d100 Carousing

Overview

This table expands classic carousing into high-variance urban downtime with persistent consequences. Characters spend money for XP-equivalent advancement pressure, then risk social, legal, magical, and factional complications. The system creates emergent campaign hooks and NPC relationships through dice rolls rather than GM fiat.

Spending and XP Economics

Settlement-based spending multiplier:

Settlement Type	Spending Roll	Multiplier	Notes
Village	d4	×100 GP	Minimal high-culture venues
Town	d6	×100 GP	Diverse establishments
City	d12	×100 GP	Major cultural centers
Wild City	d20	×100 GP	Frontier trading posts or exotic locales

Exclusive society/club modifier: +×100 multiplier (×200 total) but only in that specific locale or cultural group.

Core procedure: 1. Roll settlement-appropriate die and multiply by 100 GP. 2. Character spends that amount carousing. 3. Gain XP equal to gold spent. 4. If roll result exceeds character level, or if character overspent into debt, roll consequence(s). 5. Apply persistent changes: new contacts, enemies, obligations, injuries, magical effects, items lost/gained.

Debt mechanism: If character spends more carousing funds than currently held, they go into debt to the venue/patron and automatically roll consequence(s) even if not exceeding level.

Consequence Taxonomy

The 100 consequences organize naturally into thematic clusters useful for GM preparation:

Physical Consequences (Body Horror / Injury)

Entries 2-4, 12, 21, 57, 72, 75, 82, 90, 97, 99, 100

Loss of body part (finger, toe, nose, ear, eye) via save
Shameful or wicked tattoo/piercing
Lingering illness/hangover (disadvantage for days)
Reduced to 1 HP from mugging or brawl
Spectral arm draped on shoulder (result: gain Friend — a ghost)

Referee pattern: Physical consequences create visible campaign markers and mechanical penalties that decay over time.

Contact Acquisition (Friends, Enemies, Allies)

Entries 5-6, 13-14, 25-26, 39-42, 58-59, 65, 70-72, 87-89, 99

Underworld contact (criminal faction contact)
High-society contact (noble faction contact)
Religious contact (clergy contact)
Trade contact (artisan/merchant guild contact)
Friendly mate gained
Enemy made
Reconcile with existing Enemy (for now)
Lose Friend (50% become Enemy)
Godparent relationship
Gain Friend (talking beast or fantasy creature)
Contact with Petty God (direct divine attention)

Contact type generator (d12): 1. Fellow practitioner of your trade 2. Guard (20% chance holds rank) 3. Criminal 4. Noble 5. Politician/courtier 6. Clergy/holy person 7. Magic practitioner 8. Commoner 9. Noble's staff 10. Artisan 11. Merchant 12. Creature hiding in society

Obligation and Debt (Long-Term Commitment)

Entries 7, 15-17, 23-24, 27-29, 38, 45-48, 63, 67, 71, 82

Investment scheme (scam vs. legitimate opportunity)
Religious faith joined (50% mainstream / underground cult)
Sacred relic/artifact stolen and hidden in character's possession
Political symbol/artifact defaced or misplaced
Stolen heirloom or noble crest now in character's possession
Oath sworn publicly to reform behavior (half-carousing value for 6 months)
Job promised but details forgotten (50% recall chance)
NPC companion obligation (promised d6 adventures)
Duel scheduled at dawn
Hired d20 hirelings (all expecting month's wages upfront)
Marriage contracted (with or without remembering the spouse)

Referee utility: These create multi-session campaign pressure; obligations escalate if ignored.

Property Loss/Damage (Economic Consequences)

Entries 10-11, 19-24, 36, 44, 55, 71, 86

Gambling windfall (d10×10% wealth gain, d10×10% return rate)
House always wins (lose d4×25% wealth)
Expensive personal object destroyed (not the magic one)
Party member's expensive object destroyed
Lost major relic (location unknown)
Precious weapon changes material (shifts to next material touched)
Conned of d10×10% of wealth
Lost d6 days to illness (unable to adventure)
Gained d12×100 GP worth of drugs (40% chance someone seeking it)
Invested in treasure map (20% fake; half of fakes lead to ambush)

Campaign pressure: Property loss creates legitimate gold sinks without feeling arbitrary.

Combat and Injury (Brawls / Duels)

Entries 49-53, 67

Fought the law (Win: gain credibility, 10% guards involved remember; Lose: reduced to 1 HP, wanted)
Gang brawl (lose half HP, gain entire street gang as Enemy)
Employer clash with hirelings (all reduced to half HP, hirelings take Loyalty tests)
Brawled with wizards/witches (winner gains Enemy OR subject to ongoing magical effect)
Duel at noon (challenge issued)

Entries 1, 18, 21, 30-31, 35, 37, 62, 64-65, 68, 72, 98, 100

Rode horse through noble home (local legend status + enemy gained)
Broke beloved local landmark/statue
Freed livestock stampede (50% authorities track you down)
Freed predators into area (infestation now infests locale)
Street shift to "Other City" (sleep deprivation + disadvantage next day)
Witnessed forbidden religious ritual (group hunting you)
Declared Enemy of political group
Gatecrashed fancy wedding (one family delighted, other wants you dead)
Killed someone's pet accidentally (guilt + relationship damage)
Started a fire in city (50% chance section destroyed)

