D&D Food Challenge
Whether it is a tradition among other gaming groups or something specific to my friends and I, I really couldn’t say. I do know that it predates my lifetime of gaming experience, and must therefore be at least 14 or 15 years old. We refer to this tradition as the “food challenge,” and it definitely rates among the most fun I’ve ever had playing D&D.
A food challenge is declared by the Dungeon Master, although players are encouraged to bring items that may be worthwhile challenges. Generally speaking, the DM declares that a player must eat or drink some sort of incredibly disgusting, hot, or otherwise difficult food item. A player who does so successfully is awarded with a hand-picked magic item or, in rare instances, an automatic level for his or her character.
I know what some die-hard D&D gamers are saying. This is not the most legitimate means of obtaining advancement for your character, at least not in the strictest of senses. To those who would object, I have only one counterargument. Anything that enhances the gaming experience is a good addition to the game. Even if players are not achieving character growth through in-game means, the gaming session is nonetheless much more entertaining as a result. It really depends on how loose of a group you have, as I’m sure food challenges are not for everybody.
As a rule of thumb, I recommend hot food. The hotter, the better. As a DM, I once awarded a 3rd-level ranger a cloak of elvenkind (back in 3.0 when they were good) as a reward for eating three blazing hot peppers at the same time. It was well worth it, as everyone was floored with laughter at his reaction. More recently, I challenged my brother, who can’t stand caraway seeds, to eat an entire spoonful of them in order to earn the party its first wand of cure light wounds. Other challenges have included drinking an entire jar of bread & butter pickle juice and eating a spoonful of year-old chives.
Of course, I’ve had my fair share on the receiving end as well. At my first game of D&D many years ago, the DM challenged us to eat anchovy pizza. Several weeks ago, the challenge was a slice of infernal habanero pepper, with the reward being an instant level. Thankfully, I eat hot sauce religiously, so I suffered no adverse effects beyond the initial scalding. Other players were not so lucky, with several suffering, shall we say, lower gastrointestinal distress for several days thereafter. Naturally, the whole ordeal had everyone rolling with laughter. The game itself was, of course, a memorable one.
To those who’ve never tried it, I highly recommend buying a can of peppers and giving it a go. There’s really nothing to lose. The DM and those who don’t participate get to have fun watching the trepidation and discomfort of their fellows, while those brave souls get immediate character advancement. Everybody has fun and everybody wins. If that doesn’t describe D&D, I don’t know what does.