Wealth And Money
Assume a character owns at least one outfit of normal clothes. Pick any one of the following clothing outfits: artisan’s outfit, entertainer’s outfit, explorer’s outfit, monk’s outfit, peasant’s outfit, scholar’s outfit, or traveler’s outfit. This initial outfit costs the character nothing.
Coins
| Exchange Value | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CP | SP | GP | PP | |
| Copper piece (cp) = | 1 | 1/10 | 1/100 | 1/1,000 |
| Silver piece (sp) = | 10 | 1 | 1/10 | 1/100 |
| Gold piece (gp) = | 100 | 10 | 1 | 1/10 |
| Platinum piece (pp) = | 1,000 | 100 | 10 | 1 |
The most common coin is the gold piece (gp). A gold piece is worth 10 silver pieces. Each silver piece is worth 10 copper pieces (cp). In addition to copper, silver, and gold coins, there are also platinum pieces (pp), which are each worth 10 gp.
The standard coin weighs about a third of an ounce (fifty to the pound).
Other Wealth
| Price | Item |
|---|---|
| 1 cp | One pound of wheat |
| 2 cp | One pound of flour, or one chicken |
| 1 sp | One pound of iron |
| 5 sp | One pound of tobacco or copper |
| 1 gp | One pound of cinnamon, or one goat |
| 2 gp | One pound of ginger or pepper, or one sheep |
| 3 gp | One pig |
| 4 gp | One square yard of linen |
| 5 gp | One pound of salt or silver |
| 10 gp | One square yard of silk, or one cow |
| 15 gp | One pound of saffron or cloves, or one ox |
| 50 gp | One pound of gold |
| 500 gp | One pound of platinum |
Merchants commonly exchange trade goods without using currency. As a means of comparison, some trade goods are detailed below.
Selling Loot
In general, a character can sell something for half its listed price.
Trade goods are the exception to the half-price rule. A trade good, in this sense, is a valuable good that can be easily exchanged almost as if it were cash itself.
Starting Wealth
Each new character begins the game with an amount of gold, based on his class, that can be spent on a wide range of equipment and gear, from chain mail armor to leather backpacks. This gear helps your character survive while adventuring.
Each class gains starting wealth based on their Wealth Rating, which ranges from Impoverished to Princely. The exact amount of coin gained at 1st level is provided in the table below.
| Wealth Rating | Starting Wealth | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Impoverished | 4d4 gp | 10 gp |
| Poor | 1d6 × 10 gp | 35 gp |
| Average | 2d6 × 10 gp | 70 gp |
| Respectable | 3d6 × 10 gp | 105 gp |
| Rich | 4d6 × 10 gp | 140 gp |
| Wealthy | 5d6 × 10 gp | 175 gp |
| Princely | 6d6 × 10 gp | 210 gp |
| Kingly | 7d6 × 10 gp | 245 gp |
Starting Wealth Above 1st Level
When creating a character at a level other than 1st, you should consult your GM for determining how much wealth your character possesses. Table: Character Wealth by Level below shows the average wealth that a character of a given level is likely to possess.
| Character Level | Average Wealth | Character Level | Average Wealth |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | see above | 11th | 82,000 gp |
| 2nd | 1,000 gp | 12th | 108,000 gp |
| 3rd | 3,000 gp | 13th | 140,000 gp |
| 4th | 6,000 gp | 14th | 185,000 gp |
| 5th | 10,500 gp | 15th | 240,000 gp |
| 6th | 16,000 gp | 16th | 315,000 gp |
| 7th | 23,500 gp | 17th | 410,000 gp |
| 8th | 33,000 gp | 18th | 530,000 gp |
| 9th | 46,000 gp | 19th | 685,000 gp |
| 10th | 62,000 gp | 20th | 880,000 gp |
Carrying Capacity
Carrying capacity determines how much a character’s armor and equipment slows them down. Encumbrance comes in two parts: encumbrance by armor and encumbrance by total weight.
Encumbrance by Armor
A character’s armor determines their maximum Dexterity bonus to AC, armor check penalty, movement speed, and running speed. (See Armor Basics.)
Unless your character is weak or carrying a lot of gear, that’s all you need to know. The extra gear your character carries won’t slow them down any more than the armor already does.
