battle Wear vs. Town Wear

[Lezentauw]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

This got me thinking:

 

If you had to crawl into hell and back for this sword (or whatever else ridiculous feat), then you would NEVER leave it with ANYONE. If I have the legendary Axe of Jack Frost, for which I had to trek up to a frozen peak, defeat Jack's minions, defeat Jack's lieutenants, defeat Jack's personal guard (of terrifying frost giants), and then defeat Jack himself...whew...

 

Basically: Legendary weapons tend to be defended by legendary things of legendary power, even if that power comes from the weapon itself. Obviously people out there know about these legendary weapons, otherwise there would be no legends about them. Also, once you go through these trials and obtain this legendary weapon, you are now legendary....which means people are after me and my Axe the same way I was after Jack and what was his!

 

I don't care how "trusted" and "protected" this king's guarded armory is, but it's not better than a frozen peak with ice monsters...and if it's not better than that, then it won't do, because that's what I had to go through, and the guy behind me might be better than me.

 

I guess I had never really made the connection between PCs and legendary weapons/armor. It doesn't just get added to the inventory, you get added to the legend.

 

 

As to Legendary Items, there are tons of reasons why a PC would be allowed to keep it at all times. Nobles will want to meet the person who got it and see it at the same time. Nobles will be rushing with titles to grant, as such a legendary person would be desired to be their fold. A rep would be attained, that perhaps common guards would be afraid to ask said person to not carry the weapon in, of course said rep would be balanced by a neg rep of people gunning for the item... Legendary items are kinda off topic though. When it comes to standard weapons and armor of war, it is very feasible for them to not be allowed to be carried by commoners in a town...

[Ice9]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

This whole thread has me thinking about the antagonistic relationship that goes on between players and their GM. I always pictured roleplaying as a group exercise, wherein the GM presents challenges for the characters to overcome. There are usually some laughs when things go stunningly well (or stunningly bad) and stories are built around the exploits of the characters. What I am getting from this thread is that there is a perception from a lot of players that the GM is "out to get them." That's sort of frustrating and a little sad at the same time.

It's not always antagonism. The GM presents a challenge, and often part of that challenge is deciding who to trust and when to keep a eye out for trouble. I think most people would agree that refusing to go on any dangerous sounding adventure is being too paranoid, and holding still with your eyes closed while the "reformed" evil cultist does a "friendship ritual" with his "ceremonial" dagger is being too foolish.

 

But between those points, the expected level of danger (and thus appropriate paranoia) varies from group to group. In one group, recieving a quest may just be the setup for the game, and interrogating the quest giver would be slowing things down for no reason. In another group, separating real quests from traps is part of the game, and just blindly accepting what people tell you would be a shortcut to the grave. So part of the problem may be players who think of "leave your weapons at the gate" as a challenge that's meant to be overcome playing with GMs who meant it as part of the setup.

[drunkonduty]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

Of course, all of this is kind of moot if the GM is running a constant campaign of breaking-and-entering at the inns and footpads in the alleys...if the cities are a battleground and leaving your stuff behind locked doors is essentially abandoning it to looters, then the PCs are justified in wearing their full kit at all times. If that's against the local law, well screw it. If it's against local custom, WTF are the locals thinking walking around unarmed when their home town is so damn dangerous? If the GM wants to occasionally catch the PCs off guard, then he needs to cut them lots of slack most of the time.

 

This sums it up nicely for me.

If the GM wants the PCs to act in a civilised manner then the PCs had better be given some civilisation to do it in.

[Captain Obvious]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

If the GM wants the PCs to act in a civilised manner then the PCs had better be given some civilisation to do it in.

 

This is even summier.

[Shinobi Killfis]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

If you want your PCs to go without their main battle gear in town, you need to do a couple of things.

 

FIRST: Establish why people don't wear heavy armor and weapons in town. Several good suggestions have been made for this already.

 

SECOND: Establish that things left stored will not regularly be stolen as soon as the character's back is turned. Once in a while (no more than twice per campaign, total) can be written off to chance. Having it happen every single time just reinforces the 'Must stay with me!' mindset.

 

THIRD: Events that happen in town should be of the type that can be handled with no armor and sidearms, or you again reinforce the 'Must wear armor everywhere!' mindset.

 

Without doing this, your PCs are fully justified in wanting their full kit at all times, for self-preservation if nothing else!

