Excerpt: Economies [merged]

[Xardinhul]

From the "Tiers" article, under the topic of "Starting at Higher Level"... http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/4ex/20080416a

Determine Ability Scores. Generate scores as for a 1st-level character, applying racial modifiers. Then increase those scores as shown on the Character Advancement table in the Player’s Handbook, with increases at 4th level, 8th level, 11th, 14th, and so on.

Tellingly, 11th level would be your first level in the Paragon tier. It is possible that when you hit a new tier, its something of a minor template with a suite of benefits, one being additional attribute boost.

Thats just a guess, though.

EDIT: Ah, already brought up. Thats what I get for posting before getting to the end of the thread!

 

[Wormwood]

Then I read the part about how the PCs could only manufacture treasure of their level and below. Now it makes sense: PCs are able to get whatever they want, of their level and below. But the system retains the excitement of finding otherwise unobtainable items through adventuring. Nice.

Extremely nice. Manages to satisfy my DMing side (giving out cool items) as well as my player side (customizing my character).

+1.5 4e enthusiasm points

 

[Kid Charlemagne]

The problem with that is thatit doesn't really meshes with the Points of Light setup as in such a setting there wouldn't be that much merchant travel as there is according to the economy article.

Even in a world where there is significant danger in between the ares of civilization, merchants will try to ply their trade. The more dangerous it gets, the more potential profits there are. As others have noted, the reason that cities have money is because of trade. The cities and towns pay money for what the countryside has to offer. People here sometimes seem to have a limited concept of how much trade existed in the distant past...

 

[Lizard]

I cannot believe the concept of an illiquid market is so hard to accept.

I can.

I mean, why should they pay you good money when they can just control your mind, make you hand over your items, and then eat your brain?

 

[Michele Carter]

My second impression is, of course, that WotC should fire all their editors and hire competent ones. Its been a week of Just Too Many Cockups.

The table was corrected before printing, and the "omissions" in KotS were not, as Mike pointed out, actually errors but decisions made for space reasons.

But please do continue to rant about how the editing sucks. It's really bracing.

 

[Voss]

Well, when I start to rant, I'll let you know. But you folks have consistently done a poor job with it, and I was hoping for a bit more from the new edition. Previews with obvious errors aren't exactly a great way to sell a product.

 

[DandD]

I can.

I mean, why should they pay you good money when they can just control your mind, make you hand over your items, and then eat your brain?

Ehrm, it's illiquid, as in, not liquid. Not illithid, as in, ctulhu-rip-offs.

 

[Kraydak]

...
Especially in a PoL setting like 4E assumes, I have no trouble believing that the PCs aren't going to be have an easy time just "running across" other people with both the money and the need for magic weapons. On occasion, perhaps--and the DM could even make an adventure out of it--but certainly not regularly enough to take into account in the standard rules...

The funny thing that it is PoL settings that demand magic item liquidity! In a peaceful society, the demand for adventuring magic items will be low, as will the supply of adventuring magic items dumped on the market because they don't fit their new owner's needs.

In a large land-area PoL setting, you need many adventurers to keep things even marginally under control. Those adventurers all have stuff to sell and buy. They are all highly mobile. End result? At least by the time you have teleport rituals, you will have "bazaar" cities a la MMORPG.

It is the peaceful, calm societies where you might not be able to sell your (adventuring) stuff/find someone with (adventuring) stuff you want that he doesn't need. Now, in a PoL setting, those "works of art" in the loot are going to have deflated value (adventurers don't need them, and society doesn't produce much surplus to spend on luxuries) while in peaceful societies they will do well.

 

[Dragonblade]

... except the chart I made clearly shows price jumps every 5 levels (at 6th, 11th, etc), and someone with KotS confirmed that you do get the level 2 item at 6th, hence my +6 by 30 theory.

Of course, then someone else who saw the player's handbook confirmed it at 1-5,6-10,11-15, with +6 at 26-30... which puts the discussion to bed, I guess. I still like _guessing_ the way things work over being told

Yes, you are correct.

 

[gizmo33]

Why is the magic item economy any different than the economy for any other expensive item? Because it's magic? Yes, imagining a port with a bunch of galleons for sale just floating there seems silly too. Doesn't seem to me like a rule is necessary to prevent that, just some common sense and perhaps some guidelines on the amount of wealth available in a population center, etc. I don't see why a wheelbarrow full of +1 rapiers would be beneath the interest of an adventurer.

But there I go being a simulationist. I think in my campaign I'll just stock the dungeon with a fixed number of boxes. PCs kick the box and an ingot of Lootium pops out and lands in their pocket. Periodically a glowing star will float by, the player that wins initiative and grabs it gains an action point. That's fun, easy to resolve, and doesn't require the players to grapple with a lot of esoteric facts regarding the Middle Ages.