How does your party do loot?

[Jeramiahh]

So, this came up in a recent discussion with a friend... how does your group handle loot?

In all three groups I've been a part of, we use a very socialist method; loot is acquired, and anything not immediately usable goes to party loot, until it can be sold, and then items are purchased using the party's gold, as needed for the general party's benefit.

My friend, on the other hand, divides loot equally; loot you obtain counts towards your total, and everyone gets an equal share, depending on what gets sold and what not.

So, I ask you, which is superior? What does your group use? Why?

[Sstoopidtallkid]

My groups have generally gone with "everyone gets an equal value of loot, who gets what is determined by what's availible", like your friend does. So if Barb the Barbarian, Wizzy the Wizard, and Rouge the Rogue are adventuring, and they find:

• A +1 sword(4,000 GP)
• A Headband of Int +2(2,000 GP)
• 6,000 GP(6,000 GP)
• Gems, divine-only magic items, and Bard scrolls(6,000 GP value, 3,000 GP if sold)

Barb would get the sword, Wizzy gets the headband and 2,000 GP, and Rouge gets 4,000 GP. They each get 1,000 GP when they get back to town and sell the misc loot.

[Kylarra]

We do ours similar to Sstoopidtallkid.

Approximately equal value out of usable items and then difference is made up in whatever is left.

[Mongoose87]

Assuming all characters are honest with it...

Everything goes into the party loot pool.

1. If anyone can use any particular item, they are given it, and put the time that it replaced into the pool.
2. If anything is useful to the party as a whole, that is set aside.
3. The face does his/her best to sell the remaining items for maximum returns.
4. All gold, found or acquired through sales, is divided evenly.

[TheThan]

We don't get loot

[Olo Demonsbane]

One way I do it, if Im just randomly generating treasure on the spot (which often happens, some of my players like it better that way ), is say, after dividing up the gold/gems equally: "Each of you gets one medium and one minor item" Then we go around the room "Peter, you get a medium...weapon, and a minor...scroll." Then we roll for Peter's medium weapon and minor scroll. I reroll until they get something they can use, or at least useful to someone. Then the party can trade items. It works out fairly well, though is very random.

[Doc Roc]

We don't get loot

Why would you need loot? Friend Computer cares for us all evenly and well.

[rezplz]

My group does the second version. We are all rather selfish people and like to have our own gold totals. :)

If there's something we need to buy that will benefit the whole party, however, then everybody chips in.

[Ormur]

We usually identify the items, determine if we can use them and then give them to the party member that has most use for it and will do the party most good by having it.
If they can't be used we sell them and split the gold evenly, just as we do with gold. The items and gold then become the player's to buy and sell as they please.
If we need something for the whole party we usually split the cost. If I want a bigger sword I buy it myself but if the wizard needs some pearls of identification so we can properly distribute the loot, we buy them together.

It has apparently resulted in a uneven wealth-by-level split but it hasn't hurt our party.

[MichielHagen]

Any item that is useful to someone goes to that person, if it replaces an item, that item goes to the loot.
Once we sell the remaining stuff it is divided among all players, sometimes equally regardless of items received, sometimes the person that received an item declines all or part of the gold.
Some characters (not players) tend to want to receive more, some care less.

<edit> what Ormur said

[Innis Cabal]

We usually identify the items, determine if we can use them and then give them to the party member that has most use for it and will do the party most good by having it.
If they can't be used we sell them and split the gold evenly, just as we do with gold. The items and gold then become the player's to buy and sell as they please.
If we need something for the whole party we usually split the cost. If I want a bigger sword I buy it myself but if the wizard needs some pearls of identification so we can properly distribute the loot, we buy them together.

It has apparently resulted in a uneven wealth-by-level split but it hasn't hurt our party.

Ditto. Seems to work great. Just sucks when the random table makers 10 swords the fighter can use, and he wants all of them.

[Shademan]

we have fist-fights over it. the winner gets first pickings and the guy who got knocked out last gets second pickings etc etc.


no not really, we split cash evenly and give items to those that can make most use of them

[Ormur]

we have fist-fights over it. the winner gets first pickings and the guy who got knocked out last gets second pickings etc etc.

That would be an interesting way of improving melee characters, especially monks.

[Shademan]

fistfights IRL

[AslanCross]

So, this came up in a recent discussion with a friend... how does your group handle loot?

In all three groups I've been a part of, we use a very socialist method; loot is acquired, and anything not immediately usable goes to party loot, until it can be sold, and then items are purchased using the party's gold, as needed for the general party's benefit.

My group does this. Any loot that is obviously of benefit to a particular character goes to that character (weapons, stat + items, etc); potions are distributed evenly especially if a character has expended his or her healing potions. Gold is pooled and used to buy items for the whole party.

While I roll random treasure I always make sure the items aren't trash the party would just end up selling. I tend to favor giving items to the melee characters since casters hold out well enough on their own. I just give wondrous items to those guys.

[Gorbash]

When we get the loot, if anyone wants to use something, he gets it, we sell the rest and divide equally. It may not be the fairest method since those who take items immediately get more in gold value, but in the long run it's the same, since everyone will take items at some point and it spares us of wasting time on calculating who gets what.

If we lag behind the WBL, DM gives us items we want at the end of some boss fight.

[Tar Palantir]

Most items I drop for my players are useful (not vendor trash), and whoever gets the best use out of it takes it. Then the gold and miscellanea go in the bag of holding, and people pull from it as needed when buying stuff. Equality is enforced by the fact that the guy with the bag of holding is the sorcerer, who has little need for magic items and can kick the ass of anyone who tries to get more than their fair share.

