Open 
  Game Content as defined in the Open Gaming License 
  version 1.0a Section 1(d). No portion of this work other 
  than the material designated as Open Game Content may 
  be reproduced in any form without written permission. 
  To learn more about the Open Game License, visit 
  wizards.com/d20. 
   
   
  
  2 
   
  Table of Contents 
  Introduction 
   
   
   
  3 
  Chapter 1: New Mechanics 
   
  4 
  Character Attributes  
   
  4 
  Heroic, Popularity 
  Party Attribute 
   
   
  5 
  Smash Hit 
  Character Actions 
   
   
  6 
  Gather Information, Party Hard, Use                    
  Popularity 
  An Example 
   
   
   
  8 
  NPC Actions  
   
   
  9 
  Chapter 2: Party Activities 
   
  11 
  Card Games  
   
   
  11 
  Carnival Games 
   
   
  12 
  Contest of Strength 
   
   
  13 
  Dance Party  
   
   
  13  
  Dance Party Accompaniment  
  14 
  Drinking Contest 
   
   
  14 
  Hotdog Eating Contest  
   
  15 
   Maze Exploration 
   
   
  15 
  Observing 
   
   
   
  16 
  Participation Prize 
   
   
  16   
  Scavenger Hunt 
   
   
  17 
  Sparring Contest 
   
   
  18 
  Spinning Contraption  
   
  18 
  Strongarm Contest 
   
   
  19 
  Trivia Games  
   
   
  20 
  OGL V1.0A 
   
   
   
  22 
   
   
   
  
  3 
   
  Introduction 
  Parties and party games can be a fun addition 
  to roleplaying games regardless of the setting. 
  Whether these parties are regional festivals, 
  impromptu bar sing-alongs, grand balls, or 
  secretive gatherings of woodland dwellers, 
  there is much fun to be had by attempting to 
  win the fame and adoration of both commoners 
  and nobility. The challenging aspect of parties is 
  that there is often little in the game mechanics 
  that encourages or rewards these activities. 
  They become more diversions than actual 
  integral parts of the game itself. This 
  supplement introduces a few ways to make the 
  activities at a party more mechanically 
  meaningful to the narrative of the roleplaying 
  game itself.  
  There are two chapters in this supplement: new 
  mechanics to influence the result of a party, 
  and a list of party games that could bea part of 
  this influence. The new mechanics introduced in 
  chapter one will highlight ways in which the 
  characters can have an influence on the success 
  of a party. There are a variety of ways in which 
  the characters can receive benefits based on 
  how successful they are in influencing the 
  success of the party. This will often involve 
  engaging in a series of party games. 
  The party games introduced in chapter two are 
  activities the characters can engage with as 
  they attempt to influence the success of the 
  party, or to make a bit of cash along the way. 
  There are thirteen party games listed here that 
  you can choose from to add to your campaign. 
   
   
   
   
   
  
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  Chapter 1: New Mechanics 
  The new mechanics introduced here are 
  associated with influencing the result of a party. 
  Characters can do things to gain influence, and 
  then can check to see if that influence is 
  sufficient to make the party a success. Once the 
  party is a success they can gain additional 
  benefits. The new mechanics here are 
  categorized in the following way: character 
  attributes, party attribute, character actions, 
  and NPC actions. 
  Character Attributes 
  There are two new attributes introduced here. 
  These new attributes can be gained during the 
  course of the adventure and then used in a 
  variety of situations. These are things that 
  characters either have or don’t have. They are 
  not things that can be stockpiled. The uses of 
  these new attributes are further detailed below 
  in the section character actions. 
  Popularity- Characters’ success at party games 
  and activities gives them some fleeting 
  popularity. This popularity can fuel continued 
  success. Popularity is earned through successful 
  skill checks. These skill checks will often be from 
  success at party games (requiring multiple 
  successful rolls in most cases), but could also 
  simply be a Charisma (Persuasion) check in 
  certain circumstances.  
  Popularity is always fleeting, and in most cases 
  will need to be used before the completion of a 
  long rest. Some uses require that it be used 
  immediately upon receiving it. See the section 
  character actions for more details on how 
  popularity can be used. 
  Heroic- If characters are not heroic, most of 
  their actions have very little effect on the party. 
  When they are heroic, their actions can have 
  very dramatic effects on the party. Depending 
  on how you intend to incorporate the party into 
  your game, the characters might be heroic as 
  the party starts, or they might need to take 
  actions in order to become heroic.  
  Beginning a 1st level campaign at a party might 
  involve actions the characters need to take in 
  order to become heroic. These actions should 
  include some sort of life threatening encounter 
  that somehow benefits the party if the 
  characters succeed. Perhaps it is something as 
  simple as defeating a handful of drunken thugs. 
  Perhaps it is more complicated, like rescuing a 
  relative of a prominent partygoer who was 
  kidnapped earlier in the party. 
   If you want to highlight the heroic mechanic in 
  your campaign, it might be best used by having 
  some of the other interactions before the 
  characters have a chance to become heroic as 
  well as after they’ve had a chance to become 
  heroic.  In this case, you should consider 
  allowing certain party activities to count 
  towards becoming a smash hit because the 
  characters are not able to use their popularity 
  in this way yet (see party attributes for more 
  regarding smash hits). The dance party is a good 
  party game to be used in this way. 
  For higher level characters, and for situations 
  where you want a more limited scope of party 
  interactions, the characters can start the game 
  as heroic. Once they become heroic, they 
  continue to be heroic until the end of the party. 
  If characters are heroic, they can use any 
  
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  popularity they earn to make the party more 
  successful. 
  Party Attribute 
  Similar to character attributes this is something 
  that is either true of the party or not true of the 
  party. There is only one thing that matters for a 
  party, whether it’s a smash hit. 
  Smash Hit- The party does not start out as a 
  smash hit, but characters might take actions to 
  make it become one. If the party is not a smash 
  hit, most attendees are commoners passing by 
  for a free drink and there are few good leads on 
  interesting things going on in the rest of the 
  world. Once the party becomes a smash hit, 
  there will be people of influence dropping 
  rumors and adventure hooks that might interest 
  the characters.  
  Once the party becomes a smash hit, it 
  continues to be a smash hit until some larger 
  event has an opportunity to derail it. Becoming 
  a smash hit might also be necessary to influence 
  the person who is hosting the party. There are 
  four mechanical differences that could occur 
  based on whether or not the party has become 
  a smash hit. Choose all or some of these events 
  to affect your game. 
   
