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<blockquote data-quote="Loonook" data-source="post: 5909165" data-attributes="member: 1861"><p><strong>We were meant for the stage...</strong></p><p></p><p><em><strong><p style="text-align: center">The crowd goes into the Great Theater for a true tale... And what a tale to be told. It is the last night of the Kingsmoot, and the Great Shah and our High King have spent years preparing for their meeting, and their sponsored troupes are prepared. The sounds of rumbling drums, sweet horns, and plucked strings fill the air... And so it begins.</p><p></strong></em></p><p></p><p>Sadly the stage seems to be a place ignored by many in roleplaying games. Bards exist, and roam around the world telling tales... But who goes to a show?</p><p></p><p>The stage was an important draw away from the grind of metropolitan life, and a world filled with magic could do well by entertaining the masses. Bread and circuses help to appease the populace, and make their lives better.</p><p></p><p>So I have been thinking of how to describe a grand theater, one that could hold any performance you may desire beyond a full war reenactment, including aerial combats, grand combats, etc. </p><p></p><p>I started with a 100' diameter space with 60' in height. The space contains cubic feet... Let us round it up to a basic 472000 cubic feet. Smaller than most football fields, but has an enormous footprint in a city.</p><p></p><p>The overall 'theater space' would be 117809... Let us round it up to 118000 feet. This gives us an overall space for theater-goers, stairways, and other niceties of 354000 cubic feet. If we use Stronghold Spaces as we have this gives us 44.25 spaces... As we've been rounding up let us round this to 45 overall spaces.</p><p></p><p>An Auditorium or Theater space contains 30 individuals comfortably. That puts our minimum capacity at 1350. The Auditorium seating provided in the SBG places 10 rows in their spaces... Let us expand that to 15, providing 45 individuals in our 'cheap seats' (numbering half the space), common seats at the normal size, and 5 luxury boxes that seat half the number.</p><p></p><p>Overall Capacity: 1575. You may argue for more spaces but this allows us to put a basic number on a very nice location. The overall cost (50,000 for Luxury Boxes, 80000 for our Basic seats, add 1.5 overall for all spaces) makes the overall cost come to 195000 GP. </p><p></p><p>Maintenance of the theater costs 19500 GP/year per our 10% rule of thumb, and requires 1 attendant per 50 people for crowd control (WAG, but sounds about right), and an company of actors.</p><p></p><p>19500 maintenance</p><p>1152 wages for 32 Attendants</p><p>5760 wages for 40 performers (+7 to Perform/12 GP/mo/person).</p><p>Costuming (30 sets of Costumes of various types, 10% upkeep): 180 GP.</p><p>_____</p><p>26592 GP/year.</p><p></p><p>Now how much of an offset exists for our Players? Well, that depends. In a metropolis of 50,000, the seats would be filled if people went to see a play once/month. If charged a silver per person on average, the theater would make 57847.50 GP per year.</p><p></p><p>I doubt that a man would be willing to spend a day's wage for entertainment. But I could see them spending around as much as we would spend for a ticket., right? </p><p></p><p>Our unskilled day laborer makes one silver piece per day. As we have figured out in our <a href="http://www.enworld.org/forum/general-rpg-discussion/322661-value-copper-piece.html" target="_blank">previous discussion</a> a silver piece is worth around 8 dollars. The <a href="http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/09/average-cost-of-a-movie-ticket-edges-up-to-7-93/" target="_blank">average movie ticket</a> runs around 7.93 as of February 2012. Of course that is a motion picture that makes millions of dollars, and the seats are never 'full' capacity... </p><p></p><p>The classical cost for 'cheap seats' was a copper, and range from there based on the upkeep chart, increasing costs based on upkeeps.</p><p></p><p>To take into account theaters that will fluctuate in capacity we will charge 2 CP for our common seats, 1cp for the cheap seats... the luxury 'boxes' run at 5 SP. 58.5 GP/day for a full house. If we figure half capacity except on 'great' nights, 29.25GP/day.