Fantasy Foodstuffs

[Cyanidesoul]

In an effort to add some flavor to my campaign setting (a work in progress) I thought it might be interesting to start with some small crunchy bits. What I was wondering was this, has anyone ever come up with some interesting food and drinks that they use in their games? Not necessarily "magical" (or possessing extraordinary magical effects) foodstuffs, just things that sound interesting and add a little bit of flavor?

For instance (retrieved from the D&D wikia):

Rat's Meat

This food is a disgusting, but healthy food. It is made of a rat that has been cooked on a stick, and then smashed into a small pellet. It smells of burnt flesh, and tastes like orc, but fills the stomach. A Fortitude check (DC 10) must be made to stop the Rat's meat from coming up again. It is easily made, and is cheap to buy. It's weight is also low, because you only need one. To make rat's meat, all you need is a dead rat, a fire, and a DC 10 roll. The pellet is roughly an inch thick and three inches wide.

Cost: 1 cp for ten pellets Weight: 1 lb for ten pellets

[golentan]

Some of the ones I usually throw in are:

Lightning: A popular and extremely potent potable found on almost all airships. The distillation process involves a small number of magic rituals and a lightning rod, leaving a clear, flavorless mixture with a number of alchemical properties in addition to alchoholic. Commonly mixed with citrus and sweetener to prevent scurvy and mutiny simultaneously.

Baatorian Devilfruit: A unique dish that is the epicurean's delight. Baatorian devilfruit is only available from the the lower planes, and thus difficult to procure. In addition, it is poisonous and magical, and if improperly prepared may be lethal. The intense flavors and versatility mean that it remains popular, though a single dish may cost upwards of 1000 gold.

Krog: An orcish meal that has spread to many rural communities. Ground goat meat is mixed with potatoes and assorted greens, then smoked and salted. The resultant meal is meaty (and thus easy to convince orcs to eat), flavorful, easy to store jerky; and provides a reasonable level of nutrition. Usually eaten in the original with aged goats milk, which non-goblinoids find as disgusting as it sounds.

Basilisk Eggs: Not actually basilisk eggs, this is a term for preparing a species of mushroom with beer batter.

Druid Pie: An easy to prepare vegetable casserole with a hard crust. The contents are as varied as the local woods allow. Occasionally includes cheese or meat, but is traditionally vegan.

Apprentice's Dinner: Named for wizard apprentices, who find these easier to prepare (and use to practice magic on) then a full meal. Herbs, flour, and milk are baked into a cracker, which is tasteless and hard. Due to the specific recipe, a week's meals can be cooked in a few hours with prestidigitation, which is fortunately also handy for making it palatable. A common addition is a thick stew which is similarly easy to prepare.

Gnomish Pudding: A pleasant desert, Gnomish pudding is a visually spectacular cream confection, usually filled with cake and bits of fruit, nuts, and sweetmeats and illusioned into a spectacular presentation. It is most commonly served at special events and holidays. (Gnom-Gnom-Gnom)

I've made most of these in my kitchen, the first two being obvious exceptions. In my first group, we'd play over dinner and I'd serve everyone what the character's were eating.

[Cyanidesoul]

Some of the ones I usually throw in are:

Lightning: A popular and extremely potent potable found on almost all airships. The distillation process involves a small number of magic rituals and a lightning rod, leaving a clear, flavorless mixture with a number of alchemical properties in addition to alchoholic. Commonly mixed with citrus and sweetener to prevent scurvy and mutiny simultaneously.

Baatorian Devilfruit: A unique dish that is the epicurean's delight. Baatorian devilfruit is only available from the the lower planes, and thus difficult to procure. In addition, it is poisonous and magical, and if improperly prepared may be lethal. The intense flavors and versatility mean that it remains popular, though a single dish may cost upwards of 1000 gold.

