(Random) Relaxation Centers/Public Bath Houses

[taalismn]

Blame this on my watching too many Public Television travel programs, and thinking about ‘quality of life’:

(Random) Relaxation Centers/Public Bath Houses

“Greetings, oh weary travelers, welcome to Tanishal Springs. I am Rei, Mistress of the Baths and your hostess for this part of the estate. The Lord of these Lands bids you welcome and invites you to enjoy his hospitality and the opportunity to clean up and unwind before tonight’s festivities. Once you finish undressing and handing your apparel to the maidservants for cleaning and safekeeping, if you will follow me, the hot springs are up this way.”

“Great Athena, but this beats a wet cloth and an ice-cold creek! After the mauling that dragon gave us, I feel like every muscle in my body’s been pulled, pounded, and stretched to the limit! Any more of a beating like that, and I’m afraid that would be it for all of us! A long hot soak sounds like paradise after the day we’ve had!”
----
“By the First Egg, but my wings feel like I’ve wrenched them! Never engage bandits in close quarters ever again! Those brigands almost had me! I barely got out of there with my skin intact! Oh, yes! Speaking of skin, scrub a little lower there on the tail and a little harder, please? Ahhhhhh......that feels MUCH better....”

“Forty days on the Tolkeen front, and I smell like a d-bee! Emperor’s skull-pips, I could stay in this shower forever!”
“If you stay in there any longer, Kowalski, you’ll prune up to the point you LOOK like a d-bee! Come on, I hear the ‘physical therapist’ here has golden hands when it comes to working the knots out of a soldier’s aching muscles! You’re not outta the waterworks in ten, this girl’s going on ahead and hogging him all to herself!”


Call it a hot springs resort, a relaxation center, an onsen, a sauna, a public bath, these are places that people can go to clean up, wash down, and just relax. ‘Relaxation Centers’ owe more to the eastern or ancient Greek/Roman traditions(and Far Eastern/Japanese) than to more modern customs which made bathing a more private affair, conducted in the privacy of one’s home or private accommodation. These facilities tend to be more common in Europe and the East, and are virtually unknown in the Western Hemisphere(the YMCA would be the closest equivalent of the public baths, although more exclusive spas and resorts are fairly common). Such establishments tend to be rarer than bars, taverns, or eateries, but to the civilized, such places are arguably just as important to true civilization. The opportunity to wash off the dust of the road and the gore of the battlefield is a welcome one to many a fatigued and self-consciously filthy traveler.
Relaxation Centers tend to be more location-specific than more common establishments, and are typically located in areas of particular scenic beauty, or near convenient hot springs. Some are run by religious orders, usually with the claim that the waters supplied to the spa are somehow blessed or endowed with beneficial properties(some actually ARE magic in nature).
The typical relaxation center or spa will consist of a welcoming annex, a changing room for visitors to disrobe, a shower or washing area, and a central communal bathing area. Most will also have a sauna or sweatroom, and a general lounging area where visitors, more or less dressed, can relax, read, converse, play board games, and take in the waters. Many(about 50%) have adjacent lodgings where visitors can stay overnight(or, in the case of the larger spas, longer stays). Larger facilities will have a complex of buildings(and sometimes temples) spread throughout a tastefully landscaped(and fenced-in) area. Most charge fees for the use of the facilities(varying with availability and range of services).
Relaxation centers and public baths allow travel-weary adventurers a chance to wash up in comfort and unwind without having to get drunk off their arses to do so. Their intimacy also makes them good places to socially connect, do business with local businessmen(after all, you can’t really conceal much when you’re only wearing a towel), and even get in some non-barroom hi-jinx.

Note: I’m elected to go with a random roll format for this, rather than a point construction system, as people are more likely to randomly encounter such establishments than construct them from scratch.

Relaxation Center/Bath House Template:
A. Type:
B. Size:
C. Gender Access:
D. Facilities:
E. Sanitation:
F. Security:
G. Alignment of Staff:
H. Special Features:

A. Type: Are they going to let me in? And for how much?
01- 40% Public Bath----Run by a family, private concern, or occasionally, wholly by a civic organizations, the establishment is open to all, with few restrictions. A service charge(20-40 credits a visit, depending on available services) may be leveled to newcomers, while regular users may be charged a lower monthly membership fee(typically 25-40 credits a month). Public Baths typically only have 1-2 Special Features.

