On Barter and Trade

May 10, 2010March 17, 2021 / jstater / 2 Comments

Those of you who use the Swords & Wizardry rules probably know that the guidelines for treasure allocation stipulate that there is a 10% chance (i.e. a roll of 10 on 1d10) that coins will be swapped out for gems, jewelry or magic. In general, I love these rules because magic, gems and jewelry remain fairly rare. However, I do feel as though this system leaves out many alternative forms of wealth, i.e. goods. I’m no stickler for realism in my games, but piles and piles of gold coins do stretch plausibility pretty far, and can become pretty boring. Coins were pretty rare things for most medieval folk. In an inventory of one of Charlemagne’s smaller estates, for example, one comes across a mere 13 shillings and large numbers of livestock, household goods, grain and cheese. For this reason, I began swapping out coinage for trade goods on the roll of “1” on 1d10, using the following guidelines for amounts and values. I went ahead and organized the information so one could randomly determine the goods found. Feel free to change values, especially if a particular item is either rare or exceedingly common in a particular region. When adventurers try to sell these trade goods, you can simulate price fluctuations by rolling 1d6, with a 1-2 meaning half the normal value and a 5-6 meaning double the normal value. Obviously, this can also be used for determining the contents of a caravan or merchant cog.

In Place of 100 gold pieces (roll 1d100)
1-2. 1d10 tons of raw wool (20 gp/ton)
3-4. 2d100 ingots of lead (10 lb ingots, 7 sp/ingot)
5-6. 2d100 ingots of iron (10 lb ingots, 1 gp/ingot)
7-8. 1d8 x 100 pounds of buckwheat (25 cp/lb)
9-10. 1d6 x 100 pounds of millet (3 sp/lb)
11-12. 1d6 x 100 pounds of oats (3 sp/lb)
13-14. 1d6 x 100 pounds of rye (3 sp/lb)
15-16. 1d6 x 100 pounds of walnuts (3 sp/lb)
17-18. 1d6 x 100 pounds of yellow (sulfuric) dye (3 sp/lb)
19-20. 1d100 ingots of tin (5 lb ingots, 4 sp/lb)
21-22. 1d4 x 100 pounds of hazelnuts (200 lb), 5 sp/lb
23-24. 1d4 x 100 pounds Red (iron) dye (200 lb), 5 sp/lb
25-26. 1d8 x 10 ingots of steel (5 lb ingots, 6 sp/lb)
27-28. 1d8 x 10 ingots of zinc (5 lb ingots, 8 sp/lb)
29-30. 2d20 ingots of brass (5 lb ingots, 1 gp/lb)
31-32. 2d20 ingots of bronze (5 lb ingots, 1 gp/lb)
33-34. 2d20 ingots of copper (5 lb ingots, 1 gp/lb)
35-36. 4d8 barrels of ale (barrel holds 30 gal., weighs 250 lb, worth 6 gp)
37-38. 2d10 barrels of wine (barrel holds 30 gal., weighs 250 lb, worth 9 gp)
39-40. 2d10 x 10 pounds of barley (1 gp/lb)
41-42. 2d10 x 10 pounds of blue dye (1 gp/lb)
43-44. 2d10 x 10 pounds of coal (1 gp/lb)
45-46. 2d10 x 10 pounds of green dye (1 gp/lb)
47-48. 2d10 x 10 pounds of gum arabic (1 gp/lb)
49-50. 2d10 x 10 pounds of ocher dye (1 gp/lb)
51-52. 2d10 x 10 pounds of chestnuts (1 gp/lb)
53. 2d10 x 10 pounds of cinnamon (1 gp/lb)
54. 2d10 x 10 goats (1 gp/goat)
55. 2d10 x 10 peacock feathers (1 gp/feather)
56. 1d10 x 10 pounds of ginger (2 gp/lb)
57. 1d10 x 10 pounds of lentils (2 gp/lb)
58. 1d10 x 10 pounds of pepper (2 gp/lb)
59. 1d10 x 10 raccoon skins (2 gp/skin)
60. 1d10 x 10 squirrel skins (2 gp/skin)
61. 1d10 x 10 sheep (2 gp/sheep)
62. 1d8 x 10 pounds of jasmine oil (25 sp/lb)
63. 1d6 x 10 pounds of almonds (3 gp/lb)
64. 1d6 x 10 pounds of ambergris (3 gp/lb)
65. 1d6 x 10 pounds of camphor (3 gp/lb)
66. 1d6 x 10 pounds of indigo dye (3 gp/lb)
67. 1d6 x 10 pounds of purple dye (3 gp/lb)
68. 1d6 x 10 pounds of chick peas (3 gp/lb)
69. 1d6 x 10 pigs (3 gp/pig)
70. 1d6 x 10 square yards of velvet (10 lb per yard, worth 3 gp/sq yd)
71. 1d6 x 10 deer skins (4 gp/skin)
72. 1d6 x 10 gallons of honey (gallon weighs 12 lb gal; 4 gp/gal.)
73. 1d6 x 10 square yards of linen (5 lb per yard, 4 gp/sq yd)
74. 1d6 x 10 pounds of vermilion dye (4 gp/lb)
75. 2d20 bear skins (5 gp/skin)
76. 2d20 square yards of lace (3 lb per yd, 5 gp/sq yd)
77. 2d20 pounds of rice (5 gp/lb)
78. 2d20 pounds of salt (5 gp/lb)
79. 4d8 sheep skins (6 gp/skin)
80. 2d12 pounds of calamus (8 gp/lb)
81. 2d12 marten skins (8 gp/skin)
82. 2d12 pounds of mercury (8 gp/lb)
83. 2d12 wolf skins (8 gp/skin)
84. 2d10 pounds of pine nuts (10 gp/lb)
85. 1d10 ingots of silver (2 lb ingot, worth 20 gp)
86. 2d10 square yards of silk (10 gp/sq yd)
87. 2d10 cattle (10 gp/cattle)
88. 2d10 cigars (10 gp/cigar)
89. 2d10 coconuts (10 gp/coconut)
90. Sable skin (9), 11 gp/skin
91. 2d8 mink skins (12 gp/skin)
92. 2d6 fox skins (14 gp/skin)
93. 2d6 pounds of cardamon (15 gp/lb)
94. 2d6 panther skins (15 gp/skin)
95. 2d6 pounds of pistachios (15 gp/lb)
96. 2d6 pounds of saffron (15 gp/lb)
97. 2d6 shark skins (15 gp/skin)
98. 2d6 pounds of cloves (15 gp/lb)
99. 2d6 oxen (15 gp/ox)
100. 1d8 big cat (jaguar, leopard, lion or tiger) skins (25 gp/skin)

