One of my players wants to buy a animal, a hawk. Those are in the Adventurer's Armory and cost 18 gp.
He asked if he could have one that's already trained, which I think makes sense that a falconer would already have trained it, so I have no problem with that.
I'm just not sure how to price it. Would you say the 18 gp already include training for basic hunting, or would you charge extra for that? And if so, how much extra?
For pricing ... it takes a week to teach one trick ... a trained hireling cost 3sp per day so at minimum I would tack on an additional 21 sp per trick pre-trained.
Falcons, horses, guard dogs, riding dogs, and war anything should probably be assumed to come pretrained if bought, as the very use of any of those pretty much require training to serve their function. Even a colt generally isn't going to be sold without at least some training. Normal pets, on the other hand, probably would not, as no training is required to serve as a pet beyond "don't pee here." Normally wild animals sold as pets would still have basics like come and stay, just because the trainer has to be able to maintain basic control of them, but not necessarily anything like attack or the more complex commands.
Pet without tricks != wild animal
But I see your point and agree with it too. Thanks
Animals like horses and hawks should be assumed to be pre-trained. They're not much use otherwise, after all.You need to be pre-trained to be dinner?
Didn't they used to simply stick canaries in cages and take them down mines? Trained for 'play dead' I can understand, 'be dead' is a whole other matter. XD
There is a significant difference between a mine canary and a hawk or horse and that should also be reflected in the price difference as well.
There is a significant difference between a mine canary and a hawk or horse and that should also be reflected in the price difference as well.Animals like horses and hawks should be assumed to be pre-trained. They're not much use otherwise, after all.You need to be pre-trained to be dinner?
Didn't they used to simply stick canaries in cages and take them down mines? Trained for 'play dead' I can understand, 'be dead' is a whole other matter. XD
Yes a canary is 4 cp :)
We aren't saying all animals are trained... but the more expensive ones would be.
After all what good is a guard dog that can't guard anything without more training? Or a war horse that doesn't know how to handle itself in a battle?
Indeed the costs of the tricks for these sorts of animals amounts to what... 2~4 gp? On the price of a 150gp horse or 25gp dog?
For a 4 cp canary that you want trained to sing on command? Yeah that's going to take some work on your part. For the general labor animals and specific purpose animals not so much, you pay for the training with the cost of the animal.
Especially with the descriptions saying things like:
This Small dog is bred strictly for combat; breeders favor strength, a thick body, and a low center of gravity. Combat-trained dogs are sold in most large cities in the Inner Sea region. They are popular as sport fighters in Cheliax, though the best specimens are bred in Molthune, where they are used as special infantry.
This Medium dog is bred for carrying Small riders. Breeders select dogs with strong backs, endurance, and a loyal disposition and train them for riding and combat before sale. Reputable breeders can be found in Absalom, Almas, and Katapesh.
These Huge animals are exceptionally strong and are quick learners. They are trained for battle and labor by the Zenj people of the Mwangi Expanse. Most known elephants come from the Mwangi Expanse and represent one of the few steady income sources for Sargava. Their upkeep is exorbitant, so only the richest Inner Sea citizens can afford to house one.
So on and so forth.
Combat Training (DC 20): An animal trained to bear a rider into combat knows the tricks attack, come, defend, down, guard, and heel. Training an animal for combat riding takes 6 weeks. You may also “upgrade” an animal trained for riding to one trained for combat by spending 3 weeks and making a successful DC 20 Handle Animal check. The new general purpose and tricks completely replace the animal's previous purpose and any tricks it once knew. Many horses and riding dogs are trained in this way.
So it certainly makes it sound like animals come pre trained.
|
I would generally say that animals are trained as a General Purpose set for resale by NPC merchants. This allows for training that is normally done, but not for specific training picking and choosing by a player. They can pick n choose if they want, but the typical trainer does bunches of animals for generally what he intends to sell them for. So this makes most sense to me. You aren't going to get a trainer who trains for Combat but has a WORK trick. If you want a work horse or dog to pull a sled, its going to be trained as a Heavy Labor animal. Nobody teaches their sled dog to fight (generally they do that on their own and you can't really control em unless you know em). Likewise teaching a combat animal to pull a sled would probably (generally speaking) not be done. But as a special order, a good handler CAN do this. Its just not generally done for resale.
ps. -What's wrong with it.
I'll tell you what's wrong with it. It's dead. That's what's wrong with it.
-Naw, No, its resting. Look.
Look my lad I know a dead parrot when I see one...
Well put maouse.
I told my player now that a hawk for 18 gp comes with the Hunting package, since that's what hawks are generally used for, so most people will want that, and that's what the falconer trains them for.
If he wants something special he'll have to train it himself or pay someone to do it, but that will both take time.
There might also be a small chance that the falconer has something similar to what he wants in stock (someone ordered a hawk that can do performance tricks etc but never picked it up for example)
Sounds good to me Quatar -- fair and balanced.