The End of Starting Gold

[delericho]

So what do you think? Can we throw out starting gold (to borrow a D&D term) rules?

No. Providing the starting kits for classes and backgrounds was a good thing, but taking away the option to select a custom load of gear would be a mistake. Especially when it requires all of one table and a couple of sentences of explanation in order to support both.

 

[Celebrim]

The problem with taking away starting gold is that you probably take away an equipment list as well, or at the least, the ability to browse it.

And that indicates that the designer has no clue regarding why a game has an equipment list.

The primary reason I see for having starting gold is to prompt the player's into different directions regarding the ways problems might be approached or solved. So for example, my equipment list not only has a lot of different sorts of equipment for solving mundane problems, but explains their use such as, "Virtually all sentient species enjoy wine, and offering to share wine is a commonly recognized gesture of good will which may result in a more favorable reaction." If your equipment list doesn't have ideas on it like chalk, crowbar, dice and cup, limewood strip, magnifying glass, listening cone, grappling hook, wool blanket, soap, whiskey, salt, aniseed, iron spikes, 10' pole, and so on and so forth, you are really not IMO pushing the game in a very creative direction at least with regard to a player's approach to solving problems. You are also probably not signaling to the GM or the players that creative solutions will or should be rewarded, and instead that the game is about killing things and taking their stuff and even kicking down doors isn't part of the process.

 

[Wednesday Boy]

My group often ignores starting gold and players take what their character would reasonably have. GMs are the final arbiter on whether a player takes too much or too expensive or rare equipment but the self policing works and I don't recall a GM ever needing to step in.

 

[GMMichael]

No. Providing the starting kits for classes and backgrounds was a good thing, but taking away the option to select a custom load of gear would be a mistake. Especially when it requires all of one table and a couple of sentences of explanation in order to support both.

The problem with taking away starting gold is that you probably take away an equipment list as well, or at the least, the ability to browse it.

And that indicates that the designer has no clue regarding why a game has an equipment list.

My group often ignores starting gold and players take what their character would reasonably have. GMs are the final arbiter on whether a player takes too much or too expensive or rare equipment but the self policing works and I don't recall a GM ever needing to step in.

Well done, WB. You just nullified the previous two posts in a mere two sentences.

Don't get me wrong! I'm not saying "let's get rid of equipment tables." I'm asking if being told that you have X amount of gold to spend is really necessary. My next question will probably be: if you make Wealth an attribute, can you get rid of ALL gold in a system? But I digress...

 

[delericho]

Well done, WB. You just nullified the previous two posts in a mere two sentences.

Don't get me wrong! I'm not saying "let's get rid of equipment tables." I'm asking if being told that you have X amount of gold to spend is really necessary.

Fine. Define "what you can reasonably have" such that player A and player B are guaranteed to be on a level playing field, even if player B is sleeping with the DM and player A is not.

My next question will probably be: if you make Wealth an attribute, can you get rid of ALL gold in a system?

Yes, you can. But that's not eliminating "starting gold", that's just changing its form.

 

[Reflected_Shadows]

I split my starting package into two sources:
Homeland.
Occupation.

That gives you your starting gear, and frankly since you are Level 1, that is what almost any level 1 in your homeland and occupation would also have.
Homeland usually gives rope/torch/waterskin, one weapon, one armor, and a backpack. Occupation usually gives profession toolkits and some materials for crafting.

From there, I discuss Housing, Factions, etc. to give some social networks in the world, and some entitlements. I use "Entitlements" to cover various services, items, and background things the player might choose to engage in game, things the character's status grants them free use of at any time. I find using entitlements is much better than tracking paltry sums of copper and silver because someone wants to buy a spoon or something.


Come to think of it, I think d20 Modern gives a system for "Wealth Score" instead of Gold.

 

[Wednesday Boy]

Fine. Define "what you can reasonably have" such that player A and player B are guaranteed to be on a level playing field, even if player B is sleeping with the DM and player A is not.

Having cooperative, mature players who aren't interested in outdoing each other is really the only guarantee. (And rules will never guarantee a level playing field if the GM is blinded by their relationship. Starting gold rules will guarantee everyone has the same gold to start with but it's powerless to stop the GM from showering their significant other with treasures in session 1, if they're so inclined.)

 

[delericho]

And rules will never guarantee a level playing field

No, but the rules can help. And given that they can help, and given that so little is lost by including a couple of sentences about starting gold, they should.

(And that really is all that's needed here - a couple of sentences. The Basic Rules give this in two paragraphs and a table, but they're unnecessarily verbose. Most of the text is actually about justifying how the PC got this wealth and giving him permission to actually spend it, neither of which actually needs said.)

 

[Wednesday Boy]

My next question will probably be: if you make Wealth an attribute, can you get rid of ALL gold in a system? But I digress...

Isn't that how old Werewolf (and presumably all WoD) handles it? I played it once ages ago but it sounds familiar. And Dresden Files has some sort of wealth attribute too.

 

[delericho]

Isn't that how old Werewolf (and presumably all WoD) handles it? I played it once ages ago but it sounds familiar. And Dresden Files has some sort of wealth attribute too.

Yeah, WoD had a Resources Distinction that represented wealth.

d20 Modern also had an abstract wealth system. (And, to be honest, that's probably the best way to handle it in a modern/future game - the ubiquity of credit in our world means that a PCs buying power has relatively little connection to the amount of actual money they have.)