Tavern Games for People Who Hate Socializing (But Love Dice Drama)
How to gamble with NPCs when you'd rather die than make small talk
Let’s be honest—most of us play TTRPGs for the big moments: slaying dragons, unraveling mysteries, surviving encounters that should’ve killed us three times over. But me? I love small moments, like the ones tavern games creates.
Why? Because nothing says "I have a problem" like spending 45 minutes rolling dice against an imaginary halfling over a game that doesn’t even matter—until suddenly, it does.
It all started when I played Shadowdark’s Wizard & Thieves and realized: "Wait, I could be scamming NPCs right now instead of doing actual plot?" And just like that, my descent into tavern game depravity began.
Now, I’ve crafted three ridiculous tavern games—because why roleplay meaningful character interactions when you can gamble, cheat, and accidentally start bar fights with mechanics so simple, even a drunk dwarf could follow them?
Pyramid Treasure Thief
How to Play (And Why It’s Brilliant for Solo):
Build the Pyramid
Floors = Number of players (NPCs count!)
Each floor has a difficulty (1 + 1d6). Write this down unless you enjoy forgetting rules mid-game.
Roll Initiative (Because Drama)
Highest d6 goes first. Ties? Sudden death roll-off.
Climb or Crash (2d4 Chaos)
Roll > floor difficulty? Move up one floor!
Roll ≤ difficulty? Stay on the same floor.
Roll double 1s? Plummet to the bottom like a failed WWE move (Move to the first floor).
First to the top wins the "Legendary Treasure".
Why Solo Players Will Love This:
NPC Rivalries Write Themselves: That cocky elf who keeps falling? Now your nemesis.
Zero Prep: Just scribble floors on a napkin. Artistic talent optional.
Dangerously Expandable: Add traps! Cheating mechanics! Drinking rules!
Two More Tavern Games (on my Ko-Fi or Itch.io)
A preview of other 2 tavern games on my “Tavern Games” supplement (insert super creative name LOL):
"Kill the Dragon!" – try to kill a dragon, before it kills you?.
"Knights and Thieves" – Fighting, stealing, and dice (is there any better combination? Yes, you can add alcohol!).
You can grab the polished supplement on Ko-fi or Itch.io. Every coffee or purchase directly fuels more:
Unhinged RPG mechanics.
Questionable life choices.
Gary the Demon’s therapy bills.
Solo play madness.
How to Use These in Solo Play
As a Time-Waster: "My PC gambles while I decide the plot."
As a Plot Hook: "That shady halfling who lost? Now wants revenge."
As Therapy: "Rolling dice > talking to real people."
Tavern games = Instant NPC drama without the social anxiety.
P.S. These totally work for group play too, but why share the spotlight?
Until next time, and remember, keep your blades sharp and your shields up!
-Miroku (Codex Gigas)
Riddlish tavern game: In this tavern, there is a dice game called 'The Petals of the Rose'. It is played with six regular dice.
There is only one enigmatic rule: 'Fallen petal, half the due'. The two players agree to gift each other an amount of gold coins equal to the score resulting from the roll of the six dice. Of course, whoever rolls the lower score wins the difference.
The other day, as I was passing by, I saw two people playing. The first rolled: 6, 6, 1, 2, 3, 3. He shouted aloud: ELEVEN! His opponent rolled: 4, 4, 5, 6, 1, 3. The latter shouted: THIRTEEN! And the first one won two gold coins.
Based on the enigmatic rule, the name of the game, and these two examples, would you be able to figure out how the scoring works in this game?
I love it! If you're interested I can offer you a tavern game I learned nearly 20 years ago from a fellow in an Italian forum! It is a tavern game which is first a riddle: yes, without instructions, a player has to understand how it works! (and trust me, it's not that easy to understand)
May the fun be always at your table!