History Main / YouAllMeetInAnInn

* UsefulNotes/GuyFawkes worked with twelve other people, one of whom was drafted for being the only person sitting at the next table in the pub. (Unfortunately for them, this was the man who wrecked their plan by writing a letter to his friend in parliament [[WhatAnIdiot telling him not to go because of the plot.]])

* In Creator/DrewHayes's ''[=NPCs=]'', the four main characters knew each other already. But they are all in the inn when a party of adventurers arrive and die, and the only way to resolve the problem is to set out adventuring in their place.

The stereotypical opening to an adventure in tabletop [=RPGs=]: the protagonists are all [[JustForFun/HowToGatherCharacters gathered by prior intent]] or a [[ContrivedCoincidence "coincidence" of authorial fiat]] by the GameMaster in an inn, bar room, or other common public meeting spot. Once there, [[{{Messenger}} some mysterious stranger]] or {{NPC}} of varying dubiousness will approach them with some job offer or plea for assistance. These strangers tend to seat themselves in the darkest corner of the tavern [[Literature/TheLordOfTheRings for some reason]] (probably to make themselves seem even more mysterious). Thus do our heroes receive their [[CallToAdventure ticket to board the plot]].

This trope is OlderThanPrint -- no less an author than [[Creator/GeoffreyChaucer Chaucer]] had his adventuring party meet in an inn -- but it later began to be considered a DiscreditedTrope through overuse. Actually starting an adventure with the words "So, you all meet in an inn..." may be seen as roleplaying's equivalent to "ItWasADarkAndStormyNight..." Thus, a lot of sources advise against using it, and give pointers on how to avoid it. The 3rd Edition Dungeon Master's Guide for ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'', in a list of ways to bring a party together, dubs this "The Cliche". David Morgan-Mar, of ''Webcomic/IrregularWebcomic'' and ''Webcomic/DarthsAndDroids'' fame, provides a list of [[http://www.dangermouse.net/gurps/reject/tavern.html less overused ways]] to start an adventure, as do the folks at the [[http://diceofdoom.com/blog/2009/02/8-ways-to-start-a-campaign-thats-not-in-a-tavern/ dice of doom blog.]]

* Played with in ''Anime/AttackOnTitan'', where Keith Shadis brings an apparently amnesiac Grisha Yeager to a tavern for drinks, where Grisha meets Carla; his future [[spoiler:second]] Wife. It is played with in that this is at the tail end of Grishas' own journey before he would become a doctor, marry Carla, and have a son together: Eren Yeager.

* In ''Franchise/{{Superman}}'' storyline ''ComicBook/WayOfTheWorld'', ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} meets a Krallian Green Lantern in the terrace of an alien tavern. Together, they begin planning the downfall of an alien overlord.

* ''Legends From Darkwood'' involves several scenes with characters posting jobs or looking for jobs in "adventuring" posting to a bulletin board in an inn.

* ''Comicbook/TheSandman'' volume ''World's End'' takes place entirely in an InnBetweenTheWorlds. The coincidence that contrives to bring together so many dimensional adventurers and agents also keeps them there, telling stories that in some way involve The Dreaming and The Dream King.
* This is how the ''Comicbook/DemonKnights'' meet. Creator/PaulCornell says the trope hadn't occurred to him when he wrote the scene, but he's glad it plays into something like that.
* Selune's Smile (shown as more of a bar than an inn, but definitely with the occasional paying guest as well) in the city of [[TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms Waterdeep]] in DC's old ''[[TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons Advanced Dungeons & Dragons]]'' comic justified the trope by having one of the protagonists work there as a bouncer in her spare time and at least some of her friends adopt it as a favorite hangout spot as well...thus making it often more a case of "you all are at your usual inn when trouble shows up on the doorstep".

* In ''FanFic/TheCommission'', the girls of Team RWBY weren't actually together in a team when they were in Beacon. Instead, they met in a bar at a particular low point in their lives, bond over cookies and work out their [[TheConspiracy conspiracy]] after.

* Despite DM Creator/MatthewMercer [[https://twitter.com/matthewmercer/status/953039504918568962 admitting to hating this standard beginning to D&D campaigns,]] the second generation of ''WebVideo/CriticalRole'' heroes do meet in a tavern. A bit tricky for one character though -- Nott, a Goblin, has to disguise herself as a Halfling to avoid trouble.

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* Public houses, coffee houses, cafes, beer gardens, saloons, etc. have historically served as meeting places for various groups who would, in turn, discuss politics, religion, economics, revolution, science, etc. Hence, not only adventures, but great societal movements, began with someone meeting in an inn:

* Relatedly this is also considered good advice for the would-be creators of Video Games. An inn is such a ubiquitous part of the medium that it's a great place to start working. Making assets, graphics, learning how to use the engine, setting up dialouge branches, quest markers, exp systems, and fleshing out character designs and personalities. An inn is a great cornerstone to build a game on.

