After posting about Luka’s Inventory system, I had a discussion with someone on Luka’s Discord channel about how 1 stone per pack seems too light, since in the UVG Luka defines a sack thusly:
A sack is:
• all of a hero’s adventuring or professional gear. Magic
skulls of memory for wizards, a year’s supply of
swordmaceaxes for fighters, golf clubs for the thief,
whatever.
• A sack of supplies. Enough food, water, camping gear,
and toilet paper to survive for a week.
• one rider or unconscious human.
• a unit of trade goods.
• 2500 5E coins of any type.
Now, my initial reaction about all of this is that the intent here of inventory abstraction is not to get lost in the details. If you want details of inventory management, then make your players write down each item they have. But, I had what I think to be a good idea:
A Sack of any of the following Packs = 1 sack / ∆20 and costs 50+4d6 gp. You can take Packs out of the Sack. Each pack you take out of the Sack is 1 Stone and takes you one step up the dice chain. When a ∆ reduces, one stone of supplies is also removed from your inventory.
So let’s have an example: You have a sack of medical supplies on your mule. When you are with the mule, you can use them as you see fit. When you tie the mule up at the dungeon entrance you take 1 stone of supplies off the mule. The player rolls a ∆20, it comes up as a 14 so the Sack does not step down. The player writes Medical Pack ∆4 on the inventory sheet. The character then takes a second stone of the medical pack, so the player rolls a ∆20 and it results in a value of 10. The sack does not step down, the player writes Medical Pack ∆6 on his inventory. This medical pack now takes up 2 stones. The character takes a third stone out of the sack, because his party tend to be reckless. The player rolls the ∆20 and it comes up as a 2. Now the Medical Sack on the mule steps down to a ∆12 (decreasing from ∆20). The character now has 3 stones of Medical Pack, with a ∆8.
Packs – Each 1 stone is one step on the ∆chain – Initially, a pack costs 10+2d6 gp. Packs can be increased or refilled for 2d6 gp per ∆ step. If a ∆4 pack reduces, it cannot be refilled.
- Camper’s Pack – For Making Camp & Camp Life (Ex. Stove, Tent, Bedroll, Pots & Pans, Salt, Fishing Tackle)
- Excavator’s Pack – For Digging, Unearthing, Reinforcing Tunnels (Ex. Pick, Shovel, Hammer, Block & Tackle)
- Climber’s Pack – For Climbing, Descending, & Rappelling (Ex. Rope, Pitons, Climber Pick, Chalk, Grapple)
- Bureaucrat’s Pack – For Notarizing, Certifying, Authenticating, Contracting, Auditing (Ex. Ink, Paper, Wax Seal, Signet Ring)
- Priest’s Pack – For Rituals, Sermons, Judgment & Penance (Ex. Psalm Book, Incense, Holy Symbol)
- Healer’s Pack – For Staunching, Cauterizing, Amputating, Bandaging, & Sterilizing Wounds (Ex. Bandages, Bone Saw, Alcohol)
- Specified Crafter’s Pack – For Crafting with Specified Skill (Ex. Blacksmith hammer, alchemist scale, Forgery tools, Disguise makeup)
- Outdoorsman Pack – For Hunting, Fishing, & Trapping (Ex. Traps, Whistles, Specialized Knives, Lures, Salt)
- Thieves Pack – For Picking Locks, Disarming Traps, Greasing Hinges (Ex. Lockpick, File, Grease)
- Winter Survival Pack – For Navigating Ice, Walking on Snow, & Not Freezing (Ex. Crampons, Ski Poles, Ski Shoes, Blanket)
This all also possibly needlessly complicates a tool that is meant to be a simple way to abstract inventory. I’m not sure if I will actually use this or not, but I feel like it might work.
Shoalmont Games 