Summer Solstice | Free 5e and PF2e Event

March 02, 2024
Posted by Janay Zeilstra

Written by Claire Martin

Every culture has its own holidays and traditions. Here is one free special event for both 5th edition and Pathfinder that you can insert into your campaign to bring cultural depth and diversity to your world.

If you're looking for other 5e and PF2e resources, check out our entire collection of Lair Magazine issues. This particular event came from the December 2023 issue, Festivities & Famine, where you can find even more to add to your campaign!

Summer Solstice - 5e

Major Celebration in a Coastal City

Description. On the summer solstice, the longest day of the year, a coastal city celebrates by coming together on the beach around a bonfire to share food, songs, and stories and to witness the natural migration of bioluminescent sea stars.

Bonfire. The day starts with constructing a massive bonfire on the beach. The citizens light the bonfire at the break of dawn, and the festivities continue until midnight when the bonfire is extinguished and the celebration ends. The bonfire symbolizes the summer solstice and must not go out until the day ends. Guards are always posted around the fire to ensure it continues to burn brightly and to discourage any vandals. People gather around the bonfire to dance, sing, share stories, and toss things they wish to let go of into the flames. Here are some of the stories that can be overheard:

Storyteller	Story
An old woman with a pet goose in tow	She recounts the scandalous story of her goddaughter, who quite unexpectedly married an orc this year against her family's wishes.
An austere gentleman with a tiny mustache and deep circles beneath his eyes	He recounts a chilling tale about a criminal sentenced to death and buried alive in a coffin. Except when they dug up the coffin a week later, they found that the criminal had not perished of asphyxiation or starvation, as one would presume, but had been eaten alive by rats.
A portly man smoking a pipe	He recounts the philosophical tale of four candles: Peace, Truth, Love, and Hope. The first three extinguished themselves because they despaired that the world had turned to war, lies, and hate. But the last candle reassured that as long as he still burns bright, he can rekindle the other three.
A young girl with pigtails	She tells the story of how she had challenged all the mean girls at school to a rope-skipping contest and out-skipped them all.
A young boy with a red scarf	He recounts how he met and befriended a fox.
A pirate with a peg leg	He tells many different stories, but they're all tales about how he lost his leg. Depending on the version, he loses it in a battle with a giant squid, a duel with a pirate captain, an encounter with some cannibals, or an accident involving a parrot and a butterknife.
A lifeguard with a whistle	He doesn't utter a single word but instead acts out his brave lifeguard rescues with gestures, punctuated by his whistleblowing.
A fisherman with a boot attached to his fishing pole	This fisherman doesn't like to brag about the biggest fish he's ever caught; instead, he shares the strangest things he's fished out of the sea, including the boot on his line, underwear, and a pair of glasses he had lost the year before.

Melting Pot. On a separate, smaller fire sits a pot large enough to fit several people inside. The pot starts off filled with nothing but boiling water, set to simmer for the entire day. Participants are encouraged to toss one food item into the “soup” and one only. By the end of the day, this typically creates a chunky, thick mixture that looks like abhorrent goop and smells like goblin stew. Traditionally, just before sunset, the “soup” is scooped into bowls and distributed to willing participants who all try to gulp down their portion without spitting it out (DC 20 Constitution saving throw). Those who succeed in the challenge are cheered and carried on a victory lap around the bonfire. This bumpy ride typically causes the recently ingested contents to resurface.

Battle of the Bands. Free music concerts line the beach and the boardwalk, ranging from professional stages with well-known bands that gather large crowds to random everyday people who fancy themselves opera singers. So many groups wish to perform that it often becomes a mini turf war for those in proximity to another musical group. These result in friendly and spontaneous song duels and dance-offs, with the winner claiming the spot and the loser sent to search for another stage.

Dance of the Sea Stars. After sunset, when most of the day’s activities have died down, and nothing is left by the burning bonfire, the people gather at the water’s edge to witness the yearly seasonal migration of the sea stars. At this time of year, this bioluminescent species of starfish let themselves be carried away by the current, drifting along the coast until landing into tide pools, where they are safe from most of their natural predators for the better part of the year. To onlookers, their journey appears as an underwater stream of shooting stars. It is tradition to watch this lovely display of nature in solemn reverence while silently making a wish.

Summer Solstice - PF2e

Major Celebration in a Coastal City

Storyteller	Story
An old woman with a pet goose in tow	She recounts the scandalous story of her goddaughter, who quite unexpectedly married an orc this year against her family's wishes.
An austere gentleman with a tiny mustache and deep circles beneath his eyes	He recounts a chilling tale about a criminal sentenced to death and buried alive in a coffin. Except when they dug up the coffin a week later, they found that the criminal had not perished of asphyxiation or starvation, as one would presume, but had been eaten alive by rats.
A portly man smoking a pipe	He recounts the philosophical tale of four candles: Peace, Truth, Love, and Hope. The first three extinguished themselves because they despaired that the world had turned to war, lies, and hate. But the last candle reassured that as long as he still burns bright, he can rekindle the other three.
A young girl with pigtails	She tells the story of how she had challenged all the mean girls at school to a rope-skipping contest and out-skipped them all.
A young boy with a red scarf	He recounts how he met and befriended a fox.
A pirate with a peg leg	He tells many different stories, but they're all tales about how he lost his leg. Depending on the version, he loses it in a battle with a giant squid, a duel with a pirate captain, an encounter with some cannibals, or an accident involving a parrot and a butterknife.
A lifeguard with a whistle	He doesn't utter a single word but instead acts out his brave lifeguard rescues with gestures, punctuated by his whistleblowing.
A fisherman with a boot attached to his fishing pole	This fisherman doesn't like to brag about the biggest fish he's ever caught; instead, he shares the strangest things he's fished out of the sea, including the boot on his line, underwear, and a pair of glasses he had lost the year before.

Melting Pot. On a separate, smaller fire sits a pot large enough to fit several people inside. The pot starts off filled with nothing but boiling water, set to simmer for the entire day. Participants are encouraged to toss one food item into the “soup” and one only. By the end of the day, this typically creates a chunky, thick mixture that looks like abhorrent goop and smells like goblin stew. Traditionally, just before sunset, the “soup” is scooped into bowls and distributed to willing participants who all try to gulp down their portion without spitting it out (DC 20 Fortitude saving throw). Those who succeed in the challenge are cheered and carried on a victory lap around the bonfire. This bumpy ride typically causes the recently ingested contents to resurface.

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