The Winter's Oasis Wiki

Romps and Reconstruction in Loka: Steam, Magic, and Mysteries in the Frozen Wasteland.

Loka’s economy, like its stage of technical development, most closely resembles 19th century America with certain variations. As compared to that period, certain technologies such as firearms are less developed and more expensive, and others such as programmable machinery are more available and less expensive. Compared to the present day, technology and manufactured good in general are more expensive, and food, labor and land are less expensive.

The prices listed are for “typical” city conditions. As a general rule of thumb, goods are cheaper where they’re in local abundance, closest to where they’re produced, and more expensive where they’re in high local demand, especially if transportation is difficult. Outside the cities, produce will be cheaper, and manufactured goods and urban services more expensive. In the most intensively urbanized areas, the opposite holds true.

An illustrative [Old West pricelist http://www.wintersoasis.com/pricelist.pdf] may be used as a guide. Consider 19th century 5c to be the rough equivalent of 1V. In modern terms, very very approximately 1V might be compared to $1 or so, but differential inflation as described above makes that much less useful as a reference.

An illustrative “middle class” weekly wage might be in the range of 50–100V (basic professions, itinerants with needed skills). The majority of the populace, however, lives in non-cash subsistence conditions as a farmer or as a hunter-gatherer, or in city slum conditions.

Categories: Economy