Game  Master

Downtime 

Overview

What to do when you have free time? Each day you wind up with a lot of hours that are allocated to Downtime Activities. Below are some activities that you can add to your game for your players.

Fishing

Something is just so relaxing about sitting in front of a body of water and watching your line move around. Below is a fishing mechanic that you can use to enjoy some time on the water.

Mechanics

Fishing takes time and patients. When you attempt to fish, you must roll 3d20. The result of this number is how long you spend before you get a tug on the line. After which you roll on the table to determine the event that takes place. You choose the table by determining which bait you are using and what location you are in. Once you roll on the table, if you roll a fish, you must do battle with the fish in Reeling it in. You do this by rolling your Rod Effectiveness (see below) and adding your Strength Modifier. You must best the fish two successive times before you are able to successfully reel it in. A success is rolling HIGHER then the fish does. If it is a tie, the event is a draw and neither side gains any ground and you each reroll. If you succeed by 5 or more, you automatically real in the fish. This can only be done with fish of a size of Large or smaller. If you fail by 5 or more the line is broken and the fish automatically wins the battle. This can only be done by Medium or Higher sized creatures. All consumable bait is used each time whether you catch something or not. Lures are lost on broken lines or if you catch plants, moss or seaweed. If you do you roll your Rod Effectiveness, on a natural 1 the lure is lost.

Sizes

There are several different sizes when it comes to the aquatic animals of the sea. These are broken down into Tiny, Small, Medium, Large, Huge and Monsterous. These have no relation to the creature sizes in the normal DND creature sizes. Consult the Size chart below when you catch a fish.

Size             Length                Weight
Tiny             1d10 inches        Inches/4 oz.
Small          4d6 Inches        Inches/4 lbs.
Medium     4d6 Inches         Inches/2 lbs
Large         10d4 inches       Inches*2 lbs
Huge          25d6 inches      Inches*2 lbs
Monsterous 40d8 inches     inches*2 lbs

NOTE: When rolling on the table, if you roll a fish that doesn't share your Bait Type. It is considered as Plants, Moss or Seaweed.

River & Lake Fish

Roll       Fish Type          Size               Bait Type
20        L.M. Bass           Medium        Lure
19         S.M. Bass          Small             Lure
18         Rainbow Trout  Large             Worms
17         Salmon              Huge             Worms
16         Walleye             Small             Crickets
15         Perch                 Small            Crickets
14         Carp                   Small            Crickets
12-13    Catfish                Medium       Lure
10-11     Pike                    Small            Worms
8-9       Sturgeon           Small            Lure
6-7       Chub                  Tiny              Crickets
1-5        Plants 

Ocean Fish

Roll    Fish Type               Size                   Bait Type
20     Pufferfish                Small                 Lure
19      Anchovy                 Tiny                   Crickets
18      Tuna                       Medium             Lure
17      Sardine                  Tiny                    Crickets
16      Muller                    Medium              Worms
15      Herring                  Small                  Crickets
14      Eel                           Large                Worms
13      Octopus                 Monsterous      Lure
12      Snapper                 Medium            Worms
11       Squid                     Huge                 Worms
10      Sea Cucumber     Small                  Crickets
9       Flounder               Small                  Worms
8       Tilapia                   Small                  Crickets
7       Albacore               Small                  Lure
6       Halibut                  Small                  Worms
1-5                Seaweed 

Cave & Underground Fish

Roll       Fish Type       Size              Bait Type
20        Ghostfish        Medium       Worms
19         Stonefish        Medium       Lure
17-18    Pip                   Small           Crickets
14-16    Sandfish         Small           Worms
10-13    Bullhead        Large           Lure
6-9       Cod               Small            Crickets
1-5        Moss 

Rods

You need a rod to fish and bait/lures to go fishing. Below is a list of Robs and their effectiveness.

NOTE: When you use your Rod to fish, you add your STRENGTH MODIFIER to your rolls. Another person can assist you. In doing so they add their STRENGTH MODIFIER as well.