In Place of 1,000 gold pieces (roll 1d2 and 1d20)
1-1. 1d20 casks of molasses (barrel holds 25 gal., weighs 300 lb, 100 gp each)
1-2. 1d4 x 100 pounds of rice (5 gp/lb)
1-3. 1d4 x 100 pounds of salt (5 gp/lb)
1-4. 4d8 casks of olive oil (cask holds 12 gal., weighs 100 lb, 60 gp each)
1-5. 2d12 x 10 marten skins (8 gp/skin)
1-6. 2d12 x 10 wolf skins (8 gp/skin)
1-7. 2d10 x 10 pounds of pine nuts (10 gp/lb)
1-8. 1d100 ingots of silver (2 lb ingot, 20 gp each)
1-9. 2d8 casks of sesame oil (cask holds 12 gal., weighs 100 lb each, 120 gp each)
1-10. 2d10 x 10 square yards of silk (12 lb per yard, 10 gp/sq yd)
1-11. 2d10 x 10 cattle (10 gp/cattle)
1-12. 2d10 x 10 cigars (10 gp/cigar)
1-13. 2d10 x 10 coconuts (10 gp/coconut)
1-14. 2d10 x 10 sable skins (11 gp/skin)
1-15. 2d8 x 10 mink skins (12 gp/skin)
1-16. 2d6 x 10 fox skins (14 gp/skin)
1-17. 2d6 x 10 pounds of cardamon (15 gp/lb)
1-18. 2d6 x 10 panther skins (15 gp/skin)
1-19. 2d6 x 10 pounds of pistachios (15 gp/lb)
1-20. 2d6 x 10 pounds of saffron (15 gp/lb)
2-1. 2d6 x 10 shark skins (15 gp/skin)
2-2. 2d6 x 10 pounds of cloves (15 gp/lb)
2-3. 2d6 x 10 oxen (15 gp/ox)
2-4. 1d10 x 10 pounds of cashews (20 gp/lb)
2-5. 2d8 x 10 big cat (jaguar, leopard, lion or tiger) skins (25 gp/skin)
2-6. 2d8 x 10 pounds of jasmine oil (25 gp/lb)
2-7. 1d6 x 10 pounds of groundnuts (30 gp/lb)
2-8. 1d6 x 10 pounds of jujubes (30 gp/lb)
2-9. 1d6 x 10 pounds of sandalwood oil (40 gp/lb)
2-10. 1d4 x 10 pounds of dried coconut (50 gp/lb)
2-11. 1d4 x 10 pounds of myrobalans (50 gp/lb)
2-12. 1d4 x 10 pounds of tea (50 gp/lb)
2-13. 1d30 pounds of dried lotus fruit (70 gp/lb)
2-14. 1d30 pounds of maple sugar (75 gp/lb)
2-15. 2d10 pounds of galingale (80 gp/lb)
2-16. 2d10 pounds of black walnuts (100 gp/lb)
2-17. 2d10 pounds of cocoa (100 gp/lb)
2-18. 2d10 pounds of fagara (100 gp/lb)
2-19. 1d6 ingots of gold (3 lb ingots, 300 gp each)
2-20. 2d10 pounds of tobacco (100 gp/lb)

