Low-Prep Toolkit: NPC Descriptions (Random Table)

PCs can encounter any number of interesting characters at a tavern or inn. In a futuristic or modern setting, these encounters can happen anywhere.

A city center, busy market, a store, restaurant, bar, social club, even a yoga class! Use the tables below to quickly populate any scene with a character that sticks.

Also, check out “In Their Veins”, a downloadable dark 5e adventure below:

In Their Veins

A dark 5e adventure, plug-and-play for any campaign

Step 1

Roll to Set the Scene

Begin with two quick rolls to establish who you’re dealing with, and whether they’re alone.

Roll 1d8 Who Are They?

1–4

Man → Roll on the Man table (1d20)

5–7

Woman → Roll on the Woman table (1d20)

Child → Roll on the Child table (1d10)

Roll 1d6 Are They Alone?

1–4

Nothing extra

Carries a pet

Has a child or companion with them

Step 2A

Man

1d20

Man: Who Do You See?

Roll and describe what the PCs notice immediately

1	A heavyset older man with white dust in his beard, quietly sketching impossible fortresses on scrap parchment.
2	A slender, bald man in stained robes whose shadow sometimes moves just a second before he does.
3	A broad-shouldered man with a soldier’s posture, missing a limb.
4	A masked man whose gloved hands are soft and clean, but whose sleeves are stained with dried blood.
5	A squirrelly man with jingling pockets and a silver coin that he fiddles with between his fingers, and always flips in the air before speaking.
6	A skinny man who smells faintly of wine and keeps shooting glances at the door as if expecting something.
7	A man with soot all over his face and hands, but whose clothes are clean and brightly colored.
8	A hooded young man whose lute has only three strings, but he plays harmonies no one can quite hum afterward.
9	A young man with ink-stained fingers who smiles constantly with eyes wide open.
10	A long-haired young man who is missing most of his teeth and whose tongue is black.
11	A cloaked man with mud-spattered boots, and his pant legs rolled all the way up to his thighs.
12	An old man carrying a steaming bowl of something that smells sweet, yet pungent.
13	An old man with chains around one wrist and wooden shoes.
14	A man with singed eyebrows, proudly cradling a humming, fist-sized contraption under one arm.
15	A stern-looking city guard with a bent spear and a stash of children’s drawings tucked into his pocket.
16	A monocled man with long, white hair; his yellowed nails are long and brittle.
17	A slender man who claims to be a pirate, and he never tells the same story the same way twice, always making it more grand and unbelievable.
18	A young man with a bag full of bones labeled as “specimens” in three different languages.
19	A young man whose clothes are too big but he claims to be a very old priest that went missing several years before.
20	A pale, hairy stranger nursing a single drink all night, who leaves no footprints in the tavern’s muddy floors.

Step 2B

Woman

1d20

Woman: Who Do You See?

Roll and describe what the PCs notice immediately

1	A woman with very hairy arms who wears long sleeves and very quickly tries to cover her arms if they are accidentally exposed.
2	An older woman who is missing both eyes and talks constantly about the “murder.”
3	A slender woman missing 6 fingers but claims to play the flute at a tavern in a nearby town.
4	A veiled woman who speaks softly but snaps and yells whenever anyone steps in front of her.
5	A very talkative young woman who spreads rumors about anyone that passes in front of her; she has spread rumors about the PCs.
6	A heavyset woman who is abnormally jubilant and just wants to dance with everyone.
7	A middle-aged woman who professes the power of beans and legumes, and ties every conversation back to beans.
8	A woman who is covered in cat hair and blood but denies owning any cats; if pressed, she becomes loud and angry at all the questions.
9	A hooded young woman who says that her mother is trying to sacrifice her to gain eternal life.
10	A young woman who contradicts anything the players say; she chews on a reed constantly.
11	A woman who aggressively flashes her teeth at anyone who asks about her very expensive looking clothes.
12	A heavyset woman who has no eyebrows.
13	A woman who speaks in a foreign accent and is very expressive: frowning and smiling, opening her mouth wide when astonished.
14	An old woman wearing white clothes that are stained with grass, mud, and blood.
15	A very young woman who clings to old men’s arms, passing from one to another, asking if they’ve heard of “Calipor.”
16	A very friendly woman who talks to the PCs about mundane topics, like the weather, or the color blue; after talking to the PCs, she turns to someone else and says, “You won’t believe what these people just told me!”
17	A woman wearing a papier-mâché mask with very intricate patterns painted on it.
18	A very slender woman who insists that the PCs try “the roast,” even if they are already eating some.
19	A very old woman who can barely walk and uses two canes to hold herself up, is barefoot, and stops regularly to comb her thinning hair.
20	A young woman wearing men’s clothing that is blood-stained and filthy.

Step 2C

Child

1d10

Child: Who Do You See?

Roll and describe what the PCs notice immediately

1	A male toddler dragging a doll that looks like the town’s leader (king, mayor, etc.) and has several small, sharp daggers sticking out of its body and head.
2	A boy about 10 years old, bald, and whose clothes are not from this region.
3	A girl about 8 years old who smiles constantly and asks the PCs if they want to buy her “7 Deals.”
4	A boy about 12 years old who asks the PCs many questions about becoming a hero, and insists on them giving him one of their weapons.
5	A very heavyset girl about 6 years old who is crawling/scuttling about the floor as if her legs don’t work, and everyone in the place ignores her.
6	A slender girl about 11 years old who accuses the PCs of being sinners; she smells very strongly like roast pork.
7	A young girl about 7 years old with a very long forehead, making her head look oval-shaped; she does not talk, and is constantly looking around.
8	A boy about 8 years old who claims to be there with another patron, but the patron denies knowing the child; when others ask who he is with, he says he’s with the PCs.
9	A girl about 10 years old sleeping at a table in the corner; she is snoring and doesn’t seem bothered by all the noise around her, but nobody seems to be accompanying her.
10	A boy about 7 years old who is selling some kind of elixir; he is asking for an unreasonable amount of currency, but claims it will solve all of their problems... he won’t say more than that. He also takes out a cigar and starts smoking it while talking to the PCs.