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Chosen of Bane
Senior Scribe
USA
552 Posts |
 Posted - 22 Dec 2005 : 21:21:32
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I am making an NPC for my campaign who, like the subject suggests, is an unscrupulous merchant from Sembia...go figure. Anyway...
This merchant is in possession of a Dragon Egg (silver dragon) and is looking to sell it, perhaps to a powerful wizard, but really to anybody can afford it.
Now, my questions are...
1) How much do you guys think a Dragon's Egg would go for on the Black Market?
2) What sort of guards (number and classes/level) do you think this merchant would employ to protect his goods?
#2 is probably more important than #1 because I don't see the PC's buying the egg, more likely they'll attempt to steal it and return it to the Dragon clan, but I'd like to have a ballpark for the price so it can add a little more flavor to the game.
As always....thanks in advance.
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Aelf
Acolyte
USA
46 Posts |
Posted - 22 Dec 2005 : 22:33:06
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I would guess the value of #1 would help determine #2.
If we're talking 3rd edition and 'balance', I would think the upper bound would be some fraction of 108,000gp since that is triple normal treasure for two CR15 Adult Silver Dragons (EL17). If the merchant recovered the egg from a dragon lair its value would be part of the treasure. Also, if the parents/relatives of the egg wanted to ransom it, we could use the 108kgp figure as an upper bound of resources available for ransoming.
Note that I'm not really suggesting 108kgp as the price; but I think that is an important number to consider when setting the actual value. Also, I'm aware that this assumes a two-parent dragon family; I don't have any resources other than the MM for Silver Dragon ecology.
Aelf,
friendly neighborhood bard
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Regards,
Aelf, a bard of the Realms |
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sleyvas
Skilled Spell Strategist
USA
12211 Posts |
Posted - 23 Dec 2005 : 20:23:42
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| This type of thing would be highly valuable. It would also be time sensitive. It would also be "is Momma dead" sensitive (provable via divination magics). If the parent dragons are dead, then the egg cannot be used in ransom... but the person need not fear a dragon showing up to devour him (as much anyway). Being that the person would have to hire a trainer and feed the thing for years before it becomes useful, plus the chance that the egg dies before hatching... I'd put it around 5000 gp. This may seem cheap to some, but I'm picturing the thing eating a pig a day (or a mule for comparison cost) at a cost of 8 gp per day. Considering this puts the yearly cost upwards of about 3000 gp in food, plus you'd have to pay a trainer (whom I'm picturing would have to have some levels on him in order to have enough skill ranks to train a growing dragon). In all, getting the egg would seem to be the easier part of all this. |
Alavairthae, may your skill prevail
Phillip aka Sleyvas |
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Kentinal
Great Reader
4703 Posts |
Posted - 23 Dec 2005 : 21:15:58
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| Well it would help if a dragon egg was a priced spell component. As noted many factors come into play that I will add to, how to hatch the egg was not addressed. There is the cost benefit calculation, magic might be required to control a hatchling instead of just a trainer and spells cost money one way or another. There at minimun is 5 years of training and/or control is needed. There is also the problem of how well a Dragon can be trained, they are free willed and not an animal, in effect one trying to hatch and control a Dragon will be a type of slavery attempt. As the Dragon ages it clearly might kill its owner. |
"Small beings can have small wisdom," the dragon said. "And small wise beings are better than small fools. Listen: Wisdom is caring for afterwards."
"Caring for afterwards ...? Ker repeated this without understanding.
"After action, afterwards," the dragon said. "Choose the afterwards first, then the action. Fools choose action first."
"Judgement" copyright 2003 by Elizabeth Moon |
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An unscrupulous merchant
