Treasury System for DnD 5e
As adventuring parties gather more and more treasure from their exploits, you may find player’s growing frustrated at the task of maintaining small transactions amongst their larger wealth. For example, needing to shift through your coinage to pay 2 copper pieces for a meal can get rather tedious when you have thousands of gold pieces.
Using the Treasury
The treasury acts as a slush fund for the party, allowing quicker shopping as well as allowing players to pool resources together to fund larger projects. Anytime a player wishes to purchase an item using the treasury, compare the current rating with the value of the object(s) that the players wish to purchase. If the value of the item is equal to or less than the parties current treasury rating then that item is purchased with no reduction in the treasury rating. It is for all intents and purposes ‘free’ for the party to acquire.
For low level parties(1-3) it is recommended that you do not implement a treasury mechanic, unless it serves the narrative. At such low levels the party should need to scrape and save and allowing too early of access may make the players feel as though they did not have to work for new-found gear.
If the players decide to form a treasury, it does not need to start at Level 1, but rather at any point along the scale that makes the most sense with their current currency.
Improving the Treasury Rating
The party can improve their treasury rating by completing large tasks for a beneficiary, such as a local lord. Additionally, the party find a large hoard of coin stowed away by monsters. In much the same way as milestone leveling of characters, it is up to the DM's discretion on when to award an increase in the parties treasury score.
If upon completing a large task, the reward is insufficient to raise the treasury score, the DM should consider rewarding alternative rewards to the players since the victory may feel hollow if they only receive abstract compensation.
Decreasing the Treasury Rating
The party may wish to make a larger purchase using the treasury. Doing so allows the party to make a purchase one level higher than their current treasury rating, but with the cost of decreasing their current treasury rating by 1 level.
If the treasury decreases to a point where the party cannot maintain their financial obligations, such as paying retainers, then they will be forced to let go of their retainers until the treasury improves enough to a point that they can re-hire.
For example, a party with a treasury rating of 3 may wish to purchase a small shop to use a guild house for new jobs. As a small building would be a Level 4 purchase, the party will have to decrease their treasury rating by 1 to purchase the store.
As another example, our party with a treasury rating of 3 may wish to purchase a dozen horses. Although a horse would typically fall into a Level 3 rating, purchasing so many raises the value to a Level 4 rating. The party will need to decide if the purchasing of so many horses is worth the decrease in treasury funds.
‘Grey Areas’ and Haggling
There may be cases where purchasing an item or a group of items is not clearly within one level or another. For example, one horse is clearly within the purchasing power of a Level 3 treasury, but is two horses? 4 horses? Additionally the party may wish to negotiate better rates when buying objects in bulk. In such instances where it may be difficult to determine the appropriate level, simply have the negotiating player roll a Charisma check against a DC 13. If the player succeeds in the check, use the lower of the two treasury ratings in question. On a fail, the higher rating is used.
A word on stockpiling and relative value
Just because a party has the funds to acquire an item does not mean that an item is available. For example, if the party happens across an underdark Drow merchant selling various fungus potions and wish to purchase a large amount of lumber from him, they are most certainly out-of-luck. Likewise, an item that might be commonplace in a seaside village, such as fish, will fetch a much smaller price than those same fish in a dwarven mountain fortress. The DM should determine if the price of an item falls within the threshold of the current treasury rating or not.
Additionally, players may wish to purchase large sums of objects, saying “If I can afford one horse, I can afford 10,000”. This, again, is up to the DM to determine if large collections of items fall within the threshold of the current treasury rating.
Personal Currency vs Party Treasury
Players that find gold amongst their travels, either by looting or as small rewards may elect to keep the gold on their person to be used by that character alone. This is the player’s choice and does not impact the Treasury Rating unless the DM would determine the amount of gold is significant enough to improve the Treasury Rating. For example, taking 10 gold pieces from a slain enemy bandit would make little difference in a party with a Treasury Rating of 3, but finding a lost dragon’s hoard is a different story!
Treasury Ratings
Level 1.
Your coffers have been reduced to nothing, or worse, you owe debts! The party cannot afford anything using the treasury.
At this level, each party member is responsible for their own expenses and the party cannot use the treasury to leverage any expenses beyond a meal or a drink.
Level 2.
Your party has begun the process of building a fledgling treasury. Around a week’s wages for the party, this amount of currency is small enough to be kept on your person, but large enough to leverage the purchase of common supplies.
At this treasury rating supplies such as bedrolls, packs, climbing gear, simple weapons, and weekly rations can be purchased.
Level 3.
Your treasury continues to swell due to your hard work and diligent coin-counting. Around a month’s wages for the party, you begin to struggle to contain all the loose coinage. Perhaps a bank or a safe would be prudent at this point.
With this treasury rating the party can purchase carriages, small boats, horses and other beasts of burden, fine weapons and armor, including plate armor, and large quantities of more common items. Additionally the party can enlist the services of local guilds, such as magical or priestly services.
Level 4.
Adventuring has been lucrative indeed! The party's coinage has grown to over a years salary and safely stowing all the extra currency would be wise, if not outright necessary.
At this treasury rating the party may purchase small ships, large quantities of common items, purchase a small building, permanently hire a single retainer/employee, and may be able to leverage more common magical items from collectors.
Level 5.
Your parties wealth has long outgrown the ability to be carried on your person and you are able to accommodate economies of scale.
With this treasury level the party can purchase small buildings, such as a storefront, larger ships, as well as the hiring and outfitting of a small number of men-at-arms, retainers, or employees.
Level 6.
At the maximum treasury rating, money has become all but abstract to you. The party can leverage the treasury to purchase tracts of land, construct a manor-home, deeds to small keeps and outfit a larger number of retainers. Additionally at this level the party can contract to have improvements made to current land holdings, such as fortifications, a large temple, or a trade wharf.
Beyond Level 6
If the party is able reach above and beyond a level 6 treasury, they have reached the limits of mere money. For larger purchases, such as towns, sprawling estates, or castles your party will almost certainly need to engage in politics and intrigue to acquire these assets. Birthright, noble title or conquest are what drive the allocation of these resources, not money.
Designer’s Notes
Problem Statement
Currency/Gold in DnD 5e past introductory levels quickly becomes a nuisance to track and results in characters needing to micromanage small exchanges even when their personal wealth is large.
Core Tenants/Goals of the Design
- Stop bean-counting aspect of money in 5e
- Burden of implementation lies with the DM
- Flexible for ‘levels’ of economies
- Does not use extensive shopping lists or cost matrices
- Party based
- Relies on the concept that magical items either cannot be bought, or are excessively expensive.
- Very simple implementation - ‘Rules lite’
Pit-Falls to Avoid
- Overly complex rules and tables
- Player abuse of mechanic “I can buy 1 horse for free, so I’d like to buy 10,000 horses for free”, or “I buy 1, and then another 1 and then another 1 and then…”
- Affordability coming down to a lucky dice roll