RPG Monies
Just a few sessions of Star Wars Saga Edition on the player side of things, and I'm stricken by the extreme range in currency-dependency of the characters.
In D&D, there's generally a way to convert gold to magic items. And magic items are used to increase character power. So whether because of Honest Abe's Discount Magic Items chain or a party member with item creation feats, it's generally assumed that that this conversion will happen - gold becomes an increase to the character's abilities in some fashion.
Star Wars games, because of the material they emulate, don't have that outlet as there aren't any ubiquitous magic items. So it seems you end up with two (maybe two and a half) types of characters who are on opposite extremes. On one end, you have the characters that almost don't care about credits. A Jedi gets his lightsaber, a scoundrel gets his blaster, and... they're good to go. As long as they have enough money to buy meals (if the game even covers that) and an occasional mission-critical piece of equipment, they never want for money...
On the other end, you have characters who can never get enough money. Owning a ship is a massive money sink right there. Heck, they can piss away hundreds or even thousands of credits at every stop just to restock, nevermind actual repairs or improvements. Also, the Tech Specialist feat is the closest thing to enchanting, allowing usually granting a one or two point bonus to a single aspect of an items/ship/droid - which costs money and time. Give these characters tens of thousands of credits, and they have no trouble making that all vanish given the opportunity.
Arguably, there's a middle ground of characters who are conceptualized around a gear set they can't afford out the gate - a heavily armed and armored Mandalorian for instance. But really they just go from desperately wanting funds to having what they need once they reach the threshold of affording what they're after.
And I... have somehow managed to make the perfect storm - a ship owner/captain who is a Tech Specialist. That mechanical dependency on funds has fueled a certain personality, and I'm not sure I'm entirely comfortable with that, as she's constantly worried about being able to afford repairs/supplies/improvements while no one else in the group really has reason to care. Not sure there's anything to do about it, per se, but it just feels odd to have money sinks that only exist for certain characters in a game.
In D&D, there's generally a way to convert gold to magic items. And magic items are used to increase character power. So whether because of Honest Abe's Discount Magic Items chain or a party member with item creation feats, it's generally assumed that that this conversion will happen - gold becomes an increase to the character's abilities in some fashion.
Star Wars games, because of the material they emulate, don't have that outlet as there aren't any ubiquitous magic items. So it seems you end up with two (maybe two and a half) types of characters who are on opposite extremes. On one end, you have the characters that almost don't care about credits. A Jedi gets his lightsaber, a scoundrel gets his blaster, and... they're good to go. As long as they have enough money to buy meals (if the game even covers that) and an occasional mission-critical piece of equipment, they never want for money...
On the other end, you have characters who can never get enough money. Owning a ship is a massive money sink right there. Heck, they can piss away hundreds or even thousands of credits at every stop just to restock, nevermind actual repairs or improvements. Also, the Tech Specialist feat is the closest thing to enchanting, allowing usually granting a one or two point bonus to a single aspect of an items/ship/droid - which costs money and time. Give these characters tens of thousands of credits, and they have no trouble making that all vanish given the opportunity.
Arguably, there's a middle ground of characters who are conceptualized around a gear set they can't afford out the gate - a heavily armed and armored Mandalorian for instance. But really they just go from desperately wanting funds to having what they need once they reach the threshold of affording what they're after.
And I... have somehow managed to make the perfect storm - a ship owner/captain who is a Tech Specialist. That mechanical dependency on funds has fueled a certain personality, and I'm not sure I'm entirely comfortable with that, as she's constantly worried about being able to afford repairs/supplies/improvements while no one else in the group really has reason to care. Not sure there's anything to do about it, per se, but it just feels odd to have money sinks that only exist for certain characters in a game.