Creative Taverns

[TelemontTanthul]

As we all know, Taverns are a staple in any DnD game, and so I was wondering just how interesting some of your taverns might be.

An example: I made a tavern called "The Muddy Boot" tavern. Outside you can find the boots of all the patrons.

Or at least the patrons who have proved themselves in combat. In order to have the right to be barefoot in the tavern you have to defeat the tavern Champion (A big scary guy).

So, what kind of taverns have you guys had?

[DiscipleofBob]

It was once the most feared ship among the sea. For despite its small size, she had the fiercest crew of halfling pirates the world had ever seen: the Dire Badgers. That is, until the hurricane. The ship was literally plucked out of the water and spun around the air in its winds for what seemed like forever. Finally, when the hurricane subsided, the ship had been deposited on the peak of a small, deserted island. When Captain Narskey gave up on getting the ship down from the mountain, he instead fashioned the ship into a stable building on the mountaintop, using the spare lumber and rope to form various walkways and lifts down to the shore. Now, the Crow's Nest is a favorite of pirates on the sea. No one sacks the place because all the loot is hidden in mountain tunnels almost too small for the halflings, much less a normal sized humanoid, not to mention the barkeep, Ol' Narskey, will set straight anyone who causes trouble. It's a good place for a drink though, if you don't mind all the wenches being under 4 feet tall.

[kwanzaabot]

I'm working on a tavern at the moment, actually. It's not for a d&d game, it's just for a story I'm working on, however.

It's called The Dragon's Nest- a seedy pub in a bad part of town, that happens to be a front for the local thieves guild. The guild however, is actually a front too: a certain dragon happens to use the guild as a means of collecting valuables and therefore satisfying her greed.

They also make potato wedges that are out of this world.

[Frosty]

I need to get a tavern named "The Broken Record" sometime, due to the OVERUSE of the work "Broken" in tavern names

[Claudius Maximus]

I need to get a tavern named "The Broken Record" sometime, due to the OVERUSE of the work "Broken" in tavern names

In a similar vein, the Adjective Noun Tavern (or occasionally Inn) makes an appearance in all my games.

[Myshlaevsky]

Gastro Taverns.

[Zaydos]

Three Boars Inn. It's a reoccurring tavern in my games. Started off just as a tavern ran by a retired member of the king's guard with a half-orc barbarian bouncer and his half-troll/half-orc half-brother; an interesting note was that in all variant time lines the Inn existed in some form. In later campaigns it became a mystical inn made by a god at the point where all places intersected and was the ultimate neutral ground for powerful entities. In the next campaign it served the same role but Odin ran it, never said a word and let his two ravens do the talking for him (if you tried to bribe them they'd rob you though).

[Thajocoth]

My group uses "The Weary Traveler". There's a "Weary Traveler" in every city. It's a chain...

I haven't used "The Weary Traveler" yet. I had one "The Hollow Stein" in the town of Hollowville, named after the town. Also, a "Stonehand's", named after a Goblin family. They weren't incredibly creative though...

In a campaign I'm about to start, I have "Razorbeard's Tavern" run by a family Duergar, with a labyrinth below housing a black dragon, who's the city's mafia boss. Also, "The Fine Vine" run by a family of Eladrin. In most taverns/inns, the barkeep is perpetually rubbing a mug with a dirty cloth. At The Fine Vine, however, the barkeep is perpetually rubbing a wine glass with a silk cloth. It's a more up-scale place... It's taller, with several floors of rooms.

[Rhiannon87]

One that I have is the Sword & Scroll, a quiet tavern located near the palace. It caters to government bureaucrats who want to be able to have discreet meetings, and guard captains who want to relax after their shift. Definitely upper class, high target for spies and assassins, adventurers generally Not Welcome. (So naturally they end up there. Hee.)

[Masaioh]

I typically don't name any of my taverns, but it's in a small city a few days away from the big capital city. Within about 10 minutes of the game starting, it imploded and formed a black hole into another plane. Then it rebuilt itself out of jello and killed half of the residents of the city by dividing by zero, and the innkeeper was eaten by a tojanida.