Krog: An orcish meal that has spread to many rural communities. Ground goat meat is mixed with potatoes and assorted greens, then smoked and salted. The resultant meal is meaty (and thus easy to convince orcs to eat), flavorful, easy to store jerky; and provides a reasonable level of nutrition. Usually eaten in the original with aged goats milk, which non-goblinoids find as disgusting as it sounds.

Basilisk Eggs: Not actually basilisk eggs, this is a term for preparing a species of mushroom with beer batter.

Druid Pie: An easy to prepare vegetable casserole with a hard crust. The contents are as varied as the local woods allow. Occasionally includes cheese or meat, but is traditionally vegan.

Apprentice's Dinner: Named for wizard apprentices, who find these easier to prepare (and use to practice magic on) then a full meal. Herbs, flour, and milk are baked into a cracker, which is tasteless and hard. Due to the specific recipe, a week's meals can be cooked in a few hours with prestidigitation, which is fortunately also handy for making it palatable. A common addition is a thick stew which is similarly easy to prepare.

Gnomish Pudding: A pleasant desert, Gnomish pudding is a visually spectacular cream confection, usually filled with cake and bits of fruit, nuts, and sweetmeats and illusioned into a spectacular presentation. It is most commonly served at special events and holidays. (Gnom-Gnom-Gnom)

I've made most of these in my kitchen, the first two being obvious exceptions. In my first group, we'd play over dinner and I'd serve everyone what the character's were eating.

This is exactly what I am talking about. I especially like Krog. It's these little details that can enrich an otherwise mundane visit to a village inn or to a general store to procure provisions.
Do any of these dishes (especially the baatorian and lightning ones) cause any effects?

[Amadi]

I've eaten rat, and it is actually quite good. Tastes a fair bit like chicken, to be honest. Only reason why it is regarded as disgusting is because the rats used to spread plaque in the europe. I'd honestly say that if you didn't know it was rat, you wouldn't mind eating it.

[Debihuman]

People eat guinea pigs in Peru and fried spiders in Cambodia so it is not hard to see that someone would find rat-on-a-stick quite tasty. There are people who eat chocolate-covered insects after all. The problem with fantasy foodstuffs is getting beyond normal animals. If it flies, hops, runs, slithers or swims, there's a good chance someone somewhere has eaten it.

Dire lobster meat is probably edible but not as tender as normal lobster meat. On the other hand, a dire lobster can probably feed a family of four.

Eating magical beasts can be problematic. Eating things that used to be able to talk gets a little uncomfortable unless they are evil and somehow that avoids the moral dilemma. I'm not a vegetarian by any means, but I don't think animals raised for food should be able to speak. If nothing else, they are probably more useful alive than on a platter surrounded by roasted potatoes.

That said, in a fantasy game there's no reason for not eating fantastical creatures. If it is okay to slay a red dragon, turn its hide into armor, why not use its meat for food? Dragon turtle soup could show up on the menu after a successful hunt--could feed a whole village for a week too.

There aren't really any rules regarding what creatures would be edible and what aren't other than some common sense. Poisonous creatures are probably dangerous to eat. Undead and construct would be inedible too. Just quickly running down the "A"s in the SRD for what monsters I think might be edible:

Ankheg -- the meat might be edible but it is an insect-like creature so that may present some problems for the squeamish.
Areana -- same as above only spider-like rather than insect-like.
Arrowhawk -- tough and stringy but it probably tastes like chicken.
Assassin vine--already has edible berries and makes decent wine

Debby

[golentan]

This is exactly what I am talking about. I especially like Krog. It's these little details that can enrich an otherwise mundane visit to a village inn or to a general store to procure provisions.
Do any of these dishes (especially the baatorian and lightning ones) cause any effects?

Yes. Lightning gives a +2 alchemical bonus to resisting exposure, but Baatorian Devilfruit is pretty much just straight up tasty. It's effects are an improvement of your status in the eyes of your guests and some suspicious looks from the clergy. I've got my old DnD recipe book around somewhere, maybe I can dig out some more for you.

