HonJull said:
Another question, not directly 100% SL related so feel free to ignore, but one of my players purchased an Inn in Lave, Vesh. He wants to bring exotic wines, ale , meat etc.. from his travels there to sell. Is there any reference anywhere to what he can expect to earn from that kind of thing? I can think of a hundred plot hooks with this Inn, but I need some numbers I can give him.
Can't think of any references, but I suppose one could make a rough estimate for how much all of that would cost to get to Lave in the first place, and from there, get an idea of how much profit would make that cost worthwhile.
I have little urge to go looking through charts at the moment, but here's an idea of how to figure out how much that might earn.
Let's say that to transport one wagon full of wine from somewhere southeast of the Kelder's is going to cost, for one, the price of all the wine in the cart. Well, duh.
Next, assuming that the PC's aren't the ones actually transporting the stuff in the first place, that one wagon will require two pack animals, two merchants to handle and take care of the merchandise as well as bargain for it in the first place, then, let's say...four bodyguards to make sure it makes it to Lave safely. After all, no matter where you are on Ghelspad, you can't travel too far without hitting danger. Then figure out how long the journey will take from point A to Lave. With that information, you can get a rough idea of cost.
Factor in the total price of the wine (or whatever). Factor in the price of feeding 2 pack animals for each day of the journey. Factor in feeding 6 people for each day of the journey. Factor in the actual pay each of those 6 people will be getting for each day of the journey. Then, factor in just how much you as the DM feel is appropriate for bribes, tariffs and taxes imposed upon the merchants as they travel from one land to the next. Then throw in a bit more miscellaneous gold to represent other costs that logically exist; gold for wagon repair, for example.
Then, from that cost, I'd say factor in how much each bottle goes for. The whole lot should go for, at the least, twice whatever the cost of transporting it to Lave in the first place was - possibly quite a bit more.
Profit-wise, though...depends on how well stocked the inn is, competition, and all those other factors you might want to integrate. Not to mention seasons, holidays, etc. That's somewhat up to you, though. Figure some of the stock goes to waste, some never sells, some's broken, some's stolen, etc, as well. How much of that happens is somewhat up to you and the PC's, though.
You've got that all, right? If not, I'll see if I can't break it down a bit better.
Most of that information - feeding pack animals, paying for mercenaries, etc - can be found in either the Player's Guide or DM's Guide.
I can't claim the system I just threw out there was the best one, but I think it's workable in a jiffy. Hopefully helpful, until someone offers up something better.
thought of The Penumbral Pentagon. I was flipping through it today and it seemed interesting, but decided to hear some comments about it first.