* ''Webcomic/{{xkcd}}'' provides an example of this trope [[http://xkcd.com/244/ eating itself.]]

* Also abused in ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick'' proper: [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0357.html #357.]]

* There is a diner called Buck's in Woodside, a small town in Silicon Valley, where several IT / Internet firms were founded. ([[http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128874569 See here]]).

** ''VideoGame/DragonQuestIX'' (which the picture at the top of the page is from) has [[DubNameChange Patty]] reprising this role as a ContinuityNod, along with a few helpers to handle the [=WiFi=] aspects.

** ''VideoGame/DragonQuestIII'' has Ruida's Tavern, where TheChosenOne meets all their allies. ''VideoGame/DragonQuestIX'' (which the picture at the top of the page is from) has [[DubNameChange Patty]] reprising this role as a ContinuityNod, along with a few helpers to handle the [=WiFi=] aspects.

* ''[[VideoGame/EyeOfTheBeholder Eye Of The Beholder III: Assault to Myth Drannor]]'' begins this way.

** On a rainy day, a group of youths gathered in a coffee house somewhere in a subjugated country to discuss a list of social demands they planned to submit to the government office. Things like stopping censure, release of political prisoners, that sort of thing. By the end of that day, a full-blown peaceful revolution involving tens of thousands was behind them, eventually escalating into a war of independence that saw, among other things, {{The Empire}}'s military and various armies of [[DivideAndConquer imperial-supported minorities]] getting so utterly ''[[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu humiliated]]'' by the insurgents that they had to SummonBiggerFish in the form of another superpower to quell the uprising. Sounds like a fictional story but this is actually what happened in Hungary during 1848. All caused by a meeting in Coffeehouse Pilvax[[note]]although the original building was demolished in 1911, the coffee house is still in business[[/note]]. That's one hell of a resume...

** In Japan, coffeehouses are used for business meetings, so much so that the coffee was wickedly expensive. You were in essence renting the space to have your meeting by purchasing the drinks.

RealLife group meetings at an Inn are usually a convention of some description. The "adventuring" usually takes place entirely within the building, and does not normally involve bloodshed, swordplay or dragons. ''[[TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons Normally]]''.

** In ''Discworld/TheColourOfMagic'' , there's a BadGuyBar Broken Drum in which adventurers meet and fight each other.
** In ''Discworld/{{Hogfather}}'', a group of "businessmen" meet in even worse BadGuyBar, answering the call of BigBad Teatime. They mostly know each other and are on edge because Teatime is late to meet them and tell them what their assignment is. Then, it turns out the place never had waiters... Cue OhCrap moment.
** Lampshaded by Vimes in ''Discworld/{{Jingo}}'': "You'll be surprised how many people were ready to do business with a complete stranger they have met in a bar just a few minutes ago."

* The eponymous Drogans of ''WebVideo/DungeonsAndDrogans'' meet several new members in a number of inns.

* ''Webcomic/DMOfTheRings'' lampshades the Prancing Pony scene in ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings'' in [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=613 this strip.]]

* [[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/File:MPost310-Motivator904574fa6edb988f8724f82419.jpg This]] FauxtivationalPoster. Déjà vu, anyone?

[[folder:Fan Fics]]

* The opening of notorious OffTheRails TropeCodifier ''FanFic/ThatGuyDestroysPsionics'' gives one of the best descriptions of this trope;

* ''Film/ReservoirDogs'': The first scene is the bankrobbers relaxing in a diner making small talk before their heist. They've all met and planned the job beforehand, however. A later flashback reveals that Mr. Orange received his interview with Joe in a bar.
* Only slightly different, the founding members of the ''Film/MysteryMen'' meet in a diner, and while they do recruit the Bowler II at a backyard barbecue, the Spleen was recruited at the same diner and the Sphinx was found by going to a Mexican Restaurant and giving a secret phrase, and it is after sending out feelers for membership from the diner that they meet Invisible Boy who ends up being the one to go against the trope and say they need to do a recruiting drive with a backyard pool party barbecue. In addition Mr. Furious meets his love interest at the diner, she's their waitress.

* ''{{Film/Mythica}}'': The party meets in a tavern. It's somewhat justified as this was frequented by mercenaries, and Teela comes in hoping to hire some that will help rescue her sister and retrieve the Darkspore. Also the owner was a mercenary, who acts now as a sort of broker for teams to pursue such missions.

