D&D General Time to divide loot, treasure, items….

[RoughCoronet0]

This tends to depend on the characters in the party, but often my group has a designated treasurer who holds the party’s loot that they receive for completing quests. They are often the one who holds whatever bag of holding/portable hole the group receives at a later date as well. This means they are in charge of tracking all party loot not immediately divvied up. Items and gold given to a single character for a solo task remain with that character unless they wish to add it to the party loot.

For magic items, my group knows I like to sprinkle items meant for certain characters among more general use magic items and they are very good at ensuring that magic items go to who can best use them.

 

[Maxperson]

So in every adventuring party there is that moment when tangible rewards of encounters get divided out.

What are methods your party is using currently?

Do you keep a separate share for group funds or everyone pays their own and loot divided out equally without a separate party fund?

Suppose money is evenly divided, how about items? Do you do a bidding system from your own loot share back to the rest of the group? Do you just say whomever can best use it gets it? What’s the agreement if it is some utility item that multiple people can use? Or just finders keepers?

Etc

What is your current party doing?

My players just decide who can best use what and divvy it out that way. In the unusual even that two or more players all really, really want the same item, they roll percentile dice and the high roll is the one that the group decides should get the item.

 

[aco175]

I have noticed in 5e that gold has less value to some of the players and it gets freely used more. The bandits might jump out on the road and the PCs just give them the 50gp instead of fight them. The Pc walks into the bar and throws 20gp down to buy food and drink for everyone. Dividing treasure and just cross off 20gp to pay for the next town food and sleep. that kind of stuff.

 

[ad_hoc]

Gold value is divided equally, magic items are talked over, with any conflicts being resolved by a simple roll-off.

One thing I've learned is that if the DM puts a magic item out there for a specific character, deliver it directly to them, rather than just putting it in the pile and hoping that the right character gets it. Too many times I've seen someone get grabby hands and the cloak of elvenkind that the rogue would've benefitted most from ends up being worn by the fighter in platemail.

Wouldn't that help the whole party be able to be sneaky?

I forget the abilities of the cloak but if it adds to stealth I would prefer the plate mail fighter have it rather than the rogue succeeding even more.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

Yeah, I suppose it wasn't the greatest example. Howabout when the rogue who doesn't yet have a magic item and the wizard that never melees wants the dagger of venom?

Wouldn't that help the whole party be able to be sneaky?

I forget the abilities of the cloak but if it adds to stealth I would prefer the plate mail fighter have it rather than the rogue succeeding even more.

 

[Swarmkeeper]

Yeah, I suppose it wasn't the greatest example. Howabout when the rogue who doesn't yet have a magic item and the wizard that never melees wants the dagger of venom?

I mean, that could be a fun roleplaying scene. Ideally, the party discusses it and the wizard gets outvoted.

 

[ad_hoc]

Yeah, I suppose it wasn't the greatest example. Howabout when the rogue who doesn't yet have a magic item and the wizard that never melees wants the dagger of venom?

Yeah that is indicative of an unhealthy game dynamic.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

That has happened on a few occasions, totally. And it's generally worked out in the end for the party.

I mean, that could be a fun roleplaying scene. Ideally, the party discusses it and the wizard gets outvoted.

Sometimes, absolutely. Some players just don't play well with others and never well. But sometimes it's also young players (in age and/or game experience) that get grabby hands and just want all the magic items period. Most of them just need time and experience to grow out of it.

Yeah that is indicative of an unhealthy game dynamic.

 

[Lanefan]

I actually called it stupidity at the time, but I argued for the Wizard to owe the group the difference. He wouldn't get any treasure until he paid the party back the difference, but 2 other players argued against. IMO it's always better to keep items whenever they're useful, since you sell for half the value, but have to buy at full cost.

Ah, there's the rub. I did away with that two-value system, and made it that an item sells for the same as you buy it for (which makes sense given that I assume most magic item sales are private deals between adventurers; and if you're selling me a longsword and I pay you 2,000 g.p. for it, you should get all that 2,000; half of it doesn't just vanish into thin air).

Why did I do this? Because using the two-value system made finalizing a treasury division nearly impossible, as every time something was claimed from treasury everyone's shares changed.

An item's value is set by a combination of what it costs to make it and its usefulness in the field.

In the case of the fighter getting the longsword, he's going to get his share of coin, even if it takes a little longer to do so.

Good.

 

[Lanefan]

If I'm the fighter, I'm happy the wizard has that staff. You know, given that we're a party of adventurers presumably cooperating to accomplish shared goals. The wizard's luck in obtaining that staff just made my job (and survivability) that much easier.

My own survivability would be greatly enhanced by having the funds on hand to commission a better suit of armour. Instead, all those funds are tied up in a staff I can't even use.

They really want to sell it later? Then perhaps they have a good reason or perhaps the rest of the party can convince them otherwise or...

We're a bit more individualist, also in our multi-character multi-party campaigns there's not often any guarantee the whole party is going to remain together from one adventure to the next.

In a game I play in, we spent last session in town doing treasury and training - after which two characters left the party and a third got promoted from hench to full-member status. We could have swapped out another: my previous character lost her mind and so I rolled up and brought in a replacement; now my original has her mind back but the new one's showing some real promise, so I stuck with her and sent the first one down the road (but fear not, she'll reappear at some point!). Had I been allowed to play both, that's what I'd be doing now.