Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 Bardragon Mar 24, 2015 12:40:34	Greetings all  I just made the switch to 5th ed from Pathfinder, I sold my group on the simplicity of the game play and the character sheets…     I really want to run a more social interaction RPG with a dungeon every once in a while.  However I just don’t seem to have the time these days with 2 jobs and a toddler to create the expansive towns I could when I had more time. Are there any towns with 12 to 20 places to visit and NPCs to go with them? Some people just recommend I find stuff from Pathfinder or 4th and convert it over and I just didn’t want to do that due to time. Let me know Bardragon ----- is he a bard or a dragon… why can’t he be both..
#2 CCS Mar 24, 2015 18:52:09	I personally like Saltmarsh from the 3.5 DMG II. Plenty of places & people are detailed (though no additional maps beyond a very nice town map). As for NPC stats? Sorry, you're going to have to invest the time no matter what.
#3 pukunui Mar 24, 2015 19:43:39	If you want something that'll require only minor tweaking to stats and such, see if you can get a copy of Murder In Baldur's Gate. It's from the playtest, so the stats are nominally out of date, but it's got a lot of social interaction and exploration, with sprinklings of combat, set in the city of Baldur's Gate in the Forgotten Realms. Sounds like it could be right up your alley, pun intended.
#4 Sands666 Mar 26, 2015 4:03:39	I know you're looking more specifically for a basic city, but as a DM who also finds time limited, I've stumbled upon several web resources that make life as a DM much easier (many I found through folks here on the boards).   donjon- this site has a generator for almost everything you could want. It's raw stuff, but it's still pretty helpful. I like using it for dungeons. They also have npc generators that are fairly fleshed out (for 5e too!), world creators, inn generators and medieval demographic generators (town business listed). http://donjon.bin.sh   Goblinist RPG Tools - This site is good for creating random groups of monsters for PC groups that contain any level amongst the group. You can generate monsters by terrain or type. My only beef is that it becomes a little stiff in yielding results for certain encounter inputs, but it's fast! It doesn't have the monster stats though, so you still need the Monster Manual handy of course. http://tools.goblinist.com/5enc   D&D Encounter Calculator - This is good to find the XP budget for a group that is made up of any level (even various levels in a single group). Again, I know you're looking more for role play now, but if you're looking for XP budget this is super handy. http://dhmholley.co.uk/encounter-calculator-5th/    Leugren's Tools - This is a community user's page who basically created a generator for all of the random tables throughout the PHB and DMG. This might come in handy when randomly generating towns, settlments, and NPC personality traits.  http://1-dot-encounter-planner.appspot.com   Fantasy Name Generator - Any style of name, ready and available. Too many to count. Take a look and know where you want to generate names from before hand here. Good for town folk names. http://fantasynamegenerators.com   Random City Map Generator - this might be fun to use when the PCs go to a town you didn't expect. It's basic, but it could help!  http://www.inkwellideas.com/roleplaying_tools/random_city/index.shtml?east=none&west=high&south=low&join=eastwest&rotation=0&test=8127025&submit=Refresh%21.   Hope some of this stuff helps.
#5 ThorgritAnvilforge Mar 26, 2015 22:30:55	I'd say don't worry too much about statistics.  If you already have a source you're familiar with, take the story and flavor from it.  If any rolls need to happen, roll at +0 most of the time, and +2 if you think it's something the NPC would be good at.  Need someone from the town guard for combat reasons? Use stats for a hobgoblin or orc, minus the racial abilities.
#6 vipLink Mar 27, 2015 1:41:08	pukunui wrote:
#7 Touc Mar 27, 2015 11:11:59	Having come from Pathfinder and before that AD&D, I wouldn't be intimidated by converting or even worry much about it. D&D is very user friendly. You only need to convert stats if a battle begins, so use your MM for the NPC list.  If the guard is a dwarf, then call it a dwarf and move on. Treasure randomly from the DMG, or assigned. Ignore skill checks unless outcome of actions are uncertain, and then assign as you see fit, e.g. 10 (easy) to 15 (moderate). With bounded accuracy, a 10 is always easy, making figuring skill checks a breeze.   Unlike Pathfinder, you really can "wing it" with a D&D session.  No more 3-page stat pages. If I don't have the MM handy, an invented block for a trio of town guards off the top of my head might be:    AC 11 (leather), F1, hp 8, Att: +3 (longsword), 1d8+1. Str +1, Con +1, Wis -1.  (1) Runny nose (2) big ears (3) fights with tongue out   I can shorten stat lines by omitting what I don't need. I can assume stats are 10 if they give no plus or minus. I know proficiency modifier at 1st is +2, so all skills and saves can be calculated off this.  He's F1 (fighter 1st), so unless I need notes I know he has "second wind" and I won't worry about anything else. I've also given them a single visual to distinguish them.  Easy, off the top of my head.  No need for a full paragraph on a creature that is intended to perish in 2-3 rounds of combat.    With that said, I swear by the Starter Set. If you haven't already, begin with it. Great little town and NPCs.