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Thar be plunder!; Tips on making rewards more rewarding
Topic Started: 28 Oct 2008, 09:39 (229 Views)
Ankhanu
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Dark Lord
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While this little article is focused upon D&D gaming, well, there's no reason why the principles can't be applied to other systems as well... with some adaptation. Basically, the article (from the DungeonMastering.com mailing list) is a run down of how to make more mundane rewards for adventuring more valuable to players.

"yax@dungeonmastering.com"
 
Polishing your gold - how to make rewards more rewarding

Posted: 27 Oct 2008 12:01 AM CDT

Polishing Your Gold

Once your players have collected all the magical items in your treasure parcel — like so many delicious treats on Halloween — all they are left with are the houses that give out pieces of fruit and toothpaste. I may have carried that metaphor too far, but what we are talking about is the less attractive cousin of magical items: monetary rewards. If you are playing fourth edition, your choices of monetary rewards are limited. You could give straight out coinage or give gems and art objects which serve as the checks of the D&D world, in that they are exactly like money, with the addition of brainless hassle before you can spend it. Alternatively you can give out one of the four potions in the Player’s Handbook. Granted, if you have some extra cash laying around, you can expand your options to more potions and consumables by purchasing the Adventurer’s Vault. However, if you don’t want to drop the money or you are like myself and have already consumed the content of that book and are hungry for more, there are still some options available to make your monetary treasure more exciting.

The Dark Harvest

The traditional protocol of killing something and taking their stuff is often very narrowly defined to taking what is in their room and on their bodies. However, this overlooks all the valuables that are in their bodies. Dragons are the traditional example: their scales can be fashioned into shields and armor, their teeth can be carved down into weapons and — with your permission — their organs can be used as material components in arcane rituals. If you are running a 3.5 game, “Unearthed Arcana” (my personal favorite D&D book) has a section of metamagic components that are perfect for harvesting your foes.

Stealing the Precious

It may be crass but taking something valuable to the enemy makes it more valuable to the player. When players defeat any enemy who wears a crown, it is a fair bet that the first thing one of them will do is put it on, not necessarily because it is any more expensive than the other pieces of treasure they find, but just because it is a symbol of importance. Likewise, if they stumble into the shrine a dark god, they will find much more joy in prying the jeweled eyes out of his opulent statue than they would at getting those same gems in the coin purse of the head priest.

The Riddle of Gold

A simple way to increase the value of monetary rewards is to make them work a little harder for it. This is not a video game, where as soon as you defeat an enemy your reward pops up. You have the ability to make things more complex and interesting for your characters. Realistically, people put their valuables away. A clan of goblins might have a moldy box with a crude lock on it. A thieves’ guild may have a hallway loaded with deathtraps to slay the unwary fool heading for the vault. An elderly wizard in his tower might have riddles and puzzles to boggle your players, or a magical obstacle to hinder their characters. Getting to the biggest rewards can be a great opportunity for a skill challenge, and it will give some extra experience for the trouble.

Proxy Shopping

When you put down magic potions as treasure, all you are really doing is spending the player’s gold for them. If you are already doing that, why think so small? Substituting an appropriate amount of gold from their parcel, a grateful noble could buy a parcel of land to give the heroes to establish a keep. A village that is rescued might hold a festival in honor of the brave heroes and shower them with gifts. Perhaps a family member of someone rescued lacks the money to properly reward the heroes but offers his services on their next mission. This can be an easy way to balance a party if you know that they are heading off to an area they are not equipped for and can introduce a new personality for roleplaying. Anything in the game that has a monetary value could be substituted for gold, just be careful not to unbalance the rewards by doing this. If half of all your reward money is turned into ritual books, the party wizard will be getting these and an even split of the gold.

Making the rewards more rewarding

It can be difficult to excite a group of adventurers wearing enough magical items to fund an entire village’s retirement simply by giving them more gold. They’ll be happy to get it, certainly, and they will divide it up and shovel it into their bags of holding and go about their business. However, monetary rewards can be so much more than that if you are willing to think outside the box on what shape those rewards take and how those rewards are delivered to them. These coins and gems are meant to reward the character and the player for a job well done. If managed well, the player can feel more rewarded than he would by just watching a number go up on his character sheet.

Good luck and good rolling (around in your piles of treasure)
In Real Life ™, people who aim to maximize their potential for lethality are called "dangerous psychotics" and are typically avoided by everyone who isn't forced to endure their company until someone has the opportunity to put them away or else put them down. No one likes that guy. Don't play that guy.

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Neraeos
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Very good treatise.

I am now going to go through Dragons of Autumn and replace those mundane sacks of gold with very well-made, fancy wicker furniture.
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