Free tables Pockets & trinkets
What's in a Noble's Pockets? d20 Table for 5e
A free d20 table of what a noble carries in 5e: fine purses, signet rings, debts, love letters and other people's secrets.
Nobles carry less coin than you'd think, because they buy on credit, and far more paper. A noble's pockets hold letters, debts, seating plans and pawn tickets: the record of what they owe, who they love and what they're hiding.
Roll d20 for each noble searched, pickpocketed or robbed on the road. Some results are simply valuable. The rest are leverage, and leverage tends to be worth more than the gold.
The table
20 results. Roll d20.
| d20 | Result | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Silk Purse | 12 gp in a silk purse with a gold drawstring. |
| 2 | Calling Cards | A small case of engraved calling cards bearing the family name and crest. |
| 3 | Pomander | A silver ball full of cloves, sniffed when walking through the poorer streets. Worth 5 gp. |
| 4 | Losses | A list of gambling debts in their own hand, adding up to more than a year's allowance. |
| 5 | Seating Plan | A seating plan for a dinner on the eve of the festival. One name has been moved three times. |
| 6 | Signet | A gold signet ring. Pressed into wax, it carries an authority nobody else should have. |
| 7 | Two Letters | Two love letters from two different people, each certain they're the only one. |
| 8 | Folded Handkerchief | A lace handkerchief, folded carefully to hide a bloodstain. |
| 9 | Gold Toothpick | An ivory toothpick in a tiny gold case, worth 5 gp. |
| 10 | Bank Note | A promissory note for 200 gp from a city bank, payable to the bearer in person only. |
| 11 | Third Son | A fortune-teller's card warning them to "beware the third son". They are the third son. |
| 12 | Loose Stones | Three loose gemstones worth 10 gp each, on their way to a jeweller. |
| 13 | Pawn Ticket | Fine kidskin gloves with a pawn ticket tucked inside — for the family silver. |
| 14 | Tutor's Note | A note from a tutor: "Your son has not attended lessons since the spring." |
| 15 | Rosewater Sweets | A little enamel tin of rosewater sweets, three left. |
| 16 | Altered Deed | The deed to a farm in a valley they've never visited. The boundary line has been redrawn. |
| 17 | Horse Locket | A locket on a chain holding a tiny painted portrait of a horse, where a lover's picture would usually go. |
| 18 | Blackmail | An unsigned letter: "100 gold by the full moon, or the steward hears about the boathouse." |
| 19 | For Uncle | A sealed vial labelled "For Uncle, when the time comes". |
| 20 | Alms Pocket | A separate pocket of silver for throwing to beggars, with a note on how much is "seemly". |
Questions
What do nobles carry on them?
Less coin than people expect, because a noble's tailor and wine merchant send the bill later. Instead: a signet, good gloves, a fine purse with a little gold in it, and letters. A noble's pockets are full of other people's secrets.
Is robbing a noble a good idea?
Mechanically, it's no harder than robbing anyone else. In the story, a missing signet ring gets looked for, and someone will remember who was standing nearby. The blackmail letter, on the other hand, might be worth more to the party than everything else on this table.