(TFT) TFT: Economics

["Dave Seagraves" <dseagraves@austin.rr.com>]

David writes . . .

>     Myself I could never figure out where the nicely organized price
>lists come from.  It would be a strange thing to go into a medieval
>tavern and have the prices framed and mounted on the wall over the bar.
>A certain amount of role-playing is in order to find the price of anything.

   Well . . .  that's a matter of GM style.  I'm sure many players don't
care for roleplaying the haggling for every piece of equipment they buy, but
some like that much detail.  Even with haggling I still like to have a price
list so (as a GM) I know what it's worth before selling it to a character.
   Given the fact that most people can't even read, not bothering to post
the prices makes sense.  But if the Tavernkeeper has any Business Sense at
all he will calculate what his products and services are worth ahead of
time, so he knows what to charge and not lose any money on the deal (and
perhaps even make a bit of profit).

>     A guild like the mercenary, or thieves guild may have price lists
>of weapons or protection.  This seems to me to be a valid expression of
>a guild.  Not price fixing, but price listing.  The availability and
>price of all goods or services offered.  A guild also ensures there will
>be a large supply of raw materials.

   Yes, they could do that for magical ingredients (for example)  but
couldn't the magic market at large take care of the problem all by itself?
   I imagine there's no "going rate" for something as nebulous as protection
from the Thieves' Guild.  I'm sure the perpetrators would ask themselves,
"How much can I muscle out of this shopkeeper and get him to pay without
balking and fighting back?" on a business-by-business basis.  In other
words, "How much can I get away with charging this particular customer?"

>    In the case of the wizards' guild there is the legendary magic
>item creation table.  As one friend put it, who had left TFT and
>then come back 'TFT had a great magic system.'  It was the first
>game to put any science into the creation of magic items.  And the
>list has cost, ingredients, components, fatigue, all the particulars.
>The list also represents what the guild will, and will not do.  Curse
>is a cheep, permanent type spell, that has to be removed by remove
>thrown spells.  No where on the magic item list is there a 'cursed
>item' selection.  It isn't that the wizards guild can't do it.  It's
>that they won't, and they don't want people to know about it.

   Actually the Curse enchantment /is/ on the list on AW27, right between
Sticky Floor and Fireproofing.
   I like the magic item creation system as well.  It beats the hell out of
the nonsensical, nebulous descriptions in AD&D.

>     As far as advantage to a specific character who joins the wizards
>guild I refer everyone to this wonderful post by Dave Seagraves.

   I feel better now.  Time to go summon a demon.  8^)

Dave Seagraves
Seagraves Mutual Fund   dseagraves@austin.rr.com   1 (512) 255-2760
Current fund value: $1.75 per share.


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