Desert economy. Help me get the taxes rolling.

[Asheram]

Greetings everyone.

Now, I'm recently the proud owner of a small province, as well as a keep upon the lands. Unfortunatly, I'm in a bit of a pickle here as I noticed the cost to manage this keep. Almost 700gp a month (not including the taxes I have to pay to the Sultan).

Now, the other trouble I'm in is that I don't have the revenue to keep this going for ever, and the worst part is that it's in a desert enviroment.

So, I have three alternatives:
1. Stimulate the economy.
2. Go kill a dragon every few years or so.
3. Live as a pauper in my fort.
4. Decline the position and somewhat mess up the plot of the adventure.

Now, I decide to go for option 1, but how to do it?

There are no local caravan routes that I can exploit, nor are there any real settlements. The only locals I've got are a tribe of beduins and a tribe of Tri-kreen that live on the very borders of the province.

There is a mountain range nearby which I very much hope to cointain an ore deposit, but I can't Live on that hope.

Now, I'm currently reading up on desert farming and irrigation, but I don't have an awful lot of hope to that unless I can get hold of a spell or device to make it rain.

So, I'm asking for your help. What is a poor satrap to do?

[Iku Rex]

What level is your character? Class? What about the rest of the party?

Edit: DnD books available?

[Gaiyamato]

What alignment are you?
Do you condone slavery?

[jpreem]

Why on earth did someone build this keep in the middle of nowhere?
Just to exile some misfavored aristocrat or something :D, maybe you can open a desert resort - for rich nobles who enjoy vast desert landscapes and silence :D

[Asheram]

Fortunatly I'm a druid, so I've atleast got Plantgrowth. I'm a L5 druid/2momf/2 warshaper (Bad build, I know, but I wanted it this way.)

The rest of the group is a Barbarian L9, Ninja L8, Warlock-cleric L7'ish and an Artificer L... I think it was 5 due to some LA.

I'm True neutral, but I start to lean more towards neutral good. I do Not condone slavery, I want the best for the region and the people now... preferably with me living well in the process.

[Asheram]

Why on earth did someone build this keep in the middle of nowhere?
Just to exile some misfavored aristocrat or something :D, maybe you can open a desert resort - for rich nobles who enjoy vast desert landscapes and silence :D

Yeah.. I'm wondering the same thing...

Now, the plot is that it's a shared position, one that has the political control, and one that has control over the land.

The thing is that there's this rule that it's an inherited position (but not for long), and due to that the other people that've held the position now have been killed in 'accidents', makes me the last obstacle between Hassan (the other ruler) and him holding Both the positions.

I do wonder if there's anything special on the land, or if he's just hungry for power.

[Gaiyamato]

Well yeah.. you could just start growing stuff. Make a bunch of grassy plains, use magic to create/divert a water source then just invite people in the develop the new land and tax them once it has all grown enough.

Magic solves everything in DnD.

If you want to make it more fun you could make some artifact or something if you have the Creat Wonderous Item feat. "The Oasis Heart" or something, that constantly casts create water to give you a water source.

I did a similar thing with a Druid/Wizard/Geomancer/AH once and used ley lines to create an artificial nexus in my area, then built a complicated series of items to permanently sustain a dense jungle. lol.

[Asheram]

Well yeah.. you could just start growing stuff. Make a bunch of grassy plains, use magic to create/divert a water source then just invite people in the develop the new land and tax them once it has all grown enough.

Magic solves everything in DnD.

If you want to make it more fun you could make some artifact or something if you have the Creat Wonderous Item feat. "The Oasis Heart" or something, that constantly casts create water to give you a water source.

I did a similar thing with a Druid/Wizard/Geomancer/AH once and used ley lines to create an artificial nexus in my area, then built a complicated series of items to permanently sustain a dense jungle. lol.

Yeah, it's pretty much what I had in mind.

But I want to start out with what options I have in RAW and thinking outside the box before asking my DM for custom stuff.

[Fishy]

While you're still in civilization, put the word out around town that the place is far too hostile for anyone to visit, and that the rumors of an ancient civilization blessed by the gods are completely false, that no stories of miraculous healing were ever confirmed, and that there are absolutely no secret tombs lined with solid gold.

You, my friend, are going to make a tourist trap.

[Asheram]

While you're still in civilization, put the word out around town that the place is far too hostile for anyone to visit, and that the rumors of an ancient civilization blessed by the gods are completely false, that no stories of miraculous healing were ever confirmed, and that there are absolutely no secret tombs lined with solid gold.

You, my friend, are going to make a tourist trap.

A hero trap, you say? *chuckles* Well, towns have been built for less.
The problem is that while Hassan is still alive and at large, I'm getting this slight fear of assassins, and the thought of town full of wannabe heroes and fortune seekers makes my shoulderblades itch.