 

For the second point even once may be too much if it is to steal valuable gear. I am not talking legendary whatever, but in a D&D game if you take my +2sword and +3 armor and I'm left with a broadsword and chainmail I buy at the blacksmith I wont trust the GM again. I just lost a good 20-30% of my power and it was lost to a thief. And not just a thief, but an off camera thief. If you stumble into the thief during the act and you have the opportunity to stop the theft and fail that is one thing. You come back to an empty room and that is another.

 

Also in somewhat magic heavy campaigns unless magic has to be channeld trough a big obvious focus that everyone knows about and is similarly forced to be kept in the inn all these restrictions do is nudge people away form playing the character they want, to playing magic guy all the time. Now if they wanted to play magic guy in the first place great for them, but some of my players have no desire to play a mage of any type. In my game they could replace any stolen gear in less than a minute so this isn't much of a worry. But in a more traditional fantasy game where you have magical swords and armor which you can't just pick up at the quickie mart it becomes a pain.

[Lezentauw]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

For the second point even once may be too much if it is to steal valuable gear. I am not talking legendary whatever, but in a D&D game if you take my +2sword and +3 armor and I'm left with a broadsword and chainmail I buy at the blacksmith I wont trust the GM again. I just lost a good 20-30% of my power and it was lost to a thief. And not just a thief, but an off camera thief. If you stumble into the thief during the act and you have the opportunity to stop the theft and fail that is one thing. You come back to an empty room and that is another.

 

Also in somewhat magic heavy campaigns unless magic has to be channeld trough a big obvious focus that everyone knows about and is similarly forced to be kept in the inn all these restrictions do is nudge people away form playing the character they want, to playing magic guy all the time. Now if they wanted to play magic guy in the first place great for them, but some of my players have no desire to play a mage of any type. In my game they could replace any stolen gear in less than a minute so this isn't much of a worry. But in a more traditional fantasy game where you have magical swords and armor which you can't just pick up at the quickie mart it becomes a pain.

 

You can take an item away from the players, and give them the opportunity to get it back... Back when I did run D&D, I treated weaponsmiths and armorsmiths as artisans. That means that a specific artisan is not going to be able to make two 'longswords' identical, nor would he want to. This in turn means that there are going to be differences between each 'longsword'. So, a player will have a pretty good chance to recognizing 'his' 'longsword' when he spots it. This of course also had the added bonus of detracting the group rogue from playing switch-a-roo with every flipping item in the game...

 

It is kinda hard for a rogue to explain why his longsword went from matte black, to being highly polished and adorned with runes... Of course said rogue does not need to explain anything, when another group member sticks him in the gut, for denying the fact that he was holding out on them, with his own 'old' sword...

[Shinobi Killfis]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

You can take an item away from the players, and give them the opportunity to get it back... Back when I did run D&D, I treated weaponsmiths and armorsmiths as artisans. That means that a specific artisan is not going to be able to make two 'longswords' identical, nor would he want to. This in turn means that there are going to be differences between each 'longsword'. So, a player will have a pretty good chance to recognizing 'his' 'longsword' when he spots it. This of course also had the added bonus of detracting the group rogue from playing switch-a-roo with every flipping item in the game...

 

It is kinda hard for a rogue to explain why his longsword went from matte black, to being highly polished and adorned with runes... Of course said rogue does not need to explain anything, when another group member sticks him in the gut, for denying the fact that he was holding out on them, with his own 'old' sword...

 

Yeah totally, if it can be reasonably found it is in the same ball park as being able to stop the thief. As a PC I hate off camera or no control events, if I want to hear a story I'll listen to books on tape. I am there to play a game and I expect to be able to have an effect on the outcome of events I am involved in. I never had a problem when a GM came to me and said, you know I didn't realize how powerful FU was, I really shouldn't of put FU in the treasure, do you mind if I have it stolen or destroyed? Also if my family heirloom is stolen as part of the story and my motivation for the adventure at least in part is its recovery, hey that is great you used my story and background. But if you make me put my gear in a certain location and then you steal it not to start an adventure but just because, or it makes it a living world man thieves exist there just like in real life then screw you my sword does not leave my side.

[Tasha]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

From the paranoid player perspective, that would not work either. "But the lord may only want us disarmed so he can take advantage of our weakened state" or "Oh sure, I expect the Lord to be honorable, but that shifty eyed retainer of his wants our prized possessions."

 

This whole thread has me thinking about the antagonistic relationship that goes on between players and their GM. I always pictured roleplaying as a group exercise, wherein the GM presents challenges for the characters to overcome. There are usually some laughs when things go stunningly well (or stunningly bad) and stories are built around the exploits of the characters. What I am getting from this thread is that there is a perception from a lot of players that the GM is "out to get them." That's sort of frustrating and a little sad at the same time.

