Hello all!
This is coming from a massive fan of the series, and someone who is currently running a Call Of Cthulhu game based in the Dishonoured setting.
Now, a key part of things in Call Of Cthulhu, and most RPGs for that matter, is buying things. Be it grenades, elixirs, poisons or just mundane things like food and lodging, it is an important thing to consider for any GM. Now, I won't lie, I've always had problems managing prices and the economy of my games, a pair of D&D 5e campaigns based in the Fallout universe especially coming to mind (yeah, having Level 6 PCs armed with fully modified Anti-Material Rifles was not fun for encounter balance).
But I swear to the Outsider, Dishonoured takes the absolute cake for the worst economy that I've ever had to suffer through dealing with.
So, let us start things off at the beginning of things.
Wages!
The way the common folk of this world who aren't murderous ex-bodyguards with black magic generate wealth for themselves. So, there isn't much I could scrape together from the lore for this, but there was one thing. A Dead Counter poster does in fact proclaim quite proudly:
https://preview.redd.it/uv749e1a6fe41.png?width=246&format=png&auto=webp&s=31dface567d863ad5c3b1cd1f9461a3a70d85851
Sorry if you can't quite make that out, but it does says "10 Coins per day".
Now, we also discover from a note labelled "Counter Responsibilities", that:"Commissioned by the Lord Regent in the face of the growing plague crisis, the Dead Counter is a position that will only be given to officers, usually of junior or middle grades. In most matters of edict or curfew enforcement, these officers will defer to the acting officer on-duty. However, any Dead Counter will have command in situations related to the plague and the handling of the dead, including those with late-stage plague symptoms (called "weepers" in common parlance). Starting in the Month of Rain, interested officers may apply for the test and, if accepted, for the two-week training tour. Pay will be administered in coin and rations of elixir, at one and one-half normal pay grade."
https://dishonored.fandom.com/wiki/Dead_Counter_Responsibilities
So we now can at least deduce that the average Officer, yes those fancy schmucks with the bright red uniforms, earn around 7 Coins, give or take (that being 10 ÷ 1.5 = 6.66666667, then rounded up).
Wow, ok. That does not seem like much, does it? Oh but does it ever get worse.
So bullets, the ammunition required to make said Officer's guns go boom, how much does that cost on the black market for Corvo to purchase?
30. Coins.
https://dishonored.fandom.com/wiki/Black_Market_Shops
Seeing the problems?
Why in the Outsider's name, would they not just sell their own ammo on the black market? I mean, c'mon, they clearly have enough of it to shoot at Corvo repeatedly with, and a single bullet is worth 3 days wages for these men!
And now, what if we don't look at the pay of the Dead Counters or the Officers, but rather that of the average Joe. What in the Void is he earning? 1 - 3 Coins a day?
That's inane!
How does he pay for food, rent, clothing, water, electricity, fuel and any other miscellaneous necessities with only 3 or so coins to work with?
With all that aside, I'll put the final nail in the coffin for Dishonoured's economy. What about booze or meals at establishments? How much would they cost?
Well (and thank you for reading this far in what is essentially just a well researched rant) we can also gain the answer to that from the menu listed in the Hound Pits Pub.
https://dishonored.fandom.com/wiki/The_Hound_Pits_Pub
"- Jellied Eels (Fresh, Not Canned!) - 12 coins -
- Brined Hagfish - 8 coins -
- Grilled Whale - 15 coins -
- Blood Sausage - 11 coins -
- Pickled Quail Eggs - 8 coins for 3 -
- Dark Bread - 8 coins -
Our Specialty Drinks
For Your Pleasure and Ease of Mind
- Hound Pits Draft - 6 coins -
- Mulled Cider - 8 coins -
- Sugared Wine - 3 coins -
- Dunwall Brand Whiskey - 10 coins -
- Emerald Absinthe (Served in a Mouth-blown Crystal Glass with Reservoir) - 12 coins -"
Now, even considering this to be extremely expensive dining, which I somehow doubt, I mean we even find out that this seedy establishment tops up their booze reserves with straight river water.
"They top off the wine with river water. But eventually someone swoons, then fresh bottles are fetched from the cellars."
https://dishonored.fandom.com/wiki/The_Heart/Quotes#The_Hound_Pits_Pub
For a SINGLE BEER, that is almost a full day's wages for an OFFICER. I mean, come on, that is utterly absurd!
So yes, all in all, despite my love for this game and its seeming endless reservoir of further lore and intrigue even to this day, I do have to completely condemn Arkane's construction of the in game economy.
But I don't just want to be some angry keyboard warrior getting pissed over some minor discrepancy no one gives a crap about. So if anyone does have any good examples/arguments disputing my claims, please let me know. Or even just any ideas on how the currency could be reworked to actually function and make sense!
I'm sure there is enough fellow nerds on this subreddit to see that through.
And I would really appreciate it, as a GM trying to stay true to the source material, but also get an economy that I can use in my game effectively.
Right now, my idea is to seperate the three types of coins into something resembling our own currency, albeit 1920's America, due to the gigantic list of prices Call Of Cthulhu detailing hundreds of different items and their costs (making things far easier for yours truly), and also due to the fact that is quite uninflated when placed in comparison to our modern currency, which just makes things easier when trying to adapt it for Dishonoured.
So the default Iron Coins (Coin of 1 in baseline Dishonoured) would be worth around 5 cents, which for context would equate to around 3 Iron Coins for a dozen fresh eggs, or 2 Iron Coins for a bunch of carrots.
The default Copper Coins (Coin of 5 in baseline Dishonoured) would be worth closer to 1$, equating to around 2 Copper Coins for a Whale-Oil powered lantern.
Finally, the default Golden Coins (Coin of 10 in baseline Dishonoured) would be worth around $20, equating to 2 Golden Coins for a typewriter, or 1 Gold Coin and 10 Copper Coins for a nice, ornate Officer's sword.
Once again, any debate or feedback is absolutely welcome!
Oh, and apologies if this isn't laid out properly. This is my first proper post on Reddit.
- Edit: I just cleaned up and fixed some formatting and spelling mistakes
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