Lets take this outside!

A group of town thugs have claimed one of the local taverns as their base of operations. They have been growing increasingly hostile towards outsiders, and the locals have taken to avoiding the establishment. The guard are aware of the problem, but don't want to risk confrontation.

The tavern-owners' child, Avery, approaches the party to seek their assistance in dealing with the thugs. As a reward, Avery offers a place to stay whenever the party are in town. Avery insists that they don't want the thugs dead, just dealt with without exessive damage to the tavern.

Standard Encounter: 5 Town Thugs

This encounter assumes a 4 person party of 2nd level characters for fifth edition. The thugs should outnumber the party by one.

The Tavern

The tavern sits in the centre of the winding alleys in the more rundown part of town. There are only two entrances, the main door and the kitchen door, which is locked. As the group approach, they will hear the sounds of raucous laughter echoing from within. A sign posted on the front door reads 'Keep out', but the party will see no guards.

When they move inside, the laughter will quickly come to a stop, as many sets of eyes narrow to observe them. Avery's parents look to the party with pleading eyes, while one of the thugs, Quinn, stands up and walks closer to the party.

“Well, well, well, didn't you get the message that this is a private tavern? Why don't you go on and get?” Confident at this moment, surrounded by their near growling comrades, Quinn may continue with some idle chatter at your discretion. The conversation will come to an abrupt halt when someone calls out, “If it's a lesson they're struggling to learn, maybe we should teach them. Lets take this outside!”

The leader, Riley, stays inside to keep an eye on the tavern-owners, but can't help glancing out the window to watch as the fight unfolds.

The Thugs

The thugs have limits to their brutality, for now. They haven't killed anyone, but the violence is slowly escalating. Under Riley's direction, they've taken to scaring off any of the tavern's regulars. They've kept the owners as prisoner in their own establishment, and this has been going on for at least several days. Riley considers the tavern to be their property, and as such the thugs won't want to have a brawl inside.

The Fight

The thugs think themselves the toughest people in town, so they'll allow the fight to start on fairer terms. Their ideal strategy is to fight outside the tavern, dragging any combatants out onto the street.

In the earlier stages, one of the thugs will spend their turn shouting encouragements or using the help action in combat to provide an ally with advantage on an attack roll. When the fight starts to turn, the thugs will team up against those posing the highest threat.

If a member of the party kills a thug, the other thugs will focus on that character. If a second thug dies, the remaining thugs will flee, not wanting to throw away their lives.

Town Thug

Medium humanoid (human), Chaotic Neutral

  • Armor Class 14 (chain shirt)
  • Hit Points 17(3d8 + 3)
  • Speed 30ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
14 (+2) 12 (+1) 12 (+1) 10 (+0) 10 (+0) 12 (+1)
  • Senses passive Perception 10
  • Languages Common
  • Challenge 1/4 (50 XP)

Actions

Greatclub Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5ft., one target. Hit 6 (1d8 + 2)

Success

Upon seeing their comrades losing the fight, Riley will flee through the kitchen door. The ideal outcome will have the remaining thugs turned over to the guards. The party have the thanks of the town, especially if the tavern is still fit to be open. Avery's parents will be glad to honor the reward promised, as well as giving the party fifty gold coins.

Failure

If the party attack the thugs and lose the fight, the thugs will leave them knocked out in the gutter. Upon awakening, they will find their more expensive belongings stolen. The thugs will be cocky enough to believe themselves untouchable after such an event. If not dealt with in the next few days, the thugs will commit a crime that results in the death of a civillian.

Moving forward

Assuming Riley makes their escape through town, they may appear again later as a foil for the party, either with with a tougher crowd as a Bandit Captain, or as a solo Assassin.

If the party do nothing, the guards will eventually corner the thugs, after their escalating violence leads to a death (as mentioned in the Failure condition). Riley may still escape the guard raid and appear later.

Credits

Map: Chibbin Grove (@ChibbinGrove), used with permission. Encounter: The Tartan Dungeon Master (@TartanDM) Editor: Creative Koi (@CreativeKoiCA)

Encounter Map

Bonus Content

This encounter is designed to be dropped into an existing town, where the party are already known. However, should you need to flesh out details of your town, the following sections may be useful.

Tavern Names

The Lucky Star, The Gilded Goose, The Lamenting Swan, The Adjective Noun, The Ornate Mug, The Defiant.

Town Names

Redknoll, Merchant's Crossing, Westburg, Newtown, Oldtown, Bilman's Stand, Crossroads.

Street Names

Market Street, Parade Road, Hangman's Walk, Old Farmroad, Mainstreet, Second Road.

People Names

Jordan, Angel, Parker, Sawyer, Ashley, Blake, Taylor, Alexis, Rowan, Max