Enter the weird and fantastical world of Critical Role in this encounter, set in the land of Wildemount! This encounter is based off of “Battle of the Braggarts,” a low-level adventure hook presented in Explorer’s Guide to Wildemount, available now for preorder on the D&D Beyond Marketplace!

Wildemount is a land of dark and epic fantasy, with low-level characters fighting to survive in a world full of common folk who are just as mud-splattered and hungry as they are—and high-level characters contending with the fate of nations and magic that has the power to bring about the end of the world, or the creation of a new one. This series of Encounters of the Week are totally unconnected mini-adventures for low-level characters that you can run as one-shots or string together to create an episodic fantasy series. The encounters will be set in the four major regions of Wildemount: the grim, authoritarian Dwendalian Empire; in Xhorhas, home of their mortal rival the Kryn Dynasty; the neutral and tropical Menagerie Coast; and the frozen and forbidden Greying Wildlands, home to strange mystics and every sort of criminal scum.

This week’s encounter is Battle of the Braggarts. In this encounter, the characters arrive in Jigow, a small settlement of orcs and goblins in the Wastes of Xhorhas—on the very outskirts of the Kryn Dynasty’s influence. One night, while drinking at the Wartpimple Tavern in Jigow, the adventurers witness two braggarts engaged in a boast-off. The two boasters continue to escalate throughout the night, refusing to back down. It seems like the conflict is going to come to blows, and both Temgor and Gerb’s friends separately ask the adventurers to defuse the tensions before the Kryn peacekeepers have to get involved with local affairs.

The Wastes of Xhorhas and the City of Jigow

The Wastes of Xhorhas are a vast expanse of plains and scabland that stretches from the Dunrock Mountains in the west to the Penumbra Range in the east, largely inhabited by megalithic creatures, nomadic tribes of humanoids, and the occasional Kryn military outpost. Traveling the wastes is a dangerous proposition even in times of peace, and the war between the Dwendalian Empire and the Kryn Dynasty has spilled blood on both sides of the Dunrock Mountains that divide the two nations. Scouts, scavengers, and deserters now also prowl the wastes. See the official map of Xhorhas by Deven Rue for a closer look at the entirety of Xhorhas.

Adventurers from the Kryn Dynasty and the Dwendalian Empire alike may seek shelter from the war and beasts in a small city like Jigow. In times long past, the tribes of orcs and goblins that lived along the northern coast battled for supremacy. In recent days, however, ambassadors of the Kryn Dynasty helped the warring factions reach an accord, and they settled a city where they could live together in peace. Ancient rivalries still hold power in the modern day, however. Rather than killing one another, the goblins and orcs descended from the warring tribes now wage battle with grand contests of all sorts, ranging from hunting to cooking to children’s sports. Some contests embroil the entire city in their mirthful chaos, while others are limited to personal squabbles.  

The orcs and goblins native to Jigow accept Kryn rule, for they recognize that it was the Kryn that organized the talks that unified the tribes. Nevertheless, the descendants of the tribes refused to accept Kryn hegemony, and demanded that a two tribal Elder Leaders remain to advise the Kryn governor. Taskhand Durth Mirimm, the current governor, is disturbed by his peoples’ resistance to adopting Kryn culture, and jealously exerts his power over local matters, wielding his Aurora Watch guards like a cudgel to quell any disturbances of the peace.

Jigow is a small city by population, but its sprawl of towns, villages, and neighborhoods stretches across much of the northern coast of Xhorhas. Why might your party come to Jigow? Are you adventurers affiliated with the Kryn, seeking work in the city? Are you Dwendalian deserters, seeking secret refuge? Or are you criminals from the Greying Wildlands looking for a place to lay low while the heat from your last big job cools off?

