Worldbuilding Journal 4 - Building a Tavern and Player Influence

Now that we have established our theme (pirates) and feel (light-hearted adventure), as well as nailed down a few particulars about our starting town (Private, secure, exotic island), we are able to start on what I believe is the single most important location in a campaign setting. The tavern! Everyone needs to eat, and nearly everyone drinks, if only in the game. Thus, a tavern becomes a natural place for adventurers to meet, and to regroup after a voyage. As they unwind over a pint of ale there is ample opportunity to meet new friends, make new enemies, and overhear a rumor or three. All of which are great kindling for adventures and side quests.

It is imperative that this tavern feel rooted in the lives and culture of the town, so we will need to start with a little brainstorming. What are some defining features of the town? What is the main trade good or service? Who are the most influential people here? One idea I had early on was that the most consistent source of income here was from hunting massive, whale-sized, hammerhead sharks. The trade would inevitably be very dangerous, so someone who has survived to do the job over many years would have near-unrivaled notoriety. So what if that person, a man of influence with experience in their most crucial trade, opened a tavern? Let's follow that train of thought and see where it leads.

Well, the man would need to have an ostentatious name, something that you can hear and instantly think he is both charismatic and not to be trifled with. I will often turn to sites like fantastynamegenerators.com (not affiliated, they're just great) to browse and see what sparks the feeling I am after, and that is a fantastic way to root around for names. Here I want something that feels like a young and in-his-prime Blackbeard. Or just Black. Aloysius Black. Yeah, that'll do nicely. Naturally, a man of such charisma would want to frame his exploits along the walls of his new establishment, so he has the cartilaginous remains of the sharks he defeated suspended from every eave he can muster, painted black and perhaps engraved with filigree or runic symbols to elevate them to artistic statements, as much as trophies. It turns out that a male shark is called a bull, and as I am irresistibly drawn to alliteration, the place will be called Bull & Black.

Here I let my imagination run free for a while, visualizing what a place like this would look like, smell like, feel like. I'll write this virtual walkthrough down as I explore it in my mind. These notes end up looking one of two ways; As a narrative, or in bullet points.

As you enter Bull & Black, the dark wood doors swing open on well-oiled brass hinges. The raucous energy of the tavern bellows out as patrons loudly engage in drinking, eating, and gambling. The floorboards creak beneath your shoes and the texture reminds you of being at sea. The walls have been painted with pitch, the rafters strewn with nets and the remains of dozens of massive sharks. The intoxicating mixture of strong ale, grilled meat, and ripe citrus fills your nostrils as you step down the double-wide entry stairs...

-Or-

• Dark wood doors
• Loud and boisterous
• Creaking floorboards
• Walls painted with pitch
• Shark skeletons in the rafters
• Smells like meat, ale, and citrus

It's okay if the descriptions don't come narratively, it's just how my brain works. What's important is that you tie 2-3 senses into your initial description to your players or readers. They might not remember the name of the barkeep, or the art hanging on the walls, but they will probably remember a poignant scent descriptor like "the place reeks of musty rot, like a dirty wet towel left in a hot car for a few weeks." Next, I'll think of a few design elements that will hopefully stand out as potential conversation pieces, like an aquarium in the middle of the dining area that happens to have a full human skeleton lying in the middle of it. Who was he? Is it a resting place of respect, or a postmortem spit in his face? That's for the players to find out. Little details like this will either be glossed over yet enrich the initial impression of a place, or become the unforeseeable linchpin of recurring questions and perceived plot points throughout your entire campaign.

Ah yes, the players. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about them! As the town is being fleshed out, I will start doing some early "session zeroes" with the party. If you don't know what that means, I talked briefly about them in my second journal post, here, and plan on posting a full "mock session zero" soon. These first sessions will be more like a session negative-one, in that I am just going to be chatting with them about the character they are thinking of playing and collaborating on a few backstory topics that can be woven into the starting town. I really want each player to have at least one tie to this place, whether it be a person, a childhood home, a temple to their god, or even a defining experience that happened here.

As the session zeroes (Or negative ones, whatever) trickle in and the tavern takes on more shape, we can continue to build out the rest of the town. I'll be doing a deep dive into the Bull & Black in the next post or two, so stay tuned!