Festival Games
A wide variety of games can be found at a festival, circus, or any event with a large gathering of people. These games offer chances for people to test their skills, strength, and dexterity; in exchange they can earn wonderful prizes!
Apple Bobbing
- Cost 2 sp per attempt
- Ability Dexterity; DC 11+
The object of this game is to grab an apple with just your mouth from a tub filled with water and apples. Typically, a contestant is competing against multiple other creatures as well as trying for the top score. Competing creatures must make a DC 11 Dexterity check each round, on a success they successfully pull up an apple. They repeat this check five times, with whoever has the most successes the victor of their competition. If there is a tie, they continue to bob for apples until one creature has more successes.
The DC of of the Dexterity check begins at DC 11, but as they successfully remove an apple, the DC increases as there are less apples to bob for. The DC increases by 1 for each success a creature gets. The winner of this competition is given a Minor Prize, as well as any additional prizes they earn from the chart below. All contestants who get at least 3 successes, even if they lost, also get a Minor Prize. A Great Prize is only earned when two competitors are of equal skill and get above 5 successes to determine who wins.
| # of Successes |
Prize |
|---|---|
| 3 | Minor Prize |
| 4 | Minor Prize |
| 5 | Moderate Prize |
| 6+ | Great Prize |
Bottle Throw
- Cost 1 sp per attempt
- Ability Dexterity or Strength; AC 12
A creature is given a single wooden ball and must attempt their luck to knock over as many weighted milk bottles as they can in a single throw. A creature must make a weapon attack with the wooden ball, treating it as an improvised weapon, against AC 12 of the milk bottles. On a hit, they roll damage against the milk bottles equal to 1d4 + their ability modifier. Depending on how much damage they dealt to the pyramid of weighted milk bottles, they may earn a prize, per the chart below. The minimum damage they must deal is 5 to earn a prize.
Note: A creature does not add their proficiency bonus to attacks made with improvised weapons unless the GM deems they are close enough to actual weapons or they have a feat or an ability to allow them to do so. A 20 on the d20 is still a critical hit when using an improvised weapon, and so the character would roll 2d4 + their ability modifier.
| Damage | Prize |
|---|---|
| 5 | Minor Prize |
| 6 | Minor Prize |
| 7 | Moderate Prize |
| 8 | Moderate Prize |
| 9+ | Great Prize |
Catch the Greased Pig
- Cost 8 sp per attempt
- Ability Strength (Athletics); DC 13
In this competition, a group of individuals must attempt to catch a greased pig who is stuck in a small pen. Typically four contestants at a time attempt this at the same time. All contestants must roll initiative (the pig has a +2 modifier), they each then take their turn attempting to catch the pig by spending their action to make a single DC 13 Strength (Athletics) check. For the first three rounds, a creature has disadvantage on any checks to grapple the pig due to how greasy the pig is, but by the fourth round, much of the grease has been scraped off by attempted checks and from the dirt and grime of the pig pen.
On a successful check, a creature must continue to hold on to the pig for two consecutive rounds. Each contestant can attempt to knock the pig out of the contestant's grip by using their aciton and attempting an unarmed attack roll contested by the pig holder's Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) check, on a success they force the pig holder to release the pig. The attacker must then immediately attempt a DC 13 Strength (Athletics) check to grab on to the pig, on a failure, the pig is free and anyone can now attempt to grab the pig without first trying to force someone to release it.
This continues for each turn until someone claims ownership of the pig for a full round, an NPC taking part in this competition has a +0 modifier for their checks. On the pig's turn, it attempts to break the grapple (the pig has a +2 modifier) and the pig holder must succeed on an opposing Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) check. A creature who starts their turn holding the pig must attempt a DC 10 Strength (Athletics) check to continue holding the pig, on a success, they win the event. Depending on when they caught the pig, and won the game, they get a prize.
| # of Rounds |
Prize |
|---|---|
| 1 | Great Prize |
| 2 | Moderate Prize |
| 3 | Moderate Prize |
| 4+ | Minor Prize |
Coin Flip
- Cost 1 sp per attempt
- Ability Dexterity (Sleight of Hand); DC 15
To play this game, a creature uses the fee to play the game, a silver piece, and attempts to flip it into a bowl of water that has a small cup in the center of it. If the coin lands in the cup, they earn a prize, if it misses, they lose the game. A creature must attempt a DC 15 Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check, if they successfully land a coin in the cup they can take a Minor Prize as their reward, or they can double down and immediately try the game again and attempt the same check. On a success, they earn a Moderate Prize as their reward. If they are feeling lucky, they can double down again and attempt the check a third time. On a success, they earn a Great Prize. If they fail during this competition, they forfeit their prize and all silver pieces used in this game.
