Amid the press of the crowd, the din of raised voices, and the music of clanking mugs bustle the patrons and proprietors of the local common house. Whether the staff of a sleepy village's inn and tavern, a shadowy city club, a feasting lord's longhouse, or any other place there's reason for celebration or ale to be poured, tavern denizens do more than serve, taking in all the best tales and gossip of a community and thoughtfully attending to the confessions of any with the coin to pay for another glass.
Barmaid CR 1/2
XP 200
Human commoner 2
N Medium humanoid
Init +1; Senses Perception +4
Defense
AC 11, touch 11, flat-footed 10 (+1 Dex)
hp 7 (2d6)
Fort +0, Ref +1, Will –1
Offense
Speed 30 ft.
Melee serving tray +1 (1d4) or frying pan +1 (1d6 plus 1 fire [if hot])
Ranged drinking glass +2 (1d4 plus dazzled 1 round [drink in eyes])
Statistics
Str 10, Dex 12, Con 11, Int 10, Wis 9, Cha 13
Base Atk +1; CMB +1; CMD 12
Feats Catch Off-Guard, Throw Anything
Skills Perception +4, Perform (dance) +3, Profession (barmaid) +4, Profession (cook) +3, Sleight of Hand +2
Languages Common
Combat Gear antitoxin (2); Other Gear serving tray or frying pan, drinking glasses (2 to 4)
Boon A barmaid can get PCs a free round of drinks or whisper the local gossip (granting a +2 bonus on the PCs' next Diplomacy check to gather information in that community).
Barmaids are serving wenches, dancing girls, and even harried cooks in inns and taverns throughout the cities and towns of the world. Although usually young, some barmaids are older goodwives working in the family business.
A barmaid might also be used as a farmer's, fisherman's, or shopkeep's wife, or any type of servant, whether in an inn or a noble's manor. Changing a barmaid's Profession skills can create any type of servant needed. Profession (courtesan) creates an inexperienced prostitute, or simply a serving girl who works in a brothel.
While skilled in improvised weapons, changing a barmaid's feats can create a servant with other useful skills. Alertness or Skill Focus (Perception) makes a barmaid good at overhearing conversations, while a barmaid working in a dangerous dive might carry a concealed dagger and have the Improved Unarmed Strike and Weapon Finesse feats.
A typical small tavern may have only a barkeep and a pair of barmaids (CR 4), while a large inn might have half a dozen barmaids serving the barkeep, with a street thug bouncer for protection (CR 6). A barmaid is often found in the company of a pair of farmers or shipmates (CR 2) or a noble scion (CR 3), or two barmaids might serve a pair of drunkards, street thugs, or vagabonds (CR 4).
Drunkard CR 1
XP 400
Human commoner 1/warrior 2
N Medium humanoid
Init +0; Senses Perception –1
Defense
AC 12, touch 10, flat-footed 12 (+2 armor)
hp 23 (3 HD; 1d6+2d10+9)
Fort +7, Ref +0, Will –1
Offense
Speed 30 ft.
Melee club +3 (1d6+1) or dagger +3 (1d4+1/19–20)
Ranged club +2 (1d6+1) or dagger +2 (1d4+1/19–20)
Statistics
Str 13, Dex 11, Con 14, Int 10, Wis 9, Cha 8
Base Atk +2; CMB +3; CMD 13
Feats Great Fortitude, Improved Bull Rush, Power Attack
Skills Climb +5, Handle Animal +4, Intimidate +5, Profession (choose one) +3, Ride +4, Swim +5
Languages Common
Gear leather armor, club, dagger, gallon jug of ale
Boon A drunkard can be persuaded to make a loud, obnoxious disturbance as a distraction, imposing a –2 penalty on opposed Perception checks (as against Stealth or Sleight of Hand) for up to 1 minute for any NPCs who can see and hear him.
As ubiquitous as the barkeeps and serving wenches who serve them, drunkards may be found in almost every tavern in every town. Drunkards are wine-sodden louts who frequent pubs far too often, sousing away their meager earnings and often becoming surly and belligerent, especially against those from outside their home community. These are the men who leap up to start or join bar brawls, provided they're not passed out in the corner, sleeping off their latest binge.
Drunkards might be used as common sailors on shore leave, young country boys visiting town for the first time who can't hold their liquor, or drunk and disreputable off-duty guardsmen. A drunkard could even be used as a surly barkeep who samples his own wares a little too often.
A drunkard may be found alone, or a pair of down-on-their-luck drunkards might try to mug lone vagabonds for coin for their next drink (CR 3). A table of four drunkards might be sitting in a tavern (CR 5), possibly with a barkeep (CR 6), or perhaps listening to tales from a trapper (CR 6) or minstrel (CR 7). A pair of drunkards might also be found carousing on the street with a couple of shipmates (CR 4), two caravan guards on leave (CR 5), or a pair of slovenly prostitutes (CR 5), or trying to buy some illicit substances from a dealer (CR 5).
Barkeep CR 3
XP 800
Human expert 4/warrior 1
N Medium humanoid
Init +0; Senses Perception +10
Defense
AC 13, touch 10, flat-footed 13 (+3 armor)
hp 23 (5 HD; 4d8+1d10)
Fort +5, Ref +1, Will +6
Offense
Speed 30 ft.
Melee sap +3 (1d6–1 nonlethal) or dagger +3 (1d4–1/19–20)
Ranged mwk heavy crossbow +5 (1d10/19–20)
Statistics
Str 9, Dex 11, Con 10, Int 12, Wis 14, Cha 10
Base Atk +4; CMB +3; CMD 13
Feats Great Fortitude, Quick Draw, Rapid Reload, Skill Focus (Profession [barkeep])
Skills Bluff +8, Handle Animal +5, Intimidate +5, Knowledge (local) +9, Linguistics +6, Perception +10, Perform (comedy) +6, Perform (oratory) +6, Profession (barkeep) +13, Ride +5, Sense Motive +10, Sleight of Hand +5
Languages Common, Dwarf, Halfling
Gear +1 leather armor, masterwork heavy crossbow with 10 bolts and one +1 human bane bolt, dagger, sap
Boon A barkeep can arrange free room and board for PCs for up to a week. He can also share local rumors and customs with PCs, granting a +2 circumstance bonus on Diplomacy and Sense Motive checks in his community for 1 day.
A barkeep is the proprietor of an alehouse, saloon, or tavern, often with an inn attached. While some are sly, weasel-like, and unfriendly, most are garrulous raconteurs, seeking to entertain their customers with a story or joke and keep them happy and drinking. With patrons from across the world visiting their taverns, most barkeeps know a smattering of other languages to communicate with foreigners from far-away lands.
Barkeeps are used to trouble in their establishments, for drink often brings out the worst in their customers, and most barkeeps are used to facing down and intimidating drunks and bullies. For times when words fail, a good barkeep keeps a weapon beneath the bar, and is not afraid to use it.
Changing a barkeep's Profession skill to (innkeep) creates an innkeeper, possibly with Diplomacy instead of Intimidate, and his Perform skills changed to other Profession skills, such as cook.
An average barkeep has four barmaids on staff, with two guards or street thugs working as bouncers (CR 6). A barkeep might also be found swapping stories over a pint with a shopkeep (CR 4) or guard officer (CR 5).
