Downtime Activities

Downtime activities are tasks that usually take a workweek (5 days) or longer to perform in game for the PC, and inbetween sessions for the player. These tasks can include travelling alone to complete a sidequest, pulling off crimes, and working at a job. A character selects a downtime activity from among those available at the end of a quest and pays the cost of that activity in time and money. The DM and player in tandem then follows the rules for the activity to resolve it, the DM informing the player of the results and any complications that ensue inbetween or at the start of the player's next session.
Downtime activities have three steps involved in this process: Declaring downtime action, resolving activity, and complications.

Declaring Downtime Action

Resolving Activity

Complications

Downtime Actions

Carousing

Carousing is a default downtime activity for many characters. Between adventures, who doesn’t want to relax with a few drinks and a group of friends at a tavern?
Resources. Carousing covers a downtime actions worth 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 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.
Resolution. After a downtime action of carousing, a character stands to make contacts within the selected social class. The character makes a Charisma (Persuasion) check using the Carousing table.

Carousing Table

Result	Outcome
1-9	No effect
10-20	1 Favor
21+	2 Favors

Crafting

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 downtime actions it takes to create an item, divide its gold piece cost by 50. A character can complete multiple items in a downtime action 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 actions 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. 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.
Crafting magic items takes an even longer, more involved process that is detailed in the Crafting article.

Crime

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 a downtime action 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.

Crime Table

DC	Outcome
10	1d8x5 gp, robbery of a merchant
15	2d10x10 gp, robbery of a prosperous merchant
20	4d10x15 gp, robbery of a noble
25	1000 gp, robbery of one of the richest people in town

Dueling

Pit fighting includes jousting, sanctioned combat, and other nonlethal forms of combat in an organized setting with predetermined matches. If you want to introduce competitive fighting in a battle-to-the-death situation, the standard combat rules apply to that sort of activity.
Resources. Engaging in this activity requires one downtime action.
Resolution. The character must make a series of checks, with a DC determined at random based on the quality of the opposition that the character runs into. A big part of the challenge in dueling lies in the unknown nature of a character’s opponents.
The character makes three checks: Strength (Athletics), Dexterity (Acrobatics), and a special Constitution check that has a bonus equal to a roll of the character’s largest Hit Die (this roll doesn’t spend that die). If desired, the character can replace one of these skill checks with an attack roll using one of the character’s weapons. The DC for each of the checks is 5 + 2d10; generate a separate DC for each one. Consult the Pit Fighting Results table to see how the character did.

Dueling Table

Result	Outcome
0 Successes	Lose your bouts, earning nothing
1 Successes	Win 1d8x5 gp
2 Successes	Win 2d10x10 gp
3 Successes	Win 4d10x15 gp

Explore

Pioneering paves the way for future travel. This activity allows the player to explore the wilds solo, revealing uncharted lands to the guilds eyes.
Resources. Engaging in this activity requires one downtime action plus the requisition supply packs to make the journey to the uncharted hexes from the character's current location.
Resolution. After a downtime action of Exploring, a character manages to journey to an uncharted area and map the surrounding terrain. The character makes a Wisdom (Survival) check using the Explore table.

Explore Table

Result	Outcome
1-9	No effect
10-20	1 Hex Charted
21+	2 Hexes Charted

Gambling

Games of chance are a way to make a fortune — and perhaps a better way to lose one.
Resources. Engaging in this activity requires one downtime action plus a stake of at least 10 gp, to a maximum of 1,000 gp, 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.

GamblingTable

Result	Outcome
0 Successes	Lose all the money you bet, and accrue a debt equal to the amount
1 Successes	Lose all the money you bet
2 Successes	Gain the amount you bet plus half of its value
3 Successes	Gain double the amount you bet

Recuperating

Sometimes the best thing to do between adventures is relax. Whether a character wants a hard-earned vacation or needs to recover from injuries, relaxation is the ideal option for adventurers who need a break. This option is also ideal for players who don’t want to make use of the downtime system.
Resources. Recuperating requires one downtime action.
Resolution. While recuperating, a character gains advantage on saving throws to recover from long-acting diseases and poisons. In addition, at the end of the action, a character can end one effect that keeps the character from regaining hit points, or can restore one ability score that has been reduced to less than its normal value. This benefit cannot be used if the harmful effect was caused by a spell or some other magical effect with an ongoing duration.

Research

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 an Archive or personal study to conduct research. Assuming such access is available, conducting research requires one downtime action of effort and at least 50 gp spent on materials, bribes, gifts, and other expenses. If there is no access to such a place, an additional 25 gp must be spent which incurs no bonus to the check.
Resolution. The character declares the focus of the research — a specific person, place, or thing. After one workweek, the character makes an Intelligence check with a +1 bonus per 50 gp spent beyond the initial 50 gp, to a maximum of +6. Determine how much lore a character learns using the Research Outcomes table.

Research Table

Result	Outcome
1-5	No effect
6-10	You learn one piece of lore
11-20	You learn two pieces of lore
21+	You learn three pieces of lore

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

Sidequesting

Characters looking to further expand their prowess at adventuring might venture out solo, completing quests of lesser pay and equal danger in exchange for becoming prepared for further ones ahead.
Resources. Sidequesting can take place wherever adventure is present and plentiful. Assuming such access is available, sidequesting requires one downtime action and an amount of supplies and requisitions equal to ten times the character's proficiency level in GP.
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 experience gained from the quest.
The chosen DC can be 10, 15, 20, or 25. Successful completion of the sidequest yields a number of experience points (XP), as shown on the Sidequesting table.
During the sidequest the character must complete a skill challenge with three required successes where the DC for each skill check is the prior chosen DC. Depending on what the character's sidequest is described as by player or DM, the skills used should be those that can be found within a quest of the same environment. Players can also substitute a skill check for a spell or weapon attack or a special Constitution check with a bonus to the roll equal to the character's largest hit die (this roll doesn't spend the die).
If none of the checks are successful, the character is grievously wounded, losing half of their Hit Points and being unable to regain them until their next Short Rest that takes place during a Quest.
If only one check is successful, the sidequest is failed but the character is unwounded.
If two checks are successful, the sidequest is a partial success, netting the character half the XP (rounding up).
If all three checks are successful, the character earns the full XP value.

Sidequesting Table

DC	Outcome
10	1 XP
15	2 XP
20	3 XP
25	4 XP

Training

Given enough free time and the services of an instructor, a character can learn a language or pick up proficiency with armor, a skill, tool or weapon.
Resources. Receiving training in a language or tool typically takes at least ten downtime actions and training in armor, a skill or weapon takes fifteen downtime actions, but this time is reduced by a number of actions equal to the character’s Intelligence modifier (an Intelligence penalty doesn’t increase the time needed). Training costs 25 gp per action.
Resolution. Gain proficiency in the chosen field.

Work

When all else fails, an adventurer can turn to an honest trade to earn a living. This activity represents a character’s attempt to find temporary work, the quality and wages of which are difficult to predict.
Resources. Performing a job requires one downtime action.
Resolution. To determine how much money a character earns, the character makes an ability check: Strength (Athletics), Dexterity (Acrobatics), Intelligence using a set of tools, Charisma (Performance), or Charisma using a musical instrument. Consult the Wages table to see how much money is generated according to the total of the check.

Work Table

Result	Outcome
9 or lower	5 gp, poor earning
10-14	1d6x5 gp, modest earnings
15-20	2d8x5 gp, comfortable earnings
21+	3d10x5 gp, profitable earnings