Blog de tussock. A wealth system.

Y'all know the d20Modern type system for abstract trading, money, and
so on. Instead of finding 6000sp with your four first level PCs, you get
+1 to your wealth each when you get the coin back to base. Magic weapons
are valued at 2*enhancement + 16, scrolls are spell level + caster level
+ 1 (+3 for potions, +14 for wands), and so on.


As a simple "fix" for the normal system of trading, use character
level as the bonus to your wealth checks, rather than Wealth. The Wealth
bonus simply tracks your liquidity relative to your level, and limits the
maximum size of your purchases.
Wealth checks are allowed 1/week, and taking-20 is always a 6 month
task (typically fast-paced campaigns may prefer 1/day and 1 month,
respectively).

Purchases reduce your wealth as follows, the modifier is traded value
relative to level or CR. Example gp given for a 6th level character.

-13: free and unlimited. Just carry batman's utility pouch, holds any
convenient item up to that value as you need it. (22sp)
-6: free up to 1/day. Record these trades. (11gp)
+0: free up to 1/week. (67gp)
+5: free, but requires a check. (250gp)
+10: 1 wealth and a check. (920gp)
+15: 1d6 wealth and a check. (3400gp)
+17: 2d6 wealth and a check. (5800gp)
+18: 3d6 wealth and a check. (7500gp)
+19: 4d6 wealth and a check. (9700gp)
+20: 5d6 wealth and a check. (13000gp)
+21: 7d6 wealth and a check. (17000gp)
+22: 10d6 wealth and a check. (etc.)

That's the cost associated with the minimum required d20 roll. A
value 16 item is +10 for a 6th level character. 21 or more on a d20 can
be obtained by situations or locations which add to (or subtract from)
the wealth check, character skill checks, level-based action points, and
so on.

Selling items works in reverse, but most items are valued at -2, and
no fair gaming the system, please. If characters buy or sell a good many
"free" items, especially at speed, consider +-1 wealth.

--
tussock

U'm iuel p jyx yn chycyipwlaf kyd blvlr ebyg ghpw kyd'rl sdbbp slw.

tussock wrote:

> Y'all know the d20Modern type system for [...].

Long boring post, you see. Here's another. 8]

Your earnings are assumed to be coming in by skill, class abilities,
and so on, they subsidise your trades as given. You don't get extra
wealth for a craft, profession, or estate, they just save you having to
make your living as a thief or sellsword. Characters do have to pick some
way to make a living, or they'll lose 1 wealth each month (those with
survival can live rough in the wild instead).

Wealth gains from found coins and normal equipment are approximately
+1 or +2 for a hard day's encounters, if you remember to pick it all up,
carry it home, and get it into the system (paying taxes and debts, making
friends with ale, joining secret societies, aquiring title over fixed
productive assets, it doesn't really matter how you describe it, the
assumption is that it's mostly absorbed). Lighter encounter schedules
just "cover costs".

Very valuable gems and art objects are best handled as specific
items, same for trade bars and the like. Selling relatively valuable ones
takes time, and it's proper to be a bit random with what you'll get out
of them, even at a known value. Collections of cheaper gems are just part
of the coin bonus.

Magic items are easy to work with. Value is x*bonus+type, or cl+sl
+type for spell effects. Purchase it by building your own at -2 value,
time representing aquiring components. Any specifically valuable
components at hand (like a +1 sword becoming a +2 sword) can be "sold" at
the same time to recover a little wealth.


Bloody television. Gladiator's a silly-fun movie though. Anyhoo. If
you didn't quite make your wealth check, try a skill use to add a further
+1d6, with the DC roughly equal to the value of the item (as an
abstraction of that item's seller, feel free to story it up), one check
per skill.

Wealth can represent a great many things. Want to say you've bought a
share in a popular inn when you hit about 25 level+wealth, it doesn't
matter to the game, you stay wealth 25. Drop to wealth 0 again and you've
ripped all the money out of it and have fallen behind on payments to your
suppliers, if your wealth goes up it's all good and your hard work behind
the bar is paying off well.
Small issue, transferring wealth about if you drastically change your
base of operations might take time. If you happen to plane-shift and want
to go shopping, you start at +0 wealth and have to buy gems, trade bars,
notes of royal assent, or whatever from your old pool (if you have
access) and sell back into the new one.


Oh, and when you level-up quickly (more than once per year or so),
your wealth should decrease by about 1/3rd (round up) each time. Not that
it matters to game balance, it just makes more sense. Powerlevellers tend
to exaust their wealth all the time anyway. <shrug>

--
tussock

U'm iuel p jyx yn chycyipwlaf kyd blvlr ebyg ghpw kyd'rl sdbbp slw.