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General discussionHow do you prefer your gold, anyway?(46 posts)(46 posts)
(46 posts)
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This is my favourite topic
Posted June 27, 2023
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mqstout: It even opens up a game mechanic where, in some areas/dungeons/plot points, it doesn't happen until you "cash out". It'd still just show as "gold in waiting" or something (maybe with a limit, depending on the kind of dungeon and systems designed around it) until the zone is complete.
This actually reminds me of an Ultima 1 mechanic. In that game, whenever you leave a dungeon, you get HP based on what you killed while in the dungeon.

You can also use your gold to buy HP from a king at a castle.

(Note that HP isn't like in most games; you don't have a max HP stat, and there's no healing in the usual sense as a result. If you lose HP from taking damage, you have to earn more the same way you got it initially. It's like money or food in this regard.)

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Breja: I don't see Geralt fighting the striga with a sack of gold.
Maybe not, but I could see, say, Torneko (from Dragon Quest 4) doing that.

Or Shiren (from Shiren the Wanderer), who can literally throw bags of money at the enemy (as long as you don't let him pick them up normally, as they need to enter your inventory instead of adding from your gold total).

Or Final Fantasy 5's Samurai, who can literally throw money at the enemies to do damage, and it's more cost effective than spending that money on shurikens and having a Ninja throw them?
Post edited June 27, 2023 by dtgreene
Posted June 28, 2023
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BreOl72: You are putting way too much thought into this.

So, which way a game goes for its gratification system, can vastly change the way you (have to) play a game.
Maybe I am putting too much thought into it, but I like playing with levels of abstraction; are those literal treasure chests in the spider lair, or are they actually pockets of spider's silk which contained discarded detritus of past adventurers?
Posted June 28, 2023
Was initially tempted to say barter goods, clearly. But the rest of the discussion did make me think of different sorts of games. I mean, for a complex, "serious" game, it definitely has to be actual goods that seem plausible to be obtainable from the kill, but more lighthearted games, ARPGs or other action-focused games, platformers, those can simplify things to limit themselves to useful goods (which may not necessarily make sense) and what you called inferred value loot.
I strongly favor the complex, "serious" games though, and therefore the plausible drops...
Posted June 28, 2023
Spiders are just jerks. If they have gold, they probably ate someone. Do you need anymore reason than that?
Posted June 28, 2023
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Catventurer: Spiders are just jerks. If they have gold, they probably ate someone. Do you need anymore reason than that?
Spiders drink bodily fluids, but they don't consume solids. So yet actually, there's an investigation to be had.
Posted June 28, 2023
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mqstout: I prefer your second item, "inferred value". Which is also how I run my TTRPGs: It's stupid to itemize out gems, artwork, "skin them for fur", etc. I just convert direct to GP value. Treasure's already hard enough to manage in a TTRPG that the extra layer isn't additive.
It can be interesting, do it once or twice, but otherwise it just becomes a pain.

When we played 2AD&D and doing a dungeon, me and the DM rolled up treasure one time. Took like 15 minutes, not only that most of it ended up being gems, which totaled something like 6,500, which i had to carry around as weight until i got to the next shop i could sell them at. Course since we pre-rolled it ahead of time it was 'You put down a bag of gems, and the dwarf gives you bag of gold', which was a little funny.

If you really were being true on drops, you'd include all equipment including broken equipment (this could be 1000g worth if adventurers or guards) , and then have to sort through what is worth keeping, what you ignore, what you use for firewood, etc, and just isn't worth it. Early on with almost crap/no equipment, drop okay/decent/masterwork items to do upgrades, then go magical/unique items only while everything else is just converted to gold.
Post edited June 28, 2023 by rtcvb32
Posted June 28, 2023
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Darvond: Inferred value: The 30 gold isn't literal, but rather the exchange value of what parts of the spider could be sold in exchange.
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Breja: That rarely works, because usually the spider will drop both gold and parts you can harvest and sell.

Honestly the spider dropping literal gold doesn't bother me much, though that's mostly because I'm just used to the cliche, and the fact.. well, those are game, a lot has to be "gamified" to be fun. A lot depends also on the particular game, the overall mechanics and tone it's going for. For example I actually like the way Bard's Tale (the 2004 one) did it, where items inferior to the ones you're already using were immediately exchanged for gold upon picking them up. But it's definitely not a system that would work in every game.