 

In some groups there is an adversarial relationship to the GM. In all of my years of gaming the worst offenders are those groups that are competitive war gamers (or mini gamers). In many cases the GM forgets that he/she is there to spin an entertaining tale for the players. Sometimes the GM's competitive nature only shows up during combats where the GM will forget that it is OK for the PCs to beat his NPCs. In worse case the whole thing degenerates into the GM doing all they can to hose the PC's and the players doing everything they can to get their PC's to survive the game. Not a good situation.

[Lezentauw]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

Now that everyone has displayed their paranoia using today's mentality, let's try to get back to the OP's original idea.

 

If you are in a civilized town, I think that what you are presenting is more than reasonable. In our history, only the gentry and the guards were allowed to bear arms inside of a civilized area. Though, that was mostly to keep the peasantry from uprising, it also did help with maintaining the peace. Even then, they did not go around in chain or plate mail except during time of war...

 

If the players are truly in a civilized area, perhaps they will not even be allowed to bear arms out of town. The local patrols maintain the roads, and there would be no need for common folk to bear arms in such areas. In such areas, if the pcs wanted their gear with them, they would have to have some way to keep it stored, or just go without.

 

If the players are in an area where it is viewed to be acceptable for their safety to bear arms outside of town, but not in, you can do a couple of things. If they have a chest to store their gear in, prior to getting to town, they can keep their gear and take it and store it where they are staying. If they don't have a chest, they can leave it with the guards, and expect the gear to be there when they leave. You could have a guard escort them to an inn, for a minor fee as the guard has to leave his post, and they can then leave the gear there. They could allow it where the guards will take their to gear to the where they are staying at, once they are informed of the location. This would happen when after a guard is no longer on duty, and for a tip. If the players chose to keep the gear in their room, they should be pretty sure that nothing will happen to it. You can emphasize that this time period, is not like it is today. If they are at an inn, the inn keeper would greatly fear any negative reputation that he let one of his guests get robbed. So inns would be guarded, just for their own reputation. During our medieval age, locks did exist, but they were not that good. The most important thing that deterred a thief was the repercussion he would suffer if he got caught, most likely a death sentence.

 

As you move to the areas that are more untamed, then the laws should be more lax, as the travelers would be allowed to protect themselves. These are the areas that many people naturally assume every town to be like. In these towns, while the player may not be allowed to bear the heavy armors and heavy weapons, they may be allowed to bear smaller weapons. In some towns, that could be considered like the wild west, they could be allowed to wear light armors. It really depends on what you want to allow in those semi-dangerous areas. And, even though the town is more lax, it does not mean that thievery is going to be any more prevalent... A thief would still be risking that death sentence, though this time it they may not make it to trial...

 

When it comes down to thievery, a thief is not going to be stupid about it. If you do incorporate these rules, you also get some added benefits from them. A thief, much like today, is not going to take something that is big and bulky, much less something that is obvious he has no right to bear. The thief has to be able to fence his goods. While the artisans during this time period would do what it took to get ahead, they were still for the most part honest people. They would not buy a sword from a commoner, nor a suit of armor, especially if that person is a local. If the thief cannot fence the stolen goods, then they do no good to him. The thief, also would want to have a way to get away from the scene unnoticed. In most cases, that would mean that he would be after smaller items; money and jewelry come easiest to mind. Fancy clothing, if the thief has enough time to change, would be a very valuable thing during this time period.

[Curufea]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

You had me until "Keep the peasantry from uprising", after that I couldn't take the rest seriously.

[Nolgroth]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

In some groups there is an adversarial relationship to the GM. In all of my years of gaming the worst offenders are those groups that are competitive war gamers (or mini gamers). In many cases the GM forgets that he/she is there to spin an entertaining tale for the players. Sometimes the GM's competitive nature only shows up during combats where the GM will forget that it is OK for the PCs to beat his NPCs. In worse case the whole thing degenerates into the GM doing all they can to hose the PC's and the players doing everything they can to get their PC's to survive the game. Not a good situation.

I suppose what throws me off guard is that this is the HERO forum. I would expect that in a D&D forum or a Palladium forum. Here, it just does not compute correctly. Then again, I was fortunate enough to hook up with some awesome role-players for a pretty long stretch.