[Shpadoinkle]

Sunshine: A wine that is a subtle gold in color. Made from suberries, which are bright yellow and fairly large (a single berry is approximately the size of a human man's fist.) Especially favored by dwarves and gnomes, virtually all civilized races enjoy it. Traditionally the berries are harvested by elves and traded to dwarves, who brew them into sunshine.

The wine itself is somehwat sweet but very potent. Aside from the color, the drink also derives it's name from the fact that even a small glass causes the imbiber to feel pleasantly warm (but not hot), as though they were standing in the sun, for several hours. Especially well-brewed samples of the drink can even help stave off cold (+1 to saves vs. nonmagical cold effects.)

[Flarp]

Dwarven Rock Bread is a crunchy concoction that is actually quite different from what we know bread to be.

Rather, it's more like a savory coffee cake. With a soft, cake-like center and a rocky exterior, few non-dwarves are willing to try it, unknowing of its inner taste.

[Vizzerdrix]

Dire lobster meat is probably edible but not as tender as normal lobster meat. On the other hand, a dire lobster can probably feed a family of four.

Debby

But Soft shell Dire Lobster would be just as good!

Now to trap a butter Elemental, on make a Butter golem...

Those may work on a chuul too >.>

[charl]

I usually try to avoid using foodstuffs from the New World for my fantasy games. As such, you'll be eating turnips or horseradish instead of potatoes, and there won't be any turkeys around to eat either, nor tomatoes or chilis (including paprika/bell peppers). Also, the only drinks safely available are alcoholic, except for some eastern cultures who might drink the occasional cup of tea instead. And of course most of everything is preserved with heavy salting, fermentation or pickling, and served with very stale dark bread. And most meals outside of noble courts or holidays are cooked as stews with wine or beer as the base and all the rest of the ingredients just thrown in, and the leftovers used as a base for the next meal together with the wine or beer.

[Vizzerdrix]

Sounds yummy to me. When do we eats?

(And who you calling "new world"? We've been around just as long )

[Godskook]

Whenever I reference what I eat/drink, I'll always borrow it from a particular source. Cold Mein for breakfast, black pudding for lunch, and Hell Ramen for dinner. I'll have a crazy little turkish delight as a snack. Neuromancers and Zmobies are wonderful all-day drinks, and I usually night-cap with a Cherry Bomb. When I'm bored, I'll either suck on a roc feather, drink some agua de vida, or smoke a not-a-pipe. If I'm really desperate, there's always a couple of wads to chew on.

Bonus points if you know what I'm referencing. A great way to borrow a fairly intricate meal system.

[charl]

(And who you calling "new world"? We've been around just as long )

I didn't invent the term!

Also, as a side note, medieval food is yummy! I've been to some great restaurants that make European dark age food using recipes and ingredients available to the era, and it is delicious!

I still need to find some place that have Roman food though. Needs to taste me some grilled dormouse with fish sauce and grapes.

[Vizzerdrix]

Whenever I reference what I eat/drink, I'll always borrow it from a particular source. Cold Mein for breakfast, black pudding for lunch, and Hell Ramen for dinner. I'll have a crazy little turkish delight as a snack. Neuromancers and Zmobies are wonderful all-day drinks, and I usually night-cap with a Cherry Bomb. When I'm bored, I'll either suck on a roc feather, drink some agua de vida, or smoke a not-a-pipe. If I'm really desperate, there's always a couple of wads to chew on.

Bonus points if you know what I'm referencing. A great way to borrow a fairly intricate meal system.

Just make sure to save room for two fortune cookies


(loves meself that game ^_^)

[Cyanidesoul]

Yes. Lightning gives a +2 alchemical bonus to resisting exposure, but Baatorian Devilfruit is pretty much just straight up tasty. It's effects are an improvement of your status in the eyes of your guests and some suspicious looks from the clergy. I've got my old DnD recipe book around somewhere, maybe I can dig out some more for you.

