The Wealth System

[fsultana]

Hi new to the forum and BRP.

I was just wondering, if a PC chooses a Noble (or other Wealth orientated) profession, but for the sake of the story all PCs must be penniless by the first game, should I compensate him in some other way (ie more skills etc)?

Also is there rules for decreasing/increasing wealth - I'm sure there are, but have missed them.

Thanks in advance

[rust]

I would not compensate the character for his lack of wealth, because the characters's

player did not have to "pay" for the wealth level in any way, like he had to "pay" for the

skills with skill points.

The wealth level is a roleplaying aid, not a part of the game mechanics, and it is only a

suggestion, nothing hard and fast - history has seen lots of impoverished nobles, not

only wealthy ones.

If you want a system for increasing or decreasing the wealth level, you could start with

the connection between wealth level and status and the table on page 79, I think.

[soltakss]

There are many ways for a wealthy PC to become poor before the start of a campaign.

I wouldn't compensate him for it - in fact it opens up a lot of roleplayibng opportunities. What happened to make him poor? Were his lands seized by a rival? Was he a wealthy merchant cheated out of his goods? Is he a gambler? Is he planning on regaining his fortune? How about making a new fortune?

Wealth can go down as well as up. However, BRP doesn't have much in the way of hard and fast rules for increasing/decreasing wealth. I can't think of any off the top of my head.

[HeadWound]

There are always the 6th or 7th sons of a noble who have no inheritance left for them, although "the fall of the household" could be a rich source for a background.