Coinage and Taxes

Because of rising affluence in the city, the coinage system was reformed in 579 CY, and the old low-value iron and bronze pieces are no longer accepted coinage. Many of the old residents moan about the change, but there is no doubt the new coin system is simpler: 500 copper commons = 50 silver nobles = 10 electrum luckies = 5 gold orbs = 1 platinum plate. (For the sake of convenience and brevity in this book, currency designations are abbreviated as "sp ," "gp:' and so forth, where the "p" stands for "pieces.")

The Free City has its own mint (Location C7), where its own coin is manufactured (details of the City Mint may be found in Ch8 GoF). Greyhawk coinage circulates freely in all the lands that border the Nyr Dyv, but the reverse is not always true. While "foreign" coinage without which he may not legally approach employers as a mercenary for hire within the city; may not trade plunder gained from Greyhawk Castle; and may not perform any other actions or transactions of a similar sort. Guild Tax: Members of guilds of skill (not general laborers) pay an additional guild membership levy each year, and this is passed on to the coffers of the city. This sum varies, from 5 sp for the lowest artisans to 5 gp for lawyers and scribes, may be accepted (and the coin of such lands as Veluna, Furyondy, and Umst often is), Greyhawk merchants will often direct people using such coin to the Guild of Moneychangers and Pawnbrokers (Location F4), where it can be exchanged for the coinage of Greyhawk. Details of this guild and its conversion rates are found in Chapter 4 and in Ch10 GoF.

Taxes in Greyhawk are fairly low, and the rulers have curried favor with the people by imposing them mostly on trade which is passing through the city. The major taxes are these:

Ship Tax: Any vessel berthing in Greyhawk must pay a sum of between 3 sp and 5 gp per day (or part thereof, depending on the size of the craft; a river barge would pay the smallest fee. a large cog able to sail the Nyr Dyv or an ocean would pay the highest amount.

Cargo Tax: Imported cargo being traded in Greyhawk is subject to taxation at a rate which is variable, but always only a small fraction of its value (never as much as 1%) , since so much cargo is traded within the city.

Precious Metal Tax: This is an exception to the general rule of low taxation. Because Greyhawk wishes to sell its own metals from the Cairn Hills mines (on which no tax is levied), precious metals arriving from elsewhere are taxed at 1% for any trade transaction within the city. The sole exception is the fine platinum of Urnst, Greyhawk's neighbor, which is taxed at 0.5% as a trade favor to the powerful adjacent duchy. "Precious metal" means any metal used in coinage copper, silver, electrum, gold, or platinum. Because any single vessel will never carry a cargo solely composed of such metal-the risk (not to mention the weight) would be enormous for such a concentration of wealth in one craft such cargoes do not evade Greyhawk, given the low taxes on other cargoes, so that this tax is a good source of income for the city's coffers.

Freesword Tax: Any adventurer not a citizen of Greyhawk (usually, a mercenary) is required to pay the sum of 3 gp upon entrance into the city. This payment gives the adventurer a written license, without which he may not legally approach employers as a mercenary for hire within the city; may not trade plunder gained from Greyhawk Castle; and may not perform any other actions or transactions of a similar sort.

Guild Tax: Members of guilds of skill (not general laborers) pay an additional guild membership levy each year, and this is passed on to the coffers of the city. This sum varies, from 5 sp for the lowest artisans to 5 gp for lawyers and scribes, whose services are expensive and much in demand.

Other special taxes can be levied when the need arises (for example, special costs for rebuilding part of the town gutted by fire). Further, Greyhawk's rulers have shaped the city's legal system so that sentences of dispossession of goods and exile are handed out in preference over long terms of imprisonment. Lord Mayor Nerof Gasgal persuasively argued some years ago that keeping people in prison at the city's expense was pretty stupid compared to the alternative of taking their money and property, and this view rapidly gained acceptance. Income from hefty fines has thus increased the burgeoning wealth of the city's coffers. This inclination toward financial penalties is especially strong with regard to foreigners who infringe the law; as a result, the families or friends of these guilty parties are often held responsible for payment of sometimes exorbitant fines (since the foreigner is usually not carry ing many objects of great value).

As a way of indirectly adding to its affluence, the city has a flourishing system of workhouses (see Chapter 2) so that the cost of labor on public-works projects is often low, balancing the books well and adding further to the riches held in Greyhawk's coffers.