In Place of 5,000 gold pieces (roll 1d3 and 1d12)
1-1. 4d8 x 10 pounds of groundnuts (30 gp/lb)
1-2. 4d8 x 10 pounds of jujubes (30 gp/lb)
1-3. 2d10 x 10 pounds of dried coconut (50 gp/lb)
1-4. 2d10 x 10 pounds of myrobalans (50 gp/lb)
1-5. 2d10 x 10 pounds of tea (50 gp/lb)
1-6. 2d6 x 10 pounds of dried lotus fruit (70 gp/lb)
1-7. 2d6 x 10 pounds of maple sugar (75 gp/lb)
1-8. 2d6 x 10 pounds of galingale (80 gp/lb)
1-9. 1d10 x 10 pounds of black walnuts (100 gp/lb)
1-10. 1d10 x 10 pounds of cocoa (100 gp/lb)
1-11. 4d8 ingots of gold (3 lb ingots, 100 gp each)
1-12. 1d10 x 10 pounds of tobacco (100 gp/lb)
2-1. 1d10 x 10 vanilla beans (100 gp/bean)
2-2. 1d6 x 10 pounds of ginger (150 gp/lb)
2-3. 1d6 x 10 pounds of pecans (150 gp/lb)
2-4. 1d6 x 10 pounds of sasparilla (150 gp/lb)
2-5. 1d6 x 10 pounds of frankincense (160 gp/lb)
2-6. 1d6 x 10 pounds of myrrh (160 gp/lb)
2-7. 1d6 x 10 pounds of butternuts (200 gp/lb)
2-8. 1d6 x 10 pounds of hickory nuts (200 gp/lb)
2-9. 1d4 x 10 pounds of cubeb (250 gp/lb)
2-10. 1d4 x 10 pounds of manioc flour (250 gp/lb)
2-11. 1d30 pounds of chili powder (300 gp/lb)
2-12. 1d30 pounds of dried pineapple (300 gp/lb)
3-1. 1d30 pounds of pumpkin seeds (320 gp/lb)
3-2. 1d30 pounds of zedoary (320 gp/lb)
3-3. 1d20 pounds of mace (400 gp/lb)
3-4. 1d20 pounds of turmeric (400 gp/lb)
3-5. 1d20 pounds of nutmeg (500 gp/lb)
3-6. 1d20 pounds of paprika (500 gp/lb)
3-7. 2d8 casks of fine wine (cask holds 12 gal., weighs 100 lb, worth 600 gp)
3-8. 2d8 pounds of pimentos (650 gp/lb)
3-9. 1d4 ingots of platinum (2 lb ingots, 2,000 gp each)
3-10. 1d6 pounds of long peppers (1,500 gp/lb)
3-11. 1d6 pounds of tamarind pulp (1,500 gp/lb)
3-12. 1 ingot of mithral (1 lb ingot, 4,000 gp)