I can't wait. How much do these items cost?

[Cyanidesoul]

Sunshine: A wine that is a subtle gold in color. Made from suberries, which are bright yellow and fairly large (a single berry is approximately the size of a human man's fist.) Especially favored by dwarves and gnomes, virtually all civilized races enjoy it. Traditionally the berries are harvested by elves and traded to dwarves, who brew them into sunshine.

The wine itself is somehwat sweet but very potent. Aside from the color, the drink also derives it's name from the fact that even a small glass causes the imbiber to feel pleasantly warm (but not hot), as though they were standing in the sun, for several hours. Especially well-brewed samples of the drink can even help stave off cold (+1 to saves vs. nonmagical cold effects.)

Interesting... How much does it sell for?

[industrious]

There are rules for alcohol in the Arms and Equipment guide, I believe, as well as other foods.

[golentan]

Costs are on a per case basis. I like to guesstimate it by summing up the ingredients using the commodities table in Arms and Equipment Guide, then throw in expertise price modifiers.

Here's some more goodies for ya:
Cavesteak: A thick slice of mushroom with a flavor similar to pork. Cavesteaks are purple and grow throughout the underdark, but once cut quickly die and become inedible.

Darkroot: A mild, creamy drink served in the underdark. Created by squeezing the sap of the titular dark root into Rothe milk and adding sweetening to taste.

Dwarfwurst: Any of a number of sausages created by the dwarves. Usually made from pork, goat, or rothe meat. The treatments for Dwarfwursts intended as field rations guarantee their edibility for 5 years but have lead to a number of Dwarven soldier jokes about "Wurst nightmares."

Griddling: Fairly simple, and common among trapper communities, Griddling is deep fried beaver tail.

Hileis'a: "Flower flour." Wheat flour ground with lilac and rose. A common base for a number of pastries.

Lumpkin: Another Gnomish dish. A large turnip stuffed with vegetables, egg, and cheese, then baked. The turnip generally falls apart and must be eaten with a spoon or (in many communities) spooned over noodles.

Olkeda: A goblin made food, Olkeda is a pasty mixture of beans, rice, and honey pressed into a serviceable cake. A sister dish, Markeda, is the bean and rice mixture without honey wrapped about a vegetable filling. Both versions are steamed.

Quim: A halfling dish, Quim is a duck or chicken that is slow roasted in a wood lined box (quimbley) then mixed with a spicy sauce. Also known as Pulled Poultry.

Vineyard Fingers: Boiled and stuffed grape leaves, served as a celebration of harvest. The leaves are stuffed with spices and rice, then pickled. Communities without a vineyard serve them with Cabbage leaves instead.

These are mostly main dishes and celebratory items (many of which are stolen outright, though usually with some slight tweaks). I never did that many unique side dishes, tending to leave those as vegetables served in whatever way was most convenient for the location and some heavy breads. So please do make sure your adventurers get a nutritionally balanced meal.

[Cyanidesoul]

Costs are on a per case basis. I like to guesstimate it by summing up the ingredients using the commodities table in Arms and Equipment Guide, then throw in expertise price modifiers.

Here's some more goodies for ya:
Cavesteak: A thick slice of mushroom with a flavor similar to pork. Cavesteaks are purple and grow throughout the underdark, but once cut quickly die and become inedible.

Darkroot: A mild, creamy drink served in the underdark. Created by squeezing the sap of the titular dark root into Rothe milk and adding sweetening to taste.

Dwarfwurst: Any of a number of sausages created by the dwarves. Usually made from pork, goat, or rothe meat. The treatments for Dwarfwursts intended as field rations guarantee their edibility for 5 years but have lead to a number of Dwarven soldier jokes about "Wurst nightmares."

Griddling: Fairly simple, and common among trapper communities, Griddling is deep fried beaver tail.

Hileis'a: "Flower flour." Wheat flour ground with lilac and rose. A common base for a number of pastries.

