Re: A couple of crazy ideas...

[Wright Frazier <khelek@ns1.cioe.com>]

> 
> After reading the mail so far today (do you people spend any time working? :)
> I was hit with a couple of brainstorms. Let me toss them up to be chewed 
> apart by the pack...
> 
> First, a rather simple, and elegant (IMO) solution to the money problem would
> be local currency. Sure, there's lots of money around... but who knows if
> it's real, or just something similar. Surest way to get around that is to
> have a specific minting. This also makes it hard to throw around large 
> amounts of cash by using GemStones. Picture this scene:
> 
> Joe Mungo, the Warrior goes to pick up the suit of custom-made Steel Plate
> from Jack Munch, the Smith.
> 
> Jack: That'll be 100,000 Silver.
> Joe: (place down a couple of gems) Here ya go.
> Jack: Nice rocks. I only take cash. If it ain't got a Barritt's face on it,
> 	i don't take it.
> 
> This can put a nice limiting factor on economy as well, as money changers 
> won't be able, or willing, to change millions' worth of Silver or Gold to
> any individual. Gem Cutters will examine each rock, and give a value for it
> (how are they so valuable if there are so damned many of them?). In fact,
> each transaction with a moneychanger or GemCutter/Jeweler may well be 
> run through >gasp< our Economy Coordinator, and initialed by him, in a 
> note on the back of each Adventurer's card. It's actually be something to 
> do in Town Actions.

*nod* I'd love to see this.  I believe we've already pretty much established
that Rougterans are not well respected or liked in Geleia at the moment,
this might change with time, but I can easily see their money being worth
less than say coins minted in Liston or Kieron's Watch or Southham.
Have different exchange rates written up for each city's money, and a default
money(rougtero), also may be prices fluxuate a bit? who knows.

Okay, rough example
Liston = Liston Dragon: a silver coin a bit more weighty than the
			standard silver piece.
Kierons Watch = Kieron Thumb: a silver coin a bit smaller than the
			standard silver piece.
Southham = Southham Falcon = a silver piece twice the size of a
			standard silver piece.

The Dragon is worth about twice what the standard silver piece is because
it has the economic backing of Liston behind it.  The Thumb is worth
about the same despite being smaller, be cause it comes from an
established kingdom and is considered a reliable coinage.  The Falcon
is worth less, despite weighing more, about 1/2 of a Thumb because
of an incident last year where many Flacons were found to be mixed
with base metals.  Rougtero's money is worth only by its weight in
silver because it is a political nonentity.

Granted this is a bit crude, but this is very similiar how it worked
in medieval europe with everyone coining different money.
It could be easily adapted and worked, and I like the Gem thing being
run through the econ GM for finding their value and selling them.  No
store keeper in his right mind would just take some gem a guy off
the street handed to him, even if it had a signed and noterized
letter with it(those can be faked).  Correction, he might, if he thought
the gem was worth FAR more than the service.

> 
> -----
> 
> My other idea is one that I've griped about for a while... Rating does not 
> necessarily reflect the true power of an adventurer. Those with a bag of 
> handy items and gizmos are far more powerful than someone with equal rating
> and no special items at all. 

Absolutely does it effect the power of a character, and I would like to
see it effect the rating as well, the question is how?  Khelek at
rate 90 with 3 items of fireball was FAR more combat powerful than
Khelek at rate 140 after he'd lost those items.  A character with
an item of multiple charges of fireball, or 1 or 2 per day fireball
is way more powerful than the equivilant character with no such
item.  Items should reflect power in some way.

Wright