Alchemy was changed because brewing was tied to time (which was, on at least one occasion, extended between events) and because potions are semi-permanent, transferable objects. It still required points and skills.
The current system is open ended and does allow for growth – but that growth is by no means infinite. GM’s at both Final Haven and Winter Haven have used data from the game world and player economy to set limits on total productivity. As to the point that an established character would have an advantage over a new one, yes, just as any established character would have an advantage in terms of treasure gained, items found, friends and allies amassed, etc.
It’s important to remember that the economic system doesn't exist in a vacuum. If a new player were to come in, acquire a territory and have that territory raided by a more established player, they would not be powerless to do anything about it. Economic wealth doesn't directly translate into in-game power, and it wouldn't be long before that established player woke up with a knife in their back. Also remember that the concentration of wealth I enjoyed as Korrigan was only possible with the willing participation of numerous players. No fewer than 10 PC’s were willing to manage holdings for me and the town, and without them I would have been unable to continue my economic dominance. That arrangement came about because of in-game roleplaying and has nothing to do with the system – nor should the system be expected to correct for it.
The purpose of the economic system is to provide for resource inputs into a game that represents coin and commodities in a semi-realistic way. It also exists to give those players who enjoy such a thing the chance to build wealth and assets while effecting the game world.
Now, to Kiel’s point, I agree that the economy needs to be more accessible and understandable for all PC’s. One of the ways we’re dealing with that is by using Haven’s new prosperity to remove the need for personal upkeep. This will free a large percentage of the player base from having to deal with the economy at all, since the majority of their other needs will be met through personal income and treasure.
A second way we’re dealing with these issues is by bringing Phil on to make the economic system consistent across both chapters. This has the added benefit of freeing Jared to engage in the roleplaying aspects of the economy and allowing us to make that a more rewarding experience for all involved.
Lastly, we’re hoping that the new rulebook project will help in making the system itself more understandable for everyone. I don’t feel the system is overly opaque or complex, but if people aren’t able to understand it, then we need to do a better job of explaining it.
To that end, please take a look at the following write-up. Let me know if it helps you understand the system or leaves you as lost as you were before. If there is anything that is unclear, let me know about it and share any suggestions you might have in making it more accessible.
Let’s look at this step by step. If a character is interested in acquiring a Holding, they must go out into game and find one. There is no absolute guarantee of success, but roleplaying with NPC’s and helping people are generally the most likely routes to finding a Holding.
Once a potential Holding is found, it takes some combination of roleplaying and investment to acquire it. This can be a quest, flat cash, dating the NPC’s ugly child, etc. If the PC is successful in this, they take control of the Holding.
Every Holding has between one and three Production Areas. The number of Production Areas is just a measure of the holding’s capacity to produce, with holdings that have more Production Areas being more potentially productive than those with fewer production areas.
Upon acquisition of the holding, the PC will learn how many Production Areas the holding possesses, which resources can be produced by the holding and how many Workers are currently available. PC’s will receive a holding check-out sheet that gives them this information and allows them to assign their Production Areas to one of the resources that the holding is capable of producing. At check-out the PC assigns each of their Production Areas to one of the available resources. Assigning more than one Production Area to the same resource will result in increased yield for both Production Areas.
For a holding to be productive, it must have 10 available Workers for each Production Area the PC wishes to assign. Should the PC acquire additional Workers for their holding, extra Workers can be assigned to each Production Area and will generate additional resources. Every five additional Workers assigned to a Production Area will generate one additional resource of the assigned type (to a maximum of 10 additional Workers per Production Area). Should the PC have less than 10 workers for a Production Area, the area will receive a 10% production penalty for each missing Worker. Acquiring Workers is done through a combination of roleplaying and investment. Regional Advisors, along with the Research and Investigate skills, can also be helpful in finding and acquiring Workers for a holding.
The amount of resources each holding produces is determined by two main factors: the number of Production Areas assigned to a given Resource and Production Value of that Resource. Each Resource within a holding has a Production Value, meaning that some holdings will be better suited to producing specific resources even if they are capable of producing others. These Production Values generally range between 1 and 4, but may be higher in exceptional cases. The Production Value of the Resources within a holding will not be known to the PC at first, but can be learned by either hiring a Regional Advisor or using the Research or Investigate skills. Additionally, the Production Value of Resources in new holdings may begin low and increase over time.
PC’s can improve the Production Value of their holding’s Resources by acquiring both “Tools” and “Knowledge” for each Resource. The PC does this by first using the Research or Investigate skills (or hiring a Regional Advisor) to learn how much it will take to purchase Tools for a given Resource. It requires a second use of Research or Investigate to determine the cost of Knowledge, but the PC may learn this information before actually investing in Tools. Tools and Knowledge must be purchased for each Resource and must also be purchased in sequential order. Acquiring Tools will improve the Production Value of a Resource by 1 point, and acquiring Knowledge will improve the Production Value of a Resource by 2 points.
In addition to the main factors, there are some actions that can be taken in-game to provide small positive bonuses to a Holding’s production. These include, but are not limited to: providing military protection for the holding, roleplaying with the NPCs associated with the Holding, using the Favor Wealth Bonus on the NPC’s in a Holding, and completing quests that benefit the Holding. Likewise, some in-game actions can result in small negative penalties, such as failing to defend a Holding and neglecting the NPC’s within. The exact level of these bonuses and penalties is tracked by the GM staff, but is generally not available to the players. While the precise numbers are not available, the PC may discover the factors benefitting or disadvantaging their holding by roleplaying with the Holding’s NPC’s, using the Research or Investigate skills or hiring a Regional Advisor.
