Calculating costs for a modern d20 PF game?

[Lore the Seeker]

Pathfinders, I am trying to figure out the pricing for items in a modern/post-modern game. Is there a formula for cost conversion in a setting with Guns Everywhere for items other than guns? Is the conversion always a straight 1gp = 1 credit or USD?

Thanks in advance.

[Kimera757]

1 gp is worth far more than $1 US, which means even a simple Potion of Cure Light Wounds is incredibly expensive for a serf. Having said that, the modern economy is totally different than that of the past. Consider, in the medieval period food was very expensive relative to today, while shelter was cheap. There were homeless people in the medieval period, but they were wandering looking for work or to beg for food, not because they didn't have a hut to live in. Today's homeless people rarely starve but even if they're working can't afford a place to live. D&D (and so Pathfinder) mundane item costs don't make sense compared to real life medieval prices.

Probably more importantly, when it comes to Pathfinder is the magic item economy. If there's little magic there's no comparison. If there's lots of magic, a gun's price should be similar to a sword's price, which means nothing compared to getting it enhanced as a magic item.

[avr]

If there's only a handful of magic items in the world then you're bidding against billionaires for all of them. You're going to lose the bidding. If magic's as common as technology for doing things then industrial production may have cure light wounds serums for very affordable prices. If magic is secret then it depends on the means of the makers and buyers.

No, the D&D 3.x/PF/SF economy doesn't stand up to examination, and plunking it into a modern economy can't be made to make sense on a $ = X GP level.

What's your setting like?

[TxSam88]

I would say buy some of the D20 Modern RPG books and use the prices listed in them.

[SheepishEidolon]

I'd go for credit rather than dollar, because this makes suspension of disbelief easier: People might know dollar prices for something that exist both in RL and your campaign, but they (usually?) won't know credit prices. So it's less likely they will feel a price is significantly off.

[Name Violation]

TxSam88 wrote:

I would say buy some of the D20 Modern RPG books and use the prices listed in them.

d20 modern has a completely different system for wealth, but does give a rough guideline in either the core book or urban arcana

this site might have some info for you

[Lore the Seeker]

Technically, it's a post-apocalyptic setting, but I figured if I said "modern" that would be close enough.

Not to complicate it further, but it's for my Rifts game. There is magic, but we're using Automatic Bonus Progression, so minor items won't be as plentiful.

[Today is a good day to... halp]

Mebbe you could use some of Starfinder's monetary setup for stuff?

[Lore the Seeker]

Thanks for the feedback, everyone!

[avr]

Maybe a bit late, but a post-apocalyptic society of a small town or two isn't going to have a lot of use for money. Just for small stuff, really - anything more requires a state backing it. That said you could use the gold values as a trade value, how many magic items you might be able to trade for this big magic item.