The effects of a dragon's treasure on the local economy

[der_kluge]

So, I'm watching Shrek I, and I notice that the dragon's lair has a treasure hoard in it. And then I started wondering (like any good gamer) "what became of all that treasure?" Surely Donkey has access to it, since he ends up "marrying" the dragon in Shrek II.

But, Donkey doesn't need treasure, so he might give it to Shrek and Fiona, who could, in turn, give it to the city of Far Far Away. Or it could even end up in Duloc.

But in either case, that's a huge amount of treasure.

What would the effects to a small economy in an isolated town be if you introduced tens of thousands of gold coins and priceless pieces of art and gems into it?

 

[Rystil Arden]

So, I'm watching Shrek I, and I notice that the dragon's lair has a treasure hoard in it. And then I started wondering (like any good gamer) "what became of all that treasure?" Surely Donkey has access to it, since he ends up "marrying" the dragon in Shrek II.

But, Donkey doesn't need treasure, so he might give it to Shrek and Fiona, who could, in turn, give it to the city of Far Far Away. Or it could even end up in Duloc.

But in either case, that's a huge amount of treasure.

What would the effects to a small economy in an isolated town be if you introduced tens of thousands of gold coins and priceless pieces of art and gems into it?

Probably similar to the effects of Mansa Musa's hajj on Egypt. People have lots of gold, but they still need just as much food and drink to live as before, as the essential goods do not commensurately increase, so the gold piece becomes temporarily devalued as goods and services become more and more expensive. Eventually, though, as the villagers realise that prices are too high at home and go out into the world where the market isn't flooded with gold and spend their gold to gain fantastic luxury (compared to their previous state of affairs), they will become more in balance with the rest of the world and the inflation will slowly end. It took years for Egypt's gold currency to recover from Mansa Musa.

This is a random guesstimation from someone who hasn't been formally trained in Econ though, so take it with a grain of salt.

 

[Einan]

I applaud any poster who can use Mansa Musa in a role-playing thread.

I salute you!

But, to be honest, you're spot on. For a while people would probably buy just about anything they wanted to. Then as the supply dwindles and demand rises, the price would craw up to a point where it balances. Thus your analysis is correct.

But oh! those first few days would seriously rock.

 

[Rystil Arden]

I applaud any poster who can use Mansa Musa in a role-playing thread.

I salute you!

But, to be honest, you're spot on. For a while people would probably buy just about anything they wanted to. Then as the supply dwindles and demand rises, the price would craw up to a point where it balances. Thus your analysis is correct.

But oh! those first few days would seriously rock.

Mansa Musa is the best ruler of Mali ever! Well except Sundiata, the founder of Mali, because he had an owl familiar. How cool is that?

 

[Runesong42]

I am loathe to suggest it, but perhaps the scenario presented in "The Hobbit" might be an excellent example.

To be brief, after Smaug is defeated, the humans, elves, and dwarves get into a heated argument over who gets what share of the treasure. All-out war threatened to be the end result, but IIRC there were talked down by someone. if the said races were greedy and stubborn enough, war would ultimately be the result, IMO.

So I say, in a happy place like Far Far Away, the Evil Baron would make swift war to take it from the happy folk before the happy folk have a chance to benefit from it.

From a DnD standpoint,
I've done this countless times in my DnD career. Invariably my rich PCs would become town leaders, essentialy buying the town in question, and expanding on it. Heck, I remember giving a Rod of Splendor to some farmer in some random module because I thought it would be funny. So did the DM. So e rna with it, and next time we came across that farm (any modules we play get absorbed into the ongoing "Grand Campaign") it had evolved into a thriving business and the guy ended up mayor of the adjoining village. But the DM threw me a twist and told me the guy had become corrupt and greedy, so we had to put a stop to him and his unfair treatment of his workers. We took his Rod of Splendor away and broke it.

In short, just remember that nothing happens in a vacuum... events always affect something or someone, somewhere.

 

[der_kluge]

Probably similar to the effects of Mansa Musa's hajj on Egypt. People have lots of gold, but they still need just as much food and drink to live as before, as the essential goods do not commensurately increase, so the gold piece becomes temporarily devalued as goods and services become more and more expensive. Eventually, though, as the villagers realise that prices are too high at home and go out into the world where the market isn't flooded with gold and spend their gold to gain fantastic luxury (compared to their previous state of affairs), they will become more in balance with the rest of the world and the inflation will slowly end. It took years for Egypt's gold currency to recover from Mansa Musa.

This is a random guesstimation from someone who hasn't been formally trained in Econ though, so take it with a grain of salt.

Educate me. Who (or what) is Mansa Musa?

 

[Rystil Arden]

Educate me. Who (or what) is Mansa Musa?

Mansa Kankan Musa I or Mansa Musa was a 14th century king of the Mali Empire. He is remembered for his fabled hajj and as a benefactor of Islamic scholarship.

Musa was the grandson of the founder of the Mali's Empire, Sundiata Keita, and ruled over Mali while it was the source of almost half the world's gold. Musa was a devoted Muslim and Islamic scholarship flourished under his rule. With Musa as a benefactor, Sankore University in Timbuktu reached its height. Craftsmen and especially Islamic scholars came from all over the Muslim world to receive a free education at Sankore's guilds and madrasas.

Musa is, perhaps, most famous for his hajj. As part of his pilgrimage to Mecca, Musa gave gold away generously. When he passed through Cairo, he gave out so much gold that the price of gold didn't recover for 12 years. Musa was so generous that he ran out of money and had to take out a loan to be able to afford the journey home. Musa's hajj, and especially his gold, caught the attention of both the Islamic and Christian worlds.

He was succeeded in 1341 by his brother Mansa Sulayman.

 

[Rodrigo Istalindir]

I think this captures the essence of it.

 

[GlassJaw]

What would the effects to a small economy in an isolated town be if you introduced tens of thousands of gold coins and priceless pieces of art and gems into it?

Well it certainly depends on the type of campaign. It we're talking "standard" D&D, then just use the rules in the DMG for town asset limits. The PC's will be able to sell back as much as the town can absorb. By the book, D&D economy is pretty much non-existant IMO. What else are PC's supposed to do when they return to town with 28 longswords and 15 suits of chain mail?

Overall, probably not much except garner the PC's a lot of attention. Most likely an isolated town's economy will have little, if any, to do with coinage. It will be based on trade and foodstuffs and crafted items.

 

[der_kluge]

I think this captures the essence of it.

What a riot!

That's so true. I've often said that there are two economies in D&D. The one for adventurers, and the one for everyone else.