  Being a smash hit is an event which 
  must occur to please the host of the 
  party. The host of the party will grant 
  some sort of favor on the characters if 
  they help in achieving this goal and 
  possibly some sort of disfavor if they 
  are unable to help in achieving this 
  goal. 
   
  Being a smash hit is necessary for the 
  host of the party to achieve something. 
  If the host of the party achieves this 
  thing, it might open the doors for the 
  characters to have additional 
  successes. 
   
  When a party is a smash hit, gather 
  information checks become easier 
  and/or more useful. There are a variety 
  of ways you can adjudicate this, all of 
  which are detailed below in the section 
  character actions. 
  The frequency of checking for a smash hit will 
  depend on the length of the party itself. For an 
  all day party, it might be checked every few 
  hours. For a multiple day party, it might be 
  checked once per day. For an evening party, 
  there might be one check prior to the 
  opportunity to Party Hard. (see character 
  actions for more details on how to Party Hard.) 
  Throughout the remainder of this section, this 
  frequency will be referred to as the time period. 
  In any case, you should expect to have between 
  three and five opportunities for the characters 
  to attempt to make the party a smash hit. It’s 
  important to have more than one opportunity, 
  because the difficulty of making the party a 
  smash hit is not the sole responsibility of the 
  characters, nor is it necessarily easy to succeed 
  on the skill checks involved in getting there. If 
  you prefer having a shorter party where they 
  only get one chance to make a smash hit, 
  consider the possibility of having multiple 
  parties over the course of one week that the 
  characters might attend in order to achieve the 
  benefits of making a party a smash hit. 
  Alternatively, you could make it significantly 
  easier to succeed at the party games detailed in 
  chapter two. 
  If the party is not a smash hit, roll 2d4 at the 
  end of each time period to determine how 
  many successful events the characters must 
  have experienced in order to turn the party into 
  a smash hit during that time period. The 
  
  6 
   
  successful events the characters may 
  experience are generally going to occur by using 
  popularity gained during party games. Each 
  character should generally be allowed two to 
  three opportunities to participate in party 
  games per time period. If the characters are not 
  heroic, they might only have one opportunity 
  per time period, but should be provided an 
  opportunity to become heroic eventually (as 
  well as more opportunities to make the party a 
  smash hit). It would be quite rare for a group of 
  non-heroic characters to make a party become 
  a smash hit, but it is not completely out of the 
  realm of possibility. 
  If the host is rewarding the characters for their 
  role in making the party a smash hit, she will 
  recognize how much credit they should get for 
  making that happen. The party host may either 
  reward or punish the characters based on the 
  success or failure in making the party a smash 
  hit during a given time period. The results of the 
  smash hit dice are grouped into three 
  categories representing the level of effort 
  necessary for the characters to make the party 
  a smash hit. 
   
  2-3 (easy): There is significant effort by 
  both characters and NPCs in order to 
  make the party a smash hit. If 
  successful in making the party a smash 
  hit, the host grants her favor on half the 
  characters. If unsuccessful in making 
  the party a smash hit, she grants 
  disfavor on all characters. 
   
  4-6 (medium) : The effort in making the 
  party a smash hit is mostly done by the 
  characters. If successful in making the 
  party a smash hit, the host grants her 
  favor on all characters. If unsuccessful 
  in making the party a smash hit, she 
  grants her disfavor on half of the 
  characters. 
   
  7-8 (hard): Several NPCs are clearly 
  making it very difficult to make the 
  party a smash hit. The host does not 
  grant disfavor on any characters, and 
  might dismiss several NPCs from her 
  employment. If the characters are 
  somehow successful in making the 
  party a smash hit, they all receive a 
  more prominent or sustained benefit. 
  These results are for a group of four to five 
  players. For larger or smaller gaming groups, 
  feel free to adjust the smash hit dice as follows. 
  For three or fewer players: roll 2d4-1, and 
  adjust each difficulty category down by one. For 
  six or more players: roll 2d4+1, and adjust each 
  difficulty category up by one.   
  Alternate: For a more fast-paced game, you 
  could have the smash hit dice be cumulative. In 
  this case, you would initially roll 2d4 and then 
  an additional 1d4 for each time period after the 
  first. The total of all the smash hit dice is what is 
  necessary for the total of all the successful 
  events to match. This approach is more 
  appropriate for a shorter party. 
  Character Actions 
  These are choices characters can make while at 
  the party, most of them involving a die roll. As 
  the party progresses, the nature of the choices 
  available to the characters will change as well. 
  In general, they will likely start out attempting 
  to make the party a smash hit, and then once 
  that has happened they will try to gather 
  information or achieve other benefits. The ways 
  in which they can attempt to make the party a 
  smash hit change once they become heroic. 
  Allow the characters to make different choices 
  than this if they would prefer to go in a 
  
  7 
   
  different direction, but this course of action 
  provides the easiest pathway to success for 
  them in most cases. 
  Gather Information- Gather Information checks 
  can be made with either a Charisma 
  (Persuasion) check or a Wisdom (Insight) check, 
  at the player’s discretion. Charisma (Persuasion) 
  checks represent a character spending their 
  efforts trying to convince others to share 
  information, while Wisdom (Insight) checks 
  represent a character knowing how to be in the 
  right place at the right time in order to overhear 
  something. If creative players propose some 
  other skill check they would like to use in order 
  to gather information, consider allowing it but 
  with additional restrictions such as 
  disadvantage or some consequence for a failed 
  roll.  
  Every character gets to make one Gather 
  Information check per time period. Some 
  situations might lead to additional gather 
  information checks: party hard, and the use of 
  popularity.  
  The nature of Gather Information checks should 
  be altered somewhat based on whether or not 
  the party is a smash hit. There are a few ways to 
  approach this change, but in all cases the goal is 
  to represent increasing the ease of Gather 
  Information checks once the party becomes a 
  smash hit: 
   
  Lower the DC once the party becomes a 
  smash hit. Generally a DC 13 is a good 
  benchmark for a smash hit, with a DC 
  around 17-20 prior to becoming a 
  smash hit. 
   