Then there's an inn in my setting's planar metropolis, the 'Blacklight Junction'. It looks like a Salvador Dali painting in 8D that is being viewed under a blacklight, hence the name of the city. It is run by celestials.

[Ka'ladun]

A few campaigns ago I made a tavern called "The Madmen's Den," the local wizards bar. The sentient door would only open if it liked you (or if threatened with fire). While they did serve beer, most of it was in various neon colors and tended to make you glow for a bit afterwards. And of course the tables levitated.

The best part though were the chairs. About 50 sentient chairs who loved sawdust. If you put sawdust on one of them, every chair would run into the back room, emerging a moment later completely sawdust free and would cluster happily around whoever fed them. The few people who tired to sneak into the back room to see what happened were promptly mobbed and tossed out of the bar by the chairs.

[The Vorpal Tribble]

Might say I put some thought into one once...

The Gaping Maw

[Froogleyboy]

Might say I put some thought into one once...

The Gaping Maw

Oh course you put thought into it! You're the god damned VP! You put awesome amount of detail into ev-er-y-thing!

[herrhauptmann]

A friend used this while DMing a few years back. It doesn't quite fit all the established rules, but the game didn't have a high enough level of optimization to make the departure from the rules relevent.

Bar was run by a fairly high level dwarf brawler (DM had just finished reading some R.A. Salvatore)
All weapons were checked at the door. Room was also filled with certain spell effects like an AMF. All these effects nerfed people who fought with weapons, spells, or used Sneak attack/skirmish for massive damage. (a few houserules built into the bar) However, if you fought with only your own body, you wouldn't get nerfed.

If you got into a fight in the bar, you had to fight with your fists, because all the furniture was made of wicker.
The wicker chairs/stools would deal 1d2 damage with no str bonus. Thus encouraging the combatants to rely on themselves.
Simultaneously, the tables would be so heavy that anyone trying to use them in a fight would immediately count as heavily encumbered (unless their strength was greater than 50). So fighting with a table would be 1d6+str mod if you had 50+ str. Or just 1d6 if your str was 49 or less.
So it was generally better to fight with your bare hands, because a specific phrasing for the furniture said that people with approx. 20 or less str couldn't even lift the tables.

[TelemontTanthul]

I think your tavern fits all the qualifications for this thread. It was interesting, without a doubt.

Did this tavern have a name?

[Akal Saris]

I've actually been thinking about this a bit today, as I want a distinctive "home base" tavern for the PCs in a low-level, Waterdeep-specific game I'm running now. Something in the Dock quarter preferably, but it shouldn't be very rough, as the PCs are mostly white collar workers.

Cityscape Pgs. 44-45 lists lots of activities and their associated rules for taverns, such as drinking games, feats of accuracy (darts), games of chance, making friends, telling stories, listening to music/tales, picking pockets, and, of course, getting drunk.

It also has a cool list of sample tavern names on Pg. 44. Eerily enough, one listed is the 'Angry Owlbear', which bears an uncanny resemblance to the main tavern in a few campaigns that I and two other DMs in my group ran, which was 'The Boorish Owlbear.'

The Boorish Owlbear

A large, drafty inn run by a surly fat man, the Boorish Owlbear is a loud, happening place popular among adventurers. It features momentos from various quests, including the stuffed and well-worn owlbear in the corner furthest from the fire. This was the home of the Company of the Boorish Owlbear (1 group), as well as the namesake for HMS Boorish Owlbear (another group).

[bosssmiley]

All our local taverns have closed since the pipeweed ban came in. May hell-and-damnation attend the puritan Cult of the Envious Rose which has infested our lands.

[daggaz]

Real life story. There was once a rather overweight woman of questionable upbringing named Maria who sailed the seas of the Carribean. Half pirate, half prostitute, she was as independent as they come. Well.. she pissed some pirate men off, who marooned her on a beautiful but almost entirely deserted tropical beach on the western shores of the island of Cuba.