[valadil]

So, this came up in a recent discussion with a friend... how does your group handle loot?

In all three groups I've been a part of, we use a very socialist method; loot is acquired, and anything not immediately usable goes to party loot, until it can be sold, and then items are purchased using the party's gold, as needed for the general party's benefit.

My friend, on the other hand, divides loot equally; loot you obtain counts towards your total, and everyone gets an equal share, depending on what gets sold and what not.

So, I ask you, which is superior? What does your group use? Why?

I play in two groups and they use the two methods listed. Both ways work, but I prefer the socialist style. It seems more team friendly. Dividing by GP value doesn't work when you put big items into the pot. One time I gave them a bunch of 3-5k GP stuff and a +2 con tome. I figured that anybody would benefit from the tome. In the end nobody took it, because its value was so much higher than everything else that the reader would have to pay money to buy it out of the pot.

[potatocubed]

Cash gets divided up equally with any leftover forming a party fund for resurrection doodads and the like. Magic items go to whoever can make best use of them, or whoever has fewest items if there's a dispute. Magic items that nobody wants get sold.

I don't place 'vendor trash' in my games, but I do place items where you might expect to find them - wizards have magic staffs (or orbs, or wands...) not magic greatswords, no matter how badly the fighter might need one.

[Rixx]

Our parties are pretty lenient about loot in general. Magic items go to whoever can benefit from them the most, and if someone didn't get any magic items, they'll get the largest share of the rest of the treasure instead.

[Rhiannon87]

Gold and gems are divided immediately amongst the players who are there at a given session, with one share going to the party treasury. (We have a few people who routinely miss game, so they get no treasure). Magic items are identified and given out based on who has the most need for them. Magic items that aren't claimed get two fates: one, they're sold, or two, they go into the handy haversack for possible later use (if it's something cool but with limited use, like a ring of x-ray vision or a ring of shooting stars or an amulet that gives the fire subtype 7 minutes/day. Cool and handy, but they don't need to constantly be carried on someone.)

As the party treasurer, I have a five-sheet spreadsheet where I keep track of the party inventory, treasure, who's claimed what items, what stuff still needs to be sold, and how the gold is being divided. I am a meticulous treasurer. There is color-coding involved.

[Thajocoth]

Money is evenly divided. Items are given to those who need them most. Items that need to be sold are added to a list, and their revenue is split once we sell them. Items already owned by a player but get replaced by a new item go to another player if useful to another player, otherwise the owner sells it and pockets the gp for themselves.

[shadzar]

Sometimes they are Necromungers and keep what they kill, other times it goes into a party pool. You get what benefits you the most.

Things people cannot use are sold off and then coin split.

[only1doug]

Items are given out to those who need them, items unusable to anyone get sold off and remainder is party funds. people wanting a share of funds can have it no questions asked, people needing a specific item list what they want and how it will benefit them (and the group) those falling behind the average party wealth will probably get first claim unless something clearly benefits the entire group more.

[Gralamin]

Why would you need loot? Friend Computer cares for us all evenly and well.

Well, occasionally commie-mutant-traitors carry experimental weapons above your security clearance. Thus, knowing about them means you're screwed unless you can destroy all evidence of them and kill the commie-mutant-traitors that are your party members.

All hail friend computer!

[Curmudgeon]

Well, the Rogue goes through all the risks associated with the final safeguards on the treasure store, so some Sleight of Hand skimming off the top is expected. Once everybody knows what's available there's some discussion about who could best use what. Then each person picks an item and multiple claims are resolved either via further discussion or dice rolling. Repeat until done.

[Eloel]

Price everything at sell-price, and add them up. Everyone gets their share.

Brains the Wizard, Muscles the Fighter, Quick the Rogue.

Loot is
+1 Sword of Uber Magicalness (9000 sell)
Ring of Arcane Power (8000 sell)
+1 Dagger of Sneakiness (7000 sell)
Boots of Speed (6000 sell)
Amulet of Divinity (7500 sell)
15000gp

You add that all up. 52500gp.
There are 3 people, so each gets 17500.

Fighter wants to buy Sword for the 9k price off of party. Since noone else wants it, he buys it, reducing his share to 8500.
Wizard wants the Ring for 8k, and gets it for 8k, reducing his share to 9500
Rogue gets the dagger (Since he's the only one who wants it), reducing share to 10500.
Fighter wants the boots, but so does the rogue. Fighter bids 6000 on the boots, but the rogue who wants it more bids 7500 on it (shop-price is 12k, so it's a good deal on his part). Rogue buys it for 7500, reducing his share to 3000.
Noone wants the amulet, so it's sold in the city.

Now there's 22500. Fighter takes his share of 8500 off of it, and he now has his complete share. 14k left in 'pool'. Wizard gets his 9500, reducing the pool to 4500. Rogue, gets his 3k from the pool, reducing it to 1500.

Since noone has shares left, the 1500 is split between everyone evenly, 500 per person.


I know it looks complex, but it works good enough, and is fair to everyone involved.

[Tukka]

My group uses pretty much the same method that Ozgun uses, except we hadn't bothered to come up with a method of resolving who gets an item that two or more people want, because it really hasn't come up yet. But the bidding system makes sense.

[Crossblade]

Since I currently GM for a solo with my gf; she decides which NPCs tag alongs get what, or if it's sold.

Back when I played in university, it pretty much went to who the item complimented the most... unless the item was found in secret; then it was kept by the finder.

[Dienekes]

My game has a very "you keep what you kill" mentality.

I like to stand back as a GM from enforcing equal share rules and let them handle things themselves, but actually it's been working out pretty well.