So one of the things that a number of players have expressed that they missed is the opportunity to "live large", as it were. To spend money and get an immediate, tangible social benefit throughout a module. So we're planning to bring lifestyle costs back, to provide that option to players where appropriate. That said, we neither want to make it prohibitive or a mere pittance, so please weigh in with your opinions on this.

The current cost/benefit idea looks like this (using as a base that the average Earning a Living Roll will net players 7 Sc on 2d10+d6):

Low lifestyle: No cost/-2 to all social interaction rolls
Regular lifestyle: 4 Sc (5 Sc w/Expensive Taste) / No bonuses or penalties
High lifestyle: 12 Sc (15 Sc w/Expensive Taste) / +2 to all social interaction rolls
Exalted lifestyle: 25 Sc (31 Sc w/Expensive Taste) / +5 to all social interaction rolls

These bonuses are Lifestyle bonuses, and would stack with any other social bonuses or offset any penalties you may possess.

Not every lifestyle will be available in every module (particularly Exalted), and not every time will Lifestyle be necessary (if you do something for someone and they cover your expenses, for example). This also allows us to bring back specific uses for certain favours some NPCs can offer, like completing a particularly difficult task for a Patrician in Grand Coryan could get you access to High lifestyle at no cost whenever you're in the city (since he considers himself your friend).

Thoughts? Opinions? Ideas to enhance this to make a richer, more engaging story environment?

I like lifestyle costs. However a +5 on all social interaction rolls is huge! Yes, the cost is a lot. But I expect that at tiers 3+ those costs won't really be all that prohibitive. (I could be mistaken.) Regardless,a +5 works out to a roughly 40% to maybe 43% increase in the probability of success on a roll. (Assuming that the target for the roll is near the average for the dice you are using. i.e. a 16 for 2d10 + d10 or a 15 for 2d10 + d8.) I would be worried about the effects of having such a high bonus on social encounters.

Scott

This also allows us to work in degrees of success, like we do with Streetwise: Gather Information checks: Sometimes you can be convincing, but not convincing enough to get everything. Instead of a static TN:20 = success, lower = fail, we can have TN 20: Success, TN 25: Success +, TN 30: Success ++, and people who take Exalted lifestyle will have a reasonable chance to actually make those TNs without exploding dice.

And sometimes having Exalted lifestyle may actually work to your detriment depending on the class of people you're trying to shmooze, while Low Lifestyle may actually gain you benefits... Lots of stuff we can do.

I was actually really happy that we had done away with lifestyle, as it was more of an accounting exercise than anything. I think it would be a better idea to make money sinks that are interesting rather than the same ol same old

I personally think its a good move bringing back Living Costs. If people are rolling their day job for free silver having them spend some of it on a Living Cost only makes sense.

Also i like what Tony said about the versatility of higher and lower TN's based on the cost of Living. I think it adds to the immersion factor of the game... little details can make big differences.

Technically, the same applies to Earning a Living rolls; they're an accounting exercise with nothing but a net gain. As is really any game 'economy'.

An alternative would be to say "At the beginning of every mod, you get X amount of coin based on your current social status. You can spend it or not as you choose, but it doesn't carry over. You get what you get, and that's that." Then you don't have any accounting whatsoever from module to module. Magic/special items become the sole purview of modules to give out as loot from fallen foes. Which would be an interesting way of going about it, but doesn't fit with something we've already established in the Arcanis: RPG; that there is an economy, there is an ebb and flow of money, and that ultimately whether we introduce Lifestyle costs or not, there is accounting that is being done.

What we can do, however, is make the 'accounting exercise' serve the story, rather than the other way around. Off the top of my head I can think of a half dozen mod encounters shaped by the Lifestyle that some people take. One quick example: Someone takes exalted Lifestyle, then heads into the Old Coryan slums trying to get information. Well, they're pretty damn likely to be jumped by a gang of ruffians unless they're obviously well protected, and even then they may be a target of someone who just brushes by them and pick pockets them, simply because they *look* all fancy.

Funny, I also don't roll making a living rolls either

I like this personally. I do the living rolls most of the time when I remember. Having a tangible benefit to spending money would be good too. My character would personally use it a lot. I think the bonuses should be based on Tier, however.

Cost Base (with Expensive Tastes):
High: 8 Sc (10 Sc) / Tier for a +1 Social Bonus / Tier
Exalted: 16 (20 Sc) / Tier for a +2 Social Bonus / Tier

Because otherwise at higher tiers, the cost will be negligible as would the bonus.

John

When I was GMing at Origins, most of the players where unaware of the making a living rule. I tried to educate as many as I could, I love the extra coins, but then I am greedy git.

Kenny

I like this modification. Make the bonuses and costs scale better if you want a boost based on tier. A +5 is monstrous at tier 1 but likely not as huge a deal at tier 3 (well, it would be +6 but close enough).