Rod Type Effectiveness Cost

Normal 1d4 1 gp
Good 1d6 5 gp
Great 1d8 10 gp
Excellent 1d10 25 gp
Supreme 1d12 50 gp
Master 1d20   100 gp

Bait & Fishing Line

Bait is needed to attract fish to your location. Without any bait you are unable to catch any fish. Crickets and Worms are consumable bait, which means each time you cast your Rod, no matter what happens that bait is used. Lures are stronger and tougher, but break on the thickness of Plants, Moss and Seaweed. If any of these are caught you must roll your Rod Effectiveness and a roll of a Natural 1 means your Lure is Lost.

Fishing Line is needed to connecte your bait to your Rods and what is used to tether the fish to your Rod. It is pretty reliable and most only need to purchase one reel of fishing line. If your line breaks you removed one use of Fishing line from its durability.

Fishing Line    1 sp      10 Durability

Bait Type                  Cost       Duration
Crickets (5 uses)       1 cp        1 Week (no food) 10 weeks (w/food)
Worms (5 uses)          1 sp       3 Weeks
Lures                           1 gp     

Crafting System: Master and Apprentice

The core of this crafting system is built around the concept of apprenticeship, where characters must find and learn from a master in a specific craft before they can create items themselves. The system consists of three main components: Proficiency Ranks, Learning from Masters, and Crafting Process.

  1. Proficiency Ranks

Characters can gain proficiency in a specific craft by progressing through the following ranks. Once they reach the Journeyman Rank, they become proficient in the Artisan Tool. Once they reach Master Rank, they gain Expertise.

  • Novice
  • Apprentice
  • Journeyman
  • Master

A character starts at the Novice rank when they want to learn a new craft. To advance through the ranks, a character must learn from an NPC Master in that specific craft.

  1. Learning from Masters

To progress from one rank to the next, a character must first locate an NPC Master in the desired craft. The character must spend a certain amount of time and money learning from the Master, as well as pass a skill check to demonstrate their understanding of the craft.

The time and costs required to progress through each rank are as follows:

  • Novice to Apprentice: 2 month of training, 100 gp DC 10
  • Apprentice to Journeyman: 6 months of training, 500 gp DC 15
  • Journeyman to Master: 12 months of training, 2,000 gp DC 20

At the end of each training period, the character must pass a skill check with a DC determined by the Rank. The character can use their relevant ability modifier (typically Intelligence) for the skill check. On a failed check, the character must spend an additional month of training and 100 gp before attempting the check again. Magic and abilities cannot affect this check.

  1. Crafting Process

To craft an item, a character must first acquire the necessary materials and tools, as well as have access to an appropriate workshop or crafting space. The crafting process is divided into three main steps:

  • Design: The character must create a design for the item, including determining the required materials and labor. This step typically takes 1 day and requires a successful skill check (DC 10 + item complexity modifier). Failure means the character must spend an additional day revising the design before attempting the check again.

  • Gathering Materials: The character must gather the necessary materials for crafting the item. The character can either purchase materials at market prices or spend time gathering materials through foraging, mining, or other means. The time required to gather materials is left to the DM's discretion based on the item's complexity and the character's resourcefulness.

  • Crafting: The character spends the required crafting time (as provided in the item descriptions) working on the item. At the end of the crafting period, the character must make a final skill check (DC 10 + item complexity modifier). If the check is successful, the item is successfully crafted. On a failed check, the character must spend additional time equal to half the original crafting time to fix mistakes and finish the item.

  • Crafting Low GP Items: When you craft an Item that has a value of 1gp or less, you craft a number of items equal to your Intelligence Modifier (double for ammunition).

  • Complexity Levels: +1 for every 50gp.

The character's rank in the craft affects the crafting process in the following ways:

  • Novice: Can only attempt to craft items of 1gp value or less.
  • Apprentice: Can craft items of 4gp or less.
  • Journeyman: Can craft items as normal.
  • Master: Can craft Masterwork items.

