If you're like me, you want your hard-earned coin to mean something. So if your game uses the Lifestyle Expenses (BR52-53), perhaps you'll enjoy this little chart I've put together. The entries include a bit of player and DM collaboration, but you can take that part out if you're not into it. Fill in your own campaign specific ideas as you like and feel free to post them here so others can use them.
Feedback is welcome. Thanks to bawylie for collaborating with me on the effort over the Twitter.
Lifestyles of the Wretched & Aristocratic
When you have paid your lifestyle expenses, roll 1d20 and add your lifestyle modifier and consult the chart below. Lifestyle modifiers are +0 for Wretched and increases by one for each step of improvement to a maximum of +7 for Aristocratic.
1-2. Hunger: Adventurer needs food badly and you're exhausted (level 1), but you hear a rumor about where to score grub or maybe some coin. (You say which.) A rival heard about it as well and is one step ahead of you. (DM says who.)
3-4. Disease: Fever, the pox, or a misalignment of your humors exhausts you (level 1). And you're not the only one with this disease. Some say it's being spread by a witch who hides among the poor, but you have reason to think otherwise. (You say why and what you suspect is the source. DM will tell you where to start looking for proof.)
5-6. Misfortune: Something you value is lost or stolen and you have a want or need to get it back. (You say what it is.) There is only one clue as to what happened. (DM says what it is.)
7-8. Violence: Somebody wants what you have and tries to take it by force, either once or through a prolonged and concerted effort. (You say what it is they want and DM will say who's coming for it.)
9-10. Scarcity: Resources are running low, work is drying up, neighbors are starving, and the rent is coming due. If something isn't done and soon, lifestyle expenses double, but solving the problem could be lucrative. (You say what the shortage is and DM says what's causing it.)
11-12. Power Shift: There's somebody new in charge and this doesn't bode well for you for various reasons. (DM will say who's now in charge and you say why that's bad for you.) The heat gets turned up on you until you can make a deal or change the state of affairs.
13-14. Treachery: Somebody close to and pivotal to your plans turns on you, hurting you in some way or empowering your enemies. (You say who and DM will say what they did.) The turncoat will get away with it too if you don't act fast.
15-16. Deceit: What looked like a promising opportunity was an elaborate deception that sets you back in your plans. (DM will say what the deception was and you say what the setback entails.) Discovering who's behind it reveals a new opportunity for advancement.
17-18. New Rival: Seemingly out of nowhere, a new rival appears on the scene and has leverage on you. (You say what that leverage is and DM will say what the new rival wants.) Turning the tables on the new rival will pay off, but it's complicated.
19-20. Opportunity: An adventure with a big payoff presents itself. (DM says what it is.) But you're not the only one to have heard about it and this is troubling. (You say who that is.)
21-22. Death: Someone important to you or your goals dies. Their passing leaves you with a bequest of some kind or creates an opportunity. (You say who died and the DM will tell you the bequest or opportunity.) Jealous heirs or competitors contest the matter.
23-24. Intrigue: You hear about a kinky masquerade being attended by the city's elite whose stock and trade is keeping secrets while amassing wealth and power. You weren't invited, but an old friend gave you a password to get through the door. (You says who the old friend is and DM will say what the password is.) Getting in is an opportunity for social advancement through fair means or foul.
25+. Opportunity of a Lifetime: You get offered a shot at the kind of adventure that adventurers only dream about and can only get through powerful connections. (You say what kind of adventure and the DM will say who offers it to you.) This is the Big League and there are definitely strings attached.
Variant: Hard to Rise, Easy to Fall
It's harder and costlier to work your way to the top, but it's easy to fall. If an adventurer seeks to improve his lifestyle, he must pay for a number of months equal to the difference in modifiers before he can roll with the new modifier. Maintaining the same lifestyle or a step down in lifestyle happens right away.
I plan to use this to run one-offs and vignettes during downtime.
Itll really flesh-out the "a year passes" parts of some of my games.
Also good if you're plot-driven. Take a session, spotlight one adventurer, and see what their life is like when they're not knee-deep in goblin.
That's a pretty interesting houserule. I dig it. Creates cool plothooks!
Thanks! I had to have something attached to those lifestyle expense decisions. I think what a player needs to know is that the more you pay, the better chance you got of getting better results and avoiding bad ones. I'll probably tweak it a bit more to fit better with that design.
Pretty neat.
It seems to only bare out negative outcomes.
Seems quite flavorful and interesting.
I still don't know how I feel about the down time rules in 5e. I'm so used to just house ruling or handwaving that all away. My group is on the casual side, and probably doesn't want to get into all sorts of intrigue, expense-accounting, home owning and business-running either.
Part of me likes a lot of the down time rules, but I need more info in the DMG or something. I do like skill training and item-creating as options, but I also don't think it's done right (ie: it shouldn't take a year to make a suit of plate).
My PC's have owned a home, but it was a gift, and I never made them spend GP on food, lodging and upkeep between adventures.
Honestly, a lot of this (the down time rules, not the OP's ideas) seems really MMO-ish. Guilds, farming, mining, crafting, GP/day expenses...It reminds me of Ultima Online.
Great stuff! I'll definitely be asking my group to use this.
This is awesome! Terrific for use during downtime. 
Doesn't have to be JUST downtime. Use it to kick off adventuring, too.
I like it. Great idea. I hope the DM's guide comes with some similar types of charts. I might use yours but for my campaign will try to shift it so that the middle range is pretty safe and boring (characters have to find or create their own opportunities), and the bottom and top show the kinds of things you have listed.
bawylie wrote:
Lady_Auralla wrote:
I'd move Scarcity down two notches and move Misfortune and Violence up accordingly. I don't see aristocrats having to deal with Scarcity, but Misfortune and Violence are bound to happen, especially if you have rivals who are hellbent on getting something you have (and chances are probably have lots of stuff to make other people envious with this lifestyle).
But that's just me. This is a neat idea. I'll have to start organising bookmarks for houserules and variants I find on here.
If I use this, I think I will switch Hunger and Sickness around. Hunger can be bad, but not as bad as sickness. Hunger can lead to sickness, but sickness rarely leads to hunger. As the levels go up though, hunger and disease become less of a factor for characters. I do like it.
good work iserith!