Iituem
2007-02-12, 08:45 AM
For those annoying entrepreneurial players who like to have strange non-adventuring incomes, or for when your party suddenly finds themselves in ownership of a plot of land.
I was thinking about how to simplify the stats for long-term investments within the D&D realm (setting up businesses etc) so as to avoid excessive mechanics and simultaneously avoid breaking the system. This would prove useful for those high-level PCs who try and rule plots of land. I came up with a few scratch rules and want your opinion as to whether they could work in the game:
A long-term investment (property, business etc) will make a percentage profit on its initial investment or total worth (whichever is higher) depending on how successful the business is that year. In general, the following guidelines allow for DM rulings:
{table=head]Business Status|Percent Profit
Failing|
-20%
Poor|
-10%
Unsuccessful|
0%
Underdeveloped|
+5%
Successful|
+10%
Very Successful|
+20%
Wildly Successful|
+30%
[/table]
Generally, most good businesses manage 10% profit on the initial investment or current worth. A business very well taken care of could make 20%. Only a business being very well taken care of with an exceptional market (think modern day drug companies) can manage a 30% profit. These rules apply to property, land and businesses equally.
Generally, only a fraction of profits translate into returns to the character. Unless the character is running the business himself (unlikely, as he will be off adventuring) at least some of the profit will be given as a share to the caretaker of the business/property/land. The remainder can be taken directly by the character or invested back into the business (increasing its overall worth and return).
To avoid characters simply investing in a business, reaping rewards for a couple of years, then selling it back off, assume that the initial worth of the investment is equal to half the money initially put into it. For example, a warehouse bought for 10,000gp would have an initial worth of 5000gp. If the characters managed 10% profit a year (and kept all the profit) it would take them five years to get back the the investment if they then immediately sold the warehouse again (because the profit is based on the initial investment, not the current value). That said, if they invested the full 10% from the first six years back into the warehouse, the value would exceed the initial investment and next year's 10% profit would be 1,100gp instead (assuming the business can afford to grow).
Assume that all businesses break even (0%) and then apply the following modifiers to determine success.
{table=head]Factors affecting business|Profit Adjustment
Poor Location|
-10%
Good Location|
+5%
Loyal Client Base|
+5%
Disloyal Client Base|
-10%
Common Goods|
-5%
Exotic Goods|
+15%
Contraband Goods|
+50%
Easy to Supply|
+5%
Difficult to Supply|
-10%
High Security Requirement|
-10%
Incompetent Caretaker|
-10%
Competent Caretaker|
+5%
Low Demand for Business|
-10%
High Demand for Business|
+5%
Business Too Small to Supply Market|
-5%
Business Too Large to Supply Market|
-10%
Owner is Lawful|
+5%
Owner is Chaotic|
-5%
Owner is Good|
+10%
Owner is Evil|
-10%
Caretaker is Good|
+5%
Caretaker is Evil|
-5%
[/table]
It is up to the DM to decide whether or not a caretaker/character is skilled enough to run a certain business, but bear in mind that a larger, more complex business is harder to run. Lawful owners tend to produce more stable businesses, whilst Good owners tend to encourage better production from their workers. Although contraband businesses are typically very lucrative (+50% profit) in theory, they tend to suffer client disloyalty, high security requirements and are often led by evil men, resulting in a net profit of 20% and a good chance the business may be stormed by the authorities (unless they take a cut of the profit regardless). Not all of the categories apply (one can have a fairly good location, fairly loyal clients and sufficiently competent caretakers, for example) and some cancel each other out (common goods such as grain may still be in high demand).
An ideal business has a good location, loyal client base, a competent caretaker and a lawful good owner. These qualities tend to remain the same, whereas others (such as supply and demand) will vary with the tide of the day.