Religious and Magical Complications

Entries 8, 41, 52, 54, 56, 59-60, 66

Joined religious faith (mainstream or underground)
Broke celibacy oath with holy person (50% still present)
Stumbled on wizard ritual (ritualists hunting you now)
Blasphemed (proscribed by clergy or god directly intervenes)
CURSED (simple entry; roll custom curse or use d100 Curses table)
Cursed item acquired ("bundled in sackcloth by wan young man")
Petty God makes direct contact
Advanced prophecy/legend (minor group watching closely)

Information Acquisition (Hooks and Rumors)

Entries 69-76, 84-85, 91-93

Learned of underground space with monsters/treasures/doom (vague location)
Political maneuver/scandal overheard
Valuable item location heard (others also heard it)
Wizard's apprentice revealed location of hidden master
Magic item lost in wilderness (location heard)
Band of adventurers who never returned (location known)
Local notable monster lore (multiple sources, conflicting details)
Graveyard of rich ancestor (tomb location offered)
Investment tip from nouveau riche ("elevate yourself from gutter")
Secret group activity learned of
Personal strife among nobles overheard
Hidden landmark revealed (library, execution site, first guild meeting)

Magical Items and Strange Gifts

Entries 15-17, 22-24, 60, 63, 68, 76, 86, 94

Sacred idol/artifact found in bed
Political symbol/artifact as pillow
Heirloom stolen and hidden
Expensive personal object missing
Key/relic missing and another found it
Lost major relic
Cursed gift received
Mysterious keys found on self (opens something unknown)
Property/hideout discovered (unlocked, unoccupied)

Exclusive Society Access (Membership and Modifiers)

Entries 78-81

Entry	Society Type	Effect	Drawback
78†	Old Geezers	Re-roll carousing result option	Halve XP; lose other Drinking Buddies; costs placement
79†	Cool Crowd	Odd rolls: ×200 multiplier	Must maintain aesthetic/substance involvement
80†	Exclusive Club	×200 multiplier in club	500 GP/month dues; barred forever if unpaid
81†	Weird Fringe	Extra d8×100 GP spent	Always roll 2 consequences regardless of result

†Only one exclusive society benefit active at a time; gaining new membership closes previous.

Specialized Outcomes (Single-Entry Categories)

Entry 83: Invented drink (local fame, +1 to all carousing rolls in area)
Entry 87: Foiled assassination (gain known Friend + unknown Enemy)
Entry 88: Clergy contact made
Entry 90: Made godparent to local child
Entry 96: Dictated regretful letter (to Ex, Parents, Enemy, Friend, Lover, or Self)

At-Table Resolution Procedure

Pre-Carousing Setup

Establish settlement: identify current city/town and determine multiplier (d4/d6/d12/d20).
Clarify intent: confirm character is carousing (spending for XP).
Optional exclusive society check: if member of Drinking Buddies, note re-roll opportunity before rolling.

Carousing Roll and Consequence Trigger

Roll spending: d4/d6/d12/d20 (settlement-dependent) × 100 GP.
Compare to level: if result > character level OR if character overspends into debt, roll consequence(s).
Consequence count: typically 1 consequence; 2+ if rolling on Entry 81 (Weird Fringe) or special GM call.

Consequence Application

Announce consequence entry number and read result.
Determine mechanical effect if any (disadvantage, HP loss, item loss, obligation).
Integrate into narrative: describe the circumstance that created the consequence.
Note persistent changes: update character sheet with new Friends/Enemies, obligations, injuries, magical effects.

Optional: Re-Roll Mechanics

Exclusive Society re-roll (Entry 78): if member, can re-roll entire carousing result once per downtime period but lose 50% XP gain this session.

Fate re-roll (at GM discretion): catastrophic consequences (losing magic item, major character death) can be re-rolled once per campaign at player's request.

Campaign Integration Patterns

Downtime Activity Trigger

Use carousing as the default downtime activity when party returns to city: - After major dungeon expedition - Between campaign phases - During negotiation/faction cycles

Faction Entanglement

Consequences create natural faction hooks: - Criminal contact → entry point into criminal faction - Religious faith → connection to religious faction - Political scandal → political faction attention - Magic practitioner contact → arcane faction connection

Multi-Session Arcs

Long-tail consequences create recurring plot threads: - Unfulfilled obligations → NPC return with demands - Debts to criminal/magical patrons → escalating pressure - Prophecies progressed → group attention increases - Married spouse location → mystery adventure

NPC Generator Replacement

Many consequences bypass traditional NPC rolls: - Contact type (Entry 1-12) determines NPC category - Consequence circumstance creates instant characterization - Debt/obligation creates built-in NPC motivation

Adaptation Notes

Carousing can provide an alternative advancement pressure to treasure-only loops.
Contact networks create patron/rival frameworks in any urban campaign.
Debt mechanics tie naturally into economic pressure systems.
In science-fantasy campaigns, nightclub/bar hopping can be reskinned to spacer stations, domed settlements, or enclave districts.

Conversion Notes

The table works on any system using: - Settl ement-based economies - Downtime mechanics between sessions - Contact/relationship tracking

Adapt by: - Reskinning "religious faith" to faction alignment in sci-fi settings - Converting "magic" consequences to tech/augmentation equivalents - Adjusting coin values to match your system's economy scale

Sources

https://lukegearing.blot.im/d100-carousing
https://bernietheflumph.blogspot.com/2019/02/carousing-and-philanthropy.html