D&D 5E How would you handle a player-controlled mine?

[Giltonio_Santos]

Does anyone knows of rules for mining as a permanent activity for the profit of player characters? One of my PCs will probably get some land in the near future, including a silver operation, and I'd like it to be more than "ok, its production pays for the maintenance costs of your keep"; it should feel like a real treasure. I'm looking for written rules, but ideas of how to handle it would be great as well.

 

[Caliban]

I don't have any rules for you, but you could use it as an adventure seed as well as an income source.

Monsters attacking miners in the lowest levels of the mine. PC's need to intervene or the mine will close.

The PC's clear those out, and find out that the miners broke into a cave system with a lot more monsters and a macguffin of some kind (idol that automatically animates the dead within a few hundred yards, fungal spores that mutate creatures, and entrance into the Underdark and now the Drow or Duergar know about you, etc.)

 

[MacConnell]

I don't have any rules for you, but you could use it as an adventure seed as well as an income source.

Monsters attacking miners in the lowest levels of the mine. PC's need to intervene or the mine will close.

The PC's clear those out, and find out that the miners broke into a cave system with a lot more monsters and a macguffin of some kind (idol that automatically animates the dead within a few hundred yards, fungal spores that mutate creatures, and entrance into the Underdark and now the Drow or Duergar know about you, etc.)

That's a completely awesome idea. On the other end of the operation, the mined material has to be carted for distribution and traded in some manner with a municipality or other such ruling entity that then render the raw material into a usable product for which the PC owner acquires his payment.

Transport is fraught with adventure opportunity, from petty theft to a deliberate attempt at a hostile take-over. The owner will need to maintain miners, teamsters, and soldiers. Indiscretions and interferences will provoke a direct response by the PC and his group of colleagues.

 

[plisnithus8]

I came expecting landmines and got something even better.

 

[FormerlyHemlock]

Does anyone knows of rules for mining as a permanent activity for the profit of player characters? One of my PCs will probably get some land in the near future, including a silver operation, and I'd like it to be more than "ok, its production pays for the maintenance costs of your keep"; it should feel like a real treasure. I'm looking for written rules, but ideas of how to handle it would be great as well.

I haven't done a mine, but I have done other real estate like making someone king of a city. Management is simple: give them enough rewards to get them addicted to the resource, and then later on you can generate adventures simply by threatening the resource. You don't have to have NPCs offer "quests" with "rewards" to save the city now--all you have to do is threaten King Reginald's cash cow!

This seems to be true, at least with my players, regardless of whether or not Reginald is doing anything in particular with his cash cow.

If I wanted to do a mine specifically, and I wanted my players to engage with it more deeply, I'd probably just make up a simple random table like this one:

A PC can spend a month exploring the mine's depths and digging deeper. Roll d8+d12 and consult this table. Entries marked * may only be used once and must then be replaced by the DM:
2* Something horrible has awoken in the depths of the earth. A miner working in newly-uncovered tunnels begins to dream dreams of beauty, wealth and power. He heeds his dreams, finds an ancient rune of power in a hidden chamber, and spills his own blood on it as he did before in his dreams to gain power. The rune is destroyed, and a Balor and his legion of demons (2d8 demons of CR 4-17 and 1d6 x 100 demons of CR 1/2 through 3) are freed. They revel in their freedom and begin killing miners and destroying the mine. If not stopped they will depopulate any nearby cities.
3-4 A Purple worm attacks you while exploring, then roll again
5 New vein of gemstones! Increase monthly income by 5000 gp for one year.
6 One of your miners has proven himself of great ability and wants to join you on your adventures. (Gain a 1st level NPC hireling who accepts only a half-share of the rewards, i.e. counts as only half a PC when diving up treasure and XP.)
7-8 New vein of silver! Increase monthly income by 100 gp for one year.
9-12 Accident while exploring causes destruction of exploring equipment. Repairs cost 1d6 x 100 gp.
13-14 New copper vein! Increase monthly income by 40 gp for one year.
15 New gold vein! Monthly income increases by 1000 gp for one year.
16 Miners are disappearing and you must determine why and stop it. (It's a bulette.)
17* You find an ancient tomb with a seal on it. (Behind the seal is are six CR 7 Stygian Skeletons guarding another seal, behind which lies a Mummy Lord and a dozen mummies. The Stygian Skeletons will slay anyone who approaches the seal but will not pursue those who flee. If the inner seal is breached while the Stygian Skeletons are still alive, the Mummy Lord will immediately emerge, and the skeletons will prioritize killing the the Mummy Lord above all else, while the Mummy Lord and his mummies gleefully and indiscriminately slay all those they see.)
18* Miners are disappearing and you must determine why and stop it. (It's a drow war party performing reconnaissance in force prior to an genocidal invasion. If the war party is decisively defeated the drow will seek another way to the surface.)
19-20* The Gnome King (he's an elemental, not a real gnome) takes an interest in your mine. He asks you to prove yourself to him in a test of worthiness (e.g. navigating his stone labyrinth of madness). If you please him, he will bless your mine and double its gemstone output. If you displease him, the mine will never produce anything again except stone and dirt.

