My party's barbarian wants to lug the corpse of the rhagodessa from The Blue Nixie to the Taxidermist's Guildhall and have it stuffed as a trophy. Great idea, as he wants to join Zelkarune's Horns, and this would surely be a good way to get his foot in the door. But, here's where I'm stuck.
Anybody have thoughts on how much it would cost him to get this beast stuffed and mounted? And, how long would the commission take, you think?
I appreciate any ideas. Thanks!
I have absolutely no idea, but what an awesome post:)
70 gold, and takes two weeks (or if rushed, 150gp and 4 days..basically dropping all else).
Just a guess ;)
How about saying that stuffing (is that the technical term?), is roughly equivalent to barding with hide armor? That gives you a cost for it, the skill of the taxidermist then deteremines how long it takes.
not bad.. but stuffing is less than half the job of barding.
You do many of the similar things, with the exception of not having to pay for the leather.. and no need to cut it up either.
Hay otoh is cheap.. glass-eyes maybe less so, but ill be damned if those cost more than 3 silver a piece.. ;)
True, but barding rarely ever covers the entire body (even full plate isn't 100%) and you have to build the frame for the stuffing.
I think for a good NNFP (Not Nitpicking For Realism) estimate that using hide barding as a guide is a good idea. Also, consider the masterwork component as well. I at least have seen some horrible mountings, and some exceptional ones, amidst all the decent ones.
To get more statistical, consider these factors:
Skill of taxidermist. (Better equals costlier)
Biology of critter. (Abberrations, plants... hard to do. Elementals and oozes... Here's yer sign.)
Rarity of critter. (Deer, dire rats, wolves... familiar and common. Red Dragons, gricks, gargoyles... harder. The tarrasque? Who even knows if the corpse stops regenerating even if it is wished dead?)
LoL in my game, they killed the Taxadermist...so he'd be screwed! Guess it would be a good time to take 1 rank in profession: "Stuffing" LOL ;P
You could RP it out, having a member of the Horns be there when your PC drags the rhagodessa in to be stuffed. The member could be a higher-up who is excited to see the beast and hear the tale, offering to induct your PC then and there while covering the costs of the taxidermy.
I guess that doesn't give you an answer on cost, but it might be a fun way to play it out, since I also have no idea on cost/time.