I think the fun of using these items is that they challenge player’s assumptions. Most players are keyed in on the shiny stuff, so they’ll have to think a bit to avoid passing over something valuable like pimentos. Of course, some might see this as a dirty trick, and they might be right, but I figure its no dirtier a trick than a mimic or collapsing staircase. If you want to bypass some of the larger logistical headaches (i.e. several tons of raw wool), then just use the last 20 or 30 items on each list.

Image of wine merchants from Economic History Blog.

On Urban Adventures – Part Four

May 7, 2010March 14, 2021 / jstater

Manorial Villages
City-states are surrounded by a patchwork of manorial villages. About 15 percent of a city-state’s manorial villages are held by the prince, 60 percent by aristocrats and 25 percent by the church.

Each manorial village consists of a manor (often a castle) and approximately 4 hamlets. Each village is 1,500 acres in size and supports a lord, his family and retainers and about 1,200 peasants. Each manor is expected to provide one knight, one sergeant and eight men-at-arms for service in the prince’s army. Each manor also contributes 12 peasant militia wearing padded armor and armed with spears. Each manor is considered a parish and is served by a parish priest.

Upon approaching a manor, a party of adventurers should be challenged by the manor’s lord and his sergeant (or by the sergeant and a few men-at-arms). They ask the adventurers their business, do their best to assess whether they pose a threat (and deal with that threat if necessary) and may charge them a toll. Since manors are approximately 1 to 3 miles apart, a party will pay many tolls while traveling through civilization.

Near a settlement, 95% of lords will be human nobles with no class. The remainder will either be low-level heirs of name level (i.e. level 9 and up) adventurers or actual name level adventurers.

Manorial villages do not have inns or taverns. Instead, one might lodge with a yeoman or the lord of the manor. The divine laws of Jove demand such hospitality be shown and the traditions of chivalry dictate that lords show hospitality to fellow knights. In place of taverns, peasants open their homes to customers when they finish brewing a batch of ale, cider or wine.

Events
In some cases, a Referee will want to use the city-state as a place for PCs to relax, heal and purchase supplies. Other times, a Referee will make visiting the city-state more memorable by introducing drama and conflict. In such cases, you might choose one of the following events.

Disaster
The city is going through a drought or flood. Food prices are 5 times higher than normal and people are starving.

Vistas: Citizens wailing in the streets, dead bodies littering the streets, hungry men and women boiling shoe leather and grass, a distinct lack of livestock, rats everywhere, priests in sack-cloth imploring the gods for deliverance

Fire
The city is ablaze. It will burn for several days unless put out by a strong rain or magic.

Vistas: A thick column of smoke rising into the sky, the screams of the injured, the wail of displaced peasants mourning the loss of life and property, fire brigades, lines of men, women and children conveying buckets of water from wells, fountains and the nearest body of water, a fine ash covering everything, homeless folk camped outside the city, clerics attending to the wounded and heartbroken, pick pockets working the crowds

Peasant Revolt
The peasants are rioting and executing nobles and merchants because they’re fed up with their lot in life.

Vistas: Bands of 3d6 angry club-wielding peasants, aristocratic heads on pikes, burning buildings, looted shops that would normally be frequented by peasants, an exodus of carriages, noblemen disguised as women trying to escape, knights putting peasants to the sword, rabble rousers being tortured or burned at the stake.

