Toggle Theme

Archives of Nethys

Pathfinder RPG (2nd Edition) Pathfinder RPG (1st Edition) Starfinder RPG

Rules Index | GM Screen
GameMastery Guide / Adventures / Taverns

Staff and Patrons

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 199
Once you’ve determined the services of a tavern or inn, you need to populate it. Usually it’s not necessary to create game statistics for the staff or patrons. If your players have a penchant for starting brawls, however, you can find stat blocks for some common bar staff and customers in Chapter 9. To determine what staff and patrons are working at or patronizing a tavern or inn, use the Tavern random encounter table on page 213 and adjust the numbers according to the size of the establishment.

Staff

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 199
Unless the business is closed, there is always at least one person running a tavern or inn (in most cases the owner of the business). Beyond that, the tavern needs bartenders, barmen, or barmaids, and, if it serves food, at least one cook. Most busy or popular taverns also employ one or more bouncers to keep the patrons in line. Depending on the size of the tavern, however, a single staff member could fill one or more of these roles—the owner might tend the bar and cook if necessary, or a barmaid could break heads if things get out of hand.

Patrons

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 199
Usually, the quality of a tavern or inn defines the type of people who patronize it. If a tavern serves as the hub of a community, its patrons are typically far more respectful of the staff and the facilities than those of a watering hole in a major city that caters to travelers or transients who come in for a single drink or bit of business and never return. Remember that not every tavern should be the headquarters of the local thieves’ guild—farmers, craftsmen, merchants, and even nobles all come to taverns just to have a drink or two and fraternize with their fellow citizens.

Describing Personalities

Source GameMastery Guide pg. 199
While every staff member of patron might not need a full stat block, it’s a good idea to come up with a list of personality types and quirks and assign them to the characters that the PCs engage with. Merely adding a lisp to the bartender or giving the waitress a severe limp while she hobbles around the tavern with numerous full tankards of ale can go a long way toward making a tavern memorable.