A day has 24 segments: 12 daytime segments and 12 nighttime segments. Rather than imposing an overall campaign deadline, the system tracks how long activities take, how far characters can travel, when they can rest, and how the world changes between day and night. The goal is to make time easy for the Dungeon Master to calculate during play, without needing to track every minute. ## 1. The 24-segment clock | Time of Day | Time Segment | Segment Amount | | ----------- | ------------ | -------------- | | Daytime | 06:00–18:00 | 12 | | Nighttime | 18:00–06:00 | 12 | 1 segment = 1 hour |Activity|Segment cost| |---|---| |Short rest|4| |Long rest|8| |Travel|Based on distance and speed| |Investigation|Based on complexity| |Research|Based on complexity| |Crafting|Based on work required| |Waiting|1 per hour| |Combat|Usually less than 1| |Conversations|Usually less than 1| Your four-segment short rest is an intentional homebrew change from the standard one-hour D&D short rest. An eight-segment long rest matches the usual eight-hour minimum, subject to normal rest rules. Most importantly, there is no automatic time cost for accepting a quest. The clock advances according to what the characters actually do. ## 2. Travel costs per segment This is the easiest part to calculate because D&D already provides hourly travel speeds. | Travel pace | Miles per segment | Miles per 8 segments | | -------------------------------- | ----------------- | -------------------- | | Slow | 2 miles | 16 miles | | Normal | 3 miles | 24 miles | | Fast | 4 miles | 32 miles | | Difficult terrain at normal pace | 1.5 miles | 12 miles | The first three hourly speeds are official D&D 5e travel rates. Halving movement through difficult terrain follows the 2014 rules; in 2024, terrain also imposes maximum allowable paces depending on terrain type. For the homebrew system, calculate travel costs with one formula: Segments = Distance in miles / Miles per segment Always round up to a whole segment in the simplest version. ### Travel calculator ## 3. Estimating activity costs on the fly I would give the DM a universal scale for any action not already covered by an established rule. | Cost | Scale of activity | Example | | ---- | ------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------- | | 0 | Immediate or brief | Opening a chest, short conversation, examining an object | | 1 | Minor task | Thoroughly searching a room, gathering local information | | 2 | Moderate task | Investigating a house, conducting an interview, basic repairs | | 4 | Major task | Extensive research, surveying ruins, complex repairs | | 6 | Extended task | Preparing defences, conducting a large investigation | | 8 | Full-day-scale task | Major construction or labour requiring eight hours | These are guidelines for the DM, not fixed prices. An actual crafting requirement, spell duration, or other specific rule takes precedence. ### Modifying the cost Rather than inventing new costs for every possible activity, apply a small modifier: |Circumstance|Adjustment| |---|---| |Characters have detailed preparation|−1 segment| |Appropriate specialist equipment significantly helps|−1 segment| |Multiple characters can effectively divide the work|−1 segment| |Unfavourable conditions|+1 segment| |Major unforeseen complication|+2 segments| |Task is exceptionally difficult and time-consuming|Double base cost| Apply adjustments only when they reasonably affect duration, with a minimum of one segment for a task that normally costs time. For instance, researching an ancient magical artefact normally costs four segments. Having a translated reference volume and an assistant might reduce that to two. Missing records might increase it to five or six. For tasks taking less than one hour, group related small activities into a segment rather than charging one segment for every minor interaction. When exact timing matters, temporarily track minutes within the current segment. ## 4. Time and skill checks Skill checks should still resolve success and failure normally. The time cost is principally determined by the activity, but players can choose to work carefully or quickly. For suitable tasks, offer two approaches: - **Careful approach:** Use the established segment cost and make the normal check. - **Rushed approach:** Reduce the cost by one segment, minimum one, but make the check with disadvantage where rushing reasonably creates additional difficulty. The DM can also offer an extended approach that costs an additional segment and grants advantage when extra time and care would genuinely help. This creates choices without making every failed dice roll automatically consume more time. ## 5. Managing the clock during play The simplest procedure is to keep one shared party clock. 1. The DM describes the activity and its estimated segment cost. 2. The players choose their approach. 3. Resolve relevant checks, encounters, and consequences. 4. Advance the clock by the time actually spent. 5. Apply any changes caused by entering day time or night time. When the party splits up, activities can run simultaneously. If one character spends four segments researching while another spends two segments shopping, only four segments pass. If an activity crosses 18:00 or 06:00, it continues into the next phase without resetting the cost. ### Travelling beyond eight hours Although daytime lasts twelve segments, this doesn't mean characters can safely travel for all twelve. Official fifth-edition rules generally allow eight hours of overland travel before forced-march checks begin. Each additional hour requires a Constitution saving throw against DC 10 + the number of hours beyond eight; failure causes Exhaustion. That works naturally in this system: track how many of the day's segments were spent travelling, rather than simply how many have passed. ## 6. Example of one adventuring day Adventure log | Adventure log | Day Time begins at 06:00 | | | ------------- | ---------------------------- | --- | | 06:00–08:00 | Travel to nearby village | +2 | | 08:00–10:00 | Investigate a disappearance | +2 | | 10:00–11:00 | Speak with the village elder | +1 | | 11:00–15:00 | Short rest | +4 | | 15:00–18:00 | Travel into the forest | +3 | | Adventure log | Night Time begins at 18:00 | | | ------------- | --------------------------- | --- | | 18:00–19:00 | Search abandoned ruins | +1 | Clock now 19:00 · Night segment 2 The party has spent thirteen segments: twelve during the day and one at night. They can continue adventuring, but darkness may change their circumstances. ## 7. DM quick-reference rules The Time Segment System — Core Rules | | | |---|---| |Day|12 segments| |Night|12 segments| |Segment duration|1 hour| |Short rest|4 segments| |Long rest|8 segments| |Ordinary travel|2 / 3 / 4 miles per segment| |Activity costs|0, 1, 2, 4, 6 or 8 segments| |Travel calculation|Distance ÷ hourly speed, round up| |Day/night transitions|Automatic| |Party splits up|Simultaneous time, not cumulative| One design decision I would make before implementing it: do not tie the number of segments to daylight availability when calculating task costs. A four-segment activity costs four segments regardless of whether it begins at 09:00, 16:00 or 23:00. The time of day changes what characters encounter and what actions are possible, not the underlying cost of an hour. This gives you a consistent, reusable time mechanic that can operate across an entire D&D campaign, without requiring a countdown or a deadline.