  Roll on different tables for a smash hit 
  but keep the same DC either way. 
  Perhaps a non smash hit party results in 
  a 1d4 roll. Three of the results of this 
  roll might provide cursory information 
  about how to impress the host or make 
  the party more successful, and the 
  other result allows a roll on the table 
  used for smash hits. 
  Have a table of several results ready for the 
  characters should they succeed on the Gather 
  Information check. The rumors could be listed 
  on a d100 table or a d20 table depending on 
  how many you would like to use. If you are 
  using an official sourcebook for your game, 
  these often contain such tables. 
  Party Hard-Character can choose to stay up all 
  night, extending the life of the party. If the 
  characters are considering whether to Party 
  Hard in order to achieve a smash hit, reveal the 
  number of remaining successes necessary as 
  you give the characters the option to Party 
  Hard. They will have some sense of how well 
  NPCs have contributed to making the party 
  successful and whether it is worth their extra 
  time to stay up late in this sort of effort. If the 
  characters do Party Hard, they may choose one 
  of the following benefits: 
   
  If a character has gained popularity for 
  anything earlier in the day, they may 
  make a DC 15 Charisma (Persuasion or 
  Performance) check in order to gain an 
  additional success towards becoming a 
  smash hit. 
   
  If all characters are involved in some 
  sort of performance, they can make a 
  group check in order to gain additional 
  successes towards a smash hit. This 
  performance should be something that 
  the characters have had some amount 
  of training with, or at least have 
  practiced together prior to making this 
  check. It could be that each character 
  needs to succeed on a Charisma 
  
  8 
   
  (Performance) check, but other 
  possibilities such as Dexterity 
  (Acrobatics, or Sleight of Hand) could 
  work as well. Regardless of the skill 
  check chosen, the DC is 15. Each 
  success results in an additional success 
  towards becoming a smash hit. Any 
  failure by 5 or more cancels out one 
  success. 
   
  A character can choose to make one 
  additional Gather Information check 
  during this time period. This Gather 
  Information check roll is made at 
  advantage, as there are fewer 
  inhibitions as the night gets longer. 
  Regardless of which benefit the characters took, 
  each character who chooses to Party Hard must 
  then make a DC 10 Constitution saving throw or 
  else gain a level of exhaustion.  
   
  An Example 
  Dorkal, Dunt, and Ormallo are working for a Noble, trying to make the party a smash hit so that she will 
  be considered for the granting of additional lands. The party is several days long, and they have five days 
  within which to make the party a smash hit or else she will not be considered for the land grant. 
  On the first day, you roll the the smash hit die, resulting in a six. Because there are only three members 
  of the party, you then subtract one to get a result of five. Between them, Dorkal, Dunt, and Ormallo 
  need to do five things in order to make the party a smash hit this day. Because there are only three of 
  them, this qualifies as a hard attempt to make the party a smash hit. Only Dorkal succeeds on a carnival 
  game this day. Because this was a hard attempt, they are not penalized for their efforts and the Noble 
  fires several NPCs that day and none of the characters are penalized. They do not choose to Party Hard. 
  On the second day of the party, Dorkal, Dunt, and Ormallo become heroic and there is a dance party in 
  honor of this. Dorkal and Ormallo succeed on the acrobatics check, but Dunt fails. You roll the smash hit 
  die, resulting in a five, lowered to a four, as before. This is a medium attempt. The party needs four 
  successes and has achieved two of them. Because this was a medium attempt, the Noble expresses her 
  disfavor with Dunt as well as three NPCs and then goes to bed. The characters choose to Party Hard, but 
  gain only one more success. Dorkal fails his Constitution save and is exhausted the next day. 
  On the third day of the party, Dorkal, Dunt, and Ormallo engage in party games in an attempt to make 
  the party a smash hit. Dorkal participates in the carnival games and fails to win each time (perhaps due 
  to exhaustion). Dunt participates in the contest of strength and wins twice. Ormallo participates in the 
  scavenger hunt and wins once. Because they are heroic, they are able to apply each of these successes 
  towards turning the party into a smash hit. You roll the smash hit die, resulting in a four. Because there 
  are only three members of the party, you subtract one, resulting in a three. This is a medium attempt. 
  They have made three successes, the party becomes a Smash Hit. Dorkal, Dunt, and Ormallo each 
  receive the Noble’s favor.  
   
  
  9 
   
  Use Popularity- If a character has popularity, 
  there are three things he can do with it. Once 
  popularity is used, it is gone, but can be 
  regained when additional opportunities are 
  presented. 
   
  A player can spend popularity to gain 
  advantage on a skill check (similar to 
  inspiration), with a few limitations. The 
  popularity can only be used on skill 
  checks (not attack rolls or saving 
  throws). The skill check has to be taken 
  at the same party at which the 
  popularity was gained. Popularity can’t 
  generally be “given” to another player 
  the way inspiration can be. There 
  should be a plausible reason why using 
  popularity would be beneficial for the 
  given skill check in this situation. A 
  player can have both popularity and 
  inspiration at the same time. 
   
  A player can spend popularity as he 
  receives it in order to make a Gather 
  Information check. The player still 
  needs to make the roll for the Gather 
  Information check (and can’t use the 
  popularity to give advantage on this 
  roll, because the popularity is being 
  used up in creating the opportunity for 
  the roll).  
   
  If a character is heroic, she can spend 
  her popularity as she receives it in order 
  to gain one success towards making the 
  party a smash hit. 
  NPC Actions  
  There will obviously be many NPCs present at a 
  party. The characters will engage with some of 
  them via party games or gather information 
  checks. Adjudicating these situations is detailed 
  elsewhere. The focus of this section will be on 
  that one special NPC who can grant special 
  boons to the characters: the host of the party. 
  The Host- A potentially important benefit to 
  making the party a smash hit is gaining the 
  favor of the party’s host. This favor could be as 
  simple as a large payment or the sharing of 
  information that is particularly useful for the 
  characters. However, it is also possible to be a 
  bit more creative and give mechanical bonuses 
  for great success, as well as mechanical 
  penalties for great failure. The following are 
  possible favors and disfavors the host might 
  grant on characters who are attempting to 
  make her party successful: 
   
  The hosts favor might be similar to a 
  bardic inspiration die. This favor might 
  last ten minutes or a full day depending 
  on the situation. This sort of favor might 
  be dispensed conservatively for efforts 
  that are leading towards the party 
  becoming a smash hit, and more 
  liberally once it has become a smash 
  hit. 
   