Masterwork Items 

Masterwork Items are the pinnacle of the mundane. These are made with such perfection, it makes them better then what they are normally capable of. When creating a Masterwork Item, they require 50% more crafting time and material cost. Their value also increases by 50% and gain one of the following benefits of your choice.
Saving Throw: Increase the Items Saving Throw by an amount equal to your Proficiency Bonus.
Durability: Increase the Hit Points of an Item equal to twice your Proficiency Bonus.
Die Level: Increase one die level by one stage to a maximum of d12 (ex. d4 to d6).
Weight Reduction: Halve the weight of an Item.
Armor Potency: Your armor reduces bludgeoning, slashing and piercing damage from non magical attacks by an amount equal to half your Proficiency Bonus (rounded down).


Magical Item Crafting System

The core of this system revolves around discovering magical formulas, conducting arcane research, and gathering rare components. The system consists of three main components: Arcane Knowledge, Magical Research, and Crafting Process.

  1. Arcane Knowledge

Characters interested in crafting magical items must first acquire Arcane Knowledge. This is represented by a new skill: Arcane Crafting. Before a character can craft a magical item, they must attain proficiency in Arcane Crafting (Intelligence). This proficiency can be obtained similarly to gaining proficiency in a new language or tool, at the DM's discretion. You must be proficient in one of the following skills before you can gain proficiency in Arcane Crafting (this can be done during character creation): Arcana, History, Investigation or Religion.

This proficiency represents the character's understanding of magical theories, principles of enchantment, and knowledge of mystical substances

  1. Magical Research

Before crafting a magical item, a character must conduct research to understand the item's magical properties and develop a formula for its creation. Researching a magical item formula requires access to a library or repository of magical knowledge, as well as time and gold investment for experimentation. Once you have developed a Magical Formula for a Magic Item, you can inscribe it into a book. If you loose that book, you must repeat this process to regain that Magical Formula. Your level determines when you are capable of crafting different rarities of Magic Items. You can have a number of Formula's memorized equal to your Intelligence Modifier. When you learn a new Magical Formula, you can replace one of the ones you have memorized. NPC's that don't have class levels would instead require a number of years of training equal to the class level requirement.

The level, time and cost required for research depend on the rarity of the item:

  • Common: 1st Level, 1 week of research, 100 gp
  • Uncommon: 4th Level, 2 weeks of research, 500 gp
  • Rare: 8th Level, 4 weeks of research, 5,000 gp
  • Very Rare: 12th Level, 8 weeks of research, 40,000 gp
  • Legendary: 16th Level, 16 weeks of research, 100,000 gp

At the end of the research period, the character must pass an Arcane Crafting check (DC 15 + item rarity modifier). On a failed check, the character must spend an additional week of research and 100 gp per item rarity level before attempting the check again. Magic and abilities cannot affect this check.

Item Rarity Modifier

Common:       +2
Uncommon:   +4
Rare:              +6
Very Rare:     +10
Legendary:    +15

  1. Crafting Process

Once the character has successfully researched the formula for a magical item, they must gather the necessary rare components and have access to an appropriate workspace or laboratory. The crafting process is divided into three main steps:

  • Component Gathering: The character must acquire the rare components required for the item's creation. Some components can be purchased, while others must be obtained through quests, exploration, or negotiation. The DM determines the specifics of component gathering based on the item's properties and rarity. In general, the cost of these should equal half of the Research Cost.

  • Magical Infusion: The character spends the required crafting time infusing the item with magical energy. The crafting time is equal to the research time multiplied by the item's Time Factor. At the end of the infusion process, the character must make a final Arcane Crafting check (DC 15 + item rarity modifier). If the check is successful, the item is successfully crafted. On a failed check, the character must spend additional time equal to the original Research Time to fix mistakes and finish the item (no second check). Magic and abilities cannot affect these checks.

  • Item Time Factor

  • Common:         x1
    Uncommon:     x1
    Rare:                x5
    Very Rare:       x5
    Legendary:     x10