Dagger Competition
- Cost 3 sp per attempt
- Ability Dexterity of Strength; AC 10+
This game is set up with hay bales at different lengths from the throwing line and a creature is given three daggers. The object of this competition is to throw the dagger at the hay bales until the contestant misses with all three daggers. Each hay bale has two Armor Classes to determine how close to center they were at hitting the center of the target. The lowest AC means that they were barely successful in hitting the hay bale, but still retain the use of the dagger and may move on to the next hay bales. The highest AC means they hit the center of the target and get an additional dagger to use. Once the character succeeds against either of the two ACs, they must immediately move on to the next hay bale and can not continue to target the closer hay bales.
Each further hay bale has harder ACs to compete against and, once the hay bales are outside of 20 feet, the character has disadvantage on the attack roll as normal for a dagger. Unlike normal attack rolls, a contestant can spend their time lining up the shot and throw daggers at further than a 60 foot range, the typical maximum for a dagger.
A character only earns a prize if they are able to get at least one dagger in the third hay bale. They earn additional greater prizes by getting their dagger in further hay bales as per the chart below.
| Distance | Lower AC | Higher AC | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 feet | 10 | 12 | - |
| 20 feet | 12 | 14 | - |
| 30 feet | 14 | 16 | Minor Prize |
| 50 feet | 16 | 18 | Minor Prize |
| 75 feet | 18 | 20 | Moderate Prize |
| 100 feet | 20 | 22 | Moderate Prize |
| 150 feet | 22 | 24 | Great Prize |
Pie Eating Contest
- Cost 5 sp per attempt
- Ability Constitution
Each contestant is sat down in front of several pies and are given a strict time limit to eat as much as a they can. This game takes place across five rounds and it begins with each creature rolling a d4 + their Constitution modifier. This is the amount of pie they eat in the first round, they then must succeed on a Constitution saving throw against that number which acts as the DC. On a success, they continue to the next round. On a failed save, they fail and can no longer compete, though the total number of pie they ate is still used to determine if they win the competition or lose, they just can't eat any more pie.
They continue to make this check each round, rolling a d4 + their Constitution modifier. They then continue to add each round's number of pie eaten, which sets the DC for that round's Constitution saving throw. Once the five rounds are finished, or the contestants are no longer able to continue, the eating contest ends and whoever has eaten the most earns a Minor Prize, or a Moderate Prize if they ate 13+ of pie, or a Great Prize if they ate 20+ of pie.
Spin the Wheel
- Cost 2 sp per attempt
A wheel divided into eight equal segments is spun, and a participant must guess which number the wheel will land on next. As more creatures guess the wrong answer, half of their fee (1 silver piece) is added to a large pot that is only won by a creature who successfully guesses the correct number. For a creature to play, they must pay the fee, guess which number they will roll on a d8, and they then roll a d8. On a failed check, they lose their 2 sp.
On a success, a creature earns the pot of silver pieces. If the pot has not been won yet, roll a d20 to determine how many silver pieces they earn. If they have been playing the game over and over, then the GM keeps track of the number of on screen attempts.
A creature who earns a pot of 5 sp or more can exchange it for a random Minor Prize, a pot of 10 sp or more can be exchanged for a Moderate Prize, and a pot of 15 sp or more can be exchanged for a random Great Prize.
Three-Legged Race
- Cost 2 sp per contestant
- Ability Dexterity (Acrobatics); DC 12
In this competition, contestants are grouped into groups of two and one of each of their legs are bound together so that they must walk together. To win this competition, both of the contestants must attempt a DC 12 Dexterity (Acrobatics) check, and they only get a success if they both beat the DC. They must succeed in this way a total of five times. If one of them fails, they make no progress in the race, and if both fail they fall prone and must spend their next turn rising up to their feet and unable to attempt the check that turn. A pair can decide to earn two successes in a single turn by attempting a DC 12 Dexterity (Acrobatics) check with disadvantage as they attempt to sprint forward.
Each time the GM calls for the checks to be rolled, that is a single turn. The competition only ends when the first team crosses the finish line after succeeding on the check five times. This can be shortened to three times for quick races or ten times for greater races of endurance. Depending on how many checks it takes for a team to pass the finish line determines their prize at the end of the race. If there is a tie, both teams get a prize. See the chart below.
| # of Rounds |
Prize |
|---|---|
| 3 | Great Prize |
| 4 | Moderate Prize |
| 5 | Moderate Prize |
| 6 | Moderate Prize |
| 7+ | Minor Prize |
Variant: Sack Race
A version of this same game can be done as a sack race except that each creature is in a burlap sack and does not have to rely on another creature to succeed on the check too. In this version of the game, a creature only falls prone, and thus spends their next turn getting up, if they fail the check by 5 or more or roll a 1 on the d20.