Land ownership: PCs may find themselves the owners of land, be it through royal assent, purchase or force of arms. To simulate their profit from this investment, calculate the annual profit using the adjustments above, save that the initial value of the land is the same as they buy/acquire it for (not 50%) and that the base profit is 10%, not 0% (land is big money). In addition to the above factors, apply the modifiers below to determine profit.
{table=head]Factors affecting business|Profit Adjustment
Poor Soil|
-10%
Good Soil|
+10%
Mineral Poor|
-10%
Mineral Rich|
+10%
Wood Shortage|
-10%
Plentiful Lumber|
+10%
Remote Location|
-10%
Good Trade Location|
+15%
Long-Term Peace|
+20%
Stable Community|
+10%
Civil Unrest/Instability|
-10%
State of Conflict|
-20%
Exotic Resources|
+10%
Criminal Haven|
+20%
[/table]
Remote locations are distant from existing trade routes and generally hard to reach (an isolated community in the mountains, for example) whereas locations with access to good trade routes are easy to reach by means of roads, waterways or sea, possibly located near other centres of trade (a port city, or a central city with a good road network between itself and sister cities).
A place can qualify for long-term peace if it has not been troubled by war or raiding for 5 years or more. Stable communities are generally unwilling to rise up against their rulers and have good law enforcement and a low crime rate. Unstable or restless communities tend to harbour resentment towards their leadership and probably have serious crime issues. Communities in a state of conflict have been raided at least once in the year or may be in the middle of an ongoing war.
Exotic resources are things like emeralds, spices and mithril (as well as arcane reagants). These may well imply another modifier (a town with mithril deposits would be mineral rich) in which case those modifiers stack.
Places that harbour criminals (pirate dens, bandit towns, smuggler havens etc) gain a significant boost to income from their stolen loot, but almost certainly suffer from instability (if they did not already) and such places (if they did qualify as one in the first place) cannot be centres of trade. For underdeveloped locations already suffering troubles, harbouring pirates may provide a solution, but it is generally a poor idea for those inclined to grow.
Profit put back into the land represents its growth as a result of lesser taxation - land is improved, more citizens are born or immigrate to the community and infrastructure and trade is improved.
I was thinking about how to simplify the stats for long-term investments within the D&D realm (setting up businesses etc) so as to avoid excessive mechanics and simultaneously avoid breaking the system. This would prove useful for those high-level PCs who try and rule plots of land. I came up with a few scratch rules and want your opinion as to whether they could work in the game:
A long-term investment (property, business etc) will make a percentage profit on its initial investment or total worth (whichever is higher) depending on how successful the business is that year. In general, the following guidelines allow for DM rulings:
{table=head]Business Status|Percent Profit
Failing|
-20%
Poor|
-10%
Unsuccessful|
0%
Underdeveloped|
+5%
Successful|
+10%
Very Successful|
+20%
Wildly Successful|
+30%
[/table]
Generally, most good businesses manage 10% profit on the initial investment or current worth. A business very well taken care of could make 20%. Only a business being very well taken care of with an exceptional market (think modern day drug companies) can manage a 30% profit. These rules apply to property, land and businesses equally.
Generally, only a fraction of profits translate into returns to the character. Unless the character is running the business himself (unlikely, as he will be off adventuring) at least some of the profit will be given as a share to the caretaker of the business/property/land. The remainder can be taken directly by the character or invested back into the business (increasing its overall worth and return).
To avoid characters simply investing in a business, reaping rewards for a couple of years, then selling it back off, assume that the initial worth of the investment is equal to half the money initially put into it. For example, a warehouse bought for 10,000gp would have an initial worth of 5000gp. If the characters managed 10% profit a year (and kept all the profit) it would take them five years to get back the the investment if they then immediately sold the warehouse again (because the profit is based on the initial investment, not the current value). That said, if they invested the full 10% from the first six years back into the warehouse, the value would exceed the initial investment and next year's 10% profit would be 1,100gp instead (assuming the business can afford to grow).