</p><p></p><p>Now this amount of money means that the theater is operating in the red most of its season... So how does it make money? Well... Most theaters didn't. They were sponsored by local nobles, merchants, etc. looking to curry favor. Remember the Sponsorship we discussed earlier? A sponsor of this theater may put up 1000 GP/year for the right to help bolster the arts, and get a nice little wooden statue for their troubles... And a bit of a hand with the locals.</p><p></p><p>Bread and Circuses.</p><p></p><p>Now, onto the really interesting part... Magic Performances!</p><p></p><p>How much does it cost to create a magic performance? Well, it can varies on what you wish to do... I have provided a few basic costs for some 'stage magicians'.</p><p></p><p>Apprentice Stage Magician (Stage Hack): Sorcerer 1. 30 GP/month, spells worth 70 gp/day. </p><p>What can he do?</p><p></p><p><strong>0th: 6/day (knows all).</strong></p><p></p><ul style="margin-left: 20px"> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Ghost Sound</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Light</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Open/Close</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Mage Hand</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Prestidigitation</li> </ul><p></p><p><strong>1st Level (Knows 2). 4/day</strong></p><p></p><ul style="margin-left: 20px"> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Mount</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Unseen Servant</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Floating Disc</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Feather Fall</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Disguise Self</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Silent Image</li> </ul><p></p><p>I did not put a Wizard here as a Sorcerer really does help the stage a bit more. I also only put spells with a decent duration, and that could be useful. A normal 'stage hack' will have Silent Image and Disguise Self for the utility of each (but the stage must realize he can only top out at 40 minutes of Disguise so plays that require more time are outside his purview).</p><p></p><p>A Stage Hack could pull off a military play (if the rest of the cast serves as extras, and they don't need to add all of the sounds), and even mildly 'magical' plays like the Tempest. If they are able to be within 10' of the actor being injured they can 'squib' the actor, making them appear to bleed through Prestidigitation, which could be accomplished by having line of sight to the target through knowing their location. </p><p></p><p>Due to the cost of anything beyond their basic castings a Stage Hack is usually only used for 'top line' shows. There is still a need for Experts in Disguise, costume/tailoring, etc. A Mage's Guild may turn a talented but limited Sorcerer over to a theater to learn a trade, and give his services 'gratis'. </p><p></p><p>Most Hacks do the gig for the wine, women, and song supplied, and are usually given a great lifestyle (Common Upkeep) in lieu of his actual pay. He's not going to make big money through his skills without the company, and a Common lifestyle with a good amount of cash in pocket (paid 10x a laborer's price with upkeep paid for) is enough to pay to keep him in beauties of the commons for the rest of his life.</p><p></p><p>Master Stage Magician (Master Technician): Sorcerer 6. 180 GP/month, 430 Gp/day spells. </p><p></p><p>What can he do?</p><p></p><p><strong>0: 6 castings</strong></p><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><p style="margin-left: 20px">All Stage Spells.</p> </li> </ul><p></p><p><strong>1st: 4 spells known, 6/day</strong></p><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><p style="margin-left: 20px">Mount<br /> [*]Unseen Servant<br /> [*]Floating Disc<br /> [*]Feather Fall<br /> [*]Disguise Self<br /> [*]Silent Image</p> </li> </ul><p></p><p><strong>2nd: 2 spells known, 5/day</strong></p><p></p><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><p style="margin-left: 20px">Darkness<br /> [*]Invisibility<br /> [*]Gust of Wind<br /> [*]Alter Self<br /> [*]Mirror Image</p> </li> </ul><p></p><p><strong>3rd: 1 spell known, 3/day</strong></p><p></p><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><p style="margin-left: 20px">Major Image.