Edit: Oh, and All books are available but everything has to be approved by the DM before it's put into play.

[Fishy]

Set up a monastery, maybe? If you can fabricate some sort of divinely-significant event, you could have a decent supply of pilgrims coming in, and you'd have a 'legitimate' reason to have a large, enclosed and secluded space which you can only enter after having ritually bathed and left your worldly goods behind.

Your pointy, stabby worldly goods.

[Asheram]

Set up a monastery, maybe? If you can fabricate some sort of divinely-significant event, you could have a decent supply of pilgrims coming in, and you'd have a 'legitimate' reason to have a large, enclosed and secluded space which you can only enter after having ritually bathed and left your worldly goods behind.

Your pointy, stabby worldly goods.

It's an interesting idea... But I'd rather stay on the good side of the gods for a bit longer; I had to call on their divine knowlege in a trial earlier, so I sort of owe them a favor.

I might open one up in the mountains later on though, but not at this moment.

[Iku Rex]

You could start by casting treasure scent (Drd 3, SpC) a few times. It lets you detect copper, silver, gold, platinum, and gems within 30 feet if they're close to the surface. Use a fast form to cover as much ground as possible.

If you're willing to make a large investment a decanter of endless water (9000 gp) provides water for a lot of people and some agriculture. Probably won't be worth it though. (Ask the DM about the price of water?)

[Riffington]

I noticed the cost to manage this keep. Almost 700gp a month

Why is it so expensive? If the locals don't have many job options, surely they'll work cheaper for the upkeep? And whatever gold you do give them, where are they spending it if not on goods whose import you control?

[Fishy]

Fair enough: Interventionist gods make blasphemy a lot less fun anyway.

The basic principle is the same- you can only have an economy if you have something that other people want. John Adams says to make something you have into something people want, P.T. Barnum says to make people want what you have.

You have... sand.

[Reynard]

Why is it so expensive? If the locals don't have many job options, surely they'll work cheaper for the upkeep? And whatever gold you do give them, where are they spending it if not on goods whose import you control?

My guess is either the DM is trying to be difficult, or that the price is so high because they have to import everything.

[Shades of Gray]

Find a way to keep your goods refrigerated. Nobody likes melted ice cream. Also, consider stuff like Apple Pie that does not need to be served cold.

Oh, you mean desert economy. Nevermind.

[Lysander]

Just buy/quest for a decanter of endless water. Keep it on geyser mode 24/7 to sustain an artificial lagoon and irrigation system. In time traders will shift their routes to take advantage of your FREE WATER, bringing business to any stores, restaurants, and inns you establish. Also offer FREE LAND to peasants that they can farm now thanks to your magical endless water, in exchange for them giving you a percentage of their crops which you can then sell.

[Reynard]

You have... sand.

Use magic to make lots of glass?

[JeenLeen]

Fair enough: Interventionist gods make blasphemy a lot less fun anyway.

The basic principle is the same- you can only have an economy if you have something that other people want. John Adams says to make something you have into something people want, P.T. Barnum says to make people want what you have.

You have... sand.

Sand and some sort of heat-generating spells, if not by your druid at least by the party. If any of you have craft that can work on it, superheat the sand into glass.

I don't know the cost offhand, but I imagine glass sells for a good bit in D&D economics.

edit: ninja'd

[Asheram]

My guess is either the DM is trying to be difficult, or that the price is so high because they have to import everything.

I actually calculated it myself. A guardforce with servants as well as food is quite espensive.

[Fishy]

Pfft, magic. You can make it the old fashioned way with a kiln, you know.

And actually, if you owe the gods a favor, setting up an actual legitimate shrine of some sorts might be a good idea, for the same reasons that a fake one would plus the possibility of divine kudos.

[JeminiZero]

I actually calculated it myself. A guardforce with servants as well as food is quite espensive.

Well one thing to consider is to try cutting cost then. Reduce their pay, but give them access to create food/prestidigitation traps.

Do any of your party membes have access to Wall of Stone? That little nugget is useful of all sorts of construction possibilities.

[Asheram]

Just buy/quest for a decanter of endless water. Keep it on geyser mode 24/7 to sustain an artificial lagoon and irrigation system. In time traders will shift their routes to take advantage of your FREE WATER, bringing business to any stores, restaurants, and inns you establish. Also offer FREE LAND to peasants that they can farm now thanks to your magical endless water, in exchange for them giving you a percentage of their crops which you can then sell.

Having a decanter of endless water on 24/7 produces... 1637.3 cubic metres of water each day... hm.. might work for a while

edit: I don't know why I didn't think of that before.

nvm. Got the math wong. Corrected.

Pfft, magic. You can make it the old fashioned way with a kiln, you know.

And actually, if you owe the gods a favor, setting up an actual legitimate shrine of some sorts might be a good idea, for the same reasons that a fake one would plus the possibility of divine kudos.