Plague
The city-state is infected by a plague. PCs must make constitution saves each day to avoid fatigue and 1d6 points of damage. Alternately, the city is dealing with a plague of spawn-creating undead (see random encounters).

Vistas: Hundreds of coughing, retching people, corpses littering the streets, priests doing their best to fight the demonic infection, censor-bearers, masked doctors, carts piled high with dead bodies, mass graves being dug outside the city, nobles fleeing the city-state for their manors

Shortage
The city is going through a shortage of the first thing an adventurer tries to purchase, with the prices ten times higher than normal and then only available from the black market (i.e. den of thieves).

Vistas: Smugglers traveling by night, men shouting offers in the streets, closed shutters and barred doors, mobs of citizens converging on shops

Siege
The city is under siege by a rival city or by the local barbarians. Assume from one to four times as many attackers as defenders. Siege engines are present (or, in the case of some barbarians, siege beasts or giants).

Vistas: Bands of mercenaries raiding the countryside for food, columns of smoke rising to the heavens, loud speeches rallying the troops, the crack of boulders hitting fortifications, displaced peasants begging by the roadside, the colorful pavilions of the besieging captains.

Tournament
The city is in the midst of a tournament. There will be jousting, melee and archery contests as well as feasting and dancing. There may also be athletic competitions and team sports. Clerics of Minerva and Hercules will be on hand to manage the proceedings. A champion for each of the events (level 6 to 12) should be generated.

Vistas: Strolling minstrels and jongleurs, peddlers selling trinkets and bits of roasted meat and vegetables, colorful pavilions and banners, processions of knights in gleaming armor, the crack of lance on shield, the roar of the crowd.

Random Encounters
While monsters are more common in the wilderness than in civilization, they can also be encountered in a myriad of forms. Assume a 1 in 6 chance of a challenging encounter every time the adventurers turn a corner, with that chance doubled at night to 2 in 6. Roll 1d12 to determine the level of NPCs encountered in this manner.

Daytime Encounters
1-1. Assassins (1d6)
1-2. Bards (1d6)
1-3. Clerics (1d6)
1-4. Doppelganger, in human guise
2-1. Giant flies (2d6)
2-2. Giant rats (3d6)
2-3. Illusionist, playing the charlatan
2-4. Magic-users (1d6) or psychics (1d6)
3-1. Men-at-arms (2d6) or fighting-men (1d6)
3-2. Moneylender with 1d6 men-at-arms
3-3. Noble procession* or paladin
3-4. Sailors (2d6) or barbarians (1d6)
4-1. Students (2d6), drunk and disorderly
4-2. Tax Collector and 1d6 men-at-arms
4-3. Thieves (1d6)
4-4. Wererats (2d6), in human guise

Night Encounters
1-1. Assassins (1d6)
1-2. Clerics (1d6), chaotic cultists
1-3. Doppelganger
1-4. Flesh golem, berserk
2-1. Ghouls (2d6)
2-2. Giant flies (2d6)
2-3. Giant rats (3d6)
2-4. Magic-users (1d6) or psychics (1d6)
3-1. Men-at-arms (2d6) or fighting-men (1d6)
3-2. Sailors (2d6) or barbarians (1d6)
3-3. Spectres (1d6)
3-4. Students (2d6), drunk and disorderly
4-1. Succubus
4-2. Thieves (1d6)
4-3. Vampire
4-4. Wererats (2d6), in human guise

* A noble procession consists of a nobleman and his wife in some sort of conveyance, anything from a sedan chair to a carriage. They are accompanied by 1d6+6 heavily armed and armored men-at-arms, a similarly equipped sergeant, and servants as needed.

Random Village Table

April 25, 2010March 16, 2021 / jstater / 4 Comments

Stocking dozens of large, sandbox style hex-maps is much easier when random tables come into play. A few months ago I put together a large spreadsheet file that can stock any size map with monster lairs, demi-human lairs, strongholds, ruins, dungeons and villages. What follows are charts I put together to create a random village, slightly modified since the spreadsheet can generate random number in any range, whereas these need to work with a set of dice.