</p> </li> </ul><p></p><p>The Master Technician is highly skilled, and can do a lot. The Technician can make a large battle appear in the middle of the theater with Major Image, and with appropriate cues make giants and dragons without too much trouble... But they are trapped in a small shape on the ground. With proper blocking the Technician can make basic weather effects, and turn his actors into other races. A Technician can make a three act play with characters who can swashbuckle in the skies, weather effects, creepy lights, and masterful scenery. </p><p></p><p>The Master Technician may have a few Hacks under his direction for 'filler' spots, and sustain the scene. With Ghost Sounds, prestidigitation, and multiple spells in effect the Technician makes for a truly 'special effects' driven set. They also probably possess a Metamagic Rod or two, </p><p></p><p>The Master Technician only does Major Shows, or when a smaller show needs a single spell to be pulled off during the day. Master Technicians walk in a strange place in society; they are not the fierce spellcasters of the day, but they may not be considered as talented as the great Actor of their day. Master Technicians are usually 'bequeathed' to the Theater by noble households directly, as their overall upkeep would wreck the books for the Theater.</p><p></p><p>________________</p><p></p><p>A Royal Theater Troupe has a single Master and 2d4 Hacks. The Court Wizard may be called in for events like our Grand Spectacle... And that's where it can get fun.</p><p></p><p>In lieu of taxes some spellcasters will take to the Stage. A Guild may send their Masters to the theater for payment of debts to the Crown. Mages who have fallen on hard times or need to repay debts may spend a week at the Theater, and these events (or Spectacles) are where the Theater makes its real money. Prices for a Spectacle may run up to ten times their normal amount, and Luxury seats upwards of a hundred times. These Spectacles, which can serve as shows of power, duels, or just simple displays of the Art, are held several times a year and are social events for the commoner and King.</p><p></p><p>A talented Wizard or Sorcerer of high level can use Hallucinatory Terrain and Mirage Arcana over most of the theater to actually make the scene. Polymorphed actors play drakes in amazing action scenes that last for ten to fifteen minutes above the crowd. Illusionary weather effects, (controlled) hurricane winds, and sights that can astound the mind. If a sanctioned Duel occurs two spellcasters may take to the field in non-lethal combat in an enclosed space, summoning creatures of power, calling up spirits to combat, and doing the same effects as any other Spectacle... And the crowd LOVES it.</p><p>_______</p><p></p><p>In total, the world of the Theater may not pay, but it provides for a great life for those compelled to the work. A 1st level Actor Expert makes four times the median wage, and with the time between plays and seasons they can practice other crafts. The stage also provides useful skills for adventuring, as knowledge of stagecraft, performance, spells, diplomacy, and other skills can provide for a very talented individual.</p><p></p><p>Slainte,</p><p></p><p>-Loonook.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Loonook, post: 5909165, member: 1861"] [b]We were meant for the stage...[/b] [I][B][CENTER]The crowd goes into the Great Theater for a true tale... And what a tale to be told. It is the last night of the Kingsmoot, and the Great Shah and our High King have spent years preparing for their meeting, and their sponsored troupes are prepared. The sounds of rumbling drums, sweet horns, and plucked strings fill the air... And so it begins.[/CENTER] [/B][/I] Sadly the stage seems to be a place ignored by many in roleplaying games. Bards exist, and roam around the world telling tales... But who goes to a show? The stage was an important draw away from the grind of metropolitan life, and a world filled with magic could do well by entertaining the masses. Bread and circuses help to appease the populace, and make their lives better. So I have been thinking of how to describe a grand theater, one that could hold any performance you may desire beyond a full war reenactment, including aerial combats, grand combats, etc. I started with a 100' diameter space with 60' in height. The space contains cubic feet... Let us round it up to a basic 472000 cubic feet. Smaller than most football fields, but has an enormous footprint in a city. The overall 'theater space' would be 117809... Let us round it up to 118000 feet. This gives us an overall space for