41-70% Club/Resort--- Rather more restrictive(nd expensive) than a Public Bath. Only members of a specific social class, religion, species, or orientation may enter, with special ID(+20% to Security roles). Membership fees tend to be pricier(typically 45-100 credits a month), but such establishments tend to have more services(usually+1d6 Special Features) and Sanitation better(+20% on Sanitation rolls).

71-00% Government Spa--- The spa is maintained by a government(or large organization like a corporation) expressly for members of its organization. Government officials and military personnel may use the facilities at sharply discounted prices(15-40 credits a visit), or for free, while all others must be specially approved(and may have to pay special charges up front---50-200 credits a visit, depending on available services). Security tends to be tight(+30% to Security roles). Usually has 1d4 Special Features.


B. Size: How many people can be accommodated in such a place?
01-25% Small---Can accommodate maybe 10-25 people at a time.
26-75% Modest---About the size of a neighborhood YMCA, with accommodations for 30-120(1d4x30) people.
76-90% Large ----Like a resort spa or religious retreat facility, this place can service about 1d6x100 people. Has +1d4 Special Features.
91-00% Massive---More akin to a large water park than anything else. Up to 2d4x100 people could use this place. +1d6 Special Features.

C. Gender Access: Who’s going to see me naked?
01-20% Gender-Exclusive---The establishment only caters to one specific gender.
21-80% Segregated---The establishment serves BOTH genders, but maintains separate, but equal, facilities. A few areas are common, where both genders may mingle.
81-00% Mixed---Members of both genders may intermingle freely in common facilities.

D. Facilities: Can I stretch out in the bath or what?
01-30% Showers and Soaking Pools----About equivalent to a good onsen.
31-75% Large Pools----Large communal tubs and shallow pools.
76-00% Swimming Pools---Olympic size and up. May include special pool designs like tiered hot tubs and wave motion tanks.

E. Sanitation: How clean is this place?
01-10% Poor-----About equal to an irregularly-cleaned private bathroom, with obvious water stains and mildew creeping up the works, rusted pipes, and water of dubious clarity. While it may not be oozing sewage, the place could obviously do with some serious disinfectant. The linens and towels also look pretty threadbare. Such establishments do not last long.
11-70% Modest---About equal to a public swimming pool or YMCA; facilities are regularly and often wiped down and cleaned, and the water constantly cleaned and filtered. There’s a good supply of fresh towels and washclothes as well.
71-85% Spanking Clean----Facilities are zealously cleaned and refreshed. Fresh towels, washclothes, and robes are available on demand.
86-00% Heavenly Clean----Grime-free zone, cleaner than an operating room. High quality towels, linens, robes, and bathing apparel(often distinctive with the establishment’s monogram or design) are available on demand. The place GLEAMS.

F. Security: Will I need to lock up my stuff?
01-25% Poor---The establishment is wide open to anybody who wants to wander in and possibly loot your stuff. Either lock up your stuff or boobytrap it. Nobody’s likely to spot a concealed weapon smuggled in under your robes or towels.
26-74% Secure---Locked and watched doors. Usually has 1-2 monitors watching the doors. Visitors are expected to turn any obvious weapons in at the door, or may be turned away altogether, but may still able to sneak them in.
75-89% Well-Guarded--- Has the equivalent of 1d4 police/watchmen per door. Visitors are scanned for weapons and are expected to turn them in to a coat-check room-style arrangement during their visit, but a hefty bribe may allow peace-bound weapons in.
90-00% Paranoid---Getting in may pose a problem, but once in, you’re guarded like a VIP. Each entrance is well-secured with multiple security measures, and 1d6 well-armed and trained guards per entranceway. A ‘flying squad’ of security also patrols the facility and grounds, on the lookout for trouble. The grounds are monitored and fortified like an armed camp. Visitors MUST turn in any weaponry at the door, and only those with special arrangements may carry weaponry inside. Some establishments even use magic to enforce the peace of the spa.