Assume that all businesses break even (0%) and then apply the following modifiers to determine success.
{table=head]Factors affecting business|Profit Adjustment
Poor Location|
-10%
Good Location|
+5%
Loyal Client Base|
+5%
Disloyal Client Base|
-10%
Common Goods|
-5%
Exotic Goods|
+15%
Contraband Goods|
+50%
Easy to Supply|
+5%
Difficult to Supply|
-10%
High Security Requirement|
-10%
Incompetent Caretaker|
-10%
Competent Caretaker|
+5%
Low Demand for Business|
-10%
High Demand for Business|
+5%
Business Too Small to Supply Market|
-5%
Business Too Large to Supply Market|
-10%
Owner is Lawful|
+5%
Owner is Chaotic|
-5%
Owner is Good|
+10%
Owner is Evil|
-10%
Caretaker is Good|
+5%
Caretaker is Evil|
-5%
[/table]
It is up to the DM to decide whether or not a caretaker/character is skilled enough to run a certain business, but bear in mind that a larger, more complex business is harder to run. Lawful owners tend to produce more stable businesses, whilst Good owners tend to encourage better production from their workers. Although contraband businesses are typically very lucrative (+50% profit) in theory, they tend to suffer client disloyalty, high security requirements and are often led by evil men, resulting in a net profit of 20% and a good chance the business may be stormed by the authorities (unless they take a cut of the profit regardless). Not all of the categories apply (one can have a fairly good location, fairly loyal clients and sufficiently competent caretakers, for example) and some cancel each other out (common goods such as grain may still be in high demand).
An ideal business has a good location, loyal client base, a competent caretaker and a lawful good owner. These qualities tend to remain the same, whereas others (such as supply and demand) will vary with the tide of the day.
Land ownership: PCs may find themselves the owners of land, be it through royal assent, purchase or force of arms. To simulate their profit from this investment, calculate the annual profit using the adjustments above, save that the initial value of the land is the same as they buy/acquire it for (not 50%) and that the base profit is 10%, not 0% (land is big money). In addition to the above factors, apply the modifiers below to determine profit.
{table=head]Factors affecting business|Profit Adjustment
Poor Soil|
-10%
Good Soil|
+10%
Mineral Poor|
-10%
Mineral Rich|
+10%
Wood Shortage|
-10%
Plentiful Lumber|
+10%
Remote Location|
-10%
Good Trade Location|
+15%
Long-Term Peace|
+20%
Stable Community|
+10%
Civil Unrest/Instability|
-10%
State of Conflict|
-20%
Exotic Resources|
+10%
Criminal Haven|
+20%
[/table]
Remote locations are distant from existing trade routes and generally hard to reach (an isolated community in the mountains, for example) whereas locations with access to good trade routes are easy to reach by means of roads, waterways or sea, possibly located near other centres of trade (a port city, or a central city with a good road network between itself and sister cities).
A place can qualify for long-term peace if it has not been troubled by war or raiding for 5 years or more. Stable communities are generally unwilling to rise up against their rulers and have good law enforcement and a low crime rate. Unstable or restless communities tend to harbour resentment towards their leadership and probably have serious crime issues. Communities in a state of conflict have been raided at least once in the year or may be in the middle of an ongoing war.
Exotic resources are things like emeralds, spices and mithril (as well as arcane reagants). These may well imply another modifier (a town with mithril deposits would be mineral rich) in which case those modifiers stack.
Places that harbour criminals (pirate dens, bandit towns, smuggler havens etc) gain a significant boost to income from their stolen loot, but almost certainly suffer from instability (if they did not already) and such places (if they did qualify as one in the first place) cannot be centres of trade. For underdeveloped locations already suffering troubles, harbouring pirates may provide a solution, but it is generally a poor idea for those inclined to grow.
Profit put back into the land represents its growth as a result of lesser taxation - land is improved, more citizens are born or immigrate to the community and infrastructure and trade is improved.