palleomortis said:
One thing that resurrecting does, is change the world. Think about it, the population is now growing twice as fast, murder trials are no longer needed, hestory is now out of the questions and into the pure facts, so much of the world we know now would change so dramatically.
A laborer makes 1 sp per day. Assuming he manages (somehow!) to save 1/3 of it, it will take him 450 years to afford a
raise dead.
A mercenary makes 2 sp per day. Assuming he manages to save 1/2 of it and is able to work 3/4 of the year, he'll be able to afford it in 400 years.
An alchemist makes 1 gp per day. Assuming she manages to save a third of it, she'll be able to afford a
raise dead in 40 years.
A rediculously elite 10th-level mercenary leader makes 33 sp per day. If he's able to work 3/4 of the year and saves half of it, he'll be able to afford a
raise dead after 'just' 12 years... but even then a
true resurrection would take 30 years.
Now thinking about how incredible these saving rates must be---I sure don't save half of what I make---just to allow these well-off craftspeople and warriors to raise someone once in a lifetime, I think you can see the reason these spells don't have much effect on the world.
With a more realistic savings rate of 2%, the elite mercenary leader would need over two hundred years of saving to afford even a
raise dead.
Now what effects does it have?
Kings, dukes, and other powerful nobles and royals may act differently. A ruler of a city may take in thousands of gold pieces worth of taxes (in grain, livestock, coin, and services) each year, and it's quite possible that the ruler would be able to set aside a thousand gold pieces *each year* to prepare for such contingencies. This may mean he'd be able to
raise several people over the years -- family members, cloe friends, and possibly even himself with good planning.
The noveau riche (like PCs) may well be able to afford such services as well.
Frankly, I'm suprised to hear that these spells have such a profound effect on so many DMs, since they have very little effect on my game world. When I play my characters are seldom willing to accept a
raise or
resurrection, even when I've grown attached to them, as they tend to refuse the spells ("I'm happy here, thanks") except in cases of grave injustice and such. As DM, I haven't seen the spells used that much either -- many PCs feel as mine do about the afterlife, many others can't afford the costs, and some can't convince ranking clergy to cast the spells. Many players want to "try something different" or don't want to lose the level to the spell.
