BUY & SELL TRADE GOODS
Previous Article…D&D – Trade Campaign #9 – Trade Nodes
So, we have created tables containing a list of trade goods, and we created three arbitrary categories: raw materials, finished good, luxury goods…but we kept in mind that we can change these categories whenever we want if it fits our goals.
For each good, we set a base price.
Then we determined how the prices fluctuate.
Subsequently, we created the price modifiers to adjust fluctuations.
Finally, we spent some words about the trade nodes, stating that trade nodes are nothing more than marketplaces – most of the time settlements – where merchants buy and sell their goods.
We have published the awesome Merchant Guide, a pdf available on DrivethruRpg. Just have a look at the preview to have an idea of the content.
Also, if you already have an idea on how to run your own trading campaign you may want to have a look at our Trade Goods Generator.
With this article, we want indeed answer to this question, how a merchant buy and sell goods.
Imagine a merchant who has just arrived to its destination, on board of his ship, or on his caravan of wagons.
We assume he has goods to sell, and he possibly want to buy some also.
So, we ask ourselves the following questions.
Will he find someone willing to buy his stuff?
The answer is yes, of course, someone will buy his loads. Imagine the merchant is shipping a load of hay, a load of wood logs, and a load of iron ingots. He has three separate loads to sell, so he has to find three distinct buyers.
How many buyers are present at the trade node?
For sure, he will not find an infinite number of buyers. It means that he cannot sell all his loads in a single transaction.
However, we can state that the number of buyers depends on three factors:
a) Size of the settlement
In the previous article D&D – Trade Campaign #9 – Trade Nodes, we created a table with eight different settlement sizes. We probably want to link the number of buyers to the settlement’s size.
We also state that, if the settlement is small, then it is even possible that the merchant will not find any buyer available; this statement implies that the number of buyers is variable.
Thorp 1d6-4
Hamlet 1d6-3
Village 1d6-2
Small town 1d6-1
Large Town 1d6
Small City 1d6+1
Large City 1d6+2
Metropolis 1d6+3
b) The Merchant’s Level
In the article D&D – Trade Campaign #8 – Price Modifiers, we introduced the concept of merchant’s level (something we will develop in detail later) and we stated that a merchant’s level grants price modifiers in the form of bonus.
In the same way, we can state that the merchant’s level may increase the number of buyers, to reflect the merchant’s experience and reputation.
Merchant’s level 3 +1 buyer
Merchant’s level 7 +2 buyers
Merchant’s level 11 +3 buyers
Merchant’s level 15 +4 buyers
Merchant’s level 19 +5 buyers
c) Other Circumstances
Positive or negative events may occur, and these events may affect the number of buyers present in a settlement. This implies creating a table of random events. We will see this detail later.
How long does it take to find a buyer and seal a deal?
This is an important detail, because time is money. Let’s assume that the merchant has found 4 buyers.
We said the he has 3 loads to sell – iron ingots, hay and wood logs.
Well, he has been lucky, because he will surely sell his loads to three of the four buyers. So, we state that the standard time to make a sale is 1 week per load, but the merchant can of course manage more than one negotiation. In the example mentioned above, the merchant can conduct three negotiations in a single week with all the three buyers. Long story short, the merchant, after one week of negotiations – meeting the buyer, talking with him at the local inn, etcetera – will have sold all of his loads.
After the negotiations, the player rolls the dice to determine the price fluctuation, apply the price modifiers and finally determine the price of the load.
If the sale price is satisfactory for the player, then the sale is a go; otherwise, if the player is not satisfied with the final price, he will have to wait another week and roll for a new number of available buyers.
He has been spending two week in the settlement so far, trying to sell a load of wood logs; maybe this week he will be more lucky…or he can simply get rid of the load of wood logs (no matter the price) and look for better deals with new goods in other settlement. Maybe he knows that, in a nearby settlement, are looking for wood logs and they are buying at better prices.
4) How many sellers is he able to find at the trade node?
The number of sellers is the opposite side of the medal of everything we explained so far. What applied for the buyers, applies for the sellers.
In other words, we can state that the number of sellers depends on the settlement size and the merchant’s level.
Of course, every seller will be selling a single load of goods and will remain in the settlement for 1 week.
We just need to modify the table of the merchant’s level to include the number of additional sellers.
Merchant’s level 3 +1 seller
Merchant’s level 7 +2 sellers
Merchant’s level 11 +3 sellers
Merchant’s level 15 +4 sellers
Merchant’s level 19 +5 sellers
Example of a merchant looking for loads on sale
A 3rd level merchant arrives at a Large Town. A large town implied the presence of 1d6 buyers, but we extended this concept to the sellers also.
Let’s imagine that the merchant sold her goods at the previous market and now she has coins to buy some loads to resell them later.
The merchant finds 1d6+1 potential sellers – 1d6 because she is at a large town; +1 because she is 3rd level. The player rolls 1d6+1 and score a 5. It means that 5 sellers are willing to sell a load of goods to the merchant.
Which goods? Well, that is the purpose of the trade goods generator.
Later, for every trade goods generated we will roll the price fluctuation and apply any price modifier. If the merchant is not satisfied with the goods on sale at the market, she can wait one week at the local inn, and then roll again for the number of sellers and the loads on sale.
Buyers and Sellers vs Loads
At this point we simplify the table that refers to the merchant’s level, and instead of using the words Buyer and Seller, we will just use the word Loads. The merchant’s level influences both when selling or buying, so it is pointless to mark such distinction.
Merchant’s level 3 +1 load
Merchant’s level 7 +2 loads
Merchant’s level 11 +3 loads
Merchant’s level 15 +4 loads
Merchant’s level 19 +5 loads
Bargaining, Diplomacy, Intimidation, Negotiation and so on…
We are talking about skills based on charisma. The most common is diplomacy, however many game masters often homebrew their own skill to meet their game tables specific needs.
Price fluctuations depend on the natural trend of markets.
Price modifiers depend on circumstances.
Negotiating prices is a fight between two subjects.
So, we must assume that at some point, two merchants will be trying to “drag water to their own mill”.
The buyer may want to lower the price, while the seller may want to raise the price.
The negotiation may occur as a pure roleplaying action, or it can be resolved with a roll of dice. Game Master’s discretion, as usual.
Let’s assume we want the dice to solve the problem.
Clash of Skill
We will make it simple. Both merchant roll the proper skill check, and the one who rolls higher, win and lower, or raise, the price, accordingly to her or his best interest.
If the buyer wins, then the price will lower by 5%.
If the seller wins, then the price will raise by 5%.
Simple and straight, for now.