  The host’s favor might be similar in 
  effect to a divination spell such as 
  Augury, Locate Object, or Divination. 
  For greatest effect, this should be 
  selected as something the characters do 
  not yet have access to on their own. In 
  some cases this favor might look like 
  important healing spells for the 
  characters such as Greater Restoration, 
  Revivify, or Raise Dead. For particularly 
  high levels, the favor could even be 
  something as powerful as a Wish. If a 
  Wish is a possible favor, the host is 
  likely a god and the penalty for failing to 
  make the god’s party a smash hit could 
  be quite steep. (As would be the skill 
  checks necessary to impress the 
  
  10 
   
  attendees of whatever type of a party a 
  god might host!)   
   
  The hosts disfavor might be granting 
  disadvantage on a die roll of your 
  choosing. The character may choose to 
  make a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw to 
  avoid this affect, but risks termination 
  of employment if they do so. 
   
   Failure to make the party a smash hit 
  should result in dire consequences for 
  the characters. At the very least they 
  will be terminated from the host’s 
  employment and suffer disadvantage 
  on social skills involving that host or her 
  other employees. Some situations 
  might involve the host having the 
  power to imprison the characters for 
  this sort of failure, or magically exile 
  them to another plane for their 
  incompetence. 
   
  The fate of the characters might be 
  linked to the fate of the host. Perhaps 
  the success of the party is a 
  requirement for the party host to attain 
  a new level of prestige, such as 
  becoming a noble or becoming heir to 
  the throne. As the party’s host ascends 
  to power, he will be inclined to favor 
  those who have helped him along the 
  way. 
   
   
  
  11 
   
  Chapter 2: Party Activities 
  Characters can engage in party games in order 
  to derive a variety of effects. Generally, success 
  at these party games will result in popularity. 
  The character can then use that popularity in 
  order to gain what they want. Details of how 
  this might work are found in the Chapter 1: 
  New Mechanics. Alternately, or additionally, 
  the characters might be able to win a small cash 
  prize for succeeding at party games: 2d8 silver 
  pieces for a win. Feel free to increase this 
  amount for higher level play, but also adjust the 
  difficulty of the party games. 
  Many of these activities will involve a few initial 
  challenges to make it to the final round, at 
  which point contested rolls will be made to 
  determine the winner. Other games will simply 
  have a series of skill challenges, or have 
  contested rolls throughout the challenge. The 
  party games included here are Card Games, 
  Carnival Games, Contest of Strength, Dance 
  Party (including accompaniment as a separate 
  activity), Drinking Contest, Hotdog Eating 
  Contest, Maze Exploration, Scavenger Hunt, 
  Sparring Contest, Spinning Contraption, 
  Strongarm Contest, and Trivia Games.  Some 
  other activities that characters might be 
  engaged in during this time are listed as well: 
  participation prizes, and observation. These 
  additional activities are things that can modify 
  the results of the other party games. 
  For each of the contests, there will be a list of 
  characteristics which describe certain 
  properties of that contest. Many of the same 
  characteristics occur in all contests, but some of 
  them have different characteristics. All contests 
  have the characteristics Cheating, and Rewards 
  and Penalties. Some contests will have differing 
  requirements at different points in the contest, 
  for these contests there will be entries such as 
  Initial Rounds, and Final Challenge to make this 
  distinction. Contests which don’t have this 
  distinction will have the category Contest. Some 
  contests will also have a category called 
  Outcome for additional effects that are a result 
  of participating in the contest regardless of 
  whether or not that participation was 
  successful. Although many of the party games 
  have similar entries for many of these 
  categories, each party game has sufficient 
  information listed in its entry to determine the 
  result of that game without needing to 
  reference a standardized list. 
  Cheating is any activity which someone not 
  engaged in the contest might do to influence 
  the contest. The most obvious such choices are 
  listed with consequences for those choices. But 
  players may, of course, make all sorts of 
  additional choices beyond the ones listed in 
  each entry. Characters who are not directly 
  engaged in the contest are limited in the 
  number of ways they can influence other 
  contests. These is detailed in the activity 
  observation at the end of the list of party 
  games. 
   Characters have the opportunity to gain 
  popularity during each of these activities. The 
  activities included here are balanced for Tier 1 
  characters. For higher level characters, you will 
  need to increase the DCs of the activity and the 
  relevant bonuses of any NPC contestants. 
  Card Games 
  This contest could represent several types of 
  card games, both real and imagined. The 
  commonality in any of these games is the 
  
  12 
   
  dependence on both luck and skilled thinking in 
  order to succeed. 
  Contest: there are several ways to succeed on 
  this sort of contest. To win the contest, 
  characters must have a total of three successes 
  in a variety of skills, and no failures. If a 
  character beats the DC of any of these skill 
  checks by 5 or more, they have advantage on 
  the next skill check they make related to this 
  contest. Generally, they can have no more than 
  two of the skill check successes owing to any 
  one ability score. The following are the skill 
  checks that might be attempted: 
   
  Luck: A DC 10 Charisma check. This may 
  only be attempted once. 
   
  Trickery: A DC 12 Charisma (Deception) 
  check. This may only be attempted 
  once. 
   
  Skill: A DC 12 Intelligence 
  (Investigation) check. This may be 
  attempted twice. 
   
  Awareness: A DC 12 Wisdom (Insight) 
  check. This may be attempted twice. 
   
  Cheating: A DC 15 Dexterity (Sleight of 
  Hand) check. This may only be 
  attempted once, but counts as two 
  successes. Failure results in expulsion 
  from the game and the character can’t 
  receive popularity until after a long 
  rest. 
  Cheating: Cheating is included as one of the 
  ways of winning this contest, as detailed above. 
  In addition to this, another character could also 
  attempt to cast a spell or use an ability that 
  benefits the character during the contest itself.  
  To do so, they must succeed on a DC 13 Sleight 
  of Hand check to avoid the game’s referee 
  realizing what they are doing.  If they fail the 
  Sleight of Hand check, the character 
  automatically loses the contest.  Spells may be 
  cast before the contest begins, but assume this 
  must be done two rounds ahead of time to 
  avoid the need for the Sleight of Hand check.  
  Also assume the skill checks occur 20, 40, and 
  60 minutes after the start of the contest. 
  Rewards and Penalties: Any character who wins 
  the contest gains popularity.  There is no 
  penalty for losing the contest. Any character 
  who is caught cheating can’t gain popularity 
  again prior to a long rest. 
  Carnival Games 
  There is an elaborate arrangement of spinning 
  spokes on which contestants must toss rings. 
  After each round, the spinning spokes are 
  moved back five more feet and any remaining 
  contestants can continue to participate.   
  Initial Rounds: Success on an AC 10 ranged 
  attack is necessary to move on to the second 
  round, and on an AC 12 ranged attack to move 
  on to the final round.  Attack rolls of 20 or more 
  count as trick shots which woo the crowd and 
  grant advantage on the next attack roll. 
  Cheating: Another character can attempt to do 
  something to distract one of the contestants, 
  giving that contestant disadvantage on their 
  next roll.  It takes a DC 15 Charisma 
  (Performance) check to distract a contestant.  A 
  character may only attempt this once. Another 
  character could also attempt to cast a spell or 
  use an ability that benefits the character during 
  the contest itself.  To do so, they must succeed 
  on a DC 13 Sleight of Hand check to avoid the 
  game’s referee realizing what they are doing.  If 
  they fail the Sleight of Hand check, the 
  character automatically loses the contest.  
  Spells may be cast before the contest begins, 
  but assume this must be done two rounds 
  ahead of time to avoid the need for the Sleight 
  
