Credits and Dollars

[Andrew M]

Still, though, say your player has his character walking through a bazaar on a world and picks up a purple, egg-like thing. The natives love them. They eat them, and they are, indeed, eggs.

How much?

The GM things about a carton of eggs today and says that they cost Cr2 credits.

What the GM should do, to be a little more accurate, is estimate what the eggs cost in 1977.

Say they cost Cr1 for two cartons. Spend Cr2 and get the fifth carton free.

That's a fine analogy, but just how many eggs do you get in the standard Imperial egg carton?

 

[Shonner]

Um... What's the point of $ in Traveller when it's CR they use? A few years from now the $ will be worthless or gone. The more better to use CR anyway.

 

[aramis]

Um... What's the point of $ in Traveller when it's CR they use? A few years from now the $ will be worthless or gone. The more better to use CR anyway.

Because the 1977$1=Cr1 allows ready conversion of the quite scanty equipment lists.

 

[Icosahedron]

You could in 1977.

Even that's questionable, and then only if the Imperial economy on every world had the same imports, exports and values as the American economy.
Face it, Traveller has never handled economies well, particularly not CT.

But, instead of worring about what things cost in 1977, I'd do it the way you're doing it and be done with it.

Exactly.

Agreed. But, that doesn't answer the OP well. The original question is about Credits and Dollars.

I think it does answer the OP. The query was basically 'how do I explain dollar equivalents to players', and my solution is - for your own sanity, don't!

There are too many discrepancies in CT economics. You'll never get to the bottom of it. Even the salaries and pensions disagree between the early books and the later ones. The deeper you dig, the more discrepancies you find. I quickly stopped digging and rewrote the salaries and equipment lists for myself in typical CT GM DIY style.

 

[Shonner]

When a player asks how many $ a Cr is, tell them that their character has never heard of a $ and that they are role-playing for a character in a society that uses Cr. The player can figure out how many Cr their character's time is worth.

 

[Whipsnade]

Gents,

I think the actual purpose of the dollar to credit conversion rate is being forgotten here.

GDW did not state a conversion rate so that players could price 57th Century goods in 20th/21st Century currency.

Instead, GDW stated a conversion rate so that GMs could price 20th/21st Century goods in 57th Century currency.

The conversion rate is a tool for GMs. There are all of 58 items listed in LBB:3 so it was expected that GMs would need to add to the list of equipment available. With a credit to dollar conversion rate in hand, a GM could quickly slip any current day item or piece of equipment into their Traveller campaign with a minimum of fuss.

So, as other posters have suggested, when a player asks how much something is in dollars, simply stare at them incomprehensibly. The conversion rate is a GM tool and not a bit of in-game player knowledge.


Regards,
Bill

 

[CosmicGamer]

... when a player asks how much something is in dollars, simply stare at them incomprehensibly. The conversion rate is a GM tool and not a bit of in-game player knowledge. Regards, Bill

Got my agreement.

 

[rancke]

So, as other posters have suggested, when a player asks how much something is in dollars, simply stare at them incomprehensibly. The conversion rate is a GM tool and not a bit of in-game player knowledge.

Or figure out what the price index would be in 3000 years and multiply by that. "In 2009 AD dollars? 14 million."


Hans

 

[Shonner]

when a player asks how much something is in dollars, simply stare at them incomprehensibly. The conversion rate is a GM tool and not a bit of in-game player knowledge.

Exactly. I think newer players to RPG's have to think in RP terms instead of in action shooter style games.

 

[aramis]

Most players have no grasp of a credit's worth until they have played for a while.

When I tell them Cr1 is roughly worth 2007$5, they now have a base idea about Cr10 for a meal being a pricy, Cr5 being nice, Cr3 being Denny's quality, Cr2 being McD's, and Cr1 being "dollar menu"... and that Cr2 an hour is a passable wage. A Car should range from Cr3000-Cr15000. A hotel room from Cr10 to Cr100 per night.

All with a one line comparison.

Now, their character doesn't know dollars, but the player can use the Cr1:$5 to make a valid comparison for purposes of understanding just how much their character has in cash.

It's not just a tool for the GM. It's a hook for players to be able to more accurately play their character's relationship to money.

 

[ShapeShifter]

I think I'll just abandon Imperial Credits altogether and stick with Twi'lek slavegirl dancers as currency.

 

[rancke]

I think I'll just abandon Imperial Credits altogether and stick with Twi'lek slavegirl dancers as currency.

But getting the correct change is such a hazzle.


Hans

 

[ShapeShifter]

But getting the correct change is such a hazzle.


Hans

You may be surprised where they keep the roll of quarters.

 

[Commander Truestar]

Hm. LBB3, p. 21 states that a ground car is Cr4000. If I suppose Cr1:$10, that should not be too terribly off. However it would make the fixed wing aircraft only ten million! o: Not really enough, I should think.

or a crimp could be worth one dollar and your Cr4,000 ground car could be the modern equivelant of a yugo....LOL

Marc

 

[tbeard1999]

How can I explain to new players the purchasing power of the Imperial Credit in terms of the US dollar? Based on what I've seen in the rulebooks it does not at all look like a 1:1 ratio. Is there a canonical source quote that could come to the rescue? I am also seeking infos on the typical daily wages in credits, yearly salaries in credits to further illustrate that pecuniary unit's value.

I did a search for "credit", but have no time in my work-day for wading through 16 pages of threads that it collated.

Any suggestions most welcome.

Based on prices in Book 1 and circumstantial evidence, I think that Cr1 is roughly $1 in 1977 US dollars. Or approximately $4 in 2009 dollars.

 

[far-trader]

:rofl:

I think I'll just abandon Imperial Credits altogether and stick with Twi'lek slavegirl dancers as currency.

But don't you hate it when I get stuck with counterfeits :nonono:

 

[Icosahedron]

But don't you hate it when I get stuck with counterfeits :nonono:

By counterfeit, do you mean;

They're not Twi'lek?

They're not dancers?

or they're not girls?

 

[ShapeShifter]

:lol:

Excessive rubbing reveals their skin as other than blue?
Their tentacle-hair is a weave?

 

[Geage]

Not to be a bummer but the problem with measuring inflation/exchange rates of periods of time is that while the consumer price index may say one thing you cannot always come up with one standard rate of inflation and aplly to every single item. Think about it, a jump drive (assuming you could control it and a a good enough scpacecraft) would be invaluble to us now days.