I'm going to be adding a NPC to replace another in my game for a short time maybe longer. Since i don't want to openly let the players know what race he is, plus the fact his race likes to stay hidden and hide what they are. I need help figuring out his food and drink intake. One of his race featers is that he only needs one 10th the food and water a Human needs. I'm thinking this is a good way for the party to try and see if they can tell if something is wrong by how little he eats and drinks. Only i really don't know what one 10th is. So there is where I'm asking for help.
It might be easy for some of you to figure out but I'm not sure how you do it.
one tenth i would as ever one sucking down all the ale there body could hold wile eating a great meal and the npc having tea with a nice thine slice of pie
The main question is, what race is he and how is he keeping it hidden? Is he a shapeshifter or have some illusory disguise or does he just wander around robed and veiled? And if he does something like that, couldn't he just eat and drink in private and say that the reason no one sees him eat or drink in public is that it's against the customs of his people to show his face unveiled or unmasked?
I think people might be a bit intrigued but mostly they wouldn't care. Not a whole lot of attention is paid to character's eating anyway, and it's not going to seem that weird that "Bob" only eats in private, and all anyone ever sees him getting from the continental buffet at the inn is maybe an apple and a small cup of juice.
The main question is, what race is he and how is he keeping it hidden? Is he a shapeshifter or have some illusory disguise or does he just wander around robed and veiled? And if he does something like that, couldn't he just eat and drink in private and say that the reason no one sees him eat or drink in public is that it's against the customs of his people to show his face unveiled or unmasked?
I think people might be a bit intrigued but mostly they wouldn't care. Not a whole lot of attention is paid to character's eating anyway, and it's not going to seem that weird that "Bob" only eats in private, and all anyone ever sees him getting from the continental buffet at the inn is maybe an apple and a small cup of juice.
Well some of his kind can shapeshift or even polymoph But he can do nether. Tho i did consider giving him some magical means to do so. So its pretty much robe, veil, boots, and gloves. I understand what your trying to say. But i want to use the fact he eats and drinks so little as a chance for the PC's to figure out something might be up with him. Or that its some race they have never encountered before. Well the never have heard of it before so it would be very shocking for them to see its true form.
"Needs" is a totally different game than "can". Realistically, you're looking at 1 day of rations out of every 10 to live, but he can probably eat more than that (think Thanksgiving dinner). Pgs 444-445 of the Core book cover thirst and starvation, which would be minimums to survive.
Thank you that pretty much helps me out. Your are right tho. Just because he can survive on one 10th food and water. Doesn't mean he cant eat and drink every day. At least he still has to eat people food. Some of his race can eat anything to survive, dirt, rock, gems, trees. You name it. Thanks again for the help.
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"Needs" is a totally different game than "can". Realistically, you're looking at 1 day of rations out of every 10 to live, but he can probably eat more than that (think Thanksgiving dinner). Pgs 444-445 of the Core book cover thirst and starvation, which would be minimums to survive.Thank you that pretty much helps me out. Your are right tho. Just because he can survive on one 10th food and water. Doesn't mean he cant eat and drink every day. At least he still has to eat people food. Some of his race can eat anything to survive, dirt, rock, gems, trees. You name it. Thanks again for the help.
No problem.
"My religion requires me to not eat between sunset & sunrise/in the presence of non-believers/only fruit I pick up with my left hand."
Of course, it's also a great excuse for seemingly red herring sense checks...
Well some of his kind can shapeshift or even polymoph But he can do nether. Tho i did consider giving him some magical means to do so. So its pretty much robe, veil, boots, and gloves. I understand what your trying to say. But i want to use the fact he eats and drinks so little as a chance for the PC's to figure out something might be up with him. Or that its some race they have never encountered before. Well the never have heard of it before so it would be very shocking for them to see its true form.The main question is, what race is he and how is he keeping it hidden? Is he a shapeshifter or have some illusory disguise or does he just wander around robed and veiled? And if he does something like that, couldn't he just eat and drink in private and say that the reason no one sees him eat or drink in public is that it's against the customs of his people to show his face unveiled or unmasked?
I think people might be a bit intrigued but mostly they wouldn't care. Not a whole lot of attention is paid to character's eating anyway, and it's not going to seem that weird that "Bob" only eats in private, and all anyone ever sees him getting from the continental buffet at the inn is maybe an apple and a small cup of juice.
By the gods man, youve made Micheal Jackson!
I would think that a character of this type would have to develop some pretty good coping mechanisms to get by. For example, my line of work requires me to attend business functions where a lot of alcohol is served and I am expected to be polite to my hosts/guests by drinking with them, but nonetheless I am also expected to remain sharp and focused. So I've had to develop a set of strategies to make it appear like I'm drinking a lot more than I really am.
Similarly, this guy would need some strategies for hiding the fact he isn't eating much (Bluff check each time he eats in public to obscure the fact he's actually not eating much), or perhaps an explanation for why (his religion has extreme taboos ahgainst gluttony/calls for extremely limited diet).
Either way, sounds like a fun and challenging character.
1/10th of a human need spread out across a day would be weird. It would be like only having a single spoon of porriage for breakfast and saying "Oh, I'm totally stuffed now, boy that was filling!" or only drinking from a tiny cup and acting like it was a keg.
He might even strain to eat normal portions of food. A single trail ration could easily last him all week. Maybe even assume a rat is eating it because of how tiny the portions are taken from it.
The PCs could also find some disposed of food somewhere. Or maybe he comments on how he doesn't like the cooking around here.
How much is 1/10? Yes, it's easy if you describe the food instead of calling it "rations." If someone serves him "a bowl of porridge," same as everyone else, how many tablespoons of porridge do you think the bowl holds? 20 seems to be a reasonable guess. Well then, you can say that he eats two spoonfuls and is done. If you let the players get away with "we have breakfast," you'll have a really hard time dropping clues.
I love the "My religion prevents me from eating from sunup to sundown" idea. Presumably, he has his own tent, if he's traveling with the PCs. He would take some food into his tent at night, theoretically to eat that night and in the morning before dawn. Middle of the night, he might well put 90% of it back into the common supply -- and perhaps get discovered at it. Or the players might figure out after a while that their rations were stretching longer than they expected.
Also be aware that if he gets caught after sundown or before sunup with an eating/drinking opportunity, he might have a problem with that veil of his. Drinking from a skin/bottle, not so much. But I'm trying to visualize putting a full glass under a long veil of the Muslim sort and drinking, and the veil keeps getting into the booze in my mind's eye. (It's worse with a forkful of food!) Plus either act distends the veil away from his face, which would give an alert PC a Perception check to notice odd skin color or the like.
I suppose that the same religion that limits his food consumption is responsible for the veil? That might keep him from eating & drinking in company, rather than at set times. But which god?
I just went 6 years without eating or drinking.