Some of the many things you can do between adventures in your free time. Special locations may have other options or may make existing options easier or more effective; researching at the Great Library of the Academy of Magic is bound to be more successful than researching on your soulphone, for example.
Buying a Magic Item. This is not as difficult in Arcydea as it is elsewhere; it requires one day of effort and no expense as long as adequate research facilities are available (a soulphone, computer, etc with access to the Web). However, success is improved by spending more time (+1 day or +10 gold for +1 to the roll). Arcydea is a high magic world, so all checks are at +10. Prices for magic items are based on the Sane Magical Prices guide.
Carousing. Enjoy the local night life, spending as if you were living a Wealthy lifestyle or better (minimum 4 gold/day). You can use this as an opportunity to:
Gather rumors or intelligence (ask one question and roll Persuasion; DM sets DC based on how obscure the question is; better rolls mean better results).
Make contacts in one social area (roll Charisma/Persuasion; cost is generally 2 gp to carouse with the lower classes, 10 gp for the middle classes, and 50 gp (and requiring access to nobility) to hobnob with the upper classes.) Results vary based on skill roll. Cost of other social groups is determined by the DM.
Use your skills in gambling to win or lose money; choose an amount to stake and roll three checks (which you can use your gaming kit proficiency to substitute for) against Wisdom (Insight), Charisma (Deception), and Charisma (Intimidation). The number of successes produces the result.
Indulge in luxury; what this means may vary from location to location, and based on the tastes of the individual, but usually this lets you gain Inspiration in exchange for spending money and time.
Crafting. Use a tool to build a thing. The amount of time required depends on the tool and what you intend to make with it; see the individual tools for more information. Superior crafting workshops can decrease the time needed to craft or increase the number of people who can work on an item, at the DM's discretion.
Crime. Sometimes you just need to plan a heist to get things done. Spend five days and 25 gold gathering information on your target. Then roll against a target DC of 10, 15, 20, or 25, depending on how big of a target you want to take on. (If trying to pull off a heist against a particular foe, the DM determines the DC.) To attempt a crime, the character makes three checks: Dexterity (Stealth), Dexterity using thieves’ tools, and the player’s choice of Intelligence (Investigation), Wisdom (Perception), or Charisma (Deception). If none of the checks are successful, the character is caught and jailed. The character must pay a fine equal to the profit the crime would have earned and must spend one week in jail for each 25 gp of the fine. If only one check is successful, the heist fails but the character escapes. If two checks are successful, the heist is a partial success, netting the character half the payout. If all three checks are successful, the character earns the full value of the loot. Multiple characters can participate in order to make or help with checks, but they all run the risk of being jailed if the job goes poorly, and have to share the loot…
Fight Club. Many areas have local fighting rings, boxing matches, or other forms of not-permanently-lethal combat in an organized setting with predetermined matches. (Tournaments are handled in-game; this is for taking downtime to participate in exhibition matches, basically.) The character makes three checks: Strength (Athletics), Dexterity (Acrobatics), and a special Constitution check that has a bonus equal to a roll of the character’s largest Hit Die (this roll doesn’t spend that die). If desired, the character can replace one of these skill checks with an attack roll using one of the character’s weapons. The DC for each of the checks is 5 + 2d10; generate a separate DC for each one. Consult the Pit Fighting Results table to see how the character did.
Gaining Renown. Work on your renown with a faction or group; it takes 10 days times the current level of Renown to increase Renown by one point.
Performances. Use your Performance talent to earn money. Depending on your Popularity, this may allow work at better venues.
Street Performances. Make a Performance check; you earn this many silver pieces in one hour of work, or this many gold pieces if you spend a full eight-hour day at it.
Performance at Minor Venue. Make a Performance check; you earn this many gold pieces in one night's performance (four hours).
Performance at Major Venue. Make a Performance check; you earn 4 x this many gold pieces in one night's performance (four hours).
Arranged Performance. Use your Musical Instrument skill, Performance, and other talents to arrange for a show in advance. Results depend on size of venue, which generally depends on Popularity (more popular performers can work better venues), and skill of performer. Venues may require availability at a specific later date.
Perform Sacred Rites. Requires a temple; provides for a Modest lifestyle and allows you to spend one day in religious service in order to gain Inspiration at the start of each day for 1d4 days. Results are cumulative up to ten days of saved Inspiration.
Religious Service. Requires a temple and one workweek (five days), but no gold piece expenditure. Someone who undertakes this activity has a chance of winning the favor of the temple’s leaders. At the end of the required time, the character chooses to make either an Intelligence (Religion) check or a Wisdom (Insight) check. The total of the check determines the benefits of service, as shown on the Religious Service table.
Recuperating: Requires one week. DC 15 Con save to end one effect that prevents regaining hit points, OR, DC 15 Con save to gain advantage on saves vs. one disease or poison in effect. This doesn't require any special accommodations.
Relaxation: Requires one week and a Modest lifestyle or better. While relaxing, a character gains advantage on saving throws to recover from long-acting diseases and poisons. In addition, at the end of the week, a character can end one effect that keeps the character from regaining hit points, or can restore one ability score that has been reduced to less than its normal value. This benefit cannot be used if the harmful effect was caused by a spell or some other magical effect with an ongoing duration.
Research: The research downtime activity allows a character to delve into lore concerning a monster, a location, a magic item, or some other particular topic. The character declares the focus of the research — a specific person, place, or thing. Make Investigation and/or Persuasion check, with a +1 per 50 gold spent on materials, bribes, etc, up to +6. This earns one day of progress in researching a particular long-term subject or task, or provides specific amounts of lore about an easier topic. Each piece of lore is the equivalent of one true statement about a person, place, or thing. Examples include knowledge of a creature’s resistances, the password needed to enter a sealed dungeon level, the spells commonly prepared by an order of wizards, and so on. Some research topics are much easier than others in the modern age; these require a Technology skill roll and are relatively quick.
Run A Business: Once a month, roll percentile dice and add number of days on-site working (maximum 30 days). Results depend on business size, quality, legality, and other concerns.
Selling a Magic Item: A character can find a buyer for one magic item by spending one workweek and 25 gp, which is used to spread word of the desired sale. A character must pick one item at a time to sell. In modern marketplaces, this is reduced to one day and 5 gp. A character who wants to sell an item must make a Charisma (Persuasion) check to determine what kind of offer comes in. The character can always opt not to sell, instead forfeiting the effort and trying again later. Use the Magic Item Offer tables to determine the sale price based on the Sane Magical Prices list.
Sow Rumors: Costs 1 gp per day; time required to spread a rumor is based on size of local settlement (village 2d6 days, town 4d6 days, city 6d6 days, online 1 day.)
Studying a Topic: Spend one workweek in study, and choose 1 of Arcana, History, Nature, or Religion. Gain advantage on all checks of the chosen skill. You lose this benefit the next time you perform a downtime activity.
Training: Spend time training with a mentor in order to level up, gain new feats, proficiencies, languages, or skills. How long this takes depends on the DM's verdict, the type of training undergone, and any positive Intelligence modifier the character may have.
Work. For a workweek (five days) of work, you can earn enough wages to maintain a particular lifestyle. To determine how much money a character earns, the character makes an ability check: Strength (Athletics), Dexterity (Acrobatics), Intelligence using a set of tools, Charisma (Performance), or Charisma using a musical instrument. Consult the Wages table to see how much money is generated according to the total of the check.