theater-goers, stairways, and other niceties of 354000 cubic feet. If we use Stronghold Spaces as we have this gives us 44.25 spaces... As we've been rounding up let us round this to 45 overall spaces. An Auditorium or Theater space contains 30 individuals comfortably. That puts our minimum capacity at 1350. The Auditorium seating provided in the SBG places 10 rows in their spaces... Let us expand that to 15, providing 45 individuals in our 'cheap seats' (numbering half the space), common seats at the normal size, and 5 luxury boxes that seat half the number. Overall Capacity: 1575. You may argue for more spaces but this allows us to put a basic number on a very nice location. The overall cost (50,000 for Luxury Boxes, 80000 for our Basic seats, add 1.5 overall for all spaces) makes the overall cost come to 195000 GP. Maintenance of the theater costs 19500 GP/year per our 10% rule of thumb, and requires 1 attendant per 50 people for crowd control (WAG, but sounds about right), and an company of actors. 19500 maintenance 1152 wages for 32 Attendants 5760 wages for 40 performers (+7 to Perform/12 GP/mo/person). Costuming (30 sets of Costumes of various types, 10% upkeep): 180 GP. _____ 26592 GP/year. Now how much of an offset exists for our Players? Well, that depends. In a metropolis of 50,000, the seats would be filled if people went to see a play once/month. If charged a silver per person on average, the theater would make 57847.50 GP per year. I doubt that a man would be willing to spend a day's wage for entertainment. But I could see them spending around as much as we would spend for a ticket., right? Our unskilled day laborer makes one silver piece per day. As we have figured out in our [URL="http://www.enworld.org/forum/general-rpg-discussion/322661-value-copper-piece.html"]previous discussion[/URL] a silver piece is worth around 8 dollars. The [URL="http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/09/average-cost-of-a-movie-ticket-edges-up-to-7-93/"]average movie ticket[/URL] runs around 7.93 as of February 2012. Of course that is a motion picture that makes millions of dollars, and the seats are never 'full' capacity... The classical cost for 'cheap seats' was a copper, and range from there based on the upkeep chart, increasing costs based on upkeeps. To take into account theaters that will fluctuate in capacity we will charge 2 CP for our common seats, 1cp for the cheap seats... the luxury 'boxes' run at 5 SP. 58.5 GP/day for a full house. If we figure half capacity except on 'great' nights, 29.25GP/day. Now this amount of money means that the theater is operating in the red most of its season... So how does it make money? Well... Most theaters didn't. They were sponsored by local nobles, merchants, etc. looking to curry favor. Remember the Sponsorship we discussed earlier? A sponsor of this theater may put up 1000 GP/year for the right to help bolster the arts, and get a nice little wooden statue for their troubles... And a bit of a hand with the locals. Bread and Circuses. Now, onto the really interesting part... Magic Performances! How much does it cost to create a magic performance? Well, it can varies on what you wish to do... I have provided a few basic costs for some 'stage magicians'. Apprentice Stage Magician (Stage Hack): Sorcerer 1. 30 GP/month, spells worth 70 gp/day. What can he do? [B]0th: 6/day (knows all).[/B] [INDENT][LIST] [*]Ghost Sound [*]Light [*]Open/Close [*]Mage Hand [*]Prestidigitation [/LIST][/INDENT] [B]1st Level (Knows 2). 4/day[/B] [INDENT][LIST] [*]Mount [*]Unseen Servant [*]Floating Disc [*]Feather Fall [*]Disguise Self [*]Silent Image [/LIST][/INDENT] I did not put a Wizard here as a Sorcerer really does help the stage a bit more. I also only put spells with a decent duration, and that could be useful. A normal 'stage hack' will have Silent Image and Disguise Self for the utility of each (but the stage must realize he can only top out at 40 minutes of Disguise so plays that require more time are outside his purview). A Stage Hack could pull off a military play (if the rest of the cast serves as extras, and they don't need to add all of the sounds), and even mildly 'magical' plays like the Tempest. If they are able to be within 10' of the actor being injured they can 'squib' the actor, making them appear to bleed through Prestidigitation, which could be accomplished by having line of sight to the target through knowing