[tesuji]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

There's something I've always wondered why fantasy RPGs didn't bother with dealing with, and that is that you don't want to wear your adventuring gear while visiting a town, especially if you want to stay there for a long period.

 

After all, would you carry a loaded M-16 down the streets of Portland? It would make people run away, call the SWAT team out on you, and generally brand you as a dangerous lunatic. Even active duty soldiers never carry around their heavy weapons outside combat zones, especially in their homelands.

 

I can't see how towns and cities in fantasy worlds would be much different. Wear a full suit of armor into the inn with a broadsword strapped to your back and a crossbow on your hip and everyone there will probably think you're a bandit out to rob the place!

 

Which raises some practical questions: what do you wear in town? Where do you stow your adventuring gear during your stay? And if something happens in town, how quickly can you get to your equipment and weapons?

 

well, in many historical references from the days of swords, it seemed not uncommon at all for men to walk around with their swords at their side, much like in the "westerns" men seem to be carrying guns almost all the time.

 

In these genres - historical/fantasy/western - they share a sort of "frontier justice" theme where it is not at all out of sorts for two men to "settle their differences" with weapons or to have "defend yourself" be the norm as opposed to the modern worlds "call the cops".

 

So likening someone walking around with a sword in fantasy to someone carrying an M16 down main street today seems a bit off.

 

Now as for plate mail and such, for that there is simply a fairly typical "lets ignore how uncomfortable this stuff is" aspect in most fantasy rpgs when compared to historical references. However, thats not necessarily out of sorts with the genre either depending on your sources.

 

So to me it depends on what you are trying to portray - realistic or cinematic or various sources - and what you want to focus on. mant gamers see fantasy rpgs as "fights" and "monster hunts" and so want to "have my stuff" more than not. This might be a different choice if the game were focusing on courtly intrigue.

 

So its all relative to your desired source. i recall some Arthurian movies where the knights only seemed out of full plate when taking liberties with maidens. Some where even that didn't get them out of armor. I recall others where "getting geared up" was only done for battle - but swords were frequently carried.

[Curufea]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

It's basically a misinterpretation by the makers of popular media about actual history. Because gamers base all their "knowledge" on popular media, it's what they feel comfortable with. They like "Medieval Superhero Westerns". Or at least because it has been the only choice in their lives, they assume it is the only option.

 

At least in the Fantasy Hero book they talk about other genres. At least the Hero System encourages players and GMs to think outside the prison of assumed common knowledge.

[Ice9]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

Thinking about it, how you present the situation might also have an impact. If the PCs show up at the gate and are told "Hey, no peasants with weapons, hand those over!" - that's going to rankle. If the campaign is a low-powered "scrappy villagers trying to make it big, or just survive" deal, then that fits fine. But if it's a "heroes that slay dragons and save kingdoms" situation, then being treated like that is going to irk most characters, and they might just decide not to play along.

 

In that case, a lighter touch may work better - "Welcome, warriors - let use conduct you to the armory, so you may store your burdens. What, walk around town in armor? You'd be taken for invading troops, and we don't want to cause a panic."

[Shinobi Killfis]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

Before taking away weapons and armor I think paying attention to what other attacks and defenses are available is important.

 

If magic is relatively common or martial arts are advanced to the degree of a monk in D&D all taking weapons away does is pick on the warrior types. Everyone else is prepared for battle, the thief well he kept his dagger and he really doesn't wear armor and relies upon agility, the mage has spells to protect him, the martial artist has skin like iron and can punch through walls. The fighter type gives up everything, fun for him if shit happens.

 

And this isn't just a fun for him issue but a world building issue, if you know there are plenty of people who can punch through walls and throw lightning do you really give a crap if some guy carries a sword. And wouldn't the "common" folk be upset that they can't cary a weapon when building destroying mages are walking around with out any limitations

 

On top of that the "western fantasy" makes a lot of sense in a world where orcs attack, there are goblins, ware-wolves, and slimes in the sewer. There is an organized thieves and assassins guild, towns do get attacked by monsters, there is a necromancer in the graveyard etc.

 

Of course not all fantasy isn't like that, but I'd say given the dangers of the typical fantasy setting law abiding citizens carrying armor and weapons does not seem outlandish to me.