If your character is weak or carrying a lot of gear, however, then you’ll need to calculate encumbrance by weight. Doing so is most important when your character is trying to carry some heavy object.
Encumbrance by Weight
| Strength Score | Light Load | Medium Load | Heavy Load |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 lbs. or less | 4–6 lbs. | 7–10 lbs. |
| 2 | 6 lbs. or less | 7–13 lbs. | 14–20 lbs. |
| 3 | 10 lbs. or less | 11–20 lbs. | 21–30 lbs. |
| 4 | 13 lbs. or less | 14–26 lbs. | 27–40 lbs. |
| 5 | 16 lbs. or less | 17–33 lbs. | 34–50 lbs. |
| 6 | 20 lbs. or less | 21–40 lbs. | 41–60 lbs. |
| 7 | 23 lbs. or less | 24–46 lbs. | 47–70 lbs. |
| 8 | 26 lbs. or less | 27–53 lbs. | 54–80 lbs. |
| 9 | 30 lbs. or less | 31–60 lbs. | 61–90 lbs. |
| 10 | 33 lbs. or less | 34–66 lbs. | 67–100 lbs. |
| 11 | 38 lbs. or less | 39–76 lbs. | 77–115 lbs. |
| 12 | 43 lbs. or less | 44–86 lbs. | 87–130 lbs. |
| 13 | 50 lbs. or less | 51–100 lbs. | 101–150 lbs. |
| 14 | 58 lbs. or less | 59–116 lbs. | 117–175 lbs. |
| 15 | 66 lbs. or less | 67–133 lbs. | 134–200 lbs. |
| 16 | 76 lbs. or less | 77–153 lbs. | 154–230 lbs. |
| 17 | 86 lbs. or less | 87–173 lbs. | 174–260 lbs. |
| 18 | 100 lbs. or less | 101–200 lbs. | 201–300 lbs. |
| 19 | 116 lbs. or less | 117–233 lbs. | 234–350 lbs. |
| 20 | 133 lbs. or less | 134–266 lbs. | 267–400 lbs. |
| 21 | 153 lbs. or less | 154–306 lbs. | 307–460 lbs. |
| 22 | 173 lbs. or less | 174–346 lbs. | 347–520 lbs. |
| 23 | 200 lbs. or less | 201–400 lbs. | 401–600 lbs. |
| 24 | 233 lbs. or less | 234–466 lbs. | 467–700 lbs. |
| 25 | 266 lbs. or less | 267–533 lbs. | 534–800 lbs. |
| 26 | 306 lbs. or less | 307–613 lbs. | 614–920 lbs. |
| 27 | 346 lbs. or less | 347–693 lbs. | 694–1,040 lbs. |
| 28 | 400 lbs. or less | 401–800 lbs. | 801–1,200 lbs. |
| 29 | 466 lbs. or less | 467–933 lbs. | 934–1,400 lbs. |
| +10 | ×4 | ×4 | ×4 |
To determine whether your character’s gear is heavy enough to slow them down more than the armor already does, total the weight of all the character’s items, including armor, weapons, and worn or held gear. Then, compare this total to the character’s Strength on Table: Carrying Capacity.
Depending on how the weight compares to the character’s carrying capacity, they may be carrying a light, medium, or heavy load. Like armor, a character’s load affects their maximum Dexterity bonus to AC, carries a check penalty (which works like an armor check penalty), reduces the character’s speed, and affects how fast the character can run, as shown on Table: Encumbrance Effects.
A medium or heavy load counts as medium or heavy armor for the purpose of abilities or skills that are restricted by armor. Carrying a light load does not encumber a character.
If your character is wearing armor, use the worse figure (from armor or from load) for each category. Do not stack the penalties.
| Load | Max Dex | Check Penalty | Speed | Run | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| (30 ft.) | (20 ft.) | ||||
| Medium | +3 | –3 | 20 ft. | 15 ft. | ×4 |
| Heavy | +1 | –6 | 20 ft. | 15 ft. | ×3 |
Lifting and Dragging
A character can lift as much as his maximum load over their head. A character’s maximum load is the highest amount of weight listed for a character’s Strength in the heavy load column of Table: Carrying Capacity.
