Money vs. Point Value

[Edsel]

Originally Posted by Edsel
My apologies if this has been covered previously but this is a big thread and I did not have the time to review it as thoroughly as I would have liked to…

I would like to see a change in the way the equipment tab operates. Our group plays a lot of Heroic level games and we use the Equipment Allowance rules from Dark Champions. This means that when you are selecting equipment for your character you are trying to stay within a certain point allowance. Monetary value is usually not a concern. Perhaps a toggle could be tied to the Equipment display using house rules? Allow the Equipment to be displayed using monetary value or point cost at the user’s option. This would make it much easier for a character who is trying to stay within their point allowance. Currently you have to open each piece of equipment and jot down its cost in order to keep a running total of points spent.

Sorry...but Hero System rules dictate that Equipment does not cost Character Points to purchase. That is why the cost is displayed instead of the Character Points.

Your best bet is going to be to create an export template which displays (and totals) the cost of the Equipment the character has. The display within the application is not likely to change in this respect.
The above exchange with Simon got me to thinking.

Our group uses prefabs for almost all equipment. So it finally dawned on me how to keep track of the point cost of equipment if the monetary value is of no concern... Simply assign a monetary value to each piece of equipment that is equal to its point cost. That way you can keep a running total of your cost by looking at the dollar price listed at the top of the equipment window. In other words a 15 Real Point gun is given a monetary value of $15.

Some of you probably already thought of this but if you haven't I thought I'd share. It makes it easier to determine, at a glance, if you are over your allowable resource point limit.

[Gemphyre]

The above exchange with Simon got me to thinking.

Our group uses prefabs for almost all equipment. So it finally dawned on me how to keep track of the point cost of equipment if the monetary value is of no concern... Simply assign a monetary value to each piece of equipment that is equal to its point cost. That way you can keep a running total of your cost by looking at the dollar price listed at the top of the equipment window. In other words a 15 Real Point gun is given a monetary value of $15.

Some of you probably already thought of this but if you haven't I thought I'd share. It makes it easier to determine, at a glance, if you are over your allowable resource point limit.


I am sorry to say that I have to disagree with that method. It leads to major underpricing of most pieces of useful equipment. For example, I cannot think of anywhere that you could get a gun for $15, with the possible exception of great luck at an auction.

Another example. A telescopic sight for a rifle might be described as +10 vs Range Mod penalties, OAF, and have a real point cost of 10-15. But if you go to a gun shop, you can easily expect to shell out at least a hundred dollars for a decent one on sale. And that does not include any add-ons, like nightscope.

And think about the cost of a car verses the points to build it, even before the vehicle discount. Most character vehicles have a point cost of under 300, and it is hard to find even a clunker of a car for that much in dollars.

If you want to figure the price of items, use the web and eBay. Also, look through applicable stores. Find the cost of similar items to use as a range, and then fudge the values for new vs. used, and how much better or worse the item is vs. the things in the range.

I do not mean to make your idea sound all bad, but straight points to cost does not work. HOWEVER, using the points as a BASIS for the cost can. What you need to consider is including a multiplier to the cost based on the type of item is being purchased for a conversion of points to dollars. For example, for most weapons including add-ons, you might consider PTS * $10 to $15. For vehicles, PTS * $100 or so. And so on. Increase the multiplier for military, custom, illegal, or hard to get items, and decrease it for common items or things that you want all the characters to have. And fudge the numbers a bit so different models are different prices.

You had a good start, but you just did not quite go far enough with the idea. Use of a category multiplier makes things easy for the GM, since there are only a few numbers s/he needs to keep track of, and the prices sound realistic as well.


Gemphyre

[ghost-angel]

I am sorry to say that I have to disagree with that method. It leads to major underpricing of most pieces of useful equipment. For example, I cannot think of anywhere that you could get a gun for $15, with the possible exception of great luck at an auction.

Another example. A telescopic sight for a rifle might be described as +10 vs Range Mod penalties, OAF, and have a real point cost of 10-15. But if you go to a gun shop, you can easily expect to shell out at least a hundred dollars for a decent one on sale. And that does not include any add-ons, like nightscope.

And think about the cost of a car verses the points to build it, even before the vehicle discount. Most character vehicles have a point cost of under 300, and it is hard to find even a clunker of a car for that much in dollars.

If you want to figure the price of items, use the web and eBay. Also, look through applicable stores. Find the cost of similar items to use as a range, and then fudge the values for new vs. used, and how much better or worse the item is vs. the things in the range.

I do not mean to make your idea sound all bad, but straight points to cost does not work. HOWEVER, using the points as a BASIS for the cost can. What you need to consider is including a multiplier to the cost based on the type of item is being purchased for a conversion of points to dollars. For example, for most weapons including add-ons, you might consider PTS * $10 to $15. For vehicles, PTS * $100 or so. And so on. Increase the multiplier for military, custom, illegal, or hard to get items, and decrease it for common items or things that you want all the characters to have. And fudge the numbers a bit so different models are different prices.

You had a good start, but you just did not quite go far enough with the idea. Use of a category multiplier makes things easy for the GM, since there are only a few numbers s/he needs to keep track of, and the prices sound realistic as well.


Gemphyre

You've mistaken what Edsel is trying to do.

He's not converting Points to Money. He's tracking Points Used by converting cost at a $1 to 1Point ratio. Specifically noting that Cost does not matter so a Cost Listed means nothing to his group - they only care about points. HD, for Heroic Campaigns, does not track Points on Equipment (as Equipment does not cost points in those games) but it does track Cost. By setting the Cost = Points on a 1-1 scale he solves his problem of tracking Points (which he does care about) instead of Cost (which he doesn't care about).

[Gemphyre]

You've mistaken what Edsel is trying to do.

He's not converting Points to Money. He's tracking Points Used by converting cost at a $1 to 1Point ratio. Specifically noting that Cost does not matter so a Cost Listed means nothing to his group - they only care about points. HD, for Heroic Campaigns, does not track Points on Equipment (as Equipment does not cost points in those games) but it does track Cost. By setting the Cost = Points on a 1-1 scale he solves his problem of tracking Points (which he does care about) instead of Cost (which he doesn't care about).

OK. If that is the case, then I did misunderstood his point. I thought that he was talking the campaign in general and player acquisition of equipment, rather than effectively tracking point costs.

Gemphyre