G. Alignment of Staff: Can I trust these people when I take off my shirt?
01-05 Diabolical & Miscreant---The establishment routinely robs and spies on its clientele and may turn in suspects to the authorities. Or, worse yet, select clients may be abducted for slaves or organ stock.
06-15 Aberrant ----The establishment functions as an extension of the local organized crime or Black Market. Clients are physically safe, but may be spied on if not members of the local network. Those who violate the regulations are PERSONALLY dealt with by the establishment’s employees.
16-30 Anarchist---The facility is the average mix of loyal workers and opportunists. You can expect the occasional petty crime and cold shoulder service, and most of the employees are only in this line of work for the paycheck, but will stay true to the rules and regulations set down by the management. In general, most won’t stick their noses in your business, whatever it may be.
31-60 Unprincipled & Scrupulous----The establishment is law-abiding for the most part, and treats visitors with respect and courteous conduct, but those who violate the regulations(or common decency) may find themselves up against the wall, getting a stern talking to by the establishment staff.
61-00 Principled---The establishment sticks by a comprehensive set of regulations and customer rights, and conducts itself with utmost courtesy to its clientele. These people BELIEVE in the pleasure and relaxation of their patrons. Depending on the local government, the establishment may hide obvious dissenters from prying government eyes, or may feel honor-bound to turn obvious criminals in.

H. Special Features: Besides a shower and a bath, what else is there to recommend this place? (Choose or roll 1d4 times)
01-15% Masseuse----The establishment has a staff of massage specialists on hand to work out those kinked muscles and tensed tendons.
16-20% Physical Therapist---For people with greater aches and pains, the establishment has on-staff acupuncturists, physical therapists, and holistic healers to help ease the suffering. The more liberal facilities may have mystic healers on call.
21-30% Special Species Facilities----The establishment caters to a variety of special needs species, including those whose environmental needs differ drastically from the norm. This includes heated sand pits, sandblasting, ion showers, and special waste disposal.
31-35% Cyborg/Robot Cleaning Stations----The establishment has special facilities for cleaning and lubricating the more mechanical members of the populace. Services include flushing waste disposal systems, rustproofing, and joint-oiling.
(In a fantasy setting, this can instead be replaced with more Special Species Facilities or Gymnasium Facilities)
36-50% Gymnasium---If you haven’t already worked up a sweat, there’s a place adjacent to the baths where you can. May have a personal trainer(or several) on hand to assist clientele.
51-60% Bar Service---The establishment caters drinks(a variety of light beverages including alcohol in the more liberal institutions) and light meals so that bathers may nourish their bodies while soaking.
61-65% Brothel----The establishment caters to more carnal needs as well, with servants(of one or both genders) available for sex. This is (usually) NOT a feature of Public Baths or facilities run by religious orders.
66-75% Laundry---The establishment will clean your clothing while you’re taking in the waters. For an extra fee, they may also mend clothing, clean metalwork(including firearms and armor), and do light repairs to body armor.
76-85% Day Spa---This goes beyond the in-house Masseuse and includes more involved treatments, such as exfoliation, mud packs, and special grooming(nails, hair, etc.).
86-90% Special Treatment---The facility offers some special rejuvenation treatment that may claim to extend life, and at the very least improve vigor. This may take the form of exposure to magic crystals(like a low-level LifeBlast spell), magic herbal cocktail, or an alien technology(bio-energizing rays) that actually have some temporary benefit beyond snake-oil hype(such as a boost of +1 to P.E. and M.E., or +1d4 to rolls versus fatigue, poison, magic, or mind control for 1d4 days...GMs’ discretion).
91-00% Magic Waters---The establishment has access to waters of an actual magical nature. This can be something artificial, like TW devices for creating cleansing fogs or pools of tingling bubbles, or it may be access to a magical healing spring.

