>>All this interesting talk about coins and cash economies and the
>>effects has me thinking about that 1 cow=20 lunars exchange in
>>Thunder Rebels. Is that the basic exchange out in rural land
>>where the tribes are? Does that shift around when you get
>>to the cities, where cash is more prevelant? Does that get higher
>>lower? In the city, does it cost 40 lunars to a cow? Or 10?
>I don't think it is necessary, prudent or even sane to try to figure out
>precisely the effect of Lunar occupation, tribute and influx of specie
>on prices in Sartar - I think this is something that folk should play
>around with according to the needs of their own campaign. Needless to
>say, I think that the 1613-1627 period is a time of great upheaval and
>change for the Sartarites. Some of this is obvious - like Lunarized
>kings and chiefs, marauding Lunar patrols and guerilla warfare by the
>rebels. Some of this is less obvious - the influx of currency, the
>destruction of old elites and the rise of new men.
Yes, exchange rates are going to vary enormously from place to place even before the Lunar occupation. TR is clear "...each clan has it's own base rates..." and the figures given are "...average for most Sartarite clans:".
Perhaps the key question is whether the cow remains the standard of currency or is replaced by the Lunar. I'm sure that the Lunars try and make this happen "We don't want cows, pay your taxes in silver like civilised folk". Equally some Orlanthi will insist the only proper standard is the cow and driving a herd of cattle into the tax collector's office is the right thing to do. Given the fuss made in Britain over decimalistion and currently about adopting the euro there's plenty of scope for silly rows which will completly overshadow any exchange rate calculations.
-- Donald Oddy http://www.grove.demon.co.uk/ ------------------------------
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