Common Equipment
| Category | Item | Price in Coins | USD Equivalent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Survival | 50ft Hemp Rope | 10 CP | $10 |
| Iron Pot / Skillet | 50 CP | $50 | |
| 10x Torches / 1 gal Oil | 2 SP | $20 | |
| Quality Canvas Tent (2-man) | 2 GP | $2,000 | |
| Clothing | Commoner’s Outfit (Wool/Linen) | 5 SP | $50 |
| Traveler’s Gear (Sturdy, Hooded) | 2 GP | $2,000 | |
| Noble’s Regalia (Silk/Embroidery) | 15+ GP | $15,000+ | |
| Hospitality | Bed in a Common Room (Hay floor) | 2 CP | $2 |
| Private Room at a Good Inn | 1 SP | $10 | |
| Gallon of Ale / Cheap Wine | 5 CP | $5 | |
| A "Knight’s Feast" (Meat, fine wine) | 2 SP | $20 | |
| Equipment | Dagger / Hunting Knife | 2 SP | $20 |
| Professional Broadsword | 1 GP | $1,000 | |
| Crossbow (Mechanical/Complex) | 5 GP | $5,000 | |
| Armor | Padded Gambeson (Basic Defense) | 1 GP | $1,000 |
| Chainmail Hauberk | 5 GP | $5,000 | |
| Full Plate Armor (Custom-fitted) | 30 GP | $30,000 | |
| Transport | Donkey / Pack Mule | 8 SP | $80 |
| Riding Horse (Sturdy Palfrey) | 5 GP | $5,000 | |
| Warhorse (Trained Destrier) | 50 GP | $50,000 | |
| Large Wagon (covered) | 3 GP | $3,000 | |
| Real Estate | Monthly Rent (City Slum/Attic) | 2 SP | $20 |
| Small Cottage & Subsistence Plot | 15 GP | $15,000 | |
| Working Farm (Small Business) | 100 GP | $100,000 | |
| Fortified Stone Keep (Basic) | 5,000 GP | $5,000,000 | |
| Grand Castle / Fortress | 50,000+ GP | $50,000,000+ |
To prevent your 5th-level adventurers from "buying" the kingdom, it is helpful to map social status to annual revenue rather than just static net worth. In a feudal system, a person’s class is defined by the amount of land and labor they control, which generates a recurring "salary" that dwarfed any single hoard of gold. Using your conversion of 1 Gold Piece (GP) = $1,000 USD, here is a rough map of medieval social classes and their estimated annual "incomes." Feudal Class & Income Map
| Social Class [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6] | Est. Annual Income (Coins) | Modern USD Equiv. | Description / Lifestyle |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serf / Peasant | 12 – 50 SP | $120 – $500 | Bare subsistence; mostly self-sufficient through farming. |
| Unskilled Laborer | 20 – 30 GP | $20,000 – $30,000 | Town workers, porters, and farmhands. |
| Master Craftsman | 100 – 300 GP | $100k – $300k | High-end blacksmiths, master masons, or successful merchants. |
| Landed Knight | 500 – 1,500 GP | $500k – $1.5M | Owns a manor; must fund his own armor, horses, and small retinue. |
| Baron / Minor Lord | 2,000 – 10,000 GP | $2M – $10M | Controls several manors; maintains a small fortification and garrison. |
| Earl / Duke | 20,000 – 100,000 GP | $20M – $100M | High nobility; controls entire provinces and thousands of vassals. |
| The Monarch | 500,000 – 1M+ GP | $500M – $1B+ | The wealth of the nation; pays for armies, infrastructure, and courts. |
Keeping Adventurers in Check
While a 5th-level party might find a "dragon's hoard" worth 10,000 GP ($10 million), they still lack the structural power of a king for several reasons:
- Income vs. Liquid Cash: A King has an annual income of $500M+. An adventurer might have $10M in a bag once, but they don't have 10,000 peasants paying them rent every autumn.
- Overhead Costs: A Duke's $20M income is almost entirely spent on maintaining castles, paying soldiers, and feeding thousands of retainers. They are often "cash-poor" but "asset-rich."
- Social Barriers: Historically, you couldn't simply "buy" a title like Duke. It was tied to blood and land granted by the Crown. A rich merchant or adventurer might be richer than a poor knight, but they would still be socially "below" them unless they were granted land by a superior.
- Market Scarcity: Even if an adventurer has $100M, there isn't a "Castle Store." Building a keep requires years of labor, specialized architects, and royal permission—things money alone cannot always bypass. [2, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13]
In this system, a 5th-level adventurer is roughly equivalent to a successful professional or minor knight ($100k–$500k net worth), while a King remains a "corporate entity" with billions in revenue. [7]
[1] https://www.today.com [2] https://history.stackexchange.com [3] https://willscommonplacebook.blogspot.com [4] https://www.reddit.com [5] https://www.quora.com [6] https://www.quora.com [7] https://www.quora.com [8] https://www.quora.com [9] https://www.quora.com [10] https://www.quora.com [11] https://www.ebsco.com [12] https://courses.lumenlearning.com [13] https://forum.paradoxplaza.com