[Beast]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

I would say if the GM says there are laws saying you should not be wearing armor then the encounters in town should reflect this

on the other hand a mage might work on making those protection spells and wards usable on friends also

warriors can also take some weapon familarities with staff and other improv type weapons

 

while in town there are all sorts of things that can be used as weapons and shields

along with terrain that can give cover to flank a foe or used to break contact

 

the greatest weapon is your imagination

or somebody with a radio

[dmjalund]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

and if you can find someone with a radio and an imagination ... WATCH OUT

[Narf the Mouse]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

Well, if we take D&D as the central basis of Fantasy RPG'ing (Which, I'm sorry, it is) - Take a gander through the Monster Manuals and tell me that *Anyone* with even an *Ounce* of sanity would *Ever* be less than fully armed and armoured as well as they could *Possibly be*, outside of a very few situations?

[mayapuppies]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

Well' date=' if we take D&D as the central basis of Fantasy RPG'ing (Which, I'm sorry, it is) - Take a gander through the Monster Manuals and tell me that *Anyone* with even an *Ounce* of sanity would *Ever* be less than fully armed and armoured as well as they could *Possibly be*, outside of a very few situations? [/quote']

 

Yeah, that's where my difficulty comes in. My world is about as far away from a D&D world as you can get and still be medieval fantasy and not Conan. All of my players come from a D&D-centric mindset. There are laws in some countries about wearing armor and weapons (that's what the nobility and soldiers are for) and those same countries will invariably have laws against magic (not that it's even common enough to worry about, but the Royal Academy likes having a monopoly on the stuff...).

 

Don't like leaving your stuff in an inn by itself? Leave someone to guard it or hire a guard. Don't walk into town showcasing your finely crafted weapons and armor. Stay at a respectable inn that takes protecting its guests seriously.

Want to end up a fugitive rather than a hero? Then assault that poor city guard who's just doing his job and trying to keep the peace. Do you think he wants a bunch of loose cannons walking around in what amounts to tanks?

 

Well, at least that's what goes on in my games.

[mayapuppies]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

Here's an excerpt from 'A Magical Medieval City Guide' a free PDF I found on DriveThruRPG.com that I am finding to be a neat little resource:

This begs the question of what to do about adventurers, both NPCs and PCs. Adventurers make a profession of taking jobs that others do not want or are unable to do. They do not have a social definition, yet the core rules state that adventurers do not stir any extraordinary attention by virtue of being adventurers. There are a few ways to resolve the magical medieval mindset and the social reaction to adventurers listed in the core rules. The best way of understanding adventurers from a magical medieval mindset is calling them mercenaries. They travel and act as sell swords and solve problems for wealthy people. Some also do some pro bono work, saving the occasional village from orcs or rescuing the farmer’s daughter from the goblins’ lair. Some wreak terrible damage for personal gain, slaying and pillaging as they go. Like mercenaries, PCs are heroes in armed conflict, but worrisome when the conflict ends. They are a dangerous lot by virtue of their mobility, their paucity of social sponsorship, and de facto, the lack of social restraint.

 

More than likely, PC adventurers draw at least some attention. First, most PCs usually wear armor and are fully equipped for combat and adventuring. This is not very common in a city, unless it is a time of war or a fort city where most people do soldiering. Even then, having a person in full armor with multiple weapons who is not an aristocrat or a knight is rather rare. Anyone showing up at a city’s gates in full armor and fully armed, and who wishes to enter the city in such a state, has a lot of explaining to do. Unless they have a writ or badge identifying their social sponsor, most PCs probably have to surrender martial weaponry and all but light armor into the custody of the city until they depart, at which time, they can collect their things. Second, PCs have backpacks stuffed with interesting things that jingle. As they try to enter the gates, such loot attracts attention of sellers, pickpockets, and the guards collecting taxes at the gate. On top of paying an entry tax (see Mundane and Magical Taxes in Appendix V- Magical Medieval

Miscellany), PCs pay for the goods they bring into the city, even if PCs claim they are not selling anything in town. Bribery, intimidation, bluff, diplomacy, and magic are always options for bypassing the gates and taxes, but PCs must remember that they are subject to the city laws and the force behind them. Third, should someone have the power to look (in larger cities gate guards are always equipped with detect magic) PCs have lots of magic. Cities tax PCs for the magic items they have, and PCs should obey the civic rules on holding and using magic in the city. Some cities have strong groups that regulate the use and abundance of magic in the city. Some cities require people to surrender certain types of magic items and restrain the use of certain schools of magic in the city. PCs would do well to always get the specifics when entering a new city.

 

Large trade cities through which many people travel through are more acclimated to adventurers, mercenaries, and the shady lot of society. But for the most part, adventurers stick out in society. Retired adventurers are understandable, seen as wanderers who settled down and entered society at that point. Even if they adventure again, the retired adventurer has roots and social connections that tie him to a locale.