  13 
   
  of Hand check.  Also assume the final round is 
  20 minutes after the start of the contest. 
  Final challenge: Each contestant must attempt 
  to hit the spinning spokes with their tossed 
  rings, and the target will continue to be moved 
  back until one of the contestants fails.  The first 
  round of the final starts at an AC of 14, and 
  increases by two for each round after that.  If 
  both contestants fail to hit the target, it doesn’t 
  move back any more until they both hit it. 
  Unless two characters are both competing and 
  make it to the final round, the opponent will 
  have a +3 ranged attack roll. 
  Rewards and Penalties: Any character who wins 
  the contest gains popularity.  There is no 
  penalty for losing the contest. Any character 
  who is caught cheating can’t gain popularity 
  again prior to a long rest. 
  Contest of Strength 
  The contest of strength could be a variety of 
  activities: an arm wrestling contest, a caber 
  toss, long jumping, or a wrestling contest.  
  Whatever the case, the contest will be won or 
  lost based on athletics checks. 
  Initial Rounds: Success on two consecutive DC 
  12 Strength (Athletics) checks is necessary to 
  make it to the final round. 
  Cheating: Another character can incite the 
  crowd once per contest, giving one of the 
  contestants either advantage or disadvantage 
  on their next roll.  It takes a DC 15 Charisma 
  (Persuasion) check to incite the crowd 
  sufficiently to have this effect.  A character 
  might attempt this prior to each roll, but it only 
  has an effect on the first success. 
  Final challenge: Success on two successive 
  contested athletics checks is necessary to win 
  the contest. Unless two characters are both 
  competing and make it to the final round, the 
  opponent will have a +3 athletics check. 
  Rewards and Penalties: Any character who wins 
  the contest gains popularity.  There is no 
  penalty for losing the contest. Any character 
  who is caught cheating can’t gain popularity 
  again prior to a long rest. 
  Dance Party  
  A dance party will be a long activity that 
  requires some skill in movement as well as the 
  energy to maintain for a long period of time. 
  The dance party isn’t so much a battle between 
  contestants as a cooperative activity among all 
  who are present. Because of this, the barrier to 
  success should not be as high, but there should 
  be additional consequences that limit the use of 
  the dance party. Perhaps the dance party can 
  only work towards making a smash hit once per 
  day when a prominent guest is present.   
  If any characters are going to provide 
  accompaniment to the dance party, they must 
  make that roll prior to the characters who make 
  the roll for the dance party. It is possible for the 
  accompaniment to provide either advantage or 
  disadvantage on the roll for the dance party 
  itself. 
  Contest: A DC 15 Dexterity (Acrobatics) check is 
  necessary to succeed at the dance party.  
  Cheating: This activity is not contested, so there 
  is no real opportunity to “cheat.”  The host 
  probably has no problem with anyone else 
  using resources to make her employees better 
  at participating in the dance.  If someone is 
  providing accompaniment to the Dance and 
  rolls a 20 or higher on their Charisma 
  (Performance) check, it grants advantage to 
  anyone participating in the dance. 
  
  14 
   
  Outcome: Anyone participating must also make 
  a constitution save after each attempt, or else 
  suffer one level of exhaustion.  The DC is 10 on 
  the first attempt, but increases by one for each 
  additional attempt prior to a short or long rest. 
  Anyone rolling a 20 or higher on the acrobatics 
  check gets advantage on this constitution save. 
  The exhaustion levels gained in this way can be 
  removed with either a short or a long rest.  
  Rewards and Penalties: Anyone who succeeds 
  gains popularity, and may apply this popularity 
  towards becoming a smash hit regardless of 
  whether or not they are heroic. Anyone who 
  fails by five or more results in the loss of one 
  success towards becoming a Smash Hit.  
  Dance Party Accompaniment 
  Anyone who is skilled at performance may join 
  the bards playing the music that accompanies 
  the dance, though the host will encourage them 
  to try the dance itself before trying to make 
  music to accompany it. To qualify for this, the 
  character must have a musical instrument, and 
  must have participated in at least one dance 
  party that they did not fail by five or more. 
  Make any dance party accompaniment rolls 
  prior to dance party rolls, as these results might 
  grant advantage or disadvantage to the dance 
  party rolls. 
  Contest: A DC 15 Charisma (Performance) check 
  is necessary to succeed.   
  Cheating: This activity is not contested, so there 
  is no real opportunity to “cheat.”  The host 
  probably has no problem with anyone else 
  using resources to make her employees better 
  at participating in the dance.  
  Rewards and Penalties: Anyone who succeeds 
  gains popularity, and may apply this popularity 
  towards becoming a smash hit regardless of 
  whether or not they are heroic. If a character 
  fails by five or more, this results in the loss of 
  one success towards becoming a Smash Hit, and 
  causes everyone making dance party checks to 
  do so at disadvantage. Anyone beating the DC 
  by 5 or more allows anyone making the dance 
  party check to do so at advantage. 
  Drinking Contest 
  A true staple of many a storied party. Whoever 
  can down the most alcoholic beverages without 
  keeling over wins the contest. 
  Initial Rounds: Success on two consecutive DC 
  10 Constitution saving throws is necessary to 
  make it to the final round. 
  Cheating: Another character can attempt to aid 
  the character engaging in the drinking contest 
  by providing any amount of magical healing.  To 
  do so, they must succeed on a DC 10 Dexterity 
  (Sleight of Hand) check to avoid the other 
  contestant realizing what they are doing.  If 
  successful, the character automatically 
  succeeds on their next Constitution saving 
  throw.  If they fail the Dexterity (Sleight of 
  Hand) check, the targeted character 
  automatically loses the contest, but doesn’t 
  need to save for the poisoned condition. 
  Final challenge: for each of the subsequent 
  rounds of drinking, the other contestant and 
  the character must succeed on a Constitution 
  saving throw or fall prone and become 
  nauseous, subsequently losing the contest.  If 
  both fail on the same round, there is no winner.  
  The DC for this check starts at 10, but increases 
  by +1 for each additional round.  The other 
  finalist has a +2 Constitution saving throw 
  modifier. 
  Outcome: If the character wins the contest, 
  they must also make a final Constitution saving 
  