Encounter Summary

While relaxing in the Wartpimple Tavern in the Jumble—Jigow’s lively central district—the characters witness a battle-scarred old orc named Temgor and a young goblin named Gerb engage in a contest of boasting, with each telling (and ultimately, inventing) stories of valor and greatness to one-up their foe. The contest starts small, but quickly grows in intensity until it becomes obvious that the boasting will soon come to blows. Both Temgor and Gerb’s friends notice the adventurers and ask for their help as outsiders to help keep the problem under control before the Aurora Watch get involved—for an official interference would doubtless result in the arrest of both braggarts.

Social Encounter: Battle of the Braggarts

This social encounter is suitable for characters of 1st through 4th level. Failing this social encounter may lead to a combat encounter suitable for 4th-level characters.  

Read or paraphrase the following as the characters enter the Wartpimple Tavern in Jigow:

You walk beneath the thick canopies of mangrove trees, with each bow dangling with colorful lanterns, until you reach the door of the Wartpimple Tavern. The image of a burly orc with a face covered in pink warts cheerily drinking a pint of mead is painted on the door, and the sounds of cheers, loud music, and raucous laughter spill out through the open windows. Inside, a group of goblins and orcs stand in a circle, cheering.

Through the cheering crowd, you can spot a battle-scarred old orc warrior scowling into the eyes of a young goblin, who is standing on a tower of boxes and barrels to stand eye-to-eye with his foe. The orc opens his mouth and growls, “Three weeks ago, I wrestled a moorbounder to the ground with just my bare hands. Top that, boy!”

The goblin giggles and retorts, “Psh, what a joke. Last month, I went out into the field with me mates and I threw a grappling hook up the neck of a gloomstalker as it was flying by, and flew along for half a mile before it bucked me off!”

Both the goblin and the orc continue boasting, each trying to one-up the other, while the crowd around them cheers. Almost everyone in the tavern is watching the contest, leaving only the stern-faced minotaur bartender and a few other patrons at the bar.

The orc is an old warrior named Temgor, and the goblin is a young thrill-seeker named Gerb. If the characters want to spend time at the bar without getting involved with the braggarts, see “Patrons at the Bar,” below. If the characters interact with the braggarts immediately, or if they don’t seem interested in anything else, proceed to “The Braggarts Come to Blows,” further below.

Patrons at the Bar

If you’re inserting this encounter into an ongoing campaign, the characters may want to spend time at the bar, either relaxing or following up on whatever quest brought them to this tavern in the first place. There are a handful of locals and other adventurers also relaxing in this bar, drinking and watching the braggarts. Read or paraphrase the following to introduce the characters to some of the bar’s other patrons.

The minotaur tending the bar snorts and inclines her head in a terse greeting as you approach the bar. A human and a goblin, both in worn leather armor, also sit at the bar, cracking jokes with one another. Nearby, a miserable-looking orc in dirty silken robes downs a beer, surrounded by a half-dozen empty pint glasses.

Use these short character descriptions to roleplay the NPCs at the bar, or add other NPCs of your own creation to populate the scene.

Thisbe Lyre. A musclebound lawful neutral minotaur named Thisbe Lyre is the bartender of the Wartpimple Tavern, and she takes great pride in her brews. She doesn’t have much to say, but thinks that her food, drink, and willingness to listen to anything her patrons have to say will do the job. She’s not from Jigow, but she sympathizes with the orcs and goblins who fear that their traditional culture will be wiped away because of their involvement with the Kryn Dynasty. Thisbe is a close friend of the braggart Temgor.

Lars Clearmane. This chaotic neutral male human scout was a member of the Righteous Brand, the main military force of the Dwendalian Empire. He was stationed at the Ashguard Garrison and frequently went on reconnaissance missions into the wastes with his unit. He was wounded when Kryn soldiers ambushed his unit, and was left to die. He only survived because a sneaky goblin named Eert Glooming found him, half-dead, and saved his life for reasons he doesn’t understand. She took him to Jigow, where support for the war is all but nonexistent, to recover in peace.

