Equipment

Equipment

Wealth and Money

Euro? Dollar? Yen? No… they’ **re not accepted.

In this new economy, the value of old coins is zero except for a limited numismatic historical value.

We could say that after the first coming of the Patrons, the dismantling and destruction of state and economic infrastructure, in the two centuries to come, the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bretton_Woods_system have not been re-proposed, and in fact we struggle in the most important cities to have a https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold_standard.

The extreme difficulty of international transport, limited through dangerous Portals or reverted to using old sailing ships and very rare steam ships and trains, historical remnants of pieces of high modern engineering, have brought trade to work in a simpler, more basic way.

Finance as we knew it no longer exists except in small communities where the citizens themselves invest in local activities. Forget the Stock Exchange, there is no internet, telephone, the few radios belong to Marconi enthusiasts who, like ancient alchemists, manage to produce electricity and use equipment with minimal range held together with precious copper wires.

So we have returned to currency as an expression of its intrinsic value: a coin is worth not because there is a Society, State, Nation that guarantees it, but rather it is worth for the intrinsic value it possesses.

Welcome back, therefore, gold, silver, electrum (silver/gold alloy), or simple copper coins.

When merchants discuss agreements concerning goods or services worth hundreds or thousands of gold coins, the exchange is carried out in gold bars, letters of credit, or valuable goods.

One gold coin is worth ten silver coins, the most commonly used type of coin among the population. A silver coin can cover the daily wage of a laborer and buy a flask of lamp oil or a frugal meal and lodging for a night in a poor inn.

A silver coin is worth ten copper coins, which are commonly used by workers and beggars. A single copper coin can buy a candle or a piece of chalk.

Sometimes, however, among treasures, unusual coins from ancient states appear. These coins often have only historical value if they are not made of precious materials, so the value depends entirely on who is collecting them.

A common coin weighs about ten grams, so fifty coins weigh half a kilogram.

A character who starts playing generally has enough gold coins to purchase the basic elements: some weapons, second-hand armor (the less expensive one), and some miscellaneous equipment. At first level, characters have coins and equipment for a total of about 100 gp.

Coins

Table: Coin Equivalence

Coin	CP	SP	EP	GP	PP
Copper	1	1/10	1/50	1/100	1/1000
Silver	10	1	1/5	1/10	1/100
Electrum	50	5	1	1/2	1/10
Gold	100	10	2	1	1/10
Platinum	1000	100	20	10	1

Usually, payments over 100 gold coins are made in gold ingots of 1, 2, 5 kilograms, equivalent to 100, 200, and 500 gold coins, or better yet in gems. In case of even more substantial sums, it is possible that a letter of credit from some banking institution is issued (but valid in very few and important cities).

Other Wealth - Trade Goods

Merchants usually exchange goods even without the use of coins. To get an idea of commercial transactions, some trade goods are described in the table.

Table: Examples of other wealth

Cost	Item
1 cp	Wheat (0.5 kg)
2 cp	Flour (0.5 kg) or chicken (1)
1 sp	Iron (0.5 kg)
1 gp	Cinnamon (0.5 kg) or goat
2 gp	Ginger or pepper (0.5 kg) or sheep (1)
3 gp	Pig (1)
4 gp	Linen (1 m\textsuperscript
5 gp	Salt or silver (0.5 kg)
10 gp	Silk (1 m) or cow (1)
15 gp	Saffron(0.5 kg)/ox (1)

Also consult the chapter on Encumbrance (pg. in Movement and Transport.

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