In TTRPGs with fantasy elements, characters can encounter city guard in various settlements; be they cities, towns, or villages. These guards usually block the heroes’ path asking for documents or bribes, or are seen protecting places of importance. While these encounters are generally overlooked or underused, they can add depth and intrigue to a player’s experience, turning what might seem like an ordinary aspect of urban life into a dynamic element of storytelling. This blog post aims to provide you with some ways to make city guards an interesting and engaging part of your games.

Flesh Them Out

Writing unique personalities and backgrounds for all the guards that the characters see throughout the game can diversify the characters’ encounters with them. Give them individual stories instead of treating city guards as generic NPCs. Perhaps one guard is a former adventurer who retired to a more peaceful life, while another is a rookie fresh out of training eager to prove themselves. Even these kinds of small details are sure to add depth to interactions with guards and make them more memorable for the players.

Aside from tangible pasts and specific motives, placing these NPCs in the throes of moral dilemmas can help flesh out their characters even further. Provide the players with scenarios in which not all city guards’ actions are black and white. Perhaps one guard is implementing unjust rules while another opposes them, or while some guards are influenced by a corrupt official, others want to escape the official’s totalitarian grip. Faced with such occurrences, the players would have to refer to their own moral compass and determine whether to aid or oppose the guards, opening the door for some great roleplay between the players.

Allies or Enemies

Guards can be allies for the characters, just as they can be villains standing in the way. Depending on the characters’ actions in the city and their reputation with the general public, the guards could aid them in their quests or actively try to stop them. While city guards should be treated as one organization in most cases, there’s no rule that says individual guards cannot play an important role in the story. A single guard could become an ally in a scenario when only they, and no one else, believes the characters, or an adversary if they wrong the guard personally, leading them to pursue the characters and bring them to justice. Such storylines can make for wonderful side quests and present wonderful roleplay opportunities.

Guards in Combat

In combat encounters with city guards, it’s important to remember that they can vary in skill level, from seasoned veterans to rookies. Still, they’re trained to handle various situations, thanks to their experience dealing with daily disturbances. To make these encounters more dynamic, you could introduce elements of strategy. Guards might cooperate, use the environment to their advantage, or call for backup if needed, making the battles more challenging and engaging. It is also a good idea to keep in mind that there are many types of city guards trained for different situations; all with different abilities

Examples

While you can explore more options in our latest book, Echoes: A Shattered Setting, some examples of different guards you can use in your games are given below.

 

Brute Guard

Brute guards serve as the muscle within the guard structure. While they have a habit of charging directly into the fray, their effectiveness peaks when supported by other guards. They particularly enjoy working with shield guards, killing hammered and prone enemies with ruthless efficiency.

Brute In Training

Medium humanoid (any), any alignment

Armor Class 14 (chain shirt)

Hit Points 15 (2d8 + 6)

Speed 30 ft. 

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
16 (+3)	13 (+1)	16 (+3)	10 (+0)	8 (-1)	10 (+0)

Saving Throws Strength +5, Constitution +5

Senses passive Perception 9

Languages Common

Challenge 1/2 (100 XP)

ACTIONS

Battleaxe. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d8 + 3) slashing damage or 8 (1d10 + 3) slashing damage if used with two hands.

 

Mage Guard

Mage guards are arcane spellcasters within the guard ranks. They usually cast battle-oriented spells, aiming primarily to eliminate enemies rather than protect allies. They often use elemental energies to vanquish their targets. Below, you’ll find guards using cold or fire to freeze or burn their enemies, but they can, of course, use different types of elemental energies.

Mage Guard

Medium humanoid, any alignment

Armor Class 12 (15 with mage armor)

Hit Points 16 (3d8 + 3)

Speed 30 ft. 

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
10 (+0)	14 (+2)	12 (+1)	16 (+3)	10 (+0)	12 (+1)

Skills Arcana +5, Perception +2

Senses passive Perception 12

Languages Common, Draconic, any two other languages

Challenge 1 (200 XP)

ACTIONS

Ray of Frost. Ranged Spell Attack: +5 to hit, range 60 ft., one target. Hit: 4 (1d8) cold damage, and the target’s speed is reduced by 10 feet until the start of the mage guard’s next turn. 

Embrace of the Cold (1/Day). Ice shards hover around the mage guard for 1 minute. When the mage guard deals cold damage within the duration, it gains temporary hit points equal to half of the cold damage dealt (up to a maximum of 10). 

Mage Armor. The mage guard casts the mage armor spell on itself.