Eert Glooming. The chaotic neutral female goblin spy named Eert Glooming has played both sides of the war for weeks, selling Kryn battle plans to the Righteous Brand and vice versa. She and Lars, who she saved (against her better judgment) from certain death, are laying low in Jigow while Lars figures out where to start his new life, away from the empire. Eert has developed an unexpected affection for Lars, and snarls at anyone who tries to bother her new friend. Also, Eert is the cousin of the braggart Gerb.

Grethurk Praut. This chaotic good male orc apprentice wizard left Jigow years ago to study magic—particularly the mysterious power of dunamancy—in Rosohna, capital city of the Kryn Dynasty. He learned the basics of magic, but upon returning to his home city on holiday found that he is being shunned by former friends—including his old combat trainer, the braggart Temgor—for “betraying his family” to learn Kryn magic. He’s drowned his sorrows here for the past three nights, and is convinced that Temgor started a bragging contest tonight specifically to try and embarrass his former pupil.

The Braggarts Come to Blows

At some point when the characters are in the tavern (at the DM’s discretion) the boasting contest gets headed. Read or paraphrase the following:

The cheering crowd falls silent, and the goblin braggart’s shrill, angry voice rings out. “Like hell you can do that! You’d better quit fibbin’ to me or you’re gonna regret it.”

The orc grabs the goblin by the collar and pulls him so that their noses nearly touch. “I don’t lie, pipsqueak. You take your filthy words back, lest I lose my temper.”

If the characters don’t try to break up the fight on their own, one of Temgor’s friends approaches one of the characters, and one of Gerb’s friends approaches the other. Temgor’s friend is the minotaur bartender Thisbe and Gerb’s friend is his cousin, the goblin spy Eert (both described above). Both of the friends desperately want the characters to help break up the fight.

Why End the Fight? Temgor and Eert’s friends know that if the braggart’s contest escalates to violence, the fight will draw the attention of the Aurora Watch, the local guards. Whenever Kryn Dynasty guards get involved in a local contest, the competitors get arrested and the venue is shut down for “investigation” for a few days, at best.

Why the Characters? The characters (or at least, some of them) are outsiders to Jigow. If one of the braggarts’ friends or clanmates intervene, it will bring shame to both the competitors and to the one who intervenes. On the other hand, if the Kryn authorities intervene, it will just be another sign that Jigow’s native culture is being subsumed by the Kryn. If outsiders help, however, it will shame neither the combatants, the friends, nor the clans of Jigow.

Averting a Battle

Acting quick can keep Gerb and Temgor from drawing their blades. Approaching the quarreling braggarts causes them both to glare at the intruders before immediately going back to arguing. Neither wants to speak with the interlopers, but a character that makes a successful DC 10 Charisma check causes them to turn to that character and cease their quarreling. A character proficient in Deception, Intimidation, Performance, or Persuasion can add their proficiency bonus to this check.

Once the characters have the braggart’s attention, they must convince them to leave the other alone. They can argue in any way they want, but must succeed on three DC 13 Charisma checks before failing three checks. These successes and failures are shared between the entire group. If the characters aren’t sure of what to say, Temgor snarls and suggests, “How about a bargain, outsiders? Before this little beast accused me of lyin’, we were braggin’. Brag with us. Show us what stuff ye be made of.”

The characters take turns bragging back and forth with Gerb and Temgor. A character that brags can make a DC 13 Charisma check, as described above. If you think that a character made a particularly excellent boast, they gain advantage on their Charisma check. Here are some boasts that Temgor and Gerb can spit in the characters’ faces as they try to out-brag them:

• I can dance as fast as falling rain! (Gerb then proves it by dancing a rapid-patter jig.)
• I can fell a mangrove with a single chop of my axe! (Temgor proves it by taking his massive battleaxe and cleaving a mangrove tree outside clean in two.)
• I rode a bucking mastodon on the wastes for thirty seconds before being flung a hundred feet from its head into a tree—and lived! (There’s nothing Gerb can do to prove this, not that it matters.)
• I beat a Kryn warrior in a duel with one hand tied behind my back. (Likewise, Temgor can’t prove it, but everyone believes him.)

