Do your PCs spend money on non adventureing things?

[Crothian]

It sounds like it should be a poll, but it is not. In another thread on magical items there was a side discussion on spending money on whores and ale. Some posters felt that any player that does not spend all their money on magical items deserves to be killed by demons and such. I like to see characters a little more well rounded and not solely concentrating on their life as an adventurer.

Does your group spend money on frivolous things? Or perhaps they try to have investments in shops or expeditions? Maybe they buy real estate? Or are they all about buying up on better gear and going from one adventure to another?

 

[Clueless]

Lawyering classes and the test for passing the bar - that's my current character's 'frivolous' thing. Makes it fun if anyone tries to sue the party... we have our own lawyer. We have a number of players whose characters are working on buying land or investing in businesses they own already. One of our clerics 'runs' or at least finances a free clinic in Sigil's Lower Ward. So yeah, we do a lot of non-adventure investment as well.

 

[Dog Moon]

I do. Frequently. Well, much of the time it is more like "Okay, subtract 3,000gp from my share of the treasure because I'm taking this wardrobe or gems or jewelry."

Although with most characters, I am the one who will purchase an inn or other such building. One time I spent most of my money on my inn and didn't earn much in return, but that was fine with me.

 

[Graybeard]

The group I play and GM with (3 different campaigns) all spend money on non adventuring things. One player had his PC put money into a bank for future use. Others have bought barrels of ale, some clothing, it varies. In the game I run, 2 of the PCs are clerics and they donate heavily to their churches. The PC I play in our Eberron game gives money to his family.

 

[Ed_Laprade]

Sure, all the time. If I'm playing a female character, jewelry gets bought from loot found by the party. If our home base town is of a decent size we usually buy a house open to anyone who wants to crash there. Depending on finances, several characters might buy their own places. And if the campaign lasts long enough, land and titles and forts, oh my! Oh guy playing a swashbuckler was totally into his wardrobe. (Once jumped off a ship to swim back after the ship we'd transfered from becuse his tailored clothes had been left behind!) Ale and whores, you bet!

 

[Corsair]

My wizard dropped 25k in gold to found an "adventurer's guild" for neophyte good aligned adventurers. Basically it helps first level good guys meet other low level good guys and get them started. They help arrange missions from the king and the local populace for the newbies in return for a very small fee. They also provide rooms for guild members and minor healing, access to a library, etc.

Not exactly a drop in the bucket at level 14.

 

[MerricB]

Depends greatly on what the focus of the campaign is. Generally: not that much.

Cheers!

 

[the Jester]

The pcs in my campaign spend money on non-adventuring stuff all the time. Investments, booze and whores, feasting (for my halfling party especially!), donations to their church, country or cause, etc, etc, etc.

I love how much roleplaying, and how deep it gets, my players do. I work hard to encourage and reward this- as well as combat/overcoming challenges, I award xp for roleplaying.

 

[VirtualWizard]

It does depend on the campaign and the amount of downtime. My characters always tip the help. Good service is not so hard to find if you are generous. Also, I had one of my characters use his money to help out a number of orphanges. He would spend money to get the buildings fixed up, make certain the kids and guardians where clothed and fed, and to purchase presents for their birthdays and holidays. He ended the campaign dead broke, but the joy he spread around was well worth it

 

[T. Foster]

Back in the 80s some characters were big into buying and investing in property -- one group in particular invested a lot of time and money into a major renovation and expansion of the Trader's shop in Hommlet, after the former owners met with an unfortunate "accident." In the current campaign (in which I'm a player) we haven't had enough money to do much of anything with it besides keep our mundane supplies in order, which I can't say is an approach I'm terribly fond of -- defeating major bad guys only to get a couple hundred gp and perhaps a gem we can't sell. If I ever run another full campaign I'll make sure the PCs have lots of money both coming in and going out, either by using some variation of the XP for Gold rules in Arneson's First Fantasy Campaign (characters only get XP for money that is spent pursuing the character's interest/hobby -- money that is hoarded or invested generates no XP (unless the character's hobby is hoarding or investing, in which case money that isn't hoarded or invested gains no XP)) or just declaring by fiat at the beginning of each session (or whenever I feel appropriate) "so you find yourselves broke again," just like so many Conan, Fafhrd/Gray Mouser, Kothar, etc. stories begin.

It should perhaps be noted that I'm talking about OD&D and 1E games, so spending money buying magic items isn't normally an option (and certainly isn't an expectation).