* Sharon Shinn's ''Literature/MysticAndRider'' begins with the main characters saving a NaiveNewcomer from a tavern brawl, evidently so they'll have someone to [[{{Exposition}} exposit at]].

** In ''Discworld/{{Hogfather}}'', a group of "businessman" meet in even worse BadGuyBar, answering the call of BigBad Teatime. They mostly know each other and are on edge because Teatime is late to meet them and tell them what their assignment is. Then, it turns out the place never had waiters... Cue OhCrap moment.

* ''Series/GameOfThrones'': Several inns at the Riverlands facillate chance encounters between characters. Catelyn and Tyrion in Season 1, Arya, the Brotherhood without Banners and Sandor Clegane in Season 3, Arya and the Hound with Polliver and Mountain's Men in Season 4, Brienne and Pod meeting Hot Pie at the same Inn where he, Arya and Gendry last parted in Season 4, and later the two encounter Sansa and Littlefinger in Season 5. This is justified because the Riverlands is the networking region that connects all the major kingdoms so it would be common for travellers to have surprising chance random encounters.

* The boardgame ''{{Tomb}}'' by AEG has a board that consists of two sections. One is the titular Tomb, full of monsters, traps, and treasures galore. The other section is the Inn, where you build your party to invade the Tomb.

* In ''Videogame/DragonAgeOrigins'', after the basic party is assembled and and the main quest starts, the characters stop at the village of [[DoomedHometown Lothering]] and meet the first potential new follower at the local inn. The next potential follower is located literally down the road.

** Bars are where you go for sidequests in ''Videogame/FinalFantasyTactics'', but your party begins as soldiers of the same troop.

** The two ''Videogame/FinalFantasyTacticsAdvance'' games similarly use the bar as a quest hub (both main and sidequests), and many {{cutscene}}s play out in one of them as well, including the main character's introduction to the clan. By contrast, it's not used as a place to hire new members.
* ''Videogame/IcewindDale'' opens with the party in an inn, though they have not just met each other. [[spoiler:Unless you rewrite their histories so that they really did just meet up at the inn...]]

** ''Videogame/NeverwinterNights2'' has the expansion pack ''Storm of Zehir'', with all the original party members meeting (technically) on a ''ship''. Additional party members can be in a variety of places, but you'll find a good third of them in inns.

* In fantasy strategy game ''Videogame/HeroesOfMightAndMagic'', buying the Inn building in your castle allows you to recruit other Heroes (army leaders).

* Averted in ''Videogame/WorldOfWarcraft'', since party and guild recruitment can be done anywhere. However, players can set inns as their save points, and are popular venues on designated role-play servers.
* ''Videogame/FinalFantasyCrystalChronicles: Videogame/MyLifeAsAKing'' features the Inn building, which allows you to form your adventurers into parties. (Before building one, your adventurers all travel and fight individually.)
* Paradoxically, in the ''TabletopGame/VampireTheMasquerade'' game ''[[Videogame/VampireTheMasqueradeRedemption Vampire: Redemption]]'', taverns and pubs play no role in the Dark Ages portion of the game. In the modern era, however, you meet most of your party members (and undertake half the plots) in bars and nightclubs.
* ''Videogame/{{SaGa Frontier}}'' and its sequel both exhibit this. The first game has a bar in Scrap; a visit here at the start of a game could completely fill your first fighting party. The second game starts as a team joining to search for treasure and ends 3 generations later fighting a ''CosmicHorrorStory antagonist''.

* In ''VideoGame/WizardryTaleOfTheForsakenLand'' You meet your first two party members in the last remaining inn in Duhan. Later when you gain more members, either those you create yourself or other [=NPCs=] who you interact with in the game, you can pick them up or drop them off here.

* In the opening of the parodic fantasy audio webserie ''AudioPlay/RefletsDAcide'', the first protagonist hires his team in a tavern. The player playing the character complains to the DM because how stereotyped it is.

--> ''"Next time I do interviews, it will '''not''' be in a bar, because when you're in a bar you drink, and when you drink you hire people who can do lute riffs behind their back and not people who can guide you through unfamiliar forrested areas."''

* UsefulNotes/TheInklings, an informal literary discussion group at the University of Oxford (notable members include fantasy-fiction legends Creator/CSLewis and Creator/JRRTolkien), would often meet at local pubs, the most well-known being The Eagle and Child, and later on, The Lamb and Flag.

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* ''TabletopGame/DeltaGreen'' has "you are all called into the briefing by a handler", although there's much fun on HOW you are called.

* Parodied (like everything else) in the ''Literature/MythAdventures'' series, in which Skeeve recruits troops to save Possiltum in a fast-food restaurant.