Loot and Merchants

Image from Wizards of the Coast

Tracking supplies and managing equipment is a part of the game that appeals to some but not all players. For the simulationist or player who likes resource management games it may be a big part of their experience. For others it might simply be an annoyance. To be fair, restocking and divvying up loot is something that needs to be done at the right moment or it becomes tedious. Ideally, this process will take place at the beginning or end of something. By that I mean it should not interrupt the flow of an adventure by occurring in the midst of the action. Write in potential breaks in the urgency of the story that would allow for some down time so the characters can take inventory in addition to training and preparing for the future.

The Right Time for New Stuff

My preference is to have shopping encounters at the beginning of a session. It makes for a good build-up to the real action and allows you to keep notes clear and separate before things get busy. I don't recommend role playing shopkeepers and merchants during resupply missions unless they are part of a bigger storyline or serve a purpose beyond stocking your players. I used to run some shopping trips like this, and became needlessly time consuming and left players worn out for the important RP moments. A line or two about the shops in the area, the time and resources needed to gather them, and what kind of reaction you get from the merchants is all that is needed for most resupplies. Aim for wrapping up the shopping trip within a few minutes, or when players start getting antsy.

Establishing loot is another resource management task that is an even more involving process for the DM. Preparing loot ahead of time is usually the easiest way of handling its distribution. It is always recommended to ask your players about their "wish list" of items that they would find useful so that loot gained will feel rewarding and tailored to your group. You can also determine what kind of loot is acceptable and appropriate to an adventure, so you don't end up giving the player a greataxe from the body of a beholder and so forth. If you prepare loot pre-game it is a good idea to have some generic 'packages' that can be used for encounters you may not have planned for, or some appropriate treasure tables.

Of course, there is always the option to hold off until later to handle the distribution of the loot. This can be a problem if your players need new magic weapons before fighting a major encounter, but in my groups this hasn't been that urgent a problem. When my players loot a room, I will sometimes say "I will tell you what you found, but at the end of the session." Or I provide the list of goods at the beginning of the next session, or even posting a loot list to a shared online group so that divvying up can be done between sessions.

This brings me to one more idea: use an online group to handle merchants and shopping too. You can list various items to purchase, offering players a menu of choices and take their requests for specific purchases. This will speed things up during your face to face game time and also allow for more time for your group to shop and compare.

Image From Green Ronin Publishing

Keeping the Game Economy Balanced.

When pricing items that the players buy or sell, don't worry too much about the economy. As long as you are paying attention to the value and cost of the players' inventory and you are satisfied with it, any amount they have will be fine. You might even change the prices from the book to support a differently scaled currency. Just measure how much your players have and how much value that amount should be.

If the party hordes too much coin, it can be easily remedied. There might be a fee or tax required for passage to the next area, or a damaged wagon wheel that needs to be replaced. Don't abuse this technique, and don't present challenges that are unreasonably beyond the party's means. Use them to add interesting catches to the adventure as well as to shave off some gold that could be used to give the team an overpowering advantage.

Swag to Satisfy Any Player

Loot can be in the form of cold cash, but if your players enjoy the setting and story, it is more interesting to give them some income in the form of trade goods and art pieces they find. These can be tailored to your game, and if you tell the player the items value right away you don't even need to keep a record (Something like a small charcoal drawing of an elegant man, 50 coin.)

And remember not to be too stingy with special gear, it is part of what maintains interest in the game. Upgraded arms and armor are one element of this, and necessary to get the team through the escalating difficulty of future encounters. But besides the stat boosting items like +1 and +2 swords, there are also many other neat features to be offered.

Items that provide the players with new combat and adventuring options are very popular, like one-time use potions, magic lockpicks, a device that allows the character to cast a particular spell at will... anything that gives them the ability to do something new and exciting.

Lastly there are those items that don't have an obvious practical application that are simply fun for the characters to play around with or find a use for. A couple of examples of these are a dagger that lets you hear the most minute variations of an instrument's musical notes, or a rubber ball that always bounces directly into your hand. This is all the sort of stuff you should take a little time to think about between sessions, and use to wow the players with your generosity. Right before hitting them with the next harrowing encounter!

Happy ventures!