What does bother me, and that's just me being silly, because compared to the spider carrying around a wallet it's small potatoes, is the fact most RPGs default to using gold coins as basic currency. Like it's normal for every Tom, Dick and Harry in a medieval world to run around with gold in their puch, while actually most lousy bastards would be lucky to see a silver penny. Inflation in those magical kingdoms must be a bitch if a portion of measly stew will cost me a couple gold coins.
In tabletop D&D it's not solely gold pieces, that a Player Character would be carrying, and looking for as a loot drop.
There's Platinum, Electrum, Gold, Silver, and Copper pieces (pp, gp, ep, sp, cp respectively), as well as valuable gems, that a PC would have in their money pouch.
This is the currency coin table for Forgotten Realms D&D

1 platinum piece
= 1 platinum piece
= 10 gold pieces
= 20 electrum pieces
= 100 silver pieces
= 1000 copper pieces

Those values are the same for D&D 5e

Most D&D computer games though, simplify things so only gp is carried and used as money.
Posted June 28, 2023
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JeniSkunk: Most D&D computer games though, simplify things so only gp is carried and used as money.
I believe that the Gold Box games do not do this simplification.

Also, money has weight in them.

By the way, I thought of another interesting example. Progress Quest has enemies drop parts that are then sold for money. This, however, doesn't make the game complicated for the player because everything (except character creation) is done automatically, so it does not impose a cognitive load on the player.
Posted June 28, 2023
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maxpoweruser: When you think about it, it's equally implausible that a giant spider would have staves for entrails
Maybe not a stave, but: what if said giant spider/other monster ate said items and the player retrieves them after defeating said monster?

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mqstout: (Optional) Automatic conversion should become the norm.
Avencast sort of does this: (small spoiler) later in the game you get a scroll that allows you to summon a merchant nearly anywhere you want(besides while fighting, etc). You can then sell off(including auto sell all items marked as "junk" by the player, iirc) your loot. (end spoiler)

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Catventurer: Spiders are just jerks. If they have gold, they probably ate someone.
More reason for the cat-kin to purrsue them in battle, I think.
Post edited June 28, 2023 by GamezRanker
Posted June 28, 2023
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Catventurer: Spiders are just jerks. If they have gold, they probably ate someone. Do you need anymore reason than that?
Maybe you need to play a game with playable spiders?
Posted June 28, 2023
barter definitely. its got some depth to it that way
Posted June 28, 2023
I think this sums it up pretty good!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=urcbTWgituM
Posted June 28, 2023
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Braggadar: So my personal preference, which is flexible and highly personal is wrong then?
She didn't say that at all.
Posted June 28, 2023
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BreOl72: You are putting way too much thought into this.
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Darvond: Maybe I am putting too much thought into it, but I like playing with levels of abstraction; are those literal treasure chests in the spider lair, or are they actually pockets of spider's silk which contained discarded detritus of past adventurers?
Given that we're talking about giant spiders here (so, not necessarily intelligent beings, that would use chests or even just create "pockets of silk") - I would go with remains of unlucky adventurers, that are simply lying around, covered by the spider's silk.

See attachment to get an idea, how the area surrounding that spider may look like.
Now try to imagine some swords, money pouches and helmets, covered under that silk...

To any arachnophobes: you may prefer to NOT click on that link.
Attachments:
arachnophobes_be.jpg (240 Kb)
Posted June 28, 2023
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BreOl72: Given that we're talking about giant spiders here (so, not necessarily intelligent beings, that would use chests or even just create "pockets of silk") - I would go with remains of unlucky adventurers, that are simply lying around, covered by the spider's silk.

See attachment to get an idea, how the area surrounding that spider may look like.
Now try to imagine some swords, money pouches and helmets, covered under that silk...

To any arachnophobes: you may prefer to NOT click on that link.
Yeah, like the spider caves in Avernum! More or less looks like this. And then there's the feared Giant Intelligent Friendly Talking Spiders. (GIFTS) for short.
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This is my favourite topic
Community
General discussionHow do you prefer your gold, anyway?(46 posts)(46 posts)
(46 posts)