mercantile trade - help needed

[Beholder Bob]

Wow!

My goal is simply to create a mechanic for the players to use as a guide for occasional trade - not an entire economic guide! I assume you would use a computer in mid game to generate the constantly fluctuating prices. Also, some items could be made using multiple options - backpacks made with iron or bronze clasps, and cloth or leather. Yikes - thats more detail then I'd lean to, but I do not use a computer to generate data like you'd need. Well, more power to you, and use what will help!

BB

 

[Arnwyn]

Ok - so what does your desired system have?

Good question - I'd like a system that would be able to handle two major types of trading:
1) caravans/shipping
2) running a business (e.g. an inn or tavern)

The main aspect of it would be a profit/loss system. It wouldn't have to be tremendously complicated, but it should be flexible enough to handle PC decisions and make such decisions meaningful.

For caravans/shipping, basic questions my "desired system" would try to answer:
- how much of trade item x can I buy here at location A? why?
- how much will it cost me? why?
- how much of trade item x can I sell there at location B? why?
- how much can I sell each for? why?
- what if I have x ranks in skill y, or a mercantile-like feat?
- what modifiers apply if trade item x is in abundance? rare? (for either buying or selling)
- taxes?
- plus: easy modifiers to add for anything situational the DM wants to include.

For running a business, the questions I would want answered:
- how many customers do I get in x period of time? why?
- how much do I make off of them? why?
- how much does it cost me to offer my services? why?
- what if I 'upgrade' my business? how much more might I make depending on the upgrade?
- what modifiers would 'location' include, for example?
- taxes?
- plus: easy modifiers to add for anything situational the DM wants to include.

And that's generally it. The above allows for PC decisions to be meaningful, and also allows for adventuring opportunities (because not many people want to only play simply 'Merchant: The RPG'). The idea of including taxes, for example, introduces the whole concept of smuggling - prime adventuring material indeed.

But that's just me. For those who simply want to kill things and take their stuff over their entire D&D lives, good on you.