Matt’s Random Village Generator

How many live in the village?

Roll 1d6 x 100

What do the villagers do? (Roll 1d6)

1. Fishermen
2. Herdsmen
3. Hunters
4. Miners
5. Peasants
6. Woodsmen

What are the villagers like? (Roll 1d30)

1. Ragged
2. Foppish
3. Swarthy
4. Fair-skinned
5. Chaotic
6. Lawful
7. Jovial
8. Somber
9. Militant
10. Peaceful
11. Licentious
12. Pious
13. Lanky
14. Stout
15. Dour
16. Hard-working
17. Thrifty
18. Lazy
19. Honest
20. Deceitful
21. Ill-tempered
22. Loutish
23. Friendly
24. Rude
25. Diplomatic
26. Literate
27. Cowardly
28. Bombastic
29. Wrathful
30. Meek

What do the villagers live in? (Roll 1d6)

1. Huts
2. Houses
3. Longhouses
4. Cottages
5. Domes (1 in 6 chance of domes, otherwise re-roll on this table with 1d4)
6. Towers (1 in 6 chance of towers, otherwise re-roll on this table with 1d4)

What are the dwelling made of? (Roll 1d8)

1. Adobe
2. Bricks
3. Stone
4. Thatch / wicker
5. Timber / logs
6. Wattle & daub
7. Decorative stone, i.e. marble, porphyry (1 in 6 chance, otherwise re-roll on this table with 1d6)
8. Metal, i.e. iron, bronze (1 in 6 chance, otherwise re-roll on this table with 1d6)

What protects the village from invasion? (Roll 1d6)
(note, 1 in 6 chance of moat, 1 in 6 chance of watch towers)

1. Thicket
2. Earthen rampart
3. Wooden palisade
4. Stone wall
5. Metal wall (1 in 10 chance, otherwise re-roll on this table with 1d4)
6. Geodesic dome (1 in 100 chance, otherwise re-roll on this table with 1d4)

Where do the villagers get their water? (Roll 1d4)

1. Stream / river
2. Well
3. Cisterns
4. Aqueduct or reservoir

Who rules the village? (Roll 1d6)

1. Council of elders
2. Mayor and aldormen
3. Aristocrat / noble
4. Reeve of the nearest royalty
5. NPC with class levels (1 in 6 chance, otherwise re-roll on this table with 1d4)
6. Monster (1 in 10 chance, otherwise re-roll on this table with 1d4)

Does the village have a specialist? (Roll 1d10)

1. Alchemist
2. Armorer or Bowyer
3. Den of assassins
4. Guide
5. Healer
6. Sage
7. Temple with cleric or druid
8. Tavern
9. Inn
10. No specialist

What are the villagers known for throughout the land? (Roll 1d6 and 1d6)

1-1. Their fine beer / ale
1-2. Their fine wine
1-3. Their legendary livestock
1-4. Their beauty
1-5. Their cunning
1-6. Their brawn
2-1. Their vigor
2-2. Their magical abilities
2-3. Their fine orchards
2-4. Their skill at weaving
2-5. Their skill at stoneworking
2-6. Their skill at woodworking
3-1. Their skill at smithcraft
3-2. Their domesticated monsters
3-3. Their strange customs
3-4. Their outlandish costumes
3-5. Their thick accents
3-6. Their impenetrable keep
4-1. Their vampire problem
4-2. Their melodious voices
4-3. Their were-(fill in the blank) problem
4-4. Their athleticism
4-5. Their love of gambling
4-6. Their haunted manor
5-1. Their suspicious lack of crime
5-2. The guardian spirit that protects the village
5-3. The friendly neighborhood druid who stops by now and again
5-4. Their fey allies
5-5. Their fey tormentors
5-6. Their awful weather
6-1. Their rare herbs
6-2. Their outstanding breads and pastries
6-3. Their love of a good donnybrook (i.e. the fight scene from The Quiet Man)
6-4. Their xenophobia
6-5. Their visitations from beyond
6-6. Their dark secrets