 

There is an undercurrent among the urban powerful to invite wandering PC adventurers into social obligations, and in effect, a social classification. Adventurers that accept such invitations become agents of a certain lord, religion, or ideal. Such relationships are also beneficial for PCs. Social connections are very useful, if only in tax savings alone. PCs who establish such ties 50 have home bases, relinquishing rented beds and tourist prices for dinner invitations, choice gossip, and surety should something strange happen in their presence.

 

Another truism of the magical medieval city is that news travels fast, especially bad news, and it seems like everyone knows everyone else’s business. When PCs roll into town, it does not take long for everyone to hear about them, know what they look like, and learn how many pitchers of ale they had at lunch. This can make subtlety and covert operations difficult for outsiders. People also know that PCs have lots of money, as displayed by the 50 pounds of metal the fighter wears, the goods they carry into the city, and the amount of magic on their person. This affects the prices they pay for goods and services, the number of touts and beggars that follow them around, and thievery attempts. If the PCs look rough and seasoned or if they come with a social connection, it is possible that no one in town wants that much trouble.

[Manic Typist]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

Yeah' date=' that's where my difficulty comes in. My world is about as far away from a D&D world as you can get and still be medieval fantasy and not Conan. All of my players come from a D&D-centric mindset. [/quote']

 

*Cough* Excuse me?

[mayapuppies]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

*Cough* Excuse me?

 

Especially you...

[Shinobi Killfis]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

Here's an excerpt from 'A Magical Medieval City Guide' a free PDF I found on DriveThruRPG.com that I am finding to be a neat little resource:

 

Wow I do not like that at all. It seemed basically a list of here are a bunch of ways you can screw over your pcs and pretend you have some kind of logical world justification about it.

[mayapuppies]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

Wow I do not like that at all. It seemed basically a list of here are a bunch of ways you can screw over your pcs and pretend you have some kind of logical world justification about it.

 

Yeah, I imagine that will be the reaction of some. To me it was a reminder that the PC's are part of a living breathing world and not somehow parallel to the world and thus not affected by the norms of a society.

 

It just depends on the type of game you're running.

[Vulcan]

Re: battle Wear vs. Town Wear

 

Here's an excerpt from 'A Magical Medieval City Guide' ....

 

I think that clip (and by extension, the whole document) does a whole lot of assuming as to the nature of adventurers and the very world a GM is running. Sure, that depiction draws fairly heavily on history so it has the weight of 'realism' on it's side. On the other hand, history rarely had individuals of such power routinely roaming around having adventures either. The closest I can think of in 'real' history is... well, Greek mythology, which is hardly real at all. And while town guards might be a petty annoyance to the hero of the story, the hero pretty quickly shows the petty annoynaces who is who and what is what when push comes to shove.

 

Besides, if you start imposing lots of taxes on adventures when they come in through the gate... they stop coming in the gate. The average adventurer of any renown has plenty of ways to bypass the guards. In D&D Dimiension Door has a fairly long range - one can go from the nearby woods to the center of town easily enough. Teleport allows one to go hundreds of miles by itself. And that doesn't even go into the myriad version of flying available. Just fly over the walls after dark and you're good.

 

And now, Mr. Mayor, you have adventurers in town that no one in an offical capacity knows are there!

 

Sure, draconian laws can be drafted to punish people who do this. Great. How are you going to enforce it? You'd need a group of adventurers yourself, a really high level group just crackling with power, to do the enforcement. A less obvious group would just provoke a highly destructive fight, after all. You need a group so bad-ass that no one in their right mind or not (adventurers are notoriously unsane) would dare actually fight them.

 

Such groups do not come cheap.

 

Besides, if you do manage all this, well, you get a reputation as being unwelcoming to adventurers. So they are going to take that highly valuable loot they have collected and go elsewhere to cash it in. Not to mention the little detail that they likely won't come help next time a dragon or a horde of orcs comes a-callin'....

 

So what do you do?

 

Simple. You hide the taxes. Why do you think the prices listed in the Player's handbook are so high? Does anyone actually think that a simple rowboat is worth a POUND of gold? A guard dog is worth half a pound? Bull. That's the price that adventurers pay, because the local powers have written the tax codes that way. Residents overcharge out-of-towners who are not reputable merchants by a ridiculous margin, most of it goes to the town/local lord, and the resident keeps a small percentage for his work in helping with the collecting.

 

Sure beats getting half the town blown up every time a mid-level party comes to visit.