Filthy Lucre
or, The Most Ungentlemanly Necessity of Hard Cash
Money
Money makes the world go 'round and everyone needs to spend it, earn it, or borrow it. The monetary unit used for currency is the Crown (Cr). You will earn money through various means and spend it as you please. You will have an allowance from your father (generally your primary income) and a salary if you join the military. You can also earn a salary if you receive an appointment. And, you will gain money as plunder if you go on campaign in the military. You may embezzle funds when holding certain appointments, but there is danger if you are caught. The clergy can tip the plates to earn money. And, if you are strapped for cash you can always borrow from a shylock. Details follow.
Allowance
Your allowance, if you have one, is collected at the beginning of the month. The only way it can change is if your father or older brother dies. Details are in Birth & Background and Death & Inheritance.
Loans
If you don't have enough to do everything you want to do, then you can borrow money from other players or from a Shylock. If, during your turn, your character runs short of cash, he will automatically float a loan from a shylock for the minimum amount to remain solvent. No character may end a month in arrears without courting Disgrace.
Character Loans
If you borrow money from another character then you must negotiate the terms, and coordinate the transfer of funds. Both players should have something in their order sheet specifying the transaction, or it will not be conducted.
Shylocks
Shylocks will loan up to the character's SL multiplied by 100 in crowns in lots of 100 crowns at a time. Unfortunately, they charge a one time ten percent interest and the loan must be paid back within six months. Thus, if you borrow 100 crowns in January, 110 crowns are due by the end of July. Failure to repay a loan sees the character disgraced. Loan payment is due regardless of your character's current activities. If your character goes out on Campaign and his loan comes due, he must still repay the loan or suffer the consequences.
Salaries and Pensions
Salaries from military positions or appointments are collected at the end of the month. A gentleman never requests an advance.
Work
If you are really strapped for money you can actually work to earn funds. See Working (3.11) for details and opportunities. Of course, barring some form of elaborate artwork, menial labor hardly befits a gentleman.
Maintenance & Conspicuous Consumption
A gentleman is known by his comportment, which requires the expenditure of money. Normal support entails food, clothing and cost of living, which everyone must pay. Conspicuous Consumption includes tipping well, meeting friends for dinner and picking up the tab, dressing a little better, eating out at the best restaurants more often and so on. Status points are gained by increasingly lavish behavior (i.e. higher levels of Conspicuous Consumption). The level of Conspicuous Consumption is selected at the beginning of the month, and may not change at any time during that month.
| Level | Equivalent | SP |
Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| ConCon0 | Conservative | 0 |
2*SL |
| ConCon1 | Tailored | +1 |
3*SL |
| ConCon2 | Impeccable | +2 |
5*SL |
| ConCon3 | Impressive | +3 |
9*SL |
| ConCon4 | Ostentatious | +4 |
14*SL |
A Conspicuous Consumption of level 0 is always assumed unless otherwise specified.
Supporting NPCs
Support for Mistresses, Lackeys, and other NPC's are tallied at the end of the month. If you have a wealthy mistress as of the end of the month, she will pay you support at the end of the month. All such support is assumed to take place unless you explicitly dismiss the NPC.
Campaign Exemptions
The French are great admirers of heroism, and none so much as soldiers on active duty. Thus, the tradition of the impot de sang (or "blood tax") was born. The upkeep for characters on campaign are assumed to be forgiven, although pay is still collected. Horses, similarly, are not charged; however, dependent NPCs must be paid for unless dismissed.
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