A character can lift as much as double their maximum load off the ground, but they can only stagger around with it. While overloaded in this way, the character loses any Dexterity bonus to AC and can move only 5 feet per round (as a full-round action).
A character can generally push or drag along the ground as much as five times their maximum load. Favorable conditions can double these numbers, and bad circumstances can reduce them by half or more.
Bigger and Smaller Creatures
| Base Speed | Reduced Speed |
|---|---|
| 5 ft. | 5 ft. |
| 10 ft.–15 ft. | 10 ft. |
| 20 ft. | 15 ft. |
| 25 ft.–30 ft. | 20 ft. |
| 35 ft. | 25 ft. |
| 40 ft.–45 ft. | 30 ft. |
| 50 ft. | 35 ft. |
| 55 ft.–60 ft. | 40 ft. |
| 65 ft. | 45 ft. |
| 70 ft.–75 ft. | 50 ft. |
| 80 ft. | 55 ft. |
| 85 ft.–90 ft. | 60 ft. |
| 95 ft. | 65 ft. |
| 100 ft.–105 ft. | 70 ft. |
| 110 ft. | 75 ft. |
| 115 ft.–120 ft. | 80 ft. |
The figures on Table: Carrying Capacity are for Medium bipedal creatures. A larger bipedal creature can carry more weight depending on its size category, as follows: Large ×2, Huge ×4, Gargantuan ×8, Colossal ×16. A smaller creature can carry less weight depending on its size category, as follows: Small ×¾, Tiny ×½, Diminutive ×¼, Fine ×1/8.
Quadrupeds can carry heavier loads than characters can. Instead of the multipliers given above, multiply the value corresponding to the creature’s Strength score from Table: Carrying Capacity by the appropriate modifier, as follows: Fine ×¼, Diminutive ×½, Tiny ×¾, Small ×1, Medium ×1½, Large ×3, Huge ×6, Gargantuan ×12, Colossal ×24.
Tremendous Strength
For Strength scores not shown on Table: Carrying Capacity, find the Strength score between 20 and 29 that has the same number in the “ones” digit as the creature’s Strength score does and multiply the numbers in that for by 4 for every ten points the creature’s strength is above the score for that row.
Item Bulk
All items have bulk, which is a measure of their volume or how much physical space they occupy. This is an entirely abstract measurement roughly estimated based on volume in cubic inches, longest dimension, and how difficult it is to store in a common container.
A ladder may have more bulk then an equal volume of sticks tied in a tight bundle, because it is significantly longer and therefore more difficult to pack for storage. Hard, inflexible items tend to have higher bulk than soft or flexible items, because softer items are more easily stuffed into a backpack.
Unless stored in a container, an item’s bulk has no affect on a character.
Containers
All containers—such as backpacks, barrels, chests, and even rooms—have a capacity which is measured in bulk. A container can hold any number of items whose total bulk is less than or equal to its capacity.
Most containers have a bulk equal to their maximum capacity. Some flexible containers, such as a burlap sack, have a lower bulk when empty than their total capacity. For flexible containers, their bulk is equal to either their listed bulk or the total bulk of the items they contain, whichever is larger.
For example, most liquids have a bulk of about 6 per gallon. Liquids are very easy to fit in proper containers, as they easily take the shape of their container. A bucket holds hold 5 gallons or 30 capacity. Likewise, a barrel holds 75 gallons and has a capacity of 450. The two differ in that a bucket has a bulk of 30, the same as its capacity, while a barrel has a bulk of 500 due to its larger size and difficulty for an adventurer to haul it around.
Some items don’t make sense to store in containers, such as pouring several gallons of water directly into a backpack or stuffing two crowbars into a belt pouch. It’s up to the GM to determine if an item is inappropriate to fit into a container.
Bigger and Smaller Items
Items specifically made for bigger or smaller creatures (such as weapons, clothing, armor, backpacks, and so forth) have modified bulk and capacity. Larger items have higher bulk but more capacity depending on its size category, as follows: Large ×2, Huge ×4, Gargantuan ×8, Colossal ×16. A smaller item can has less bulk but carry less depending on its size category, as follows: Small ×¾, Tiny ×½, Diminutive ×¼, Fine ×1/8.