Relaxation Center Adventure Seeds:

*While You Were In the Shower
Hook: The adventurers pull into town after a long adventure and are directed to a local spa where they can be told they can unwind. Setting aside their weapons and gear, they slide into the waters for some well-deserved relaxation.
Line: Not long after settling in, anybody venturing outside the spa will be immediately set upon by local villagers or law authorities...it seems that the PCs have been witnessed carrying out various crimes against the local area. The PCs should quickly discern that the crimes were committing while they were in the spa. They may even encounter their comrades outside...acting contrary to their normal behavior. This should send them rushing back to the spa and their remaining comrades.
Sinker: An alien intelligence has settled into the spa and using it to scan strangers and produce clones as part of its plan to build up an army of minions. The minions are often armed and equipped with the gear set aside by the originals, so those in the spa who discover the plot may find themselves in a bad position; without their gear(and clothing) and facing evil duplicates of themselves!

*Monsters Loose in the Sauna!
Hook: The adventurers pull into town after a long adventure and are directed to a local spa where they can be told they can unwind. Setting aside their weapons and gear, they slide into the waters for some well-deserved relaxation.
Line: Anybody venturing further into the facility will discover what appears to be a lair of insectile monsters preying on clients! Quick, grab the guns!
Sinker: The ‘monsters’ are really peaceful d-bees(like the Krel-Nal Bathhouse Demon) who are employed as special therapists or washhouse attendants. It’s just a case of mistaken identity.

*Scar Quest
Hook: The adventurers have just had a massive fight with another group of armored opponents, and they’ve been left feeling run-down, beat down, and like week-old rubbery meatloaf. Checking in to the local bathhouse for some downtime under the showers sounds like a really good idea.
Line: While soaking, the PCs start socializing with the other clientele, some of whom are also travelers and adventurers, and they start swapping stories and comparing scars, boasting of their achievements and commiserating about their letdowns.
Sinker: At some point the PCs will suddenly realize that the equally beat-up group of people they’ve been swapping whoppers with are the group, now sans concealing armor, that they were trying to kill(and avoid being killed by) earlier! They could be Pecos Raiders, mercenaries, or a CS patrol, and they may simultaneously come to the same conclusion as the PCs. Will the camaraderie of the sauna prevail or are towels about to be snapped with deadly intent?

*Smells Nice Here
Hook: Once again, looking for some quick R&R, the adventurers check in for a quick shower and some hydrotherapy. And maybe some socializing.
Line:...make that a LOT of socializing. Once in the spa, it seems everybody there is making romantic passes at the PCs. Are the PCs feeling lucky about the possibility of getting lucky? Or is there something about sweaty, dirty, adventurer that appeals to other people?
Sinker: The spa is using aromatherapy or some other contrivance to make the atmosphere of the facility more peaceable and inviting, but they’ve gone a little overboard; it makes visitors decidedly randy and dropping inhibitions like lead sinkers. This can lead to all sorts of awkward ‘morning after’ situations with total strangers(or friends). Do the PCs laugh it off as a fun escapade, or so they storm the spa with less-than-happy thoughts?

*Saving the Waters
Hook: The adventurers have heard about a nice place that supposedly has good services and the possibility of magic healing, and decide to check it out.
Line: When they arrive at the place(it exists!), before they can sample the services, the proprietors. seeing the PCs, ask of them a great favor. It seems that somebody else covets the healing properties of the spa’s waters and is coming to seize them by force, forcing out the current management. The spa operators lack the security to deal with the problem themselves, but if the PCs could deal with the problem, they’ll be promised free access to the waters and the services of the resort.
Sinker: The would-be usurpers could be anything from a large gang of bandits to a major supernatural threat(out to use the magic waters for evil purpose), and could be far larger than the PCs are capable of dealing with. Stand and fight for a good bath, or cut and run? Argue for a piece of the action at the resort? Are the waters worth that?

*It’s Sorta Like a Smoke-Filled Back Room
Hook: The PCs are looking to make a major deal with the Black Market(or Naruni), but the BM contact who can finalize the deal will only negotiate in a bath house. Don’t like the location? Too bad, the deal’s off otherwise. There’s opportunity for betrayal on both sides; the deal’s that finicky and the stakes are high.
Line: The PCs are going to be in the place for business, not pleasure, so scoping out the place and getting in their own people, versus what the BM might be bringing in(or already have in place) is going to take some doing. Plus somebody’s going to have to go in, sans their usual gear, into the steamroom or communal hot tub, to talk to the rep.
Sinker: As noted, both sides could be angling for a double-cross, or there could be other factions wanting to disrupt the proceedings. This could lead to some definitely UNrelaxing and dirty tricks in the bathhouse, what with ninjas in the sauna and Juicer-assassins in the locker rooms.