 

[hawkeyefan]

I don't have written rules, but my players got in with Gundren Rockseeker as partners to reopen the mines of Phandelver.

What I do is I have the mine produce X amount of gold for them each month. I base this on a comparison of operating costs to material produced. Now, this can be as detailed or as vague as you want (mine is pretty basic....labor costs, operating costs in materials and shipping, security/protection, etc.). So I take the monthly production and then subtract the operating costs, and that's what the PCs are entitled to, split 6 ways (5 PCs and Gundren).

I definitely used this as an engine to drive stories. For example, the security costs were x amount, but as word spread of the mine's success, bandits and orcs started becoming more of an issue, so the cost of security had to increase.

Then it came to expansion....the players were offered a lucrative deal to establish a trade route from Phandalin to Cormyr, and from there to the Dalelands. So the costs increased, but the profits were potentially huge. However, it came with a lot of work to do to try and establish a safe route all that distance. So they had to deal with threats along the route, and they had to negotiate matters with other interested parties who wanted in on the action.

So I think the mine has been a really strong component of our campaign, and that the players have felt that it has been a real reward....but the actual figures we're talking about have been very basic and have not been too prominent.

I'm sure you could make a whole system out of it, but I would expect most players would find that kind of dull compared to most gaming activities, so I would say to keep it loose, and to just make up the figures as needed.

 

[Traldea]

Dragon Magazine #152 had a good article on mining operations and general rules for output, as well as adventure ideas for operations. It was written for 1E, but was written in a more neutral-mechanic way.

 

[happyhermit]

Lol, I came here to mention all the plot hooks but the very first post already went there. I love when PCs dabble in something like that. I would very likely have something be discovered in the mine eventually, monsters, ruins, an item, something. Also, there is a good chance that one of their supply lines or caravans will encounter some difficulty, or their will be some claim dispute. I try not to ever make this stuff too predictable, but the hooks are great. Anything that makes the PCs connected to the world, or a place in particular is interesting IMO.

As for the rules, there are some in the DMG about running a business, wouldn't say they are amazing though.

 

[aco175]

I don't have written rules, but my players got in with Gundren Rockseeker as partners to reopen the mines of Phandelver.

What I do is I have the mine produce X amount of gold for them each month. I base this on a comparison of operating costs to material produced. Now, this can be as detailed or as vague as you want (mine is pretty basic....labor costs, operating costs in materials and shipping, security/protection, etc.). So I take the monthly production and then subtract the operating costs, and that's what the PCs are entitled to, split 6 ways (5 PCs and Gundren).

I definitely used this as an engine to drive stories. For example, the security costs were x amount, but as word spread of the mine's success, bandits and orcs started becoming more of an issue, so the cost of security had to increase.

Then it came to expansion....the players were offered a lucrative deal to establish a trade route from Phandalin to Cormyr, and from there to the Dalelands. So the costs increased, but the profits were potentially huge. However, it came with a lot of work to do to try and establish a safe route all that distance. So they had to deal with threats along the route, and they had to negotiate matters with other interested parties who wanted in on the action.

So I think the mine has been a really strong component of our campaign, and that the players have felt that it has been a real reward....but the actual figures we're talking about have been very basic and have not been too prominent.

I'm sure you could make a whole system out of it, but I would expect most players would find that kind of dull compared to most gaming activities, so I would say to keep it loose, and to just make up the figures as needed.

This is a lot like what happened to my group, but they settled on 10% of profits. They also are rebuilding the castle in town for their own. After the boxed set they were sent on a few adventures to clear out the region and tried to establish a route through the mountains to Westbridge, but are now clearing out Leilon to secure a route to Waterdeep.

There have been no profits coming and the PCs have been scouting for more miners and stonemasons to send that way. I plan on only giving them a payment each month of 100-250gp. I may have them roll something to determine of a boom or bust is going on, but mostly plan to have the mine be adventure ideas and maybe to start another campaign with low level characters. I still plan to have something on the other side of the large underground lake.

 

[Derren]

Monsters attacking miners in the lowest levels of the mine. PC's need to intervene or the mine will close.

Thats rather cliche. Something more political:

- The local noble seeks to take the mine away from the PCs and argues that some dirty adventurers without noble blood should not posses a silver mine.
- A shady gnome approaches the PCs and tries to convince them that he can mint forged coins with that silver which would allow the PCs to bypass the taxes on the mined ore. Can they trust him and what happens when they get caught?
- A ragtag band of strangely clothed warriors arrive and plead for the PCs for silver as their homeland is attacked by organized bands of lycantropes of different kinds working together. But they can't pay anything for it.
- An alchemist arrives and claims their silver has strange properties (which no one else can detect) and agrees to supply the PCs with a agreed upon number of potions each month if he can stay at take part of the mined silver for experimentation. Some times later a strange illness sweeps through the work camp and the miners report hearing strange voices during their sleep.
- Earth elementals rise around the mine. The largest one approaches the PCs. He wants his stuff back.