What did she do? She promptly set up shop, enlisting the help of the natives and building a world class bar and brothel, which was the place to be if you were a pirate looking for a little R&R.

The place still bears her name on modern day maps. "Punta del Maria la Gorda" or "Fat Maria's Point." The local dive shop/bar is run by the government tho and could use a few pointers... but still a beautiful place.

[herrhauptmann]

I think your tavern fits all the qualifications for this thread. It was interesting, without a doubt.
Did this tavern have a name?

I wish I could remember the name of the bar. I was too busy working (and on different schedule) to play. So I was just sitting with him helping him come up with flavor for a city he was building. Some of the concrete rules were done later.

There was also a weapon shop run by a halfelven dandy. Items were discounted if they were fencer type weapons and equipment. Heavily marked up for things like plate armor or axes.
Female customers who were attractive (no dwarves/orcs) got discounts and free 'lessons'.
Anyway, those were my contributions to the campaign. Feel free to use.

[Gamerlord]

I remember in one campaign a recurring NPC, who just kept on rebuilding his inn over and over again as it was destroyed by orc raids, reckless PCs, reborn demon lords, abberations, and a varitey of nasty things, he just kept on moving to another area, building it again, no matter what storms it was forced to weather...the name? Bad luck's haven

[Toric]

In an Eberron game I'm playing in, my character is a dwarf with a passion for baking. One day a fellow PC of his shelled out the money for an establishment on a moderately high level of Sharn, and after a little brainstorming the Golden Tankard was born! Its current staff is clearly defined and statted out.


It's a conservative affair, sticking to the style of most of the nearby taverns, if you can ignore the fact that most of the tables come up to the average human's knees. The main appeal of the Golden Tankard is, in fact, the Golden Tankard, a hollowed-out tankard of firm salted bread baked to crispy perfection and topped off with the swill of your choice. Come in on a regular night for a pleasant well-lit atmosphere and a staff short on everything but hospitality, or wait till the next monthly Brawl Night to get in touch with your inner hoodlum while chatting it up with Authentic vagabonds and neer-do-wells. And don't worry about the broken chairs; when two of the three co-owners are constantly gone adventuring you learn to keep a generous repair budget.

[Darcand]

I often use the Swine & Swan, a middleclass watering hole on the main road through whichever city I am playing with at the time. Always has a room to rent.

Or The Bucket, an gambling venue run by a pair of halfling brothers that squat in abandoned buildings and change locations frequently to keep the watch off their backs. The sort of place you can't find if you don't already know where it is.

Or Tarts, an upper class "gentleman's club" and base of operations for Tanitha House, half-elf bard with full ranks in dance, gather info, knowledge local, and knowledge nobility. The place to go when you need to know a dirty little secret.

My crown jewel however is The Resting Place, set in Pathfinder, but flexible enough for any setting. Marika Lastleaves (human brd2/rg2/cl2) grew up well to do in the city of Magnamar, but despite his parents' wishes chose the life of a wandering minstral. Unfortunately he soon proved very unsuccessful as a musician and turned to a life of petty crime to make ends meet. After a run in with Hellknights on the back streets of Korvosa Marika fled west. On the road, exhausted and starving he took shelter from a storm under a rocky outcropping next to the road and was surprised to find basket of bread that had fallen from a passing wagon. In the morning he woke to find himself surrounded by purple butterflies, the symbol of the goddess Desna. He took this as a sign to turn his life around, returned home and convinced his father to fund a temple to Desna on the location of his revelation. Now The Resting Place stands open to all, and always has a bed and hot meal, free of charge to those in need.

[Vangor]

My oft used tavern is known as The Hitching Post. Usually an unassuming structure positioned on a corner with cracking, off-colored plaster coating brick walls, the establishment is operated by a Half-Drow who is known as N. After realizing his status was unalterable due to his human ancestry and being male, he chose to escape. An attack on the surface elves provided such an opportunity, as well as one to exact revenge on the priestess who relished punishing him for too long. He used her head as a macabre token of entrance to a nearby city, and through various means he raised enough money to purchase what would become The Hitching Post, due primarily to his love of alcohol.