[Killer Cyborg]

Nice!

[glitterboy2098]

somehow i rather like the idea that the bandits and the Dragon from the first two story bits were actually sitting on opposite sides of a divider in the same place..

[taalismn]

somehow i rather like the idea that the bandits and the Dragon from the first two story bits were actually sitting on opposite sides of a divider in the same place..

Wait 'til everybody decides to adjourn to the sauna...

[sirkermittsg]

this is awesome! I would also go for private bathing....where it is one or two people being bathed.... not unlike James Bond and Tenacca in "You Only Live Twice".

[taalismn]

this is awesome! I would also go for private bathing....where it is one or two people being bathed.... not unlike James Bond and Tenacca in "You Only Live Twice".

It's a less common practice in the Western Hemisphere where both available real estate and better(emerging) technology favored private facilities, but in older cultures, before the advent of reliable (and economical) hot water on demand to every residence, public baths made a certain amount of sense. And some of the architecture is quite nice.
I'd imagine similar set ups to be common in the Palladium Fantasy World, and it's possible that the Atlanteans may favor the tradition as well, promoting more modern versions of it across the megaverse.
With the collapse of order and technology after the Coming of the Rifts, I figured it would also make a comeback, if people get over aversion to sharing bath-space with other species.

All in all, I figured it would be an interesting bit of color to interject into Rifts, after I'd done 'Rifts Eateries'.

[sirkermittsg]

I'd imagine similar set ups to be common in the Palladium Fantasy World, and it's possible that the Atlanteans may favor the tradition as well, promoting more modern versions of it across the megaverse.
With the collapse of order and technology after the Coming of the Rifts, I figured it would also make a comeback, if people get over aversion to sharing bath-space with other species.

All in all, I figured it would be an interesting bit of color to interject into Rifts, after I'd done 'Rifts Eateries'.

I personally have been to several hot springs here in the US and Canada as well. I can easily see water being taken from them to supply a bath house....or having buildings put over them. I find mineral hot springs to be very soothing.

I think of public bathing facilities as being not dis-similar to locker rooms. there are lots of locker rooms in the US and around the world....at various athletic facilities including gyms, fitness centers, schools, and sports stadiums. Many Camp Grounds also have public bathing facilities. Most truck stops have facilities where people can take showers on an individual basis but there are some that have what I might refer to as some what more public bathing facilities.

In my life as an eagle scout, an athletic trainer in high school, and more recently as a tourist and truck driver I have been to these types of facilities all over the world.

there are also lots of public and private places with Saunas, Spas, and Pools all over the world and most of them have locker rooms for people to bathe before and after using them... I have been to these types of facilities as well....again all over the world.

In western civilization there are very few place where people wash other people....with the exception of nursing homes and hospitals were nurses and nurses aids do the bathing of patients. However, there are lots of places where one can bathe outside of the privacy of a hotel or home and that don't necessarily involve a place to sleep.

Various military facilities, prisons, concentration camps, and refugee camps also have public bathing - partially for physical health reasons...and partially for mental health reasons.

I appreciate your highlighting such places because bathing and waste removal are under modeled within our gaming - and they can lead to lots of adventures...some of which you pointed out and I liked all of them.

[taalismn]

[
I appreciate your highlighting such places because bathing and waste removal are under modeled within our gaming - and they can lead to lots of adventures...some of which you pointed out and I liked all of them.

Thanks.
In an age where there are creatures and beings who would FORCIBLY object to a community simply dumping their waste down the local creek(or maybe the next community downstream will forcibly object), having a good local water treatment facility(if only to reclaim and sanitize potential fertilizer) can be vital to a community.
For that matter, having good bathing facilities open to all(a lot of people) helps build a sense of community, as well as makes the place attractive to travelers and traders, bringing news and trade. Having a bath place nearby encourages the manufacture of decent soap, for one thing, and the chemistry involved there can branch out into other products as well.
And if you have honest true HEALING springs or waters...well, that's serious money from pilgrims and patients. Tack on housing and maybe a hospital, and the community expands in that direction.

[sirkermittsg]

In an age where there are creatures and beings who would FORCIBLY object to a community simply dumping their waste down the local creek(or maybe the next community downstream will forcibly object), having a good local water treatment facility(if only to reclaim and sanitize potential fertilizer) can be vital to a community.
For that matter, having good bathing facilities open to all(a lot of people) helps build a sense of community, as well as makes the place attractive to travelers and traders, bringing news and trade. Having a bath place nearby encourages the manufacture of decent soap, for one thing, and the chemistry involved there can branch out into other products as well.
And if you have honest true HEALING springs or waters...well, that's serious money from pilgrims and patients. Tack on housing and maybe a hospital, and the community expands in that direction.

Soap is actually pretty easy to make. However, different species are bound to need different cleaning agents. I point out that many humans have allergies to different types of soaps. Accommodation of the different soaps needed by different people and different species would definitely be a lucrative thing. IRL soap is BIG business. it is a product that when you use it up, you buy more.

You are correct - Dumping of waste can cause big problems. It has been a huge issue IRL.... causing lawsuits and even wars. Clean up has been a big business as of late.

Accessibility of fresh water is also an issue that has caused conflict since time began....

[taalismn]

[

Accessibility of fresh water is also an issue that has caused conflict since time began....

On Rifts Earth, the destruction of the previous infrastructure has been offset by the smaller population, but also by the introduction of alien technologies(or stress-pressurized advanced human ones) and, perhaps more tellingly, magic...When you can accelerate the growth of filtering vegetation for watersheds, summon rain, call up water elementals, or open a Rift to a world or dimensional plane of water(and make sure to filter out the sharks). 'running water' or 'waterworks' take on new meanings.

[sirkermittsg]

On Rifts Earth, the destruction of the previous infrastructure has been offset by the smaller population, but also by the introduction of alien technologies(or stress-pressurized advanced human ones) and, perhaps more tellingly, magic...When you can accelerate the growth of filtering vegetation for watersheds, summon rain, call up water elementals, or open a Rift to a world or dimensional plane of water(and make sure to filter out the sharks). 'running water' or 'waterworks' take on new meanings.

this is true.... but consider that many towns and villages may not have access to these techniques....and they wont use them if the think the coalition might come by...because nearly all of them will bring the wrath of the coalition on them duu to the magix being sensed by dog boys.

[taalismn]

On Rifts Earth, the destruction of the previous infrastructure has been offset by the smaller population, but also by the introduction of alien technologies(or stress-pressurized advanced human ones) and, perhaps more tellingly, magic...When you can accelerate the growth of filtering vegetation for watersheds, summon rain, call up water elementals, or open a Rift to a world or dimensional plane of water(and make sure to filter out the sharks). 'running water' or 'waterworks' take on new meanings.

this is true.... but consider that many towns and villages may not have access to these techniques....and they wont use them if the think the coalition might come by...because nearly all of them will bring the wrath of the coalition on them duu to the magix being sensed by dog boys.

The CS Corps of Engineers could make money hand-over-fist building sewer systems after the CS political arm twisted peoples' arms to adopt certain CS-friendly policies...then covertly monitor the facilities' usage and maybe boobytrap them against any future dissent.

[kaid]

You thought DBees were creepy before just wait till you see them in the bathhouse.

[taalismn]

You thought DBees were creepy before just wait till you see them in the bathhouse.

Yep, and the steamroom's even worse for bad moments....

[taalismn]

Oh yes, and let us not forget the many rumors about Erin Tarn being seen going into a bath house at the same time as Karl Prosek.
This rumor variously appears and differs as to details( young Erin Tarn and pre-Emperor Prosek or OLD Erin Tarn and established EMPEROR Prosek, with both going into the sauna at the same time, unknowlingly or deliberately at the same time as the other).
Neither Erin Tarn nor Karl Prosek have denied or confirmed this. In fact, if asked, they refuse comment altogether.
That should tell us something.

[Tor]

How could you ever enjoy a bath house in a world that contains water elementals?

[taalismn]

How could you ever enjoy a bath house in a world that contains water elementals?

Surf in place.