Taking up pig farming

[fido_usernameinuse]

Just looked through the PHB and found that a pig is valued at 3 gold (PHB 7-3),
- Allright, I thought, that fits with the economic model (hired swineherder 15cp/day (DMG 4-1)).

Then I remembered the price I must pay for meat at the local tavern, and realized it doesn't.
It doesn't even resemble an viable economic model when considering a chunk of meat costs 6sp/lb (PHB 7-7). IMHO

If you take Arms and Equipment Guide into the equation pork meat costs 1-5gp/lbs (A&EG 2-4), depending on which parts of the pig the meat is a cut from,
the prices here, on corn most notably, are so ludicrous so I probably shouldn't. (Or this post would become ridiculously longwinded.)

Allright so it's a medieval pig, and thus it's not so ideally suited for meat-production as present-time pigs. Let's imagine it resembles a boar.

When an adult boar weighs 175-385 lbs (www.britishwildboar.org.uk/profile.html), it's real value must be a lot more than 3 gps.

Well I suppose WoTC could've meant a piglet and not a pig, but the price is compared (PHB 7-3) and comparable to that of a sheep (not a lamb) and a cow (not a calf).
Even a young fertile boar has a weight of 65lbs, so either the pig-farmer, the butcher or the retailer bags an awful lot of money.

Is there something I'm missing here or is this a major glitch in the WoTC economic model.

(And yeah I know that a 65lb boar not equals 65lbs of meat.)


If not then I guess my characters are going to turn their swords in for shovels. :|

 

[Dirigible]

*peers nervously* Tell me this is a subtle joke?

 

[Wycen]

At this point, I'm going to go out on a limb and say you are probably the foremost expert on this subject for the time being, as you've done the research.

Trying to equat numbers in the PHB will drive you crazy, that's my guess. Just change your game to fit whatever you figure out.

 

[Umbran]

Even a young fertile boar has a weight of 65lbs, so either the pig-farmer, the butcher or the retailer bags an awful lot of money.

Retailer? What medieviloid world are you coming from? When your society lacks refrigeration, not many get into the sale of fresh meats.

So, that pig or boar has been sitting around quite alive, eating food and taking up space until it is needed. Or it is killed and smoked/dried/salted to preserve it. And the butchering process is not a negligible task. There's implied costs associated with the meat that are not associated with the living pig.

 

[nsruf]

Trying to equat numbers in the PHB will drive you crazy, that's my guess.

Yes, that way lies madness! Under no circumstances should you question the D&D economic "model"

 

[Zappo]

Uhm, actually there is no real economic model in D&D. 99% of players don't need it. I don't think they were given much thought.

 

[Silver Moon]

Take into account too that most adventuring types are not cut out for pig farming. Many years back my wife and I picked up a package of 200 little toy pigs, the perfect size for 25mm gaming, and built a convention module around it. The plot was that the adventurers returned the sword of a dead comrade to his widow, only to find out that she was a pig farmer, and with her husband gone she now needed help to bring the animals to market at the regional fair. The characters found that herding 200 pigs on a 100 mile trek was a lot harder than it sounds. The use of wandering monsters took on a whole new meaning.

 

[fido_usernameinuse]

Originally Posted By Dirigible
*peers nervously* Tell me this is a subtle joke?

ehmm well no... , yeah there's humor in it, but the fact is I'm disappointed.




All right, so I knew the model was broken, there are many, many issues, but I never noticed a so apparent issue due to inconcistencies before.

Originally Posted By Umbran
Retailer? What medieviloid world are you coming from? When your society lacks refrigeration, not many get into the sale of fresh meats.

Point Taken

Originally Posted By Silver Moon
Take into account too that most adventuring types are not cut out for pig farming. Many years back my wife and I picked up a package of 200 little toy pigs, the perfect size for 25mm gaming, and built a convention module around it. The plot was that the adventurers returned the sword of a dead comrade to his widow, only to find out that she was a pig farmer, and with her husband gone she now needed help to bring the animals to market at the regional fair. The characters found that herding 200 pigs on a 100 mile trek was a lot harder than it sounds. The use of wandering monsters took on a whole new meaning.

- Please tell me you didn't.
Well at least the characters brought ample supplies, right.

 

[Aeolius]

Now I'm craving dire boar bacon

 

[Arravis]

A strong economic model for D&D is a product I've yet to see anyone make, which has surprised me. If I had a clue about the middle ages or economics, it's something I'd take on myself... oh well.