Blood Gem

The blood gem was created during the early years of the Council of Wolves. It was made to replace the currency of metal coins that the fae had outlawed when they made an alliance. It was crafted from the very blood of the user and this made it a personal item.
    Each blood gem was imbued with the power to be used by its owner to pay for goods and services at one of the many blood stations within the Arcology of Capara. Thus allowing commerce to continue to flow even when coins were not around. Every citizen of Capara owned one and treated it as a family heirloom, never allowing others to touch it for fear of corruption. 
    The numerical system used by the Caparians was matched to the value of gold coins to allow outside visitors a chance to haggle without being confused. Outsiders though not citizens were allowed to have blood coins as a replacement for whatever wealth they had locked away prior to entering the city. The citizens were required to honor the coins as if blood gem wealth regardless of where it was aquired.
    Since the creation of blood gems and the use of blood coins became the basis of the economy in Capara the government had to back the currency with a commodity. Since they were wealthy in crops they selected one bag of rice per blood coin. This not only allowed an exchange rate that favored the nation but allowed outsiders a way to feed large amounts of people no matter the time of year.