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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Staffan" data-source="post: 1643629" data-attributes="member: 907">A thought occured to me... why not compare the cost of the Lightning Rail to that of the time-honored way of travelling long distances in D&D: the teleport spell?Teleport, cast at the basic 9th level of ability, transports the caster and three others up to 900 miles. The normal fee for spellcasting is spell level * caster level * 10 gp, or in the case of teleport, 5*9*10 = 450 gp, multiplied by two because you're also paying for the caster's return trip - so 900 gp. You can split this cost three ways, so we get 300 gp for instant travel of 900 miles - that's 33 coppers per mile, or 2/3 of the cost for a trip along the Lightning Rail. Now, let's compare some other things about the two modes of travel:Lightning Rail pros:<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">You can travel shorter distances, and/or by yourself and still get your money's worth.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">It's probably easier to book transport on the LR than it is finding a 9th level wizard who knows teleport (and house Oriens charge 10 gp per mile for teleporting, which is a lot more expensive than the formula above)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">The LR can transport cargo more effectively.</li> </ul>Lightning Rail cons:<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Limited to travelling along the actual rail.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Have to wait until a train leaves (how often that happens isn't specified in the book).</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">You "only" travel ~600 miles per day (assuming the train takes breaks at stops, and only travels effectively 20 hours per day).</li> </ul>Teleport pros:<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">The time taken for actual travelling is instant.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">You can go anywhere the caster is willing to take you.</li> </ul>Teleport cons:<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">You need to find a 9th level wizard (or 10th level sorcerer) willing to cast the spell for you.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">You will probably need to wait until next day so he can prepare the spells (which may or may not be longer than the time until the next rail leaves).</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Slight risk for accidents in transit, depending on the caster's knowledge of the destination.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">You always have to pay for the full 900 miles of travel, even if you're only travelling a relatively short distance.</li> </ul>Still, with these things in mind, I think it would be reasonable to price travel along the Lightning Rail at, say, 2 sp per mile for first-class accomodations and 5 cp per mile for second-class. The Rail and teleport both have different advantages, but I think teleporting wins out in the end, but not by that much.</blockquote>

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