  15 
   
  throw at disadvantage.  On a failure, they have 
  the poisoned condition.  If they lost the contest, 
  they automatically have the poisoned condition.  
  This condition can be removed with any amount 
  of magical healing, or a long rest.  If a short rest 
  is taken, the Constitution saving throw can be 
  made again at advantage to remove the 
  condition.  
  Rewards and Penalties: Any character who wins 
  the contest and does not receive the poisoned 
  condition gains popularity. Any character who 
  participates in the contest but doesn’t win can’t 
  gain popularity again until after a long rest. 
  Hotdog Eating Contest 
  This is simply a contest to see who can eat the 
  most food. Feel free to substitute hotdogs with 
  pies, haggis, lutefisk, or whatever food is most 
  appropriate for your campaign. 
  Initial Rounds: Success on two consecutive DC 
  10 Constitution saving throws is necessary to 
  make it to the final round. 
  Cheating: Another character can attempt to aid 
  the character engaging in the hotdog eating 
  contest by providing any amount of magical 
  healing.  To do so, they must succeed on a DC 
  13 Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check to avoid 
  the other contestant realizing what they are 
  doing.  If successful, the character automatically 
  succeeds on their next Constitution saving 
  throw.  If they fail the Dexterity (Sleight of 
  Hand) check, the character automatically loses 
  the contest. 
  Final challenge: for each of the subsequent 
  rounds of eating, the other contestant and the 
  character must succeed on a Constitution 
  saving throw or become nauseous, 
  subsequently losing the contest.  If both fail on 
  the same round, there is no winner.  The DC for 
  this check starts at 10, but increases by +1 for 
  each additional round.  The other finalist has a 
  +2 Constitution saving throw modifier. 
  Outcome: If the character wins the contest, 
  they must also make a final Constitution saving 
  throw at disadvantage.  On a failure, they have 
  gained a level of exhaustion.  If they lost the 
  contest, they have already gained a level of 
  exhaustion. 
  Rewards and Penalties: Any character who wins 
  the contest gains popularity. There is no penalty 
  for losing. 
  Maze Exploration 
  A labyrinthine construction traps the 
  contestants. The construction of the maze can 
  vary depending on the setting of the party. 
  Perhaps it is made of solid stone or crystal, or it 
  could be trimmed hedges or dangling 
  tapestries. In any case the goal is the same: 
  Whoever gets out first wins the contest! 
  Contest: The characters make a series of skill 
  checks to determine how rapidly they are able 
  to escape the maze. Unlike many of the other 
  contests, there aren’t “rounds” to be completed 
  before facing off against a finalist: everyone is 
  competing against each other. The race is to 
  complete the skill checks before everyone else 
  does. If the character successfully completes 
  three DC 14 Intelligence (Investigation) checks 
  before anyone else does, they win the 
  competition. The difficulty of these checks 
  might be varied by moving more deliberately or 
  more swiftly through the maze. There are three 
  possible approaches: 
   
  Move at a normal pace and make all 
  skill checks as normal. 
   
  Move quickly: skill checks are made at 
  disadvantage, but the character 
  
  16 
   
  receives an additional check after their 
  competition has made two checks. 
   
  Move deliberately: skill checks are 
  made at advantage, but the competitor 
  receives an additional check after the 
  character has made two checks. 
  Assume the chief competitor has a +2 
  Intelligence (Investigation) modifier, and always 
  moves at a normal pace. 
  Cheating: Because the maze is by its nature 
  isolated from the rest of the party, it will be 
  difficult for others to affect the results in most 
  cases. Another character might attempt to 
  sneak into the maze in order to help the 
  competing character in their attempts. A DC 18 
  Dexterity (Stealth) check is necessary in order to 
  avoid detection while sneaking into the maze. 
  Once in the maze, the character attempting to 
  help must then make a DC 15 Wisdom 
  (Perception) check to determine what direction 
  to move in order to find the character. One 
  round after succeeding on this check, they may 
  help the character in the maze, giving them 
  advantage on all subsequent skill checks. 
  The character might attempt to do something 
  while others are not able to see him inside of 
  the maze. For example, a character might use 
  tools such as a string or marking device to help 
  figure out the way through. Any such activity 
  can grant advantage on up to two of the skill 
  checks. Unless accompanied by a DC 15 
  Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check to cover up 
  what they were doing, assume any such efforts 
  will be discovered in 1d4 hours and traced back 
  to the character as the source. Similarly, if the 
  character tries to incapacitate the other 
  competitors and leave them in the maze, such 
  efforts will be discovered in 1d4 hours.  
  Rewards and Penalties: Any character who wins 
  the contest gains popularity.  There is no 
  penalty for losing the contest. Any character 
  who is caught cheating can’t gain popularity 
  again prior to a long rest. 
  Observing 
  A character can choose to observe the various 
  contests instead of participating.  This might be 
  purely for enjoyment, or it might give them an 
  opportunity to do something to sway the result 
  of a contest in one way or another.  
   A character observing can take one action at up 
  to two different activities occurring within the 
  same time period, or can take multiple actions 
  at one activity.  Some possibilities for the sorts 
  of actions these characters might take are listed 
  under each activity as Cheating.  You will need 
  to adjudicate the results for any actions the 
  characters might take which are not listed in 
  this portion of each activity. 
  Participation Prize 
  Anyone who did well in several contests but 
  never quite got first place will be able to 
  attempt to convince other party goers that they 
  are still worthy.  The eligible contests are any 
  for which there is a category of Final challenge, 
  as well as the Trivia Games contest.   
  Contest: If someone was a finalist in one of 
  these contests a total of twice or more, they 
  may attempt a DC 10 Charisma (Persuasion) 
  check to convince others of their popularity. If 
  they were a finalist three times or more, they 
  gain advantage on this check. 
  Rewards and Penalties: Success gains 
  popularity.  Failure means that character can’t 
  gain popularity until after a long rest, as they 
  are perceived as whiny. 
  