Oh, the warlock-cleric has sort of convinced me to build a small temple in our fort already, and I'll go for a monastery later on. :)

[Choco]

Well, historically people living in harsh environments have thrived via advanced thinking and technology. Their bad circumstances lead them to think of new and creative ways to overcome said circumstances, which leads to a prosperous and technologically advanced society. Since this is D&D, just replace technology with magic and you good. Simply go around using magic to solve all your people's big problems (like the decanter of endless water example above).

Once quality of life goes up, and word of this gets out to neighboring areas, prosperity will come on it's own. And on top of that, you will gain the trust/respect/love/fanatical devotion of the vast majority of your population, and if you are careful to maintain it you could use that to your advantage against the other lord.

[Lysander]

Also, to get an agricultural base started hire a Druid to cast Plant Growth on peasants' crops for free. If there isn't a druid in the party how about taking the leadership feat if you don't already have it (which you really should have anyway if you're running a province) and getting a druid cohort?

[Asheram]

Also, to get an agricultural base started hire a Druid to cast Plant Growth on peasants' crops for free. If there isn't a druid in the party how about taking the leadership feat if you don't already have it (which you really should have anyway if you're running a province) and getting a druid cohort?

Already thought of, I'll be flying around in eagle form for a few days, casting said spell upon the land.

If all this succeeds, I wonder if that'll turn out to be an odd ritual in a few hundred years.

[Artanis]

The book Dune comes to mind, not just because of the name, but also because it shows something that you could export: soldiers.

You live in a desert that (I presume) is filled with monsters and hazards. In Dune, that sort of environment created people so tough and so dangerous that they were virtually invincible on the battlefield. I imagine that there'd be quite a market for a "product" like that .

[Ashiel]

I'd personally go with the decanter of endless water, like has been mentioned previously. Being a druid, plant growth will definitely help with that as well. You could create vast lands of agriculture in an otherwise barren landscape.

Since you asked for RAW options as well, here is one that I find is incredibly effective, but horribly broken and your DM may not allow it; but RAW it works fine.

If your party can cast Wall of Iron you can create CL*5ft cube of iron. A cubic foot of iron is roughly 450lbs, so each 5ft square is roughly 2,250lbs. At 11th level when you can cast 6th level spells, that equates to 24,750lbs of iron. Iron is a trade good and may be traded like gold at the rate of 1 silver piece per pound. This means at 11th level, a wizard or anyone else who can cast Wall of Iron may spend 50gp in material components to produce 2475gp worth of Iron, for a total profit of 2425 gold.

This iron can then be used to craft thousands of iron products. Weapons, armor, shovels, lanterns, and so forth. You could fund weapon and armorsmiths who lived on your land with free iron to boost your economy. They can split the difference in cost by selling goods at cheaper prices (which encourages people to trade with your people) and using the rest of the difference to pay your taxes.

If you have the Fabricate spell, it is likely that you could simply produce all the iron exports you need to fund your rulership costs, and just allow your people to live on and work the land that you have provided them in a utopian paradise.

Combined with Wall of Stone you create a landscape very quickly, as well as enhance your keep with with Iron Walls that are then covered in Stone Walls to create a doubly insulated fortress (the stone protects the iron from rust, and anyone who tries to punch through the stone will find a thick-ass wall of iron blocking their way).

Finally, if you're a druid and can understand that magic is a natural part of life and death, and you realize that negative energy is a natural part of life and unlife, then you can also have your party wizard or cleric animate mindless undead such as skeletons. Have them polished and wrapped with cloth, and maybe armor and have them function as both free labor for things like digging ditches and other untrained laborer work.

Make incentives to pursue scholarly knowledge; such as by building schools and churches where people can train to be professionals and adepts who can give back to their communities. Give them tax breaks for practicing trades of science, art, and warfare. Develop your people and make their lives great. Should anyone decide they want to capture your piece of paradise for themselves, they must now contend with a lot of very happy citizens who all happen to have at least one level in an NPC class; as well as an army of mindless undead who guard your main cities and fill the bulk of your army with able-bodied expendable warriors, led by your country's adepts using x/day wands of animate dead with 10HD built into the wand.

You might wonder where you would find undead? Well, purchase the bodies of your people. Offer incentives such as fifty gold to anyone who signs a contract to allow you to take their body for the kingdom upon their deaths, or similar methods. Also, anyone who committed heinous crimes and was sentenced to death, or died in your prisons, or with the bodies of soldiers and raiders who make the mistake of attacking you. That's one of the best part about undead - if someone tries to attack you and fails, you get to animate the bodies of your fallen plus their fallen.

Just some considerations.

[Mongoose87]

If you want a quick and dirty way to do it, place a tax on water.

WARNING: May cause rebellion.