Bonus: Player Games
These games don't rely on character statistics, but rather on the player's own dexterity in manipulating dice. These can be run as games within the narrative, with a player's skill serving as the character's in the event.
Mini-Golf
- Cost 2 sp
In this game, each player must have a d6 that they treat as their golf ball. The GM sets up a small goal, which could take the form of a d4, a miniature, or a tiny flag. Each player takes turn attempting to flick their d6 across a table to reach the goal. A player is eliminated if their d6 knocks over or moves the goal from its original position, the goal is then placed back to its original position and the offending d6 is removed from play. Each player must attempt to get their d6 the closest to the goal without actually touching the goal, and each player gets three chances to do so but they can choose to take less if they wish. They may even target another player's d6, either attempting to knock the d6 off the table or by knocking the d6 into the goal, disqualifying that player. They might also be disqualified if either happens to them.
A player earns a Minor Prize for winning, a Moderate Prize for winning and only taking two turns, or a Great Prize for winning and only taking one turn.
Shooting D4
- Cost 1 sp
In this game, the DM builds three towers of five d6s each. Each player must then grab a d4 and go to the opposite side of the table, at least two feet away from the towers. Each player must then take turns attempting to flick their d4 at the towers of d6s, earning prizes based on the number of towers they knock over in a single flick. If they fail to knock over any of the towers, they fail the game. For a flick to be worthy of a prize, the d4 must start out resting on the table before it is flicked at the same level as the towers.
For the narrative of the game, this type of competition can be compared to characters attempting to knock over bowling pins with large wooden balls or tossing a bean bag to knock over dolls.
Toppling Towers
- Cost 1 sp
This game features large and cumbersome blocks that must be stacked on top of one another. Instead of the characters rolling dice to determine their fate, the players must grab a full set of dice and attempt to stack them. Each player needs a d20, d12, d10, d8, d6, and a d4. Each player then races to build a tower of dice with a d20 at the bottom of the tower, then a d12, d10, d8, d6, and a d4. Whoever successfully builds their tower, and it stands for 5 seconds without aid, wins the competition. They earn a Minor Prize for winning, a Moderate Prize if their tower only collapsed once while they were building it, or a Great Prize if they built their tower and it didn't collapse.
For expert builders, you can set a one minute time limit and each player must build as many towers as they can.
Example Prizes
Minor Prizes
| d8 | Prize |
|---|---|
| 1 | A basic stuffed toy that is 6 inches tall, thick stitch lines hold this toy together and it is stuffed with sawdust. Roll a d4: 1. Sheep; 2. Goblin; 3. Dog; 4. Cat |
| 2 | A small bag of assorted hard sweet candy. |
| 3 | A dagger with a sugar blade on a small wooden handle. |
| 4 | A random trinket from the Player's Handbook. |
| 5 | A candle in the shape of a simple animal like an owl. |
| 6 | A wooden dagger with 'mysterious' runes. |
| 7 | A pet goldfish in a wooden cup. |
| 8 | A token for a free roasted turkey leg. |
Moderate Prizes
| d8 | Prize |
|---|---|
| 1 | A free face painting or painted tattoo. |
| 2 | A large pie with the contestant's choice of filling. |
| 3 | 1d4 game tokens, each token can be used at any game with a cost of 2 sp or less. |
| 4 | A 12" tall soft toy that is stuffed with sawdust. Roll a d4: 1. Kobold; 2. Bear; 3. Owl; 4. Pseudodragon. |
| 5 | A human-sized scarecrow - complete with straw! |
| 6 | A wooden articulated hand for studying anatomy. |
| 7 | A holy symbol of the deity watching over the festival, typically one focused on farming, alchohol, or cheer. |
| 8 | An all-you-can drink pass for 1 day; includes only ale, cider, beer, mead, and water. Wine at half cost. |
Great Prizes
| d8 | Prize |
|---|---|
| 1 | A wand that shoots out illusory fireworks non-stop for 6 seconds, complete with sound! Works once per day. |
| 2 | A hatchet or dagger with the festival's name engraved onto the blade. |
| 3 | A wooden duck that quacks while it is floating on water and swims about on its own. |
| 4 | A walking stick that has animated carvings of animals. |
| 5 | 3d4 game tokens, each token can be used at any game with a cost of 2 sp or less. |
| 6 | A 24" tall soft toy that is stuffed with cotton. Roll a d4: 1. Chest Mimic; 2. Owlbear; 3. Bulette; 4. Beholder. |
| 7 | A blank notebook with a decorated cover featuring the festival's name embossed on the cover. |
| 8 | Free drinks for a year at a local tavern. |
Credit
Created by Dump Stat Adventures.