I'm gearing up for a campaign with a touch of urban intrigue and thought it would be interesting to procedurally generate information sources. Tavern patrons, bouncers, madames, any one who "knows people," can be a source for either a hook or a clue. Here's some quick mechanics for figuring out whether the source can help, or potentially harm, the party.
Broker Skill
Assign the Information Broker a skill level of 1-19. A Level 1 source may just be a stool jockey in a bar, Level 19 would be on the order of a royal spy master.
Secret Privacy
Think of this as the number of people "in on" the secret, the lower the stronger. If the owner of the secret has told no one, it's a 1, if he's got two co-conspirators it's a 3. Add modifiers if the broker has direct ties to the secret's owner or any of the co-conspirators. ("Oh, my jerk of a cousin? He totally killed his wife.")
Testing for Knowledge
Multiply Broker Skill by Secret Privacy, roll under on d100. 100 always fails. Simple.
Testing for Falsehood
Did the broker not know anything? Test loyalty/morale for the Broker. On a failure, maybe the Broker lies, either to look good or spite the party.
