I've been considering making a set of 'Side Quests' for Talisman - to bring the feel of a digital RPG to the board game.
One would be randomly selected at the start of the game and each has it's own unique rules (and possibly cards). Side Quests are shared by all players on the board at the same time.
They have their own special rewards for completion, but if you were looking to speed the game up you could make a Talisman the reward, as per a Warlock Quest.
Two examples:
The Staff of Lordship
The three lordship cards are randomly placed across the board (each player in turn places a card in a random spot on the opposite side of the board to their own character), face down.
Two of the cards are 'Guardians', the third is the Staff of Lordship.
When you land on a card, it is encountered last - after following the rules on the space and encountering anything on the space. You then flip it over and discover what it is. The Guardians are powerful opponents (one strength 7, one craft 7) - if you defeat it, the guardian is discarded. If you FAIL to defeat it, all the remaining Lordship cards are taken, shuffled and placed randomly again.
The character who finds the staff needs to get it to the Castle to gain the reward - they become Lord of the Outer Region. This means that every time any other character earns gold, the player rolls 1d6 - on a 5 or a 6, THEY take it. (This plays well with the Reaper - if you've got Death, you should really have Taxes too).
The River-Pirate Treasure
Starting at the Tavern, you roll 1 dice for direction and 1 dice for distance, then place one of the Pirate Treasure cards face-down on that spot. Like the last Side Quest, you only reveal the card after encountering everything else in the space.
The cards contain living and dead pirates, booby traps and of course most importantly the treasure itself. If you flip the card and it ISN'T the treasure, you roll again to determine the next 'stop' on the treasure map.
The character who finds the treasure gains the loyalty of the river pirates. This gives them both a one-time gold payout plus the ability to cross the river on any movement roll of 6 (as per the Pirate in Talisman Digital).
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What do people think? They have an advantage since they are quick to make, unlike full Expansions you can get away with printing just half-a-dozen cards for new gameplay dynamics.