Failure: Arrival of the Aurora Watch

If the characters don’t try to break up the fight, or if they accrue three failures before making three successes, the braggarts come to blows. This attracts the Aurora Watch, as expected. Read or paraphrase the following:

Temgor and Gerb roar and leap at one another. Temgor uses his bare fists while Gerb draws a dull dagger and start wrestling. The crowd closes in tightly around the brawling braggarts. Moments later, a group of four dark elves in glistening silver armor appear. One with a crimson sash across her chest barks, “Quell your hostilities, or they shall be quelled for you.”

Her voice is lost in the din, and the roaring crowd continues to egg on the brawlers. The Aurora Watch captain gives a nod to her troops, and they move in with swords drawn.

The three Aurora Watch officers are drow and their captain, Dethena Nyx, is a drow elite warrior. Unless the characters intervene, the Aurora Watch arrests both Temgor and Gerb, and orders everyone to leave the bar while they investigate the disturbance. If the characters do resist, the captain orders her officers to subdue them. The Aurora Watch attacks the characters, but they try to knock them out with melee attacks rather than killing them.

Characters that are arrested by the Aurora Watch wake up in prison. Over the next 24 hours, they meet with Taskhand Durth Mirimm and are each charged with assault with intent to injure a member of the Aurora Watch—the punishment for which is imprisonment for 24 days and a fine of 400 gp, each. The Taskhand muses that they seem capable warriors, and that he has several tasks that needs completion. He is willing to overlook their fine if they serve him as personal mercenaries for 24 days, rather than serving their sentence in prison. As the DM, you can come up with new adventures in the Wastes of Xhorhas for the characters to overcome as they serve (and possibly conspire against) the Taskhand of Jigow.  

Success: Crisis Averted

If the characters earn three successes before making three failures, Temgor and Gerb look to one another and sigh. Gerb apologizes for accusing Temgor of lying, and admits that he lied about several of his boasts. Temgor laughs and apologizes for being so nasty, and admits that he had lied about a half dozen of his boasts. “Lying is the main part of the boastin’ contest,” he roars mirthfully, clapping his goblin friend on the back.

The crowd cheers at the happy ending and Temgor and Gerb buy the characters a drink. The braggarts’ friends quietly thank the characters during the ensuing festivities, and each give them 15 gp (for a total of 30 gp) as thanks for avoiding a nasty situation. The party in Jigow goes long into the night—hopefully no one gets into too much trouble for the rest of it.

No matter how this story shakes out, you can continue your daring adventures through the land with Explorer’s Guide to Wildemount, coming to D&D Beyond on March 17th, 2020, with preorders available now. You can also keep up with the adventures across Wildemount in Critical Role, every Thursday at 7:00 pm PST on www.twitch.tv/CriticalRole.

     Create A Brand-New Adventurer            Acquire New Powers and Adventures           Browse All Your D&D Content 

Did you like this encounter? Check out the other encounters in the Encounter of the Week series. You can also pick up the adventures I've written on the DMs Guild, such as The Temple of Shattered Minds, a suspenseful eldritch mystery with a mind flayer villain. My most recent adventures are included in the Platinum Bestseller Encounters in Avernus, a collection of over 60 unique encounters created by the Guild Adepts, which can be used to enhance your campaign in Avernus or elsewhere in the Nine Hells. Also check out the Platinum Bestseller Tactical Maps: Adventure Atlas, a collection of 88 unique encounters created by the Guild Adepts, which can be paired with the beautiful poster battlemaps in Tactical Maps Reincarnated.

James Haeck is the lead writer for D&D Beyond, the co-author of Waterdeep: Dragon Heist, Baldur's Gate: Descent into Avernus, and the Critical Role Explorer's Guide to Wildemount, a member of the Guild Adepts, and a freelance writer for Wizards of the Coast, the D&D Adventurers League, and other RPG companies. He lives in Seattle, Washington with his fiancée Hannah and their animal companions Mei and Marzipan. You can find him wasting time on Twitter at @jamesjhaeck.