  17 
   
  Scavenger Hunt 
  Contestants are tasked with finding objects 
  hidden in an area. The area could be the 
  grounds of an estate, the hallways of a castle, or 
  any type of untamed wilderness. The nature of 
  the region in which this occurs will determine 
  the applicable skill checks to make. In a more 
  wilderness-type setting Wisdom (Survival) 
  checks might be appropriate, while in an urban 
  setting Intelligence (Investigation) checks might 
  be appropriate. There may be settings in which 
  both are important! 
  Contest: The characters make a series of skill 
  checks to determine how rapidly they are able 
  to find the hidden objects. Unlike many of the 
  other contests, there aren’t “rounds” to be 
  completed before facing off against a finalist: 
  everyone is competing against each other. The 
  race is to complete all tasks before anyone else 
  does. If the character successfully completes 
  four skill checks before anyone else does, they 
  win the competition. They must complete a 
  total of four skill checks divided from among at 
  least two different categories. The possible skill 
  checks are detailed below: 
   
  DC 14 Wisdom (Perception) check. 
   
  DC 16 Intelligence (Investigation) check. 
   
  DC 16 Wisdom (Survival) check. 
  As the character rolls each skill check, roll a skill 
  check for their toughest competitor and keep a 
  running tally of the success or failures of this 
  competitor. Assume the competitor has a +2 
  Wisdom (Perception) modifier, and a +3 to 
  whichever other skill you are using in this 
  contest. If you choose to require the use of all 
  three skills, assume the other competitor has 
  one skill with a +0 modifier as well.  If the 
  character makes four successful skill checks 
  before the competitor does so, the character 
  wins.  
  If it takes the character the exact same number 
  of skill checks to succeed as the competitor, 
  then it becomes a race to see who gets back to 
  the referee with their results first. Assume the 
  competitor has a speed of 30’. If the character 
  and the competitor have the same speed, then 
  assume they both take the dash action until 
  exhausted. Roll DC 10 Constitution saving 
  throws until someone fails, and lags behind. 
  Assume the competitor has a +0 Constitution 
  saving throw modifier. 
  Cheating: Another character can attempt to do 
  something to distract one of the contestants, 
  giving one of the contestants disadvantage on 
  their next roll.  It takes a DC 15 Charisma 
  (Performance) check to distract a contestant.  A 
  character may only attempt this once. Another 
  character could also attempt to cast a spell or 
  use an ability that benefits the character before 
  the contest starts.  Assume this must be done 
  two rounds ahead of time.  Also assume that it 
  takes approximately 10 minutes between each 
  of the skill checks. Another character might 
  attempt to sneak into the area of the scavenger 
  hunt in order to help the competing character 
  in their attempts. A DC 15 Dexterity (Stealth) 
  check is necessary in order to avoid detection, 
  and must be attempted before each attempt to 
  help the competing character. If this attempt is 
  successful, the helping character may either 
  cast one spell, or make the same skill check roll 
  that the competing character is making. If either 
  roll is successful it counts as one success. 
  Rewards and Penalties: Any character who wins 
  the contest gains popularity.  There is no 
  penalty for losing the contest. Any character 
  who is caught cheating can’t gain popularity 
  again prior to a long rest. 
  
  18 
   
  Sparring Contest 
  The head bodyguard of the host is willing to 
  take all comers.  He says he will reward anyone 
  who lasts half a minute against him. 
  Contest: This is a combat contest.  The 
  bodyguard has the statistics of a veteran. 
  The bodyguard will yield if he is dealt a given 
  amount of damage, or based on the passage of 
  time. The amount of damage or time is 
  dependent on the level of the contestant. The 
  time limit is one round plus a round per level of 
  the character. The damage limit is five hit 
  points, plus five hit points per level of the 
  character.  
   Even if injured in a contest, he will continue to 
  spar with anyone else who is willing, taking a 
  healing potion if necessary between bouts. 
  Cheating: Another character can incite the 
  crowd once per contest, giving one of the 
  contestants either advantage or disadvantage 
  on their next attack roll.  It takes a DC 15 
  Charisma (Persuasion) check to incite the crowd 
  sufficiently to have this effect.  A character 
  might attempt this prior to each roll, but it only 
  has an effect on the first success.   Another 
  character could also attempt to cast a spell or 
  use an ability that benefits the character during 
  the contest itself.  To do so, they must succeed 
  on a DC 13 Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check to 
  avoid the bodyguard realizing what they are 
  doing.  If they fail the Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) 
  check, the character automatically loses the 
  contest.  Spells may be cast before the sparring 
  contest begins, but assume this must be done 
  two rounds ahead of time to avoid the need for 
  the Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check. 
  Outcome: Damage dealt in the fight is 
  nonlethal, and anyone reduced to 0 hit points 
  regains consciousness at 1 hit point within a few 
  minutes.  However, regular means are 
  necessary to restore lost hit points beyond this.  
  Rewards and Penalties: Any character who 
  meets the time or damage requirement gains 
  popularity.  Any character who defeats the 
  bodyguard in single combat gains popularity, 
  and is given an uncommon one use magic item 
  (such as a potion or scroll) by the host as a 
  reward for such valor. There is no penalty for 
  losing the contest. Any character who is caught 
  cheating can’t gain popularity again prior to a 
  long rest.  
  Spinning Contraption 
  An artificer stands next to a large metallic 
  device covered in sprockets, gears and knobs. In 
  the center is a large sphere filled with a variety 
  of spokes and rungs on which anyone inside 
  might be able to cling. But why would anyone 
  go inside there on purpose? 
  Contest: Whoever can last the longest inside of 
  a spinning sphere is the winner of the contest. 
  The challenge is partly based on the ability to 
  withstand the movement, but also about 
  positioning and repositioning oneself within the 
  sphere to avoid the worst effects.  Assume 
  there is only room for two contestants within 
  the sphere. 
  Each round, the contestants may make a DC 14 
  Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) 
  check to position themselves within the sphere. 
  Success gives them advantage on the 
  Constitution saving throw to avoid becoming 
  nauseous. The Constitution saving throw is 
  generally DC 12, but it is possible to spin faster 
  or slower allowing for a variety of challenges if 
  requested. The first time a character fails this 
  saving throw, they become nauseous and gain a 
  level of exhaustion. They can signal their 
  
