D&D Economics

[Kid Charlemagne]

Here is Medieval price list that seems like a reasonable place to start. I believe it was originally posted on rec.games.frp.dnd. It would take some work to convert it into a gold/silver/copper 1:10:100 format to make it easier to work with.

 

[Kid Charlemagne]

Ooh, and this is neat:

http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/ecipa/archive/UT-ECIPA-MUNRO-02-04.pdf

It's a PDF that is someone's paper on medieval economics, but the cool thing is at the end: A consumer price index for every five year period between 1266 and 1540.

 

[MonsterMash]

I remember that there were some articles about econmics in D&D in White Dwarf many years back (1980-something) which tried to make sense of things a bit. I think it is hard to talk about realistic economics in D&D and looking at a real world model without taking into account the unrealistic amounts of coinage in the game world and the effects of magic.

 

[Edgewood]

I use a Promissory Note system in my game world. Basically, you can take physical coin to a moneylender (basically a bank) who is part of a world wide moneylending guild. This guild regulates things such as exchange rates, and proper weights of coinage. PCs can bring coin to a recognized moneylender in exchange for a note detailing the money they have. (hence the invention of the bank note in my game world). The same thing is done for commodities. Their market value is determined by various guilds who work with the moneylending guild to agree on prices. However, this system does leave it open to corruption and the destabilization of certain markets.

I have tried to make it as simple as possible yet making it seem more complicated to the PCs. All they know is they can bank their coin. The rest is just backdrop.

 

[Kid Charlemagne]

I remember that there were some articles about econmics in D&D in White Dwarf many years back (1980-something) which tried to make sense of things a bit. I think it is hard to talk about realistic economics in D&D and looking at a real world model without taking into account the unrealistic amounts of coinage in the game world and the effects of magic.

I don't see why that has to be the case. It would involve an adjustment - probably to a silver standard rather than gold standard, but once players make the adjustment to "1,000 silver pieces is good" then it shouldn't be an issue. If everything adusts appropriately, then the coinage issue will go away.

 

[Wombat]

For me and my players, the closer we get to a core sense of reality in our games, the better they are. No, not everything has to be "realistic", but as long as the underpinnings all work together semi-logically, the game simply feels better. This includes the economics.

Like Tolkein, I feel the best fantasy is based in a world that feels natural and then adds the fantasy on top of it.

 

[Rel]

Hookers are just the tip of the iceberg!

( I don't get to use that sentence nearly enough.)

One of the things that makes this such a daunting task is that you have to take into consideration the HUGE impact that magic would have in a typical D&D world.

It was brought up in another recent thread that a Wall of Iron might completely change the economics of mining and smelting. Same with the Wall of Stone or the (COMPLETELY BROKEN from an economic standpoint) Lyre of Building when it comes to building castles and so forth. If you consider the possibilty of Permanent Teleport Circles in major cities then the economics involved with the transport of goods goes right out the window. The costs and efficiency of farmland will vary wildly based on the availability of Druids and the possibility of an irrigation system fed by a Decanter of Endless Water.

I would LOVE to see an economic system that took all of this into account but I'm not sure that it would be widely useful enough for someone to put in the effort.

 

[Kid Charlemagne]

I personally don't see most magic having much effect on an economy, for a variety of reasons, mostly relating to the scarcity of people high enough level to do those things. All I'd really like is to have prices that more closely match medieval reality, just to see how that would make the game look. Maybe I'd decide the normal PHB price lists are better, but maybe not.

 

[jmucchiello]

I personally don't see most magic having much effect on an economy, for a variety of reasons, mostly relating to the scarcity of people high enough level to do those things. All I'd really like is to have prices that more closely match medieval reality, just to see how that would make the game look. Maybe I'd decide the normal PHB price lists are better, but maybe not.

You don't think there are that many 5th level druids or 5th level clerics with the plant domain?

Plant Growth
Transmutation
Level: Drd 3, Plant 3, Rgr 3
Components: V, S, DF
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: See text
Target or Area: See text
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No
Plant growth has different effects depending on the version chosen.
Overgrowth: [snip]
Enrichment: This effect targets plants within a range of one-half mile, raising their potential productivity over the course of the next year to one-third above normal.
Plant growth counters diminish plants.
This spell has no effect on plant creatures.

A 5th level Druid can cast this EVERY DAY. Crop yield increase of 1/3 above normal in 1 mile diameter. Even if the druid only does it for a month, that's nearly 25 square miles of land with enriched yields. Make him 6th level and he can do it twice a day. If one druid can do this in one month, how can magic NOT affect society?

 

[Treebore]

Because if the Druid charged the going rate for casting a spell of that level the increased crop yield still would not come close to paying for it, let alone be profitable. Same can be said for a wall of stone, stone shape, etc...

So most of these spells would be cast for the personal benefit of the caster. IE the Druid is a farmer, or buillding a stone structure for himself (stone shape).

Where I really see spells messing up economics is when they can summon elementals or xorn and command them to find the nearest deposit of gold, platinum, silver, mithral, adamantium, iron, corundum, diamond, spinel, beryl, etc.... Granted it may take a few castings, but eventually they will find it. Then a few move Earth's, rock to mud, maybe a passwall or two, and EUREKA!

Of course I ran a very intense game all centered around finding a rich gold mine, because of an aurumvorax. Then a very intense game of fighting the Zhentarim and other power groups, such as the Kraken Society, realizing they will be overwhelmed sooner or later, and being smart enough to bring in "partners" to help establish a "balance of power".

The group still ended up rich, but only millionaire rich instead of billionaire rich. But it ended up funding their entry into the epic levels nicely.