Not only is the Drow bartender, N has stopped attempting to correct anyone on "Half", an exotic sight, but the tavern has perhaps the oddest musical "duo" known, an Ettin known as Anfal and Forvar (Attack and Defend in Jotun). Somehow the Ettin manages to play the hammered dulcimer, drums, and a set of flutes with either head well enough to the delight of the crowds, and somehow N has convinced the beast to bathe often enough. He serves, too, as a bouncer, though his presence is rather sobering enough for any potential trouble makers.

The center tables are pressed together as necessary for newcomers to an ongoing game of The Dragon Hoard (a simple, fast-paced game with dice), usually attracting bets as often as players. The entire gaming area is overseen by a rather short Halfling, Jolas from Accounting, who sprints about dispensing winnings and accepting bets on how vast the hoard will grow before being won and who will next win.

Perhaps most notable about The Hitching Post is, however, the sign. While the once bright red lettering and rich brown of the horses has gradually faded, the lithe, black figure naked and tied to the hitching post is frequently redone. And when the sun shines down the street, one can see a glimmer from the polished onyx circlet with four prongs holding back her "hair" and another four embedded within the wood of the sign.

[BloodyAngel]

The tavern my group remembers is a little throwaway joke that they crashed in while running from the law. The owner was a grubby old man who hated the system... the king... the guard... and was quite outspoken about it. Like Dennis the peasant, but SLIGHTLY less muddy.

His bar was named the Royal C*ck. It's sign was a picture of a very goofy rooster wearing a crown. The group loved it, and kept making excuses to go back. It also inspired many a hilariously perverted pun. What can I say... we're immature.

[karnokoto]

I don't have anything good to add (best tavern we've ever been in turned out to be an illusion, so nuts to that!) but I just wanted to say I am LOVING this thread.

[woodenbandman]

The Bearded Hammer, owned by a mister Alestorm Ironfire Hammerfall. The pub is famous for its extensive collection of war memorabilia, its strict entrance requirements (you must be this bearded to enter), and having the finest dwarven ale in the land. The pinnacle of dwarven ale engineering: the Dwarven Stout of Elf-Slaying +5.

Then there's the brothel Erotic Nightmares, which is staffed entirely by dopplegangers.

And the Bed of Razors, a nightclub/fightclub establishment run by a female drow named Black Widow. Located in the basement, it's one of the hottest nightclubs in town, with amateur knife fight night every tuesday.

[oxinabox]

I had the "City of Doors"
A tavern that has two doors, on leads to a door (sellected by the owner) on the material plane, the other to Sigil.

Without out the key (a small glass bottle, kept by the owner) a patron who entered on door can only leave through that door.

[thefinalbattle]

in a game i'll be DMing soon, in the second-to-last encounter, there will be a long staircase with a room near it they have to climb. the room was previously used as the quarters of a dwarvern preist of thor, but now has been turned into a tavern of all sorts of living and dead creature's favor. the name of the tavern: THE DELICIOUS FAKER, named so because the goblin barkeep magically conjures all the beverages.

[Jack_Banzai]

My most used tavern in any RPG is the Jagged Nails club in Belltown, Seattle. For Shadowrun, naturally. Based verrrrrry loosely on a club of the same name on the Shadowrun SNES game, my players and fellow GMs helped me flesh out the place considerably. Cecil the elf with his chipped reflexes and blue-toned skin modifications could mix drinks like Bryan Brown on crank while the erstwhile Western-themed ex-shadowrunner samurai-cooler, Westwind, looked on dispassionately. There was also a running gag where we were continually finding vampires and free spirits trying to make off with inebriated young ladies, and we would drag them out of the bar and either kill or drive them off, just so we wouldn't have to pay our tab. Fun stuff.

[Akal Saris]

Then there's the brothel Erotic Nightmares, which is staffed entirely by dopplegangers.

Nice to see that I'm not the only one whose game includes a brothel run by dopplegangers!

Well, mine's a titty bar (The Pinch and Wink, if I remember), but same difference.