  19 
   
  surrender and for the contest to stop at this 
  point if they want. If they continue with the 
  contest, and fail the Constitution saving throw a 
  second time, they become stunned and 
  automatically lose the contest.  
  Assume that their competitor has a +2 
  Constitution saving throw modifier, and will 
  always choose to surrender if they fail the first 
  saving throw. 
  Cheating: Another character could also attempt 
  to cast a spell or use an ability that benefits the 
  character during the contest itself.  To do so, 
  they must succeed on a DC 13 Dexterity (Sleight 
  of Hand) check to avoid the artificer or other 
  contestant realizing what they are doing.  If 
  they fail the Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check, 
  the character automatically loses the contest.  
  Spells may be cast before the contest begins, 
  but assume this must be done two rounds 
  ahead of time to avoid the need for the 
  Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check.  Any amount 
  of magical healing before the end of the contest 
  allows the character to take additional levels of 
  exhaustion in lieu of gaining the stunned 
  condition on their next failed Constitution 
  saving throw. 
  Outcome: Whether the character wins or loses, 
  they have the incapacitated condition for ten 
  minutes after the completion of the contest. 
  Normal exhaustion rules apply if they gained 
  exhaustion. If they obtained the stunned 
  condition, they retain it until taking a short rest, 
  and are frightened of the contraption until they 
  take a long rest. 
  Rewards and Penalties: Any character who wins 
  the contest gains popularity.  If the contest is 
  lost due to gaining the stunned condition, the 
  character can’t gain popularity again prior to a 
  long rest. Any character who is caught cheating 
  can’t gain popularity again prior to a long rest. 
  Strongarm Contest 
  A large hammer sits next to a fifty foot tall pole 
  with demarcations along it and a bell on the 
  top. Hitting the hammer squarely on a tiny 
  button at the base of the pole causes a weight 
  to rise along the pole, potentially hitting the bell 
  at the top. 
  Contest: The characters make a melee attack 
  roll with a maul. They may add their proficiency 
  bonus if they are proficient in the use of the 
  maul. The “damage” done by the maul scales 
  with the AC they are able to hit, as detailed 
  below: 
   
  AC <5: completely miss the button and 
  are disqualified from the contest. 
   
  AC 5: roll 4d6 and drop the two highest 
  results, then add strength modifier to 
  calculate damage. 
   
  AC 10: roll 3d6 and drop the highest 
  result, then add strength modifier to 
  calculate damage. 
   
  AC 15: roll 2d6, then add strength 
  modifier to calculate damage. 
   
  AC 20: roll 3d6 and drop the lowest roll, 
  then add strength modifier to calculate 
  damage. 
   
  AC 25: roll 4d6 and drop the two lowest 
  rolls, then add strength modifier to 
  calculate damage. 
   
  Critical hits: add 2d6 to whatever roll is 
  called for in the AC roll that would have 
  been hit, as indicated above, dropping 
  the number of dice indicated in each 
  case, and adding strength modifier.  
  Initial Rounds: To make it to the final round, it is 
  necessary to deal 8 damage on successive 
  
  20 
   
  attacks. Damage rolls of 13 or higher result in 
  the weight moving to within inches of the bell, 
  wooing the crowd and granting advantage on 
  the next roll. Damage rolls of 17 or more result 
  in the weight smacking the bell, and the 
  contestant instantly being declared the winner 
  of the entire contest. 
  Cheating: Another character can attempt to do 
  something to distract one of the contestants, 
  giving one of the contestants disadvantage on 
  their next roll.  It takes a DC 15 Charisma 
  (Performance) check to distract a contestant.  A 
  character may only attempt this once. Another 
  character could also attempt to cast a spell or 
  use an ability that benefits the character during 
  the contest itself.  To do so, they must succeed 
  on a DC 13 Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check to 
  avoid the game’s referee realizing what they are 
  doing.  If they fail the Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) 
  check, the character automatically loses the 
  contest.  Spells may be cast before the contest 
  begins, but assume this must be done two 
  rounds ahead of time to avoid the need for the 
  Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check.  Also assume 
  the final round is 20-40 minutes after the start 
  of the contest. 
  Final challenge: Each contestant must attempt 
  to hit the button and cause the weight to fly the 
  highest. If one of the finalists does at least two 
  more damage than the other, she is considered 
  the winner. Otherwise, the height that the 
  weight rises is too close to differentiate and the 
  final round is repeated. The final round 
  opponent has an attack bonus of +4 and 
  strength modifier of +2.   
  Rewards and Penalties: Any character who wins 
  the contest gains popularity.  There is no 
  penalty for losing the contest. Any character 
  who is caught cheating can’t gain popularity 
  again prior to a long rest. 
  Trivia Games 
  One of the host’s lackeys is willing to test 
  anyone who is interested on their knowledge of 
  the region. Participants are asked a question 
  and write their answer on a sheet of paper.  If 
  they miss the question they are dismissed from 
  the game until there is only one contestant left. 
  Contest: This contest proceeds through a series 
  of rounds, but unlike other round-based 
  contests there is nothing special about the last 
  round unless another character is participating 
  in the contest. Success on an Intelligence 
  (History) check is necessary to proceed to the 
  next round.  The DC increases from one round 
  to the next: 10, 12, 15.  If a character succeeds 
  on all of these skill checks, assume they have 
  won the game unless they are competing 
  against another character.  In that case, assume 
  the highest roll wins. 
  Cheating: Another character could potentially 
  try to help a contestant.  To be helpful they 
  must both know the answer to the question and 
  communicate it with the contestant without the 
  lackey realizing it.  They must succeed on the 
  same Intelligence (History) check that the 
  contestant is participating in to know the 
  answer.  They must succeed on a DC 15 
  Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check to avoid the 
  lackey realizing what they are doing.  If they fail 
  the Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check, the 
  character automatically loses the contest.  
  Another character could also attempt to cast a 
  spell or use an ability that benefits the 
  character during the contest itself, and would 
  need to pass the same Dexterity (Sleight of 
  Hand) check if they do so. Spells may be cast 
  before the contest begins, but assume this must 
  be done two rounds ahead of time to avoid the 
  need for the Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check. 
  
  21 
   
  Also assume there are 10-20 minutes between 
  rounds. 
  Rewards and Penalties: Any character who wins 
  the contest gains popularity.  There is no 
  penalty for losing the contest. Any character 
  who is caught cheating can’t gain popularity 
  again prior to a long rest. 
   
   
   
   
  
  22 
   
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SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Dungeons & Dragons [multi]/5th Edition (5e)/3rd Party/Misc/Making Parties Matter.pdf