Camping And Supplies

D&D’s rations system has always been a mess and half of no one uses it as written. Here are some simple rules that handle these situations while still making planning, logistics and use of utility magic worthwhile.

Food and Water

See PHB 185 for rules regarding food and water needs. The Rules as Written will be used in place of any previous house rules.

Sleeping Outside

Sleeping outside loses its charm rapidly without the right gear. Bedrolls, blankets and tents make the situation survivable or even enjoyable but failure to travel equipped can be debilitating. This is largely dependent upon the local camping conditions including wind, temperature, precipitation, presence of insects and the like. If the DM determines there are adverse camping conditions, characters not equipped to handle those conditions will suffer one or more levels of Exhaustion. This Exhaustion can only be remedied by proper rest and recuperation in better conditions. While it is unlikely that the Exhaustion gained in this way will reduce a character to Exhaustion Level 6 (death) short of extreme temperature conditions, it can still debilitate the character and make survival that much harder.

Finding caves, areas deep under thick trees or bushes and other places may help mitigate these conditions (see the DM) as will certain kinds of magic, not to mention plain good weather and reasonable nighttime conditions. The best solution though is to bring proper sleeping gear with the character if he will be staying out of doors for any length of time and using it regularly, even if conditions seem good. This way, an unforeseen night-time squall or an invasion of mosquitoes will not interrupt an otherwise decent night’s sleep and leave the character at a disadvantage the next day.

Use of a Campfire

Campfires are optional but very handy. They provide light to those that cannot see and warmth on otherwise chilly nights, allowing characters to endure colder conditions in just a bedroll and blanket that might otherwise require a tent. Fire is also a source of confidence and drives unintelligent creatures and nuisance insects away. Fire is also a danger, however, as it reveals a camper’s position and may attract intelligent creatures.

In game terms, choosing to use a campfire provides warmth, light and reduces the impact of nuisance insects like mosquitoes and flies. If a wandering encounter occurs and that encounter is for an unintelligent creature, the creature will likely shun the camp, which reduces the likelihood of sleep being disturbed by animals and other unintelligent creatures. To model the confidence fire provides, all campers gain Inspiration if they are attacked or otherwise disturbed during the night on which they build a fire. This Inspiration is temporary and lasts until the following morning or until it is used that night, whichever is earlier. Use of magical light in lieu of a campfire provides light but does not inspire the camper like a fire does.

In game terms, the negative side of campfires are modeled by increasing the likelihood of having that encounter be with an intelligent creature that is at least smart enough to know that fire may mean food (or hospitality) is present.

Building a campfire requires a tinderbox and is usually a trivial affair unless conditions are especially unfavorable (lack of wood, wet or very windy conditions). You may assume that sufficient fire materials are available in an area unless the DM indicates otherwise. If the tinderbox is lost, it is possible to build a fire using Survival skills. See the DM for details.

Use of Pack Animals

Given the above, some characters may choose to purchase a pack animal to bring necessary supplies along on their journeys so they are not encumbered by camping gear while exploring or travelling. Parties can share this expense and bring extra supplies, food, water, bedrolls and the like on a pack animal to help ensure expedition success. Pack animals are also a great way to move heavy tools like spare weapons, shovels, picks or axes and carry home badly wounded comrades in the event things go badly. It is also possible to hire mercenaries to maintain a watch over a well stocked base camp while the party goes exploring in a region. This will help ensure the safety of their pack animals and extra gear while they explore and to keep a warm, relatively safe place ready for the party’s return.

If a party chooses to use this approach, don't forget to account for the food, water and shelter needed for the animals and the guards (if any) when preparing for an expedition. Use the rules above for each extra person or animal brought along on the trip.

Ammunition

Ammunition is a critical resource, but tracking each piece of ammunition is tedious, especially when characters low on arrows attempt to scavenge the battlefield for arrows that missed their mark or otherwise might be intact. To make management of this resource important but reduce the burden of tracking each shot, the following Resource Die mechanic is used. This mechanic is part of the core rules of many role playing games and has seen extensive playtesting. Note that while this rule is being applied to ammunition like arrows or bolts, it can be used in a more general sense to track any limited resource (hence the name 'Resource Die').

• When a quiver of arrows or box of bolts is purchased, the character does not purchase an exact number of these things, they are instead treated as a collection
• Each collection is assigned a Resource Die representing the approximate number of items in the collection. In the case of arrows and bolts, that Resource Die is a d8
• After each combat or other use of the bow/crossbow (hunting for example), the character that shot the weapon rolls the current Resource Die
• A roll of a 1 or a 2 indicates that a meaningful number of shots were used and the Resource Die is reduced 1 step (d8 to d6, d6 to d4)
• Any other roll means that there is no change to the Resource Die
• If the Resource Die was a d4 and a 1 or a 2 is rolled, the character is now out of that ammunition
• Note that sling stones do not use the Resource Die mechanic; they are assumed to be present in sufficient number that tracking these resources is counterproductive in most cases

Basic Survival Gear

The equipment list below will meet all the needs expressed above.

This is just the basics to get by. Don't forget about torches or other light sources, hammer and spikes, tools, instruments or other items that might help make your character effective! These kinds of things can be found in the Encumbrance section.