their location. Due to the cost of anything beyond their basic castings a Stage Hack is usually only used for 'top line' shows. There is still a need for Experts in Disguise, costume/tailoring, etc. A Mage's Guild may turn a talented but limited Sorcerer over to a theater to learn a trade, and give his services 'gratis'. Most Hacks do the gig for the wine, women, and song supplied, and are usually given a great lifestyle (Common Upkeep) in lieu of his actual pay. He's not going to make big money through his skills without the company, and a Common lifestyle with a good amount of cash in pocket (paid 10x a laborer's price with upkeep paid for) is enough to pay to keep him in beauties of the commons for the rest of his life. Master Stage Magician (Master Technician): Sorcerer 6. 180 GP/month, 430 Gp/day spells. What can he do? [B]0: 6 castings[/B] [LIST][*][INDENT]All Stage Spells.[/INDENT] [/LIST] [B]1st: 4 spells known, 6/day[/B] [LIST][*][INDENT]Mount [*]Unseen Servant [*]Floating Disc [*]Feather Fall [*]Disguise Self [*]Silent Image[/INDENT] [/LIST] [B]2nd: 2 spells known, 5/day[/B] [LIST][*][INDENT]Darkness [*]Invisibility [*]Gust of Wind [*]Alter Self [*]Mirror Image[/INDENT] [/LIST] [B]3rd: 1 spell known, 3/day[/B] [LIST][*][INDENT]Major Image.[/INDENT] [/LIST] The Master Technician is highly skilled, and can do a lot. The Technician can make a large battle appear in the middle of the theater with Major Image, and with appropriate cues make giants and dragons without too much trouble... But they are trapped in a small shape on the ground. With proper blocking the Technician can make basic weather effects, and turn his actors into other races. A Technician can make a three act play with characters who can swashbuckle in the skies, weather effects, creepy lights, and masterful scenery. The Master Technician may have a few Hacks under his direction for 'filler' spots, and sustain the scene. With Ghost Sounds, prestidigitation, and multiple spells in effect the Technician makes for a truly 'special effects' driven set. They also probably possess a Metamagic Rod or two, The Master Technician only does Major Shows, or when a smaller show needs a single spell to be pulled off during the day. Master Technicians walk in a strange place in society; they are not the fierce spellcasters of the day, but they may not be considered as talented as the great Actor of their day. Master Technicians are usually 'bequeathed' to the Theater by noble households directly, as their overall upkeep would wreck the books for the Theater. ________________ A Royal Theater Troupe has a single Master and 2d4 Hacks. The Court Wizard may be called in for events like our Grand Spectacle... And that's where it can get fun. In lieu of taxes some spellcasters will take to the Stage. A Guild may send their Masters to the theater for payment of debts to the Crown. Mages who have fallen on hard times or need to repay debts may spend a week at the Theater, and these events (or Spectacles) are where the Theater makes its real money. Prices for a Spectacle may run up to ten times their normal amount, and Luxury seats upwards of a hundred times. These Spectacles, which can serve as shows of power, duels, or just simple displays of the Art, are held several times a year and are social events for the commoner and King. A talented Wizard or Sorcerer of high level can use Hallucinatory Terrain and Mirage Arcana over most of the theater to actually make the scene. Polymorphed actors play drakes in amazing action scenes that last for ten to fifteen minutes above the crowd. Illusionary weather effects, (controlled) hurricane winds, and sights that can astound the mind. If a sanctioned Duel occurs two spellcasters may take to the field in non-lethal combat in an enclosed space, summoning creatures of power, calling up spirits to combat, and doing the same effects as any other Spectacle... And the crowd LOVES it. _______ In total, the world of the Theater may not pay, but it provides for a great life for those compelled to the work. A 1st level Actor Expert makes four times the median wage, and with the time between plays and seasons they can practice other crafts. The stage also provides useful skills for adventuring, as knowledge of stagecraft, performance, spells, diplomacy, and other skills can provide for a very talented individual. Slainte, -Loonook. [/QUOTE]
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