Lumpkin: Another Gnomish dish. A large turnip stuffed with vegetables, egg, and cheese, then baked. The turnip generally falls apart and must be eaten with a spoon or (in many communities) spooned over noodles.

Olkeda: A goblin made food, Olkeda is a pasty mixture of beans, rice, and honey pressed into a serviceable cake. A sister dish, Markeda, is the bean and rice mixture without honey wrapped about a vegetable filling. Both versions are steamed.

Quim: A halfling dish, Quim is a duck or chicken that is slow roasted in a wood lined box (quimbley) then mixed with a spicy sauce. Also known as Pulled Poultry.

Vineyard Fingers: Boiled and stuffed grape leaves, served as a celebration of harvest. The leaves are stuffed with spices and rice, then pickled. Communities without a vineyard serve them with Cabbage leaves instead.

These are mostly main dishes and celebratory items (many of which are stolen outright, though usually with some slight tweaks). I never did that many unique side dishes, tending to leave those as vegetables served in whatever way was most convenient for the location and some heavy breads. So please do make sure your adventurers get a nutritionally balanced meal.

And I always pictured goblins eating disgusting stuff...

[golentan]

And I always pictured goblins eating disgusting stuff...

Well, you thought Rat was disgusting (mmm... rat). I always saw the goblinoids as eating as much meat as they possibly could. It's from a campaign where the goblins where hangers on and slaves in orcish society, but couldn't hold onto the choice foods because of stature and strength. So they developed Keda as portable protein that the orcs wouldn't bother trying to grab. That they could use it to conceal sweets was a pure bonus.

[Eldan]

Well...

Spoiler

Show

[Cyanidesoul]

Well, you thought Rat was disgusting (mmm... rat). I always saw the goblinoids as eating as much meat as they possibly could. It's from a campaign where the goblins where hangers on and slaves in orcish society, but couldn't hold onto the choice foods because of stature and strength. So they developed Keda as portable protein that the orcs wouldn't bother trying to grab. That they could use it to conceal sweets was a pure bonus.

I don't think rat is disgusting! (Well maybe New York Sewer rat) But I think you're right about the goblins. The orcs and more powerful humanoids would probably get the lion's share of the best foods leaving the scraps for their servile goblins. Also, goblins I imagine would eat just about ANYTHING they can define as edible, without ill effect(Due to the fact they're often forced to live in places that are inhospitable and unpleasant).

[Serpentine]

BOAR!


One of my players once disintegrated a gelatinous cube. It turned into jelly crystals, and we sold it to a confectioner. Now, most jelly and similar confections in my world are gelatinous cube-based.

[Silverscale]

In a campaign my friends and I have just switched over to 4.0, we had several occasions to kill various evil dragons and bring back the whole body to be cut up and used as appropriate to our Keep. Our cook would prepare dragon steaks for the whole village (or just the important people depending how big the dragon was)
We decided that different dragons would have different flavors. Black Dragons had a slightly citrusy flavor, Red Dragons had a smokey flavor, and Brown Dragons had an Earthy/Gamey flavor.

[Zanaril]

I've eaten rat, and it is actually quite good. Tastes a fair bit like chicken, to be honest. Only reason why it is regarded as disgusting is because the rats used to spread plaque in the europe. I'd honestly say that if you didn't know it was rat, you wouldn't mind eating it.

Fried maggots taste like smokey bacon flavoured salted peanuts, and have the same texture. Seriously, they're yummy.

[charl]

The Romans used to eat dormice as a delicacy. I'd imagine that is akin to rat.

[Dracomortis]

Not technically food, but I have a few beverages I made up for an Oktoberfest-like event in my campaign.

