I'm trying hard to keep rules consistent across this campaign. I've found that players hate it when the GM changes things in the middle of the game. Except maybe if they asked for the change and it's clearly in their favor.
In this case, I'm not sure if it's actually in their favor, but they specifically asked for it, and voted 5-0 for it. (We currently have 6 players; 1 hasn't voted yet, but 5 is a clear majority.)
The previous rule was that loot XP were based on net profit during the delve. If you brought $3000 of loot (coins, gems, plus anything else you immediately sold and turned into coins or gems) back to town, but used $500 of potions and rations and arrows during the delve, you got credit for a net profit of $2500, $3000 income minus $500 expenses. Several players really hated this because it made them not want to ever use any consumable items because that might cost them XP. (It probably wouldn't, but it could if the expenses pushed them right below a breakpoint, and they wouldn't know for sure until the end of the delve when we ran the totals, by which time it was too late to undrink those potions.)
The change is that now loot XP is based on gross loot found, brought back to town, and turned to coins and gems. Expenses no longer matter for XP. If you burn $5000 of potions and scrolls to find $1000 of loot, that's fine, you still get credit for $1000 of loot. (Of course if you do that too many times you'll be broke, but that's a separate problem. You may have 99 problems but loot XP won't be one.)
Of course there's no such thing as a free lunch. The tradeoff is that I'm going to raise the thresholds needed to get 1 XP (a reasonably rich delve) and 2 XP (a great haul), now that they are based on gross rather than net loot. But the tracking and calculations will be simpler and players will feel more free to consume their consumables.
This is one of the earliest changes I made, too. It's amusing watching people burn $10K to earn $5K and call it "a profitable delve." But are they wrong? Had they spent $10K on armor instead of consumables and earned $5K, why is that okay? Just because they have it next time? So it was, bah, no more of that for Felltower, either!
ReplyDeleteYes, net makes more sense at some level, but what expenses should count and when? Gets complicated. Gross is easier, and players prefer it, so okay.
Delete"Yeah before we calculate XP I'm going to need a depreciation report on your arms and armour. Double-declining balance over ten delves."
DeleteYou should see the trade spreadsheets I used in the last Traveller game. (I don't think any of the players cared. Next Traveller game, anything but trading.)
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