Name			DC vs. Intoxication		Price
Bloodwine		DC 25				50 gp  (bottle)
Dewdrop Ale		DC 8				5 gp   (bottle)
Dwarven Stout		DC 13				10 gp  (pint)
Illithid Brine		DC 11				100 gp (flask)
Kobold Dragonbrew	DC 10				50 gp  (pint)
Ogre Mountain Brew	DC 16				150 gp (keg)
Oilslick		DC 11				15 gp  (pint)
Stonewhiskey		DC 22				200 gp (keg)
Taurrum			DC 18				100 gp (keg)

Bloodwine: This thick red wine is made almost exclusively by vampires. It is extremely dangerous for living creatures to consume, as it is composed of nearly pure alcohol - a necessity for vampires to even taste it, though as undead creatures they cannot become drunk off of it.

Dewdrop Ale: So named for its thinness and its resemblance to water, this beverage is relatively weak - perfectly suited to the delicate pallets of the elves that brew it. While humans with a lower tolerance for alcohol might also find dewdrop ale appealing, many dwarves question whether it even counts as alcohol.

Dwarven Stout: Considered relatively strong by most humanoid races, this golden rum is very popular among dwarves and is the weakest beverage they commonly brew - some consider it a dishonor to even stock anything weaker, let alone brew it. It is so regularly consumed in some communities that it is also known as dwarven water.

Illithid Brine: This sickly grey liquid does not actually contain alcohol, but it has much the same effect on mind flayers as alcohol has on humanoids. It is made of the distilled fluid of human brains, using only choice donors to ensure the best flavor. Any creature other than a mind flayer that consumes this beverage is sickened for 1d2 hours if they fail their save and takes 1d6 points of Constitution damage.

Kobold Dragonbrew: Some say that this rum is made from the ground-up scales of red dragons - given its high price and the burning sensation it leaves in one's throat, they could very well be right. Though relatively weak, it still takes quite a feat of endurance to down more than a pint of this beverage.

Ogre Mountain Brew: This thick beer has a consistency similar to that of syrup, and few besides ogres find its taste appealing. With their large tolerance for alcohol, ogres do not even bother selling mountain brew in pints - they sell it in kegs. This fact has led more than one humanoid to believe that the beer is weak and consume several pints at once - a mistake they regret when they wake up several days later with a pounding headache and no idea where (or who) they are.

Oilslick: A fairly weak alcohol favored by gnomes, oilslick has a black, almost slimy appearance, though it is as thin as water. Some claim that it's made from distilled petroleum, and while this rumor is (hopefully) lacking in truth, the gnomes like to spread it amongst outsiders.

Stonewhiskey: A strong beverage by anyone's standards, no one still living knows if it got its name from its dark grey color or from its ability to knock even the stoutest dwarf out after a few pints.

Taurrum: Made using distilled delver slime and named using a terrible portmanteau, taurrum is the favored drink of minotaurs and other subterranean creatures. More than a few minotaurs have been known to leave a keg or two of taurrum lying about their lair to entice unsuspecting victims into becoming intoxicated; once thoroughly drunk, the minotaur then leaves the individual in the middle of a deviously prepared labyrinth, taking great pleasure in watching the poor fool stumble around in the dark in a drunken stupor until they either die from lack of nourishment or fall victim to one of the minotaur's traps.

[ericgrau]

IMO do survival checks to gather and/or prepare food or else exotic shops w/ high prices, plus flavor text from suggestions so far. Making eating into its own adventure sounds like it would only detract from the game.

[Sequinox]

After reading this, I'm hungry. I'm going to go get some food.

Apart from that, I believe Runescape has some pretty weird gnomish food... (Okay, yes, I used to play it. That was three years ago. I was twelve. I didn't know any better.) I used to have some weird stuff of my own, but I can't remember any of it right now... Sorry.

[Zanaril]

After reading this, I'm hungry. I'm going to go get some food.

Apart from that, I believe Runescape has some pretty weird gnomish food... (Okay, yes, I used to play it. That was three years ago. I was twelve. I didn't know any better.) I used to have some weird stuff of my own, but